IV．The Hundred Years' War and its consequences.
百年戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)及其結(jié)果
The Hundred Years' War refers to the war between England and France that lasted intermittently from 1337 to 1453. The causes of the war were partly territorial and partly economic. The territorial causes were related with the possession by the English kings of the large duchy in France, while the French kings coveted this large slice. The economic causes were connected with cloth manufacturing towns in Flanders, which were the importer of English wool, but they were loyal to the French king politically. Besides, England's desire to stop France from giving aid to Scots and a growing sense of nationalism were the other causes.
The English's being driven out of France is regarded as a blessing for both countries. If the English had remained in France, the superior size and wealth of France would have hindered the development of a separate English national identity, while France was hindered so long as a foreign power occupied so much French territory.
百年戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)指1337年到1453年英法之間一場(chǎng)斷斷續(xù)續(xù)的戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)，戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的起因既有領(lǐng)土因素又有經(jīng)濟(jì)因素。領(lǐng)土起因尤其是與英國(guó)國(guó)王擁有法國(guó)的阿基坦大片公爵領(lǐng)地有密切關(guān)系，隨著法國(guó)國(guó)王勢(shì)力日增，他們渴望占領(lǐng)這片在他們領(lǐng)土內(nèi)的土地。經(jīng)濟(jì)原因則與弗蘭德斯有關(guān)。弗蘭德斯地區(qū)生產(chǎn)棉布的城鎮(zhèn)是英國(guó)羊毛的主要進(jìn)口商，但這些城鎮(zhèn)在政治上卻效忠法國(guó)國(guó)王。其他原因還有英國(guó)試圖阻止法國(guó)幫助蘇格蘭人，以及不斷覺醒的民族意識(shí)。
戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的結(jié)果：把英國(guó)人趕出法國(guó)對(duì)兩個(gè)國(guó)家都是幸事：若國(guó)車人繼續(xù)留在法國(guó)，那么法國(guó)人在領(lǐng)土和財(cái)富上所占的優(yōu)勢(shì)必然會(huì)阻礙分離的英國(guó)民族的發(fā)展；而法國(guó)民族被外國(guó)勢(shì)力占領(lǐng)了眾多的領(lǐng)土，發(fā)展更是長(zhǎng)期受阻。
V. The Black Death
黑死病
The Black Death is the modern name given to the deadly epidemic disease spread by rat fleas across Europe in the 14th century. It swept through England in the summer of 1348. It reduced England's population from four million to two million by the end of the 14th century.
The economic consequences of the Black Death were far-reaching. As a result of the plague, much land was left untended and there was a terrible shortage of labour. The surviving peasants had better bargaining power and were in a position to change their serfdom into paid labour. Some landlords, unable or unwilling to pay higher wages, tried to force peasants back into serfdom. In 1351 the government issued a Statute of Labourers which made it a crime for peasants to ask for more wages or for their employers to pay more than the rates laid down by the Justices of the Peace.
黑死病是指由鼠疫蚤傳播的致命的淋巴腺鼠疫，是一種流行疾病，在14世紀(jì)傳播了到歐洲。1348年夏天橫掃全英國(guó)。英國(guó)的人口在14世紀(jì)末從400萬銳減至200萬。
黑死病對(duì)經(jīng)濟(jì)造成的后果更為深遠(yuǎn)。鼠疫導(dǎo)致了大片土地?zé)o人照管和勞動(dòng)力極度匱乏。地主想把耕地變?yōu)槿肆π枨筝^少的牧場(chǎng)。存活的農(nóng)民處于有利的計(jì)價(jià)還價(jià)地位，從農(nóng)奴變?yōu)楣蛡騽趧?dòng)力。于是一些支付不起或不愿意支付較高工資的地主想方設(shè)法迫使農(nóng)民重返農(nóng)奴地位。1351年政府頒布"勞工法令"，規(guī)定農(nóng)民們漲工資的要求，或者是雇主支付比地方官制訂的工資水平要高的工資都是犯罪。