Артур Дойл - Лучшие расследования Шерлока Холмса / The Best of Sherlock Holmes

Lord-Lieutenantis a representative of the Crown in a county or similar circumscription of the UK. They are appointed by the King/Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister.

Lord of the