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St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers
St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers

Chapter XVIII

Chapter 18 of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers
Context Illustration Reading 1/31 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE BLACK DEATH.
The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.
Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.
So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.
The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.
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LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers

Chapter XVIII

Chapter 18 of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/31 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE BLACK DEATH.
/ðə blæk deθ/
Line 2
The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.
/ðə kɔːrt æt ˌwestˈmɪnstər ˈdʊrɪŋ ðə fjuː mʌnθs wɪtʃ ˈfɑːloʊd ðə ˈkæptʃər ʌv kəˈleɪ wɑːz ðə moʊst ˈbrɪljənt ɪn ˈjʊrəp/
Line 3
Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.
Line 4
So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.
/soʊ ɡreɪt wɑːz ðə ˌrepjəˈteɪʃən ʌv kɪŋ ˈedwərd ðæt ˈdepjətiz keɪm frʌm ˈdʒɜːrməni wer ðə θroʊn wɑːz naʊ ˈveɪkənt tuː ˈɔːfər ðə kraʊn ʌv ðæt ˈkɪŋdəm tuː hɪm/
Line 5
The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.
/ðə kɪŋ dɪˈklaɪnd ðə ˈɔːfər fɔːr ɪt wʊd hæv bɪn ˌɪmˈpɑːsəbəl ˌɪnˈdiːd fɔːr hɪm tuː hæv juːˈnaɪtɪd ðə ˈdʒɜːrmən kraʊn wɪð ðæt ʌv ˈɪŋɡlənd wɪtʃ hiː ɔːlˈredi held ənd ðæt ʌv fræns wɪtʃ hiː kleɪmd/

Learner Dictionary

These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.

Calais noun US /kəˈleɪ/

a town in northern France on the Strait of Dover that serves as a ferry port to England

From this reading “The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.”

claimed verb US /kleɪmd/

past form of “claim” — assert or affirm strongly; state to be true or existing

From this reading “The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.”

declined verb US /dɪˈklaɪnd/

past form of “decline” — grow worse

From this reading “The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.”

deputies noun US /ˈdepjətiz/

plural of “deputy” — someone authorized to exercise the powers of sheriff in emergencies

From this reading “So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.”

succession noun US /səkˈseʃən/

a following of one thing after another in time

From this reading “Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.”

Tournaments noun US /ˈtɜːrnəmənts/

plural of “tournament” — a sporting competition in which contestants play a series of games to decide the winner

From this reading “Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.”

vacant adjective US /ˈveɪkənt/

void of intelligence or thought

From this reading “So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.”

Westminster noun US /ˌwestˈmɪnstər/

a borough of Greater London on the Thames; contains Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey

From this reading “The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.”

Word partnerships in these lines

English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.

Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.

rapid succession adjective + noun

In this reading “Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.”

few months adjective + noun counted as “few month”

In this reading “The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.”

most brilliant adverb + adjective

In this reading “The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.”

all parts adjective + noun

In this reading “Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.”

came from verb + particle counted as “come from”

In this reading “Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.”

All words in this reading · 66

Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.

Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

alreadyadverbUS /ɔːlˈredi/

prior to a specified or implied time

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

BLACKadjectiveUS /blæk/

being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light

From this reading THE BLACK DEATH.

brilliantadjectiveUS /ˈbrɪljənt/

of surpassing excellence

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

CalaisnounUS /kəˈleɪ/

a town in northern France on the Strait of Dover that serves as a ferry port to England

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

cameverbUS /keɪm/

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

captureverbUS /ˈkæptʃər/

succeed in representing or expressing something intangible

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

claimedverbUS /kleɪmd/

past form of “claim” — assert or affirm strongly; state to be true or existing

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

courtnounUS /kɔːrt/

an assembly (including one or more judges) to conduct judicial business

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

crownnounUS /kraʊn/

the Crown (or the reigning monarch) as the symbol of the power and authority of a monarchy

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

DEATHnounUS /deθ/

the event of dying or departure from life

From this reading THE BLACK DEATH.

