(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
British General Robert Ross and Admiral Sir George Cockburn led the attack on Washington. They planned next to attack Baltimore. But the people of Baltimore expected the attack, and began to prepare for it. Fifty thousand of them built defenses around the city. The port of Baltimore was protected by Fort McHenry. The guns and cannon of the fort could prevent British ships from reaching the city. The British began with a land attack against Baltimore. General Ross, Admiral Cockburn, and about four thousand British soldiers landed at North Point, a finger of land reaching into the Chesapeake Bay. From North Point, it was a march of about twenty-two kilometers to Baltimore. The march began about seven in the morning. General Ross and Admiral Cockburn stopped their men after an hour. The two commanders and several of their officers rode to a nearby farmhouse and forced the family living there to give them breakfast. When the British officers had finished eating, the farmer asked General Ross where the British were going. "To Baltimore," answered Ross. The farmer told Ross that he might have some difficulty getting there, because of the city's strong defenses. "I will eat supper in Baltimore...or in hell," answered the British general. Ross and Cockburn moved far in front of the British forces.
A group of several hundred Americans opened fire on the British officers. Ross was hit and died soon afterwards. The Americans retreated, but slowed the progress of the British soldiers. It was late the next day before the British force arrived to face the army of Americans near Baltimore. The Americans were on high ground and had about one hundred cannon to fire down on the British. The British commander ordered his men to rest for the night. He sent a message to the British warships to attack the city with guns and mortars. Such an attack, he felt, might cause the Americans to fall back. But the British ships already had been firing since early morning at Fort McHenry. The British guns were more powerful than those of the fort. This let the ships fire from so far away that the American guns could not hit them. Shells and bombs from British mortars fell like rain over Fort McHenry. But few Americans in the fort were hurt or killed. Most of the rockets and shells exploded in the air or missed. Many of them failed to explode. On a tall staff from the center of the fort flew a large American flag. The flag could be seen by the soldiers defending the city and by the British warships. The flag also was seen by a young American. His name was Francis Scott Key. Key was a lawyer who once had thought of giving his life to religious work.
He was a poet and writer. Key opposed war. But he loved his country and joined the army in Washington to help defend it. When the British withdrew from Washington, they took with them an American doctor, Wiliam Beanes. Key knew Beanes. And he asked President Madison to request the British commander to release the doctor. President Madison wrote such a request, and Key agreed to carry it to Admiral Cockburn. Key also carried letters from wounded British soldiers in American hospitals. In one of the letters, a British soldier told of the excellent medical care he was being given. Cockburn agreed to free the doctor after he read the reports of good medical care given his wounded men. But Cockburn would not permit Key, the doctor, or a man who came with Key to return to land until after the attack. Francis Scott Key watched as the shells and rockets began to fall on Fort McHenry. "I saw the flag of my country," Key said later, "waving over a city -- the strength and pride of my native state. I watched the enemy prepare for his assault. I heard the sound of battle. The noise of the conflict fell upon my listening ear. It told me that the `brave and the free' had met the invaders."
All through the rainy day, the attack continued. Doctor Beanes, watching with Key, had difficulty seeing the flag. He kept asking Key if the "stars and stripes" still flew above the fort. Until dark, Key could still see it. After then, he could only hope. Britain tried to land another force of men near the fort. But the Americans heard the boats and fired at them. The landing failed. Shells and rockets continued to rain down on Fort McHenry. At times, the fort's cannon answered. And Key knew the Americans had not surrendered. The British land force east of Baltimore spent most of the night trying to keep dry. Commanders could not decide if they should attack or retreat. Finally, orders came from the admiral: "Withdraw to your ships." A land attack against Baltimore's defenses would not be attempted. At first light of morning, British shells were still bursting in the air over the fort. The flag had holes in it from the British shells. But it still flew. The British shelling stopped at seven o'clock. Key took an old letter from his pocket and wrote a poem about what he had seen. Francis Scott Key's original copy of his "Star-Spangled Banner" poem.
