The British Royal Family: Monarchy Tradition
Seleccionar lección
Tenses
Culture
Writing
Speaking
Personal Information: Basic Questions, Details and Meeting
Effective Speaking Strategies: Tips for Improvement
Preparing for Future Events: Plans and Arrangements
Expressing Regret: Conveying Sorrow and Apologies
Questions and Answers: Yes, No and Interrogative Pronouns
Speculating and Deductions: Expressing Possibilities
Grammar
Used To: Expressing Habits
Modal Verbs: Would, May/Might, Will and Have to
Conditionals and Time Clauses: Use, Components and Types
Quantifiers: Some, Any, Much and Many
Reported Speech and Reporting Verbs
Passive Voice: Impersonal Construction
Causative: Have/Get Something
Relative Clauses: Use, Components and Types
Gerund and Infinitive: Meaning according to the context
Irregular Verbs: Infinitive, Past and Participle
Vocabulary
Common Adjectives: Describing People, Places or Things
Food and Containers
Town: Typical Places in a City
Body: Parts of the Human Body
Recycling: Environment and Sources of Energy
City Life: Exploring the Urban Lifestyle
Relationships: Bulding Connections
Animals: Wild and Domestic
Consumers: Buying Habits and Marketing
Vídeo Explicativo
Resumen
The British Royal Family: Monarchy Tradition
Puntos clave
Everyone knows who Queen Elizabeth II was, but, how did she come to the throne? Were there any other important queens before her? And why is King Charles III the current monarch? Let's learn the history of the British Royal Family!
Info 1: The Origins of English Royalty
The English monarchy appeared in 878, when Alfred the Great proclaimed himself King of England. Therefore, this monarchy has more than 12 centuries of history! The current royal family descends from the famous Queen Victoria.
Info 2: Queen Victoria I
Victoria was born on May 24, 1819, in London. Her parents were the king, George III, and a German princess. She inherited the throne when she was 18 years old.
In 1840, at the age of 20, she married Prince Albert of Germany. They had nine children, and Victoria arranged the marriage of all her sons and daughters until all of them were married into royal and noble families across Europe. She succeeded in seating her grandchildren on the thrones of Russia, Norway, Denmark, Greece, Romania, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom.
She created a big and royal family tree! This achievement gave her the nickname "the Grandmother of Europe". In fact, she was the grand-grand-mother of Queen Elizabeth II, the last and beloved Queen of England.
Info 3: The Windsor
Queen Victoria belonged to the German house of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, but during World War I her grandson, George V, changed the family name to Windsor, inspired by Windsor Castle. This happened in 1917 and the name still remains in the family.
Info 4: Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II was born in 1926. She married Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, who rejected his rights as heir to the throne, but received the title of Duke of Edinburgh in return.
Elizabeth succeeded to the throne in 1952, when she was 25 years old. In fact, in 2022 she became the first British monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, which marks 70 years in the throne. She was the longest reigning and oldest monarch in the world! The previous record was held by Queen Victoria.
Succession of Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II and Philip had four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward. When Elizabeth II died on 8 September 2022, Prince Charles, now King Charles III, inherited the throne. The successor of Charles will be Prince William of Wales, and little Prince George will be after him.
Info 4: The power of the Royal Family
King Charles III, like other British queens and kings before him, is not only the Head of the State, but the Head of Anglican Church and the armed forces too. The British monarch is also Head of the Commonwealth, an association of 54 independent countries, most of which were once colonies of the British Empire, like Australia, New Zealand or Canada. The King or Queen is Head of State of 16 member states.
Info 5: Key vocabulary
| inherit the throne/succeed to the throne: heredar el trono | grand-grand-mother: tatarabuela | Platinum Jubilee: Jubileo de Platino |
| grandchildren: nietos | abdicate: abdicar | Head of the State: Jefe de Estado |
| family tree: árbol genealógico | heir to the throne: heredero al trono | Anglican Church: Iglesia anglicana |
| armed forces: fuerzas armadas | Commonwealth: Mancomunidad | arrange a marriage: concertar un matrimonio |
Preguntas frecuentes
Who are the Windsor?
They are the current British Royal Family. They belonged to the German house Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, but they changed their name in 1917, after World War I broke out.
Who was Elizabeth II?
Queen Elizabeth II was the last British Queen. She was the longest reigning and oldest monarch in the world: she was 70 years in the throne.
Who was Victoria I?
She was one of the most important British monarchs. She succeeded in seating her grandchildren on the thrones of most countries in Europe.