Inside the Kremlin Walls 克里姆林宫秘史\tFrom bbc.com

Overrun by Mongols， rattled1) by earthquakes， and beset2) by fires， the Kremlin's fortunes have waxed and waned3) with those of Mother Russia. For much of its lifetime， the Kremlin was home to the Romanov dynasty—the tsars4) who ruled Russia for three centuries from 1613.

历尽蒙古铁蹄的蹂躏、地震的撼动和烈火的围攻，克里姆林宫的命运如同其祖国俄罗斯一样跌宕起伏。从建成至今，克里姆林宫在大部分时间内都是罗曼诺夫王朝的皇宫。罗曼诺夫王朝始于1613年，其历代沙皇统治俄国达三个世纪。Napoleon Dynamite

Arguably5) the Kremlin's greatest adversary was Napoleon Bonaparte， who used the 15th-century Assumption Cathedral6) as a stable7) for his horses after invading Moscow in 1812. Upon his subsequent retreat from the capital， he ordered the entire Kremlin be destroyed with explosives. Luckily， rain damaged the fuses8)， and much of the complex9) was saved from being blown apart.

Grave Matters

The Kremlin Wall Necropolis is a resting place for the good， the bad， and the ugly of Soviet times， including Yuri Gagarin10)， Joseph Stalin， and Lenin. Following the Russian Revolution11)， it briefly served as an all-purpose mass grave. Among those buried are the victims of the Aerowagon12)—a bizarre train propelled by an aircraft engine that crashed on its way to Moscow in 1921.拿破仑的破坏

克里姆林宫最大的冤家对头可能要属拿破仑·波拿巴。1812年拿破仑入侵莫斯科后，竟将克里姆林宫内建造于15世纪的圣母升天大教堂用作他的马厩。随后他从首都莫斯科撤军时，又下令将整座克里姆林宫炸毁。幸运的是，炸药的引信被雨水浇灭，克里姆林宫大部分建筑因此得以躲过灰飞烟灭的劫难。

墓地往事

克里姆林宫红场墓园安葬着前苏联时期的善恶美丑各色人物，包括尤里·加加林、约瑟夫·斯大林和列宁。俄国革命之后，这个地方一度成为一个用于各种用途的万人冢。埋葬在此的人中还包括“飞轮号”火车的遇难者——1921年，这列由飞机引擎驱动的古怪火车在驶往莫斯科途中撞毁了。 Your Egg-celency13)

Originally intended to store weapons， the Armoury now serves as a museum housing treasures from the days of the tsars. It's home to a collection of Fabergé eggs14)—lavish ornaments first commissioned by Tsar Alexander III as Easter presents for his wife. Each egg has its own distinctive theme and contains a small \"surprise\" inside—the most famous is the Trans-Siberian Railway egg， which includes a tiny wind-up train made of gold.

The Play's the Thing

The 17th-century Poteshny Palace was home to the very first Russian theatre—Tsar Aleksey Mikhailovich enjoyed watching comic plays here， attending church services soon after to atone15) for his sinful chuckles. Later， the palace became home to a markedly humourless leader， Joseph Stalin. Sightings of his ghost stomping the Kremlin corridors are regularly reported today—allegedly16) accompanied by a sharp drop in room temperature.

Saved by the Bell

Definitive evidence of the Russian imperial appetite for huge objects， the Tsar Bell weighs 202 tons， and as such is the largest bell in the world. It never rung and never had the happiest history—moulded17) from an earlier bell that smashed during a fire， the current bell is in two pieces having cracked in its foundry pit. Nonetheless， faithful Muscovites18) believe that the bell will be rung for the first time on Judgment Day19)， upon its ascent to Heaven.彩蛋“陛下”

克里姆林宫珍宝馆原本计划用于存放武器，现在却成为一座博物馆，存放着沙皇时期的各类珍宝。这里收藏着一组“法贝格彩蛋”，这些装饰奢华的彩蛋起初是沙皇亚历山大三世为妻子定做的复活节礼物。每一个彩蛋都有自己独特的主题，里面还藏着小小的“惊喜”。其中最著名的莫过于“西伯利亚大铁路彩蛋”，里面装着一列由黄金打造的、装有发条的微型火车。

戏剧是关键

17世纪修建的普列谢耶宫是俄罗斯历史上名副其实的第一家剧院，沙皇阿列克谢·米哈伊洛维奇喜欢到这里看喜剧，戏一看完就去教堂为自己的失态窃笑祈祷忏悔。后来，这里住了一个明显缺乏幽默感的元首——约瑟夫·斯大林。现在还常常有报道说人们看见他的阴魂迈着沉重的步伐走过克里姆林宫的走廊，据说宫内的温度还会随之骤降。

救世神钟

俄罗斯帝国喜好庞然大物，克里姆林宫的沙皇钟即为明证。沙皇钟重达202吨，论重量是世界第一大钟。沙皇钟从来没响过，还命途多舛——现在这座钟是根据之前在大火中毁掉的那座钟铸造而成的，在铸坑里就已出现裂痕，现在裂成了两块。尽管如此，虔诚的莫斯科人相信，沙皇钟终会在审判日升天之际发出破天荒的一响。1.rattle [#712;r#230;tl] vt. 使发出嘎嘎声

2.beset [b#618;#712;set] vt. 围攻

3.wax and wane: 由盛而衰

4.tsar [zɑ#720;(r)] n. 沙皇

5.arguably [#712;ɑ#720;ɡju#601;bli] adv. 可能；可论证地；可证实地

6.Assumption Cathedral: 圣母升天大教堂，位于克里姆林宫中心，曾在沙皇俄国统治时期被奉为国教大教堂，历代沙皇都在这里举行加冕礼。

7.stable [#712;ste#618;bl] n. 马厩

8.fuse [fju#720;z] n. 导火线；引信

9.complex [#712;k#594;mpleks] n. (建筑)群

10.Yuri Gagarin: 尤里·加加林(1934~1968)，前苏联人，是世界上第一个进入太空的宇航员。

11.Russian Revolution: 俄国革命，指1917年发生在俄国的一系列革命，主要包括二月革命和十月革命两个阶段。二月革命推翻了沙皇统治，而列宁领导的十月革命促成了苏维埃政权的建立和世界上第一个社会主义国家的诞生。

12.Aerowagon: “飞轮号”火车，是前苏联工程师设计的一款试验性高速列车，由飞机引擎和螺旋桨驱动，于1921年脱轨撞毁，车上22名乘客中有六人死亡。

13.Your Egg-celency: Your Excellency (陛下)的化用，这里指复活节彩蛋。

14.Fabergé eggs: 法贝格彩蛋，共69枚，风格各异，创意迭出，多由各种珍贵金属、石头、混合珐琅与宝石制成，是珠宝艺术的经典之作。

15.atone [#601;#712;t#601;#650;n] vi. 补偿，

弥补

16.allegedly [#601;#712;led#658;#618;dli] adv. 据称

17.mould [m#601;#650;ld] vt. (逐渐)建造；改造

18.Muscovite [#712;m#652;sk#601;#716;va#618;t] n. 莫斯科人

19.Judgment Day: 审判日，在基督教神学中指世界末日时上帝决定人类命运的日子。