It is now on display at the Maryland Historical Society. Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? For more than one hundred years, Americans sang this song and remembered the attack at Fort McHenry. In nineteen thirty-one, Congress made the "Star-Spangled Banner" the national anthem of the United States. The unsuccessful British attack on Baltimore was followed by news that Britain also had suffered a defeat to the north. British General Sir George Prevost led eleven thousand soldiers south from Montreal to New York. At Plattsburgh, on the western shore of Lake Champlain, his army was opposed by less than four thousand Americans. General Prevost believed he should get control of the lake before moving against the American defenders.
He requested the support of four British ships and about ten gunboats. A group of American ships of about the same size also entered the lake. In a fierce battle, the American naval force sank the British ships. The large land army of Prevost decided not to attack without naval support. The eleven- thousand British soldiers turned around and marched back to Montreal. By the time these battles of eighteen f ourteen had been fought, the two sides already had agreed to discuss peace. The peace talks began in the summer at Ghent, in Belgium. The British at first were in no hurry to sign a peace treaty. They believed that their forces would be able to capture parts of the United States. Britain demanded as a condition for peace that the United States give large areas of its northwest to the Indians. It also said America must give Canada other areas along the border. And Britain would not promise to stop seizing American seamen and putting them in the British navy.
重点解析
1.agreed to 同意
I agreed to this plan.
我同意了这个计划。
2.turned around 转过身
The boy had not turned around but he had noticed their presence.
那个男孩没有转身，但他注意到了他们的存在。
3.national anthem 国歌
Most of us in this country--all who were raised here--know the words and music of our National Anthem by heart.
我们国家里大部分的人，和在这个国家长大的人，对于这首国歌的曲调和歌词都已烂熟于心。
4.more than 多于；超出；比……多
That would be more than I have expected.
