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C1 · Première and Terminale généralesVersion dys

Session 2. The girl who was not meant to reign

A painting of 1933, an abdication in 1936, a family tree, and a princess in uniform.

Key question: How did a little girl who was never supposed to be Queen end up on the throne?
55 minutes: Recap 5 min · Point du professeur 10 min · Document 8 min · Vocabulary 7 min · Grammar 12 min · Figures and idioms 6 min · Task 7 min
Key words for today
Recap · marked /3

What we already know

Quick quiz (one point each)

  1. Give the opposite of "flattering".
  2. Correct: She is knowing the truth.
  3. "I'm sure he is lying" becomes...
Answers
  1. unflattering
  2. She knows the truth.
  3. He must be lying.

1Le point du professeur10 min

Pour le professeur

Pour raconter une enfance qui bascule, les élèves ont besoin du prétérit simple (faits successifs), du prétérit progressif (arrière-plan), de used to et would (habitudes passées) et du futur dans le passé (was going to, would, was to) pour dire ce qui n'était pas prévu. On part de l'arbre généalogique : Nobody expected that she would become Queen.

Starting point

In 1933 Elizabeth was seven. She was sitting for a portrait painter. Nobody thought she would ever be Queen.

Past simple vs past continuous

Past habits: used to / would

The future in the past

Help: past simple = finished action. Past continuous = was/were + verb-ing.

2The document8 min

A seven-year-old girl with fair curls, in a white dress with a blue sash, seated outdoors with a basket of flowers
Philip de László, Princess Elizabeth of York, 1933. Oil on canvas, 90.2 × 69.3 cm. Royal Collection (RCIN 409002). Commissioned by the Duke of York, later King George VI. Public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons, from Google Arts & Culture.

The facts. Princess Elizabeth of York was born on 21 April 1926, the elder daughter of the Duke of York, the King's second son. She was third in line to the throne, and it was widely expected that her uncle, the Prince of Wales, would marry and have children. Philip de László painted her in 1933, when she was seven; her father had commissioned the portrait.

In January 1936 George V died and her uncle became Edward VIII. In December 1936 he abdicated in order to marry Wallis Simpson, an American who had been divorced twice. Elizabeth's father became King George VI, and the ten-year-old princess became heir presumptive.

On her 21st birthday, 21 April 1947, in a radio broadcast from Cape Town, she said:

I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.Princess Elizabeth, broadcast from Cape Town, 21 April 1947. Royal Family website, royal.uk.
Little-known fact: Second Subaltern Windsor. In February 1945, aged 18, the princess joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service, the women's branch of the British Army, with the service number 230873. She trained as a driver and mechanic at Aldershot and passed out as a fully qualified driver. She was the first female member of the royal family to serve full-time in the armed forces, though she went home to Windsor Castle every night. Sources: National Army Museum; The Gazette.
The family tree. Use the tree in the Family trees page (British tree, part A) for the exercises below.
Official video: The Crown | Official Trailer | Netflix (Netflix, YouTube)
The official Season 1 trailer (2016) presents Claire Foy as the young Queen "who took the throne as a matter of duty not desire", in Netflix's own words.

Understanding the document

  1. Who commissioned the portrait, and when?
  2. Describe the portrait: setting, clothes, colours, mood.
  3. Why was she not expected to reign?
  4. What happened in December 1936?
  5. What did she promise in 1947? Which verb form in the quotation is unusual?
  6. What is surprising about her war service?
Answers
  1. Her father, the Duke of York (later George VI), in 1933.
  2. A seven-year-old girl with fair curls in a white dress with a blue sash, seated outdoors with a basket of flowers; soft light, gentle colours, a private, childlike mood, not a state portrait.
  3. Her father was the second son; her uncle, the Prince of Wales, was expected to marry and have children of his own.
  4. Edward VIII abdicated to marry Wallis Simpson; her father became George VI and she became heir presumptive.
  5. To devote her whole life to the service of the Commonwealth. "Whether it be" is a subjunctive (formal).
  6. A princess trained as an army driver and mechanic in 1945.

3Building your vocabulary

WordMeaning
an heir apparentan heir who cannot be displaced (a monarch's eldest child, today)
an heir presumptivean heir who could be displaced by the birth of a closer heir
the line of successionthe order in which heirs inherit the throne
to abdicate, an abdicationto give up the throne
to accede to the throne, an accessionto become monarch
to succeed somebody, a successorto come after somebody in a position
to be groomed forto be prepared over time for a role
to commission a portraitto order and pay for a portrait
a subalterna junior army officer
to pledge, to devote oneself toto promise solemnly, to give one's life to

Exercise 1. Definitions

Which word is it?

  1. To give up the throne.
  2. An heir who could be displaced by a closer heir.
  3. To come after somebody in a position.
  4. To order and pay for a portrait.
  5. A junior army officer.
  6. To be prepared over time for a role.
Answers
  1. to abdicate
  2. an heir presumptive
  3. to succeed somebody
  4. to commission
  5. a subaltern
  6. to be groomed for

Exercise 2. Word families

Complete the table: verb, noun.

  1. to abdicate
  2. to succeed
  3. to accede
  4. to devote
  5. to inherit
Answers
  1. an abdication
  2. a succession, a successor
  3. an accession
  4. devotion
  5. an inheritance, an heir

4Grammar in practice

From recognition to open production.

RecognitionExercise 3. Identify the form

Name the verb form in bold: past simple, past continuous, used to, would (habit), future in the past.

