Christmas Tongue Twisters
Eleven elves licked eleven little licorice lollipops
Santa's seven sleighs slid sideways
Santas Sleigh Glides In The Sky
Santa's sleigh slides on slick snow
Why Do PeopLe Kiss Underneath the MistLeToe?
Balder, Norse god of the Summer sun, dreamt that he was going to die. His mother, Frigga, said that if he died so will everything on Earth. To ensure her son's safety, Frigga went to all of the elements, animals and plants and asked them not to kill her son.
But Balder's only enemy, Loki, made a poisoned dart with mistletoe and tricked Balder´s blind brother Hoder into shooting the arrow killing the Summer god.
For three days, all the elements tried their hardest to bring Balder back to life, but failed.
But the tears that Frigga cried for her dead son changed the red mistletoe berries to white, raising her son from the dead. Frigga then kissed everyone who walked underneath it out of gratitude.
But the tears that Frigga cried for her dead son changed the red mistletoe berries to white, raising her son from the dead. Frigga then kissed everyone who walked underneath it out of gratitude.
In South Africa it´s called "bird lime" and voëlent in Afrikaans.
The sticky juice of the berries was used as adhesive to catch small animals or birds: ripe fruits were chewed until sticky, then rubbed between the palms of the hands to form long sticky strands which were coiled around small thin tree branches.
Christmas Jokes...
JINGLE BELLS
BATMAN SMELLS
ROBIN LAID AN EGG
THE BATMOBIL
HAS LOST A WHEEL
AND THE JOKER GOT AWAY
The Twelve Days of Chirstmas
The twelve days in the song start on Christmas Day (December 25th) or in some traditions on Boxing Day (December 26th) and end January 5th, the day before Epiphany .
The Execution of Lady Jane Grey: 12 February 1554.
The painting shows the last moments of seventeen-year old Jane Grey proclaimed Queen of England after the death of young King Edward VI a Protestant like her.
Shereigned for just nine days in 1553; Mary Tudor the Catholic daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, had her convicted of high treason and sentenced to death in the Tower of London.
She
Henry VIII of England on Horseback
Henry VIII, second Tudor dynasty king of England and Ireland (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) is known for his 6 marriages: Catherine of Aragon. Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr.
He is also responsible for the separation of England from the Roman Catholic papal authority, but also for the union of England and Wales.
He is also responsible for the separation of England from the Roman Catholic papal authority, but also for the union of England and Wales.
The Queen´s Foot Guards
Traditionally, there are 4 guards in front of Buckingham Palace and St. James Palace when the Queen is in residence and 2 when she´s away.
There are 5 regiments of Foot Guards: Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots, Irish and Welsh.
They stand still for no more than 10 minutes at a time, are on duty for 2 hours and then rest for 4.
All Summer, the Queen´s Foot Guards in London, England wear their red tunics.
The grey coats are used in the Winter because of their larger length and thickness.
The 1.5 lb/45.7 cm bearskin hat used by the guards is intended to make them appear taller and scary; they are made from real "culled" Canadian brown bears.
The bearskin hats were first used in 1815, after Napoleon´s defeat in the battle of Waterloo.
There are 5 regiments of Foot Guards: Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots, Irish and Welsh.
They stand still for no more than 10 minutes at a time, are on duty for 2 hours and then rest for 4.
All Summer, the Queen´s Foot Guards in London, England wear their red tunics.
The grey coats are used in the Winter because of their larger length and thickness.
The 1.5 lb/45.7 cm bearskin hat used by the guards is intended to make them appear taller and scary; they are made from real "culled" Canadian brown bears.
The bearskin hats were first used in 1815, after Napoleon´s defeat in the battle of Waterloo.
The Parliament of the U.K
The two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom are based at The Palace of Westminster in London, on the north bank of the river Thames, since the 13th century!
Even though Queen Elizabeth II 'opens' Parliament each year and laws are passed in her name, she has no part in determining decisions made in Parliament.
Actually no King or Queen has entered the Parliament since 1642!
In the House of the Lords, 675 members of the aristocracy or who received a nobility title thanks to a remarkable work, make sure that new laws are fair and will work.
The House of Commons is the most important place for discussing policies and making laws.
659 members elected by local residents, represent an area of the country and a political party.
The British State
The Kingdom of Great Britain was formed in 1707, with the union of the kingdoms of England (presently England + Wales) and Scotland.
In 1801, the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland merged, to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
With the independence of the Republic of Ireland (Irish Free State) in 1922, nowadays the british state name is: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Great Britain is the biggest island in Europe and the 9th largest in the world!
It´s also the third most densely populated island in the world.
4th of November: Mischief Night
It´s known too as: Miggy, Tick-Tack, Corn, Trick and/or Micky Night.
GunPowder, Treason & PLot
From the UK Parliament: Learn, Play, Click!
http://collections.europarchive.org/ukparliament/20090701100701/http://www.parliament.uk/gunpowderplot/children_index.htm
http://collections.europarchive.org/ukparliament/20090701100701/http://www.parliament.uk/gunpowderplot/children_index.htm
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