那已经比我期望的还要多了。
参考译文
英军将领罗伯特·罗斯和海军上将乔治·考克伯恩爵士领导进攻华盛顿之后，下一步计划进攻巴尔的摩。但是巴尔的摩的人们料到英国袭击，开始为此准备，五万居民在城市四围筑垒。巴尔的摩港口受到麦克亨利堡的保护。堡垒的枪炮可以阻止英国战舰到达巴尔的摩。英军开始进攻巴尔的摩。罗斯将军、考克伯恩上将和大约4千名英国士兵在北角（延伸至切萨皮克湾的一块狭长地带）登陆。从北角向巴尔的摩行进大约22公里。大约在早上七点开始进发。进军一小时后，罗斯和考克伯恩的军队停了下来。两名指挥官和几名军官骑马来到附近的一所农舍，强迫农舍的村民给他们提供早餐。吃完饭后，村民问罗斯将军他们要去哪里。“去巴尔的摩。”罗斯回答说。村民告诉罗斯，到那里可能会遇到一些困难，巴尔的摩拥有坚固的城防。“晚饭不是在巴尔的摩……就是在地狱里，”罗斯回答说。罗斯和考克伯恩走在英军前面，部队远远的落在后面。数百名美军向英军将领开火。罗斯被击中，不久就死去了。美军撤退了，但减缓了英军前进的步伐。第二天晚些时候，英军抵达巴尔的摩附近，与美军对峙。美军占据制高点，大约100门大炮对准英军开火。英军指挥官命令士兵休息一夜，并向英国军舰发出信息，要他们用大炮和迫击炮攻击巴尔的摩。他认为，这样可能会迫使美军撤退。英国军舰从清晨就已经开始向麦克亨利堡开火。
英军的大炮比堡垒的大炮威力更大，射程更远，以至于美军大炮无法击中敌军。英国迫击炮的炮弹像雨点一样落在麦克亨利堡上空。但在这座堡垒里，几乎没有多少美国人伤亡。大多数火炮在空中爆炸或未击中目标，其中还有许多哑弹。在堡垒中心的一根高高的旗杆上，飘扬着一面巨大的美国国旗。守城士兵和英国军舰都能看到这面旗帜。一位年轻的美国人也看到了这面国旗，这个人是弗朗西斯·斯科特·基。基是一位律师、诗人和作家，反对战争，他曾经想过献身于宗教。但他热爱祖国，并在华盛顿参军卫国。当英军从华盛顿撤离时，他们带走了一名美国医生——威廉姆·比恩斯，基认识比恩斯。于是他请求麦迪逊总统，希望麦迪逊能让英国指挥官释放比恩斯。麦迪逊总统写了这样一份请求书，基同意把它交给考克伯恩上将。基还携带了在美国医院受伤的英国士兵的信件。在其中一封信中，英国士兵讲述了他所得到的优质医疗服务。考克伯恩在得知他的伤员得到良好医疗护理后，同意释放这名医生，但要等到进攻结束后才行。弗朗西斯·斯科特·基看着炮弹和火箭弹开始落在麦克亨利堡。基后来说：“我看到了我们的国旗，在一座城市上空飘扬，这代表着祖国的力量和骄傲。”我看着敌人准备进攻。我听到了战斗的声音，冲突的嘈杂声。它告诉我，‘自由的勇士’已经和侵略者交战。”攻击持续了整个雨天。比恩斯医生很难看清楚那面旗，所以不停地问基“星条旗”是否还在堡垒上空。直到天黑，基还能看见旗帜。夜幕降临后，他就只能希望旗帜仍旧飘扬在堡垒上空。英军试图让另一支部队在堡垒附近登陆。但是美国人听到了船的声音，向其开火。登陆失败。炮火继续不断地落在麦克亨利堡的上空。有时，还能听到美军的炮火声。基知道美军并没有投降。巴尔的摩以东的英军在雨中度过了大半夜。指挥官们无法决定是进攻还是撤退。最后，海军上将下达命令：“撤回战舰。”撤销对巴尔的摩的防御系统的地面攻击。黎明时分，英军的炮弹仍在堡垒上空轰鸣，旗帜上留有英国炮弹打的洞，但仍在飘扬。七点钟，英军停止炮击。基从口袋里掏出一封旧信，写了一首诗，描述他所看到的一切。哦，你可看见，透过一线曙光，我们对着什么，发出欢呼的声浪？谁的阔条明星，冒着一夜炮火，依然迎风招展，在我军碉堡上？火炮闪闪发光，炸弹轰轰作响，它们都是见证，国旗安然无恙。你看星条旗不是还高高飘扬，在这自由国家，勇士的家乡？透过稠密的雾，隐约望见对岸，顽敌正在酣睡，四周沉寂夜阑珊。微风断断续续，吹过峻崖之巅，你说那是什么，风中半隐又半现？
现在它的身上，映着朝霞烂漫，凌空照在水面，霎时红光一片。这是星条旗！但愿它永远飘扬，在这自由国家，勇士的家乡。一百多年来，美国人一直传唱这首歌，纪念对麦克亨利堡的袭击。1931年，国会将《星条旗永不落》定为美国国歌。英军对巴尔的摩进攻失败后，又有消息说英军在北方占线失利。英军将领乔治·普雷沃斯特爵士率领1万1千名士兵从蒙特利尔南下向纽约进发。在尚普兰湖西岸的普拉茨堡，英军遇上不到4000名美军部队。普雷沃斯特将军认为，应该在进攻美国守军之前拿下尚普兰湖的控制权。他请求四艘英国船只和大约十艘炮艇支援。一只同样规模的美国船只也进入了该湖。在一场激战中，美国海军击沉了英国军舰。普雷沃斯特率领的庞大的陆军决定在没有海军支持的情况下放弃进攻。一万一千名英国士兵转身向蒙特利尔进发。到1814年的战争结束时，双方同意和谈。谈判于1814年夏天在比利时根特举行。起初英国并不急于签署和平条约。因为他们相信，英军部队一定能够占领美国的部分地区。休战的条件是英国要求美国将其西北部的大片地区给印第安人，必须把美国和加拿大边界的地区拨给加拿大。英国也不会承诺停止扣押美国海员，让其投入英国海军。译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
