英语国家社会与文化入门名词解释.docx

The Easter RisingIn order to gain independence, different Irish groups had been fighting against the British institutions and the British military forces. One such activity was the Easter Rising which took place in 1916. the rebels occupied Dublin’s Post Office and forced the British to take it back by military force. The leaders of the rebellion were executed by the British authorities.Sinn FeinSinn Fein is a legal political party in Northern Ireland which supports the IRA to fight for the union of Ireland. The leaders of Sinn Fein prefer union with Ireland by a twin campaign, both military and political which they call the policy of “the Bullet and the Ballot Box”. It believes that without the participation of Sinn Fein the political problem of Northern Ireland cannot be thoroughly solved.The Good Friday AgreementAs a result of multi-party negotiations, the Good Friday Agreement was approved on 10 April 1998. This agreement assures the loyalist community that Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom and it won’t change its political status unless the majority of the people of Northern Ireland agree. Under the terms of the agreement, Northern Ireland should be governed by three separate jurisdictions: that of the Republic of Ireland , that of Great Britain and that of its own elected executive government of ten ministers.The Bill of Rights of 1689In 1688, King James II’s daughter Mary and her husband William were invited by the politicians and church authorities to take the throne, on condition that they would respect the right of Parliament. The Bill of Rights was passed in 1689 to ensure that the King would never be able to ignore Parliament.The House of Lords The House of Lords consists of the Lords Spiritual, who are the Archbishops and most prominent bishops of the Church of England; and the Lords Temporal, which refers to those lords who either have inherited the seat from their forefathers or they have been appointed. The lords mainly represent th