Farewell Address
爱德华八世 / Edward VIII
爱德华八世（1894—1972），英王乔治五世之长子，1936年初，其父身亡后继承王位，不久为了和美国平民女子沃丽丝结婚而让位于其弟乔治六世。1937年，乔治六世继位，封爱德华八世为温莎公爵。
Ace in the Hole
Listen to the following passage twice, and fill in the blanks with appropriate words.
1. I have made this, the most ______________ of my life, only upon
the single thought of what would, in the end, be ______________.
2. And now, we all have a new King, I wish him and you, his people,
?__________________ with all my heart. God bless you all! God save
the King!
At long last I am able to say a few words of my own. I have never wanted to withhold anything, but until now it has not been constitutionally possible for me to speak.
A few hours ago I discharged my last duty as King and Emperor, and now that I have been succeeded by my brother, the Duke of York, my first words must be to declare my allegiance to him. This I do with all my heart.
You all know the reasons, which have impelled me to renounce the throne. But I want you to understand that in making up my mind I did not forget the country or the empire, which, as Prince of Wales and lately as King, I have for twenty-five years tried to serve.
But you must believe me when I tell you that I have found it impossible to carry the heavy burden of responsibility and to discharge my duties as King as I would wish to do without the help and support of the woman I love.
And I want you to know that the decision I have made been mine and mine alone. This was a thing I had to judge entirely for myself. The other person most nearly concerned has tried up to the last to persuade me to take a different course.
I have made this, the most serious decision of my life, only upon the single thought of what would, in the end, be best for all.
This decision has been made less difficult to me by the sure knowledge that my brother, with his long training in the public affairs of this country and with his fine qualities, will be able to take my place forthwith without interruption or injury to the life and progress of the empire. And he has one matchless blessing, enjoyed by so many of you, and not bestowed on me—a happy home with his wife and children.
During these hard days I have been comforted by her majesty my mother and my family. The ministers of the crown and in particular, Mr. Baldwin, the Prime Minister, have always treated me with full consideration. There has never been any constitutional difference between me and them, and between me and Parliament. Bred in the constitutional tradition by my father, I should never have allowed any such issue to arise.
Ever since I was Prince of Wales, and later on when I occupied the throne. I have been treated with the greatestkindness by all classes of the people wherever I have lived or journeyed throughout the empire. For that I am very grateful.
I now quit altogether public affairs and I lay down my burden. It may be some time before I return to my native land, but I shall always follow the fortunes of the British race and empire with profound interest and if at any time in the future I can be found of service to His Majesty in a private station, I shall not fail.
And now, we all have a new King, I wish him and you, his people, happiness and prosperity with all my heart. God bless you all! God save the King!
参考译文
经过这么久，我终于能够说几句心里话了。我从未刻意地想隐瞒什么，但在此之前，宪法规定我不能开口说这些事情。
几个小时之前，我卸下了作为国王和皇帝的最后职责，让位于我的弟弟约克公爵。首先，我要向他表示我的拥护和忠诚。这是我发自内心的话。
促使我放弃王位的原因已经众所周知。但是我想让你们明白的是，在我作决定时并没有忘记国家或帝国。25年来，先是作为威尔士亲王，后来作为国王，我一直在竭诚为我们的国家服务。
但是，如果我告诉你们：没有我所爱的女人的支持和帮助，我发现自己不可能承担这沉重的责任，像我希望的那样卸去国王的义务。此时，你们必须相信我。
而且，我要你们知道，我所做出的决定完全是我个人的决定。这件事完全是由我自己判断的。直到最后一刻，与此密切相关的另外一个人还在努力说服我选择另外一条道路。
我作的这个决定，是我生命中最重要的一个决定。我只有一个简单的想法，那就是我认为最终这决定对所有人来说都是最好的选择。
做出这个决定并不那么困难。因为我很清楚，我的弟弟在国家公共事务中受到了长期的训练，而且他本人品质优秀。他的继位不会给帝国的生存和发展造成任何中断或损害。而且他还拥有一种无与伦比的幸福——一种你们很多人都拥有，上帝却不曾赐予我的幸福——与妻儿共享天伦的家庭。
在这段艰难的日子里，我的母后陛下以及族人们给了我许多安慰。王国的大臣们，特别是首相鲍德温先生，总是充分体谅地对待我。我和他们之间，我和国会之间，从来都没有宪法方面的分歧。父亲用宪法传统养育我长大，因此我决不允许出现这类问题。
从我做了威尔士亲王，到后来我继承王位以来，从我所居之地到我所到之处，无论在什么地方，各阶层的人民都给了我最友善的接待。对此，我深表感谢。
现在，我从所有的公共事务中退出，放下我所有的负担。也许，我要过一段时间才能回到我的祖国，但我将始终密切关注着不列颠民族和帝国的命运。假如将来某一天，能以私人身份为国王陛下尽一份力，我将绝不推辞。
现在，我们大家有了一位新国王。我真诚地祝愿他和你们——他的人民——快乐富强。上帝保佑你们大家！上帝保佑国王！
历史链接
乔治五世病逝之后，爱德华登上王位，并马上宣布要迎娶沃丽丝。他的决定遭到了包括首相在内的谋臣们的一致反对，而爱德华八世则表示，为了娶沃丽丝他宁愿退位。
1936年12月11日，在位不到10个月还未加冕的爱德华八世发表了这篇告别演说。几个小时后，他便在皇家海军驱逐舰的护送下离开英国，寻找沃丽丝去了。
Practicing for Better Learning
Listen to the speech again, and answer the following questions.
1. Why did Edward VIII find it impossible to carry the heavy burden of
responsibility and discharge his duties as King?
__________________________________________________________________________________
2. For what reason did Edward make this decision less difficult?
Now a Try
Translate the following sentences into English with the expressions in
the speech.
1. 他尽力履行他的诸多职责。
__________________________________________________________________________________
2. 她试图说服我放弃出国学习这个念头。
__________________________________________________________________________________
3. 这个设计能让观众在观影的时候感到舒服。
Chunks in Practice
Listen to the speech once more, and fill in the blanks with appropriate
words.
1. You all know the reasons, which have ________ me to renounce the throne. But
I want you to understand that in making up my mind I did not forget the
country or the empire, ________ , as Prince of Wales and lately as King, I have for
twenty-five years tried to serve.
2. ________ I was Prince of Wales, and later on when I occupied the throne, I have
been treated with the greatest kindness by all classes of the people________ I
have lived or journeyed throughout the empire. For that I am very grateful.