Buckingham Palace is where the Queen lives. It is the Queen’s official and main royal London home.Buckingham Palace was originally a splendid house built by the Duke(公爵) of Buckingham for his wife. George IV began changing it into a palace in 1826. It has been the official London home of Britain’s royal family since 1837. Buckingham Palace is also an office and used for the administrative work of the royal family.
When the Queen is at home you can see her royal flag (the Royal Standard) flying from the flag pole on top of Buckingham Palace.
The flag is divided into four equal parts. The first and fourth parts represent England and contain three gold lions waking on a red field; the second part represents Scotland and contains a red lion standing on a gold field; the third part represents Ireland and contains the gold coat of arms of Ireland on a blue field.
In flag protocol (礼仪), the Royal Standard which must only be flown from buildings where the Queen is present is supreme (至高无上的). It flies above the British Union Flag (the Union Jack ), and other British flags. It never flies at half mast.
The guards of the Palace wear red jackets and tall, furry hats. When the first guards come on duty, there is a ceremony called the Changing of the Guard. A familiar sight at Buckingham Palace is the Changing of the Guard ceremony that takes place in the open space in front of it each morning.
The Palace has around 750 rooms, including 19 state rooms, 52 royal and guest bedrooms, 78 bathrooms, 92 offices, a cinema and a swimming pool. It also has its own post office and police station. About 400 people work at the Palace, including servants, chefs, footmen, cleaners, gardeners, electricians, and so on. More than 50,000 people come to the Palace each year as guests to dinners, receptions and Royal Garden Parties.
【1】For whom was the original Buckingham Palace built?（ ）
A. The Duke of Buckingham.
B. George IV.
C. The Duke of Buckingham’s wife.
D. George IV’s wife.
【2】According to the text, the Royal Standard_________.
A. is flown at Buckingham Palace every morning
B. represents the four countries of the UK
C. flies at half mast only on a few occasions
D. flies higher than the British Union Flag
【3】When can a visitor see the Changing of the Guard ceremony?（ ）
A. Every morning and evening.
B. Every morning.
C. When the Queen’s flag is flying.
D. When a flag is flying at the Palace.
【4】What is the last paragraph about?（ ）
A. What you can see inside Buckingham Palace.
B. The royal parties at Buckingham Palace.
C. The Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.
D. People living and working at Buckingham Palace.
答案
【1】C
【2】D
【3】B
【4】A
解析
试题分析：本文是一篇说明文，讲述了英国伦敦的白金汉宫，是英国王后居住地方，最初是白金汉宫公爵为他的妻子而建造，当王后在家，可以看到至高无上的royal flag，royal flag被分为四部分，每一部分代表着英国的四个国家，且在白金汉宫前面会举行Changing of the Guard Ceremony，介绍了白金汉宫的内部结构及其工作人员，每年大量人会聚集在白金汉宫举行Parties。
【1】C 细节理解题。根据文中Buckingham Palace was originally a splendid house built by the Duke(公爵) of Buckingham for his wife.意思是白金汉宫最初是一所壮丽的房子，由Dukeof Buckingham为他妻子所建造，故选C。
【2】D 推理判断题。由文中you can see her royal flag (the Royal Standard) flying from the flag pole on top of Buckingham Palace.可知，flag pole是在白金汉宫的顶端，而the Royal Standard是从 flag pole中飘动的，同时由第五段It flies above the British Union Flag (the Union Jack )也可推出，故可推理出the Royal Standard是位于白金汉宫的顶端，故D项正确。
【3】B细节理解题。由文中第六段A familiar sight at Buckingham Palace is the Changing of the Guard ceremony that takes place in the open space in front of it each morning，在白金汉宫有一个为人所熟悉的景象是the Changing of the Guard ceremony，每天清晨它会在白金汉宫前面露天的地方举行，故可知是每天清晨举行，故选B。
【4】A推理判断题。最后一段讲的是白金汉宫的内部构造，介绍里面的工作人员以及人们前往白金汉宫举行Parties.这些都是游者能在白金汉宫里看到的，故选A。