常春藤生活英語：Louis XIV 法王路易十四

Louis XIV was the king of France from 1643 to 1715. Many thought his birth was a miracle1. This is because King Louis XIII and his wife had been married for 23 years without having a child. When Louis was finally born, he was named Louis-Dieudonné, which means "given by God." The whole nation of France was relieved that there was an heir2 to take over the country, and they celebrated his birth.

Louis became king of France at the age of four after his father passed away. When he was young, his mother and a cardinal3 helped him rule. During this time, there were several rebellions4 against the government, but they failed. When the cardinal died, Louis XIV declared that he would govern France all by himself. He was only 23 years old.

Louis XIV thought he was very special. When he became king, he used pictures of the sun to represent himself. He believed that, like the sun, everything centered around him. He was called the Sun King and Louis the Great because he was so powerful.

Louis XIV

路易十四是1643到1715年間的法國國王。許多人都將他的誕生視為奇跡。這是因為國王路易十三和他的妻子結(jié)褵二十三年來一直都膝下無子。當(dāng)路易終于出生時，他被取名為Louis-Dieudonné，意指『上帝所賜』。全法國對有繼位者來掌管國家一事皆感寬慰，大家更一起歡慶他的誕生。

年僅四歲的路易在他父王過世后，便即位成為法王。當(dāng)他年紀(jì)尚輕時，他的母親和一位紅衣主教在旁輔政。在這段期間，反抗政府的叛亂活動頻頻發(fā)生，不過都終告失敗。紅衣主教過世時，路易十四便宣布他會自力統(tǒng)馭法國。當(dāng)時的他年僅二十三歲。

路易十四覺得自己很特別。他在成為國王時，就用太陽的圖案來象征自己。他相信自己就像太陽一樣，萬物都以他為中心。他是如此有權(quán)有勢，因而被稱為『太陽王』和『路易大帝』。

Building Your Vocabulary

1. relieved　a. 寬慰的，不再憂慮的

Greg was relieved when he found his cat.

葛瑞找到他的貓時松了一口氣。

2. declare　vt. 宣布;聲稱

Rita declared that she would retire soon.

麗塔宣布她即將退休。

3. govern　vt. 管理，統(tǒng)治(國家)

That country is governed by a violent man.

那個國家是由一位暴君所統(tǒng)治。

4. powerful　a. 權(quán)力強(qiáng)大的，有勢力的

Al is the most powerful person in this office.

艾爾是這間公司里權(quán)力最大的人。

Phrases for Learning

1. take over...　　接管∕接任……

Who will take over Ron's job after he quits?

朗恩辭職后，誰會接手他的工作?

2. center around...　　以……為中心

Meg's life centers around her children.

瑪格的生活以她的孩子們?yōu)橹行摹?/p>

參考字詞

1. miracle　n. 奇跡

2. heir　n. 繼任人;繼承人

3. cardinal　n. 紅衣主教，樞機(jī)主教

4. rebellion　n. 叛亂;造反

Tips In Use

Louis XIV was the king of France from 1643 to 1715.

(路易十四是1643到1715年間的法國國王。)

本文中使用了一些羅馬數(shù)字(Roman numerals)，它們看似復(fù)雜，但其實有跡可循，只要掌握『左減右加』的原則，大家就能一目了然。另外，若在上面加上一小杠(ˉ)，就是再乘 1,000。

I or i = 1 → II = 2, III = 3

V or v = 5 → IV = 4, VIII = 8

X or x = 10 → XIX = 19, XXI = 21

L or l = 50 → LIV = 54

C or c = 100 → CL = 150

D or d = 500 → DC = 600

M or m = 1,000 → M = 1,000,000