Living in the present days of peace and tranquillity1 it is difficult to picture the life of our ancestors in the days of King Alfred, when the whole country was for years overrun by hordes2 of pagan barbarians3, who slaughtered4, plundered5, and destroyed at will. You may gain, perhaps, a fair conception of the state of things if you imagine that at the time of the great mutiny the English population of India approached that of the natives, and that the mutiny was everywhere triumphant6. The wholesale7 massacres8 and outrages9 which would in such a case have been inflicted10 upon the conquered whites could be no worse than those suffered by the Saxons at the hands of the Danes. From this terrible state of subjection and suffering the Saxons were rescued by the prudence11, the patience, the valour and wisdom of King Alfred. In all subsequent ages England has produced no single man who united in himself so many great qualities as did this first of great Englishmen. He was learned, wise, brave, prudent12, and pious13; devoted14 to his people, clement15 to his conquered enemies. He was as great in peace as in war; and yet few English boys know more than a faint outline of the events of Alfred's reign16—events which have exercised an influence upon the whole future of the English people. School histories pass briefly17 over them; and the incident of the burned cake is that which is, of all the actions of a great and glorious reign, the most prominent in boys' minds. In this story I have tried to supply the deficiency. Fortunately in the Saxon Chronicles and in the life of King Alfred written by his friend and counsellor Asser, we have a trustworthy account of the events and battles which first laid Wessex prostrate18 beneath the foot of the Danes, and finally freed England for many years from the invaders19. These histories I have faithfully followed. The account of the siege of Paris is taken from a very full and detailed20 history of that event by the Abbe D'Abbon, who was a witness of the scenes he described.
Yours sincerely,
G. A. HENTY
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1 tranquillity | |
n. 平静, 安静 | |
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2 hordes | |
n.移动着的一大群( horde的名词复数 );部落 | |
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3 barbarians | |
n.野蛮人( barbarian的名词复数 );外国人;粗野的人;无教养的人 | |
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4 slaughtered | |
v.屠杀,杀戮,屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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5 plundered | |
掠夺,抢劫( plunder的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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6 triumphant | |
adj.胜利的,成功的;狂欢的,喜悦的 | |
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7 wholesale | |
n.批发;adv.以批发方式;vt.批发,成批出售 | |
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8 massacres | |
大屠杀( massacre的名词复数 ); 惨败 | |
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9 outrages | |
引起…的义愤,激怒( outrage的第三人称单数 ) | |
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10 inflicted | |
把…强加给,使承受,遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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11 prudence | |
n.谨慎,精明,节俭 | |
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12 prudent | |
adj.谨慎的,有远见的,精打细算的 | |
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13 pious | |
adj.虔诚的;道貌岸然的 | |
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14 devoted | |
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的 | |
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15 clement | |
adj.仁慈的;温和的 | |
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16 reign | |
n.统治时期,统治,支配,盛行;v.占优势 | |
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17 briefly | |
adv.简单地,简短地 | |
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18 prostrate | |
v.拜倒,平卧,衰竭;adj.拜倒的,平卧的,衰竭的 | |
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19 invaders | |
入侵者,侵略者,侵入物( invader的名词复数 ) | |
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20 detailed | |
adj.详细的,详尽的,极注意细节的,完全的 | |
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