declinedverbUS /dɪˈklaɪnd/

past form of “decline” — grow worse

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

deputiesnounUS /ˈdepjətiz/

plural of “deputy” — someone authorized to exercise the powers of sheriff in emergencies

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

duringprepositionUS /ˈdʊrɪŋ/

all through a period, or at some point within it

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

eachdeterminerUS /iːtʃ/

every one of two or more people or things, taken separately

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

EdwardnounUS /ˈedwərd/

King of England and Ireland in 1936; his marriage to Wallis Warfield Simpson created a constitutional crisis leading to his abdication (1894-1972)

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

EnglandnounUS /ˈɪŋɡlənd/

a division of the United Kingdom

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

EuropenounUS /ˈjʊrəp/

the 2nd smallest continent (actually a vast peninsula of Eurasia); the British use “Europe” to refer to all of the continent except the British Isles

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

fetes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

fewadjectiveUS /fjuː/

a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

followedverbUS /ˈfɑːloʊd/

past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

FrancenounUS /fræns/

a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

GermannounUS /ˈdʒɜːrmən/

a person of German nationality

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

GermanynounUS /ˈdʒɜːrməni/

a republic in central Europe; split into East Germany and West Germany after World War II and reunited in 1990

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

greatadjectiveUS /ɡreɪt/

relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

heldadjectiveUS /held/

occupied or in the control of; often used in combination

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

impossibleadjectiveUS /ˌɪmˈpɑːsəbəl/

not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

indeedadverbUS /ˌɪnˈdiːd/

in truth (often tends to intensify)

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

KingnounUS /kɪŋ/

a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

kingdomnounUS /ˈkɪŋdəm/

a domain in which something is dominant

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

knightsnounUS /naɪts/

plural of “knight” — originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

monthsnounUS /mʌnθs/

plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

mostadverbUS /moʊst/

used to form the superlative

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

nowadverbUS /naʊ/

in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

offerverbUS /ˈɔːfər/

make available or accessible, provide or furnish

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

otheradjectiveUS /ˈʌðər/

not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

partsnounUS /pɑːrts/

the local environment

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

rapidadjectiveUS /ˈræpəd/

done or occurring in a brief period of time

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

reputationnounUS /ˌrepjəˈteɪʃən/

the state of being held in high esteem and honor

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

SoconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

successionnounUS /səkˈseʃən/

a following of one thing after another in time

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE BLACK DEATH.

thesedeterminerUS /ðiːz/

the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

thronenounUS /θroʊn/

the chair of state for a monarch, bishop, etc.

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

TournamentsnounUS /ˈtɜːrnəmənts/

plural of “tournament” — a sporting competition in which contestants play a series of games to decide the winner

From this reading Tournaments and _fetes_ followed each other in rapid succession, and to these knights came from all parts.

unitedadjectiveUS /juːˈnaɪtɪd/

characterized by unity; being or joined into a single entity

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

vacantadjectiveUS /ˈveɪkənt/

void of intelligence or thought

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

WestminsternounUS /ˌwestˈmɪnstər/

a borough of Greater London on the Thames; contains Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

whereconjunctionUS /wer/

in or at the place that

From this reading So great was the reputation of King Edward that deputies came from Germany, where the throne was now vacant, to offer the crown of that kingdom to him.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading The court at Westminster during the few months which followed the capture of Calais was the most brilliant in Europe.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading The king declined the offer, for it would have been impossible indeed for him to have united the German crown with that of England, which he already held, and that of France, which he claimed.

Chapter 18 of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers by G. A. (George Alfred) Henty holds 159 sentences, grouped into 32 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.

What does chapter 18 of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers contain?

Chapter 18 holds 159 sentences of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 18 of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers by G. A. (George Alfred) Henty exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 159 sentences, grouped into 32 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.

How do I study chapter 18 of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers?

Work through the 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 32 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 18 can be played aloud in United States English.

Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.

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Vocabulary met early in St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers

Words and structures a reader meets early in St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Author
A word that appears in the opening chapter of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Clive
A word that appears in the opening chapter of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
India
A word that appears in the opening chapter of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Under
A word that appears in the opening chapter of St. George for England — A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.