伊丽莎白女王 Her Majesty

Her Majesty 伊丽莎白女王 1. She’s shy 1. 她很内敛 Her Majesty may have reigned for 60 years but she remains quite a shy person at heart. Yes, she’s learnt how to handle all manner of social situations, rise to the occasion, and meet the incredible demands of being a monarch in the modern age, thanks in part to the advice of her closest courtiers. 女王尽管已登基60年，骨子里却仍是一个内敛的人。的确，她已学会如何处理各种境况，如何应付自如，或迎合现代社会人们对一位女王的要求；但这些成就部分得归功于她身边大臣的忠谏。 2. The smile is real 2. 她的微笑发自内心 I’ve been very struck by just how happy the Queen looks these days. I think that’s down to the fact that the Royal Family has survived the travails of recent decades to emerge as strong as ever. Charles’s predicament following the death of Diana and the difficult years afterwards seems to have been resolved. What’s more, she’s still got the Duke of Edinburgh by her side, and her grandchildren William and Harry – have turned out to be everything she could wish for. In short, the future of the succession seems assured – and I think that’s a source of tremendous pride and satisfaction to her. 近来女王看上去很开心。我想这跟王室坚强熬过几十年的艰难风雨有关吧。无论是戴安娜王妃之死还是查尔斯的窘境，都已成为过往。何况爱丁堡公爵还陪伴在她身边，孙子威廉和哈利一切也都顺顺当当，王室继承还将继续下去——对女王而言，这就是莫大的自豪和欣慰了吧。 3. She has a wicked wit 3. 她风趣聪慧 She can be very funny – a side of her which the public rarely gets to see. I think she’s all too aware that as a monarch she has to be serious and representative of the nation, but in private she can often display a real sense of fun and a lovely, spontaneous sense of humour. 女王有时非常风趣——只可惜公众很少有机会看到罢了。作为女王，她意识到自己得严肃正经，要展现一国君主之风范。但私下里，她真的很风趣，有时还耍点调皮的小幽默。 4. Faith underpins her life 4. 她对待信仰忠贞不渝 The Queen is of course the head of the Church of England – but it’s sometimes forgotten that she’s also a woman of deep Christian faith. I once saw her holding a rather worn prayer book which I think is in itself telling – because it shows that this is a woman who doesn’t just pay lip service to God, but prays and is a true believer. She is of course a regular churchgoer, and I’m sure she has drawn great sustenance from her faith during difficult times in her reign. 当然，女王是英国国教会的最高元首；但很少有人意识到她本人就是一名忠诚的基督教徒。我曾看她拿着一本非常破旧的祈祷书——这恰好说明女王绝非虚有其表，而是千真万确信仰上帝。她也经常去教堂做礼拜。我想，正是这种虔诚的信仰才帮她度过了在位期间的艰难岁月吧 5. She’s a make-do-and-mend Queen 5. 她勤俭节约 The Queen has never been an extravagant person. She was 13 when World War II began, so her formative years were hugely shaped by growing up in the shadow of the conflict. The entire nation had to make sacrifices and while no one is suggesting the Royal Family had to slum it, Britain stood alone for a while against Germany, food was rationed and there was a real sense of make-do-and-mend. That’s something that has stayed with the Queen all her life, and I think that’s partly why she likes Kate, who’s not afraid to wear the same dress twice, and is so patently not in the ‘spend, spend, spend’ mould. 女王向来不喜欢铺张浪费。第二次世界大战爆发时她才13岁，在战争的阴影中长大。当时全英国人民都得做出牺牲，尽管没人要求王室参与其中，但他们却并未逃避责任。英国与德国孤军奋战时，食物都定量配给，一切都得省吃俭用。而这种勤俭节约的作风就此伴随了女王一生。女王之所以喜欢凯特，很可能也因为凯特从不介意一件衣服多穿两次吧。显然，凯特也不是“大手大脚”类型的人。

6. Children are special to her 6. 她特喜欢小孩 It’s rarely remarked upon, but the humility the Queen shows when she receives flowers from children says a lot to me about the hidden monarch. She must have been handed thousands of garlands by countless children – but judging by the way in which she accepts them, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s the first time she’s been given flowers. The way she bends down to accept flowers from small children is tantamount to her saying that she regards them as her equals. 这或许不值得一提，但女王接过孩子们鲜花时的谦逊神情也能展现她不为人知的一面。她一定收到过数不清的孩子们的鲜花——但每次看她接花的方式，你都会以为这是她第一次收到鲜花呢。她弯腰接过鲜花的神情，恰好表明她真将孩子平等相待的。 7. She is serious about her duty 7. 她恪尽职守 The Queen has laid a wreath at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Sunday on all but a handful years during her long reign – the only exceptions being when she was either pregnant or overseas on an official visit (1959, 1961, 1963, 1968, 1983 and 1999). This terribly moving annual ceremony means a huge amount to her, in large part because she lived through World War II, and saw how great a price we as a nation paid to preserve our freedom. 女王在位期间，除了怀孕或出国访问（1959年, 1961年, 1963年, 1968年, 1983年和 1999年），几乎每年都在阵亡将士纪念日那天去纪念碑前敬献花圈。女王自己就经历过二战，亲眼看到一个国家为争取自由所付出的巨大代价。所以，她尤为看重这个节日。 8. She’s kind at heart 8. 她温厚善良 This isn’t something that’s ever much reported, but she’s very thoughtful for anyone she knows who has been bereaved or ill, performing little acts of kindness. For instance, she paid a private visit to Martin Charteris (above) – who served her for many years as her Assistant Private Secretary and then Private Secretary, and did so much for her as a young monarch – shortly before his death in 1999. 很遗憾关于女王这方面的报道并不多。其实，她非常关心身边的人。不管谁病了或失去了亲人，她都会给予安慰。1999年，马丁查特里斯去世之前，她曾特意看望过他（见图）——马丁曾担任她的私人秘书助理，后来又成为正式私人秘书，为年轻时的女王立下过汗马功劳。 9. She loved her palace on the water 9. 她钟爱皇家游艇 The Queen was terribly saddened to see the Royal Yacht Britannia pensioned off.She had a huge amount of affection for the ship because it was the only home that was ever specially created for her, in every sense of the word.It’s interesting to note that the Royal Yacht was furnished in a much more contemporary style than the palaces, with their George III antique tables.She also appreciated the freedom the yacht gave her to escape the prying eyes of the world and just be herself. 皇家游艇“大不列颠号”被迫退役时，女王很难受。她对这艘游艇很有感情。严格讲来，这是唯一一艘专门为她而造的游艇。不过有趣的是，这艘皇家游艇的风格比皇宫摩登得多，里面配有乔治三世时代的桌子。而且在游艇上，她能躲开世人的八卦，完完全全属于她自己。 10. Animals really are important to her 10. 她是个动物迷 This is a woman who is known for her love of animals, and in particular her corgis.As monarch, from time to time she invites people to Windsor Castle, and I remember being there once when one of her corgis rolled over onto its back at her feet and there was a look of sheer unadulterated joy on her face. 人们都知道女王很喜爱小动物，尤其是她那些威尔士矮脚狗。 女王喜欢时不时地请人去温莎城堡做客。记得我有次在那儿看到威尔士矮脚狗滚了个四脚朝天，女王顿时乐开了花，开心不已。