Funeral fit for a king

 Chris: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Chris.

Rosie: And I'm Rosie.

Chris: Rosie, have you ever heard of the island of Tonga?

Rosie: It sounds familiar, but I’m not too sure where it is.

Chris: It’s a small South Pacific island, near New Zealand. The people of Tonga are in

mourning this week as their King, George Tupou V, recently died.

Rosie: That’s very sad news. Has the funeral taken place?

Chris: Yes it has. And he was a popular king too. We’ll hear just how popular he was

in the report, but before we hear it, I have a question for you about kings and

queens – or monarchs² as they are sometimes called.

Rosie: I’m fairly good with history, so let’s see if I can get your question right.

Chris: Who has been the longest-serving monarch¹ in Europe?

a) Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom

b) King Afonso I of Portugal

c) King Louis XIV of France

Rosie: I know Queen Victoria served for a long time, so I think I’ll go for A, Queen

Victoria.

Chris: OK. Well, we'll find out the answer at the end of the programme. But let’s go

back to our story about the funeral of the king of Tonga.

Rosie: I’m surprised to hear that they still have a monarchy³ in Tonga.

Chris: Yes, it’s the only monarchy left in the Pacific Ocean, and it is spread across

nearly 200 islands. About 100,000 people live there.

Rosie: So the king ruled over almost 200 islands – that’s a large area. It must have

been a big funeral.

Chris: Well, let’s hear BBC Correspondent Duncan Kennedy’s report from the funeral.

You’ll hear him mention ‘the late king’ but he doesn’t mean that he was late

for the funeral does it?

Rosie: No, here the word 'late' means that he has died. So when Duncan Kennedy

describes George Tupou V as 'the late king' it just means the king that has

died.

Chris: OK, let’s take a listen. See if you can hear who also took part in the ceremony.

BBC Duncan Kennedy:

1,000 pall-bearers took part in the ceremony to carry the coffin⁴ of the late king during the

funeral ceremony. Hundreds of foreign dignitaries and thousands of other mourners were

present at the Christian⁶ burial service, many wearing woven ta'ovala grass mats around

their waists.

Rosie: The report mentioned that 1,000 pall-bearers took part in the ceremony. A

pall-bearer helps to carry the coffin. But a thousand people, how did they all

manage that?

Chris: The coffin was passed along the organised group of people, so they took

turns to carry the coffin.

Rosie: And a thousand people to carry the coffin means he really was quite popular.

Chris: Well, when he first became king in 2006, he wasn’t so popular. Many Tongan

people protested for democratic reform which led to riots in which eight

people died.

Rosie: Following these protests the king then chose to reduce his powers and let his

country have democratic elections for the first time in 2010.

Chris: So he is credited with bringing democracy to Tonga. He helped to reform his

country.

Rosie: And he even lost some of his powers when he introduced these reforms.

Chris: Yes, in a traditional and conservative country like Tonga, he achieved a lot in

a short amount of time.

Rosie: He was also an interesting character, wasn’t he?

Chris: He was. Some people even called him eccentric – which means he had some

unusual habits. See if you can hear what the next clip mentions about one of

his unusual or eccentric habits…

BBC Duncan Kennedy:

King George is credited with bringing democracy to Tonga, a country with a population of

100,000 spread over nearly 200 islands. And although he was criticised for spending too

much time out of the country his other characteristics, like driving around in a London taxi

endeared him to many of his people.

Rosie: So he drove around Tonga in a London taxi? That is quite odd.

Chris: He also wore a monocle, a piece of glass you wear over just one eye.

Wearing a monocle is quite unusual these days – most people wear glasses

over both eyes.

Rosie: But being eccentric isn’t really a bad thing is it?

Chris: No, not necessarily. As the report mentioned, the king’s unusual

characteristics endeared him to many people.

Rosie: And to be endearing means you are regarded with affection. So he was liked

for his unusual characteristics.

Chris: Yes, absolutely.

Rosie: Now that he has died, will they keep the monarchy in Tonga?

Chris: Yes they will still maintain a monarchy. His brother will become the new king.

He’s also called George, so he will become George VI.

Rosie: So a new monarch will ascend⁷ the throne.

Chris: The late King George V of Tonga ruled for six years, but going back to the

question I asked at the beginning of the programme, which European

monarch served, or ruled, for the longest amount of time? Was it:

a) Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom

b) King Afonso I of Portugal

c) King Louis XIV of France

Rosie: Ah yes. I said Queen Victoria.

Chris: You said Victoria. And you were wrong I'm afraid. The correct answer was B,

Afonso I. He ascended⁸, or took the throne in the year 1112 and died in 1185

after a reign⁵ of 73 years.

Rosie: It rained for 73 years?

Chris: No, no. To reign - R.E.I.G.N. - or to rule for a period of time. So he ruled

Portugal for 73 years.

Rosie: That’s a long time. I can’t imagine doing the same job for 73 years.

Chris: It’s a very long time if you consider that in those days most people did not

even live beyond forty years of age. So on that note, Rosie, please could you

remind us of today's words?

Rosie: Of course. They are:

mourning

monarchs

pall-bearers

took turns

to reform

eccentric

monocle

endearing

ascend

reign

Chris: Thanks very much Rosie. And that's all we've got time for today. Bye for now.

Rosie: Bye.

Vocabulary and definitions

mourning a period of expressing grief

monarch king or queen

pall-bearers people who helped to carry the coffin at a funeral

took turns one at a time

to reform to change, to improve

eccentric unusual, odd

monocle a piece of glass worn over one eye to improve vision

endearing attracting affection

ascend mount or climb

reign period of rule

1 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

2 monarchs   

君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Monarchs ruled England for centuries. 世袭君主统治英格兰有许多世纪。
• Serving six monarchs of his native Great Britain, he has served all men's freedom and dignity. 他在大不列颠本国为六位君王服务，也为全人类的自由和尊严服务。 来自演讲部分

3 monarchy   

n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国

参考例句：

• The monarchy in England plays an important role in British culture.英格兰的君主政体在英国文化中起重要作用。
• The power of the monarchy in Britain today is more symbolical than real.今日英国君主的权力多为象徵性的，无甚实际意义。

4 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

5 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

6 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

7 ascend   

vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上

参考例句：

• We watched the airplane ascend higher and higher.我们看着飞机逐渐升高。
• We ascend in the order of time and of development.我们按时间和发展顺序向上溯。

8 ascended   

v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》