  1. She was sitting in a garden chair.
  2. Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936.
  3. The princesses used to live at 145 Piccadilly.
  4. Every morning she would feed the corgis.
  5. Nobody knew she would reign for seventy years.
  6. She was to become Queen at 25.
Answers
  1. past continuous
  2. past simple
  3. used to (past state)
  4. would (habit)
  5. future in the past
  6. future in the past (destiny)

Controlled practiceExercise 4. Past simple or past continuous?

Put the verbs in the correct form.

  1. Elizabeth (play) ______ when she (hear) ______ the news.
  2. While the painter (work) ______, the girl (try) ______ to keep still.
  3. In 1945 she (join) ______ the ATS.
  4. She (learn) ______ to change wheels while other cadets (study) ______ map reading.
  5. George VI (die) ______ on 6 February 1952 while she (travel) ______ in Kenya.
Answers
  1. was playing, heard
  2. was working, was trying (tried)
  3. joined
  4. was learning, were studying
  5. died, was travelling

TransformationExercise 5. The future in the past

Rewrite with the words given.

  1. "I will marry Wallis," Edward said. (was going to)
  2. People expected: "Edward will have children." (would)
  3. Destiny: she became the longest-reigning British monarch. (was to)
  4. "I'll be Queen one day," she realised. (would)
Answers
  1. Edward was going to marry Wallis.
  2. People expected that Edward would have children.
  3. She was to become the longest-reigning British monarch.
  4. She realised she would be Queen one day.

TransformationExercise 6. Used to or would?

Choose; sometimes both are possible.

  1. She ______ have a pony called Peggy.
  2. Every Sunday they ______ walk in Windsor Great Park.
  3. Her governess, Marion Crawford, ______ teach her at home.
  4. The family ______ live in Piccadilly before 1936.
Answers
  1. used to (state of possession)
  2. would / used to
  3. would / used to
  4. used to

AccuracyAccuracy check. Find the mistake

Each sentence contains one mistake. Find it and correct it.

  1. Elizabeth was born in 1926 and was becoming Queen in 1952.
  2. While she played in the garden, the news arrived.
  3. Nobody knew in 1930 that she will become Queen.
  4. Edward VIII has abdicated in December 1936.
  5. As a child, she didn't used to go to school.
  6. Her father was going to never be king.
Answers
  1. Elizabeth was born in 1926 and became Queen in 1952.
  2. While she was playing in the garden, the news arrived.
  3. Nobody knew in 1930 that she would become Queen.
  4. Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936.
  5. As a child, she didn't use to go to school. (she was taught at home)
  6. Her father was never going to be king.

Open productionExercise 7. The day everything changed

Write 12 to 15 lines from the point of view of Elizabeth, aged ten, on 11 December 1936. Use the past simple and continuous, two past habits (used to, would) and three forms of the future in the past.

Help: begin "I used to think that..." then "Today, everything changed when...".

5Figures of speech

Exercise 8. Spot the figure

Antithesis, archaism or hyperbole?

  1. "whether it be long or short"
  2. "a girl in a garden, a Queen in an abbey"
  3. "I've told you a million times!"
  4. "my whole life ... shall be devoted"
Answers
  1. archaism (subjunctive)
  2. antithesis
  3. hyperbole
  4. solemn hyperbole (and the archaic modal shall)

6Idioms

born with a silver spoon in one's mouth
born into a rich, privileged family.
Silver spoons were a traditional christening gift in wealthy families.
Elizabeth was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, yet her future was uncertain.
a twist of fate
an unexpected change in one's life.
Figurative use of "twist" (a sudden turn).
By a twist of fate, the second son became King.
to step into someone's shoes
to take over somebody's role.
The image of wearing another person's shoes.
George VI had to step into his brother's shoes.
to be thrown in at the deep end
to face a difficult task without preparation.
From swimming pools: the deep end is where you can't touch the bottom.
She was thrown in at the deep end at 25.

Exercise 9. Choose the idiom

Complete.

  1. He didn't have to work for money: he was ______.
  2. When the manager left, Anna had to ______.
  3. By ______, the princess became heir presumptive.
  4. On my first day at work I was ______: no training at all.
Answers
  1. born with a silver spoon in his mouth
  2. step into his shoes
  3. a twist of fate
  4. thrown in at the deep end

7Expression task7 min

A family tree, told aloud. Using the tree (part A), explain to your partner in 90 seconds how the crown passed from George V to Elizabeth II. Use at least: was succeeded by, abdicated, would become, had been, was going to.

Exit ticket · formative check
  1. Past continuous or simple: She (drive) ______ an army lorry when the photographer (arrive) ______.
  2. Future in the past: Nobody knew she ______ (reign) for 70 years.
  3. Heir apparent or heir presumptive: Elizabeth in 1937?
Answers
  1. was driving, arrived
  2. would reign
  3. heir presumptive

C1+Going further (towards C2)

Read and react (C1+). In 1947 the princess speaks of "our great imperial family". In 150 words, explain how this phrase sounds today, and how the Empire became the Commonwealth. Use was to, would and one mixed conditional.

Language point: the formal subjunctive survives in set phrases: be that as it may, come what may, God save the King, so be it. Use two of them in sentences about the abdication.

HWHomework

Learn the succession vocabulary. Write a 12-line biography of Edward VIII or George VI using six different past forms, then check every date in the Family trees page.