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《a brief history of Britain 英国历史简述》由会员上传分享，免费在线阅读，更多相关内容在教育资源-天天文库。
1、ABriefHistoryofBritainbyPamBarrettWhenFrenchandBritishconstructionworkersmetbeneaththeEnglishChannelin1990,BritainbecamelinkedtoContinentalEuropeforthefirsttimein7,000years.Foritwasthen,whenthelastIceAgeended,thatmeltingicefloodedthelow-lyinglands,creat
2、ingtheEnglishChannelandtheNorthSeaandturningBritainintoanisland.Thisfactofbeing“setapart”wasoneofthetwoseeminglycontradictoryfactorswhichwouldaffecteveryaspectofthecountry’ssubsequenthistory.Theotherwasageniusforabsorbingeveryinvaderandimmigrant,creatin
3、gamongrelbreedwhoseenergieswouldestablishanempireincorporatingaquarterofthepopulationoftheplanet.Earlysettlers:StoneAgepeoplearrived,probablyfromtheIberianpeninsula,inaround3000BC.Theylivedbyfarmingbutleftfewtraces.ThemostdramaticancientmonumentisStoneh
4、engeinWiltshire,builtduringthenext1,000years.Howandwhyitwasbuiltwasamystery,butitmusthavehadreligiousandpoliticalsignificance.TheBeakerpeople,namedaftertheirpottery,werenexttoarrive.Butamoreimportancewaveofimmigration,in700BC,wasthatoftheCeltsfromeaster
5、nandcentralEurope.TheancestorsoftheHighlandScots,theWelshandtheIrish,theyleftbehindarichlegacyofintricateandbeautifulmetalwork.TheRomans:BritishrecordedhistorybeganwhenJuliusCaesarfirstcrossedtheEnglishChannelin55BC.Romanrulecontinuedfornearly400years,f
6、ailingtosubjugateonlyScottishtribes,whoseraidingpartieswerecontainedbyEmperorHadrianwhobuiltadefendedwallrightacrossthenorthofEngland.Eventually,threatenedbybarbariansatthegatesofRome,theyabandonedBritain,leavingbehindthemanetworkoftowns,mostlywalled,as
7、uperbroadsystem,andanewreligion,Christianity.ThenextwaveofinvadersfromcentralEurope–Angles,SaxonsandJutes–graduallypushedthenativeCeltswestintoWalesandnorthintoScotland.Anglo-Saxondominance,too,lastedforfourcenturies,thoughitdidnotextendtoScotland,where
8、aseparatekingdomwasforgedbythePictsandtheScots.AlthoughtheAnglo-Saxonswereaferociousbunch,constantlysquabbling,theylaidthefoundationsoftheEnglishstate,dividingthecountryintoshiresanddevisinganeffectivefarmingsystem.TheirTeutonicr
