Реферат: Monarchy of the United Kingdom
Королева широко известна своим интересом к лошадям и верховой езде. Сейчас она является президентом Фонда защиты детей, ректором Лондонского университета и занимается общественной деятельностью.
Принц Эндрю, герцог Йоркский, служил пилотом вертолета в Королевском военно-морском, флоте. В 1986 г. он женился на Саре Фергюсон (сокращенно Ферджи) и имеет двоих детей.
Принц Эдвард любит театр. Этот интерес появился еще в университете. Он оставил Королевскую морскую пехоту и сейчас делает карьеру в составе театральной труппы.
Королева-мать, вдова последнего короля Георга VI, отметила свой столетний юбилей в 2000 г. и умерла в 2002 году. Единственная сестра королевы, принцесса Маргарет, графиня Сноудона, хорошо известна своей благотворительной деятельностью.
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in his or her role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with official national terms for the family.[1] Members of the royal family belong to, either by birth or marriage, the House of Windsor, since 1917, when George V changed the name of the royal house from Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
Although in the United Kingdom there is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member of the Royal Family,[2] and different lists will include different people, those carrying the style His or Her Majesty (HM), or His or Her Royal Highness (HRH) are always considered members, which usually results in the application of the term to the monarch, the consort of the monarch, the widowed consorts of previous monarchs, the children of the monarch, the male-line grandchildren of the monarch, and the spouses and the widows of a monarch's sons and male-line grandsons.
Members and relatives of the British Royal Family historically represented the monarch in various places throughout the British Empire, sometimes for extended periods as viceroys, or for specific ceremonies or events. Today, they often perform ceremonial and social duties throughout the United Kingdom and abroad on behalf of the UK, but, aside from the monarch, have no constitutional role in the affairs of government. This is the same for the other realms of the Commonwealth though the family there acts on behalf of, is funded by, and represents the sovereign of that particular state, and not the United Kingdom
the coronation
The Coronation of the British Monarch is a ceremony (specifically, initiation rite) in which the monarch of the United Kingdom is formally crowned and invested with regalia. It corresponds to coronation ceremonies that formerly occurred in other European monarchies, which have currently abandoned coronations in favour of inauguration or enthronement ceremonies.
The coronation usually takes place several months after the death of the previous monarch, as it is considered a joyous occasion that would be inappropriate when mourning still continues. This also gives planners enough time to complete the elaborate arrangements required. For example, Elizabeth II was crowned on 2 June 1953, despite having acceded to the throne on 6 February 1952, the instant her father died. British law states that the throne is not left vacant and the new monarch succeeds the old immediately.
The ceremony is performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the most senior cleric of the Church of England. Other clergy and members of the nobility also have roles; most participants in the ceremony are required to wear ceremonial uniforms or robes. Many other government officials and guests attend, including representatives of foreign countries.
The essential elements of the coronation have remained largely unchanged for the past thousand years. The sovereign is first presented to, and acclaimed by, the people. He or she then swears an oath to uphold the law and the Church. Following that, the monarch is anointed with oil, crowned, and invested with the regalia, before receiving the homage of his or her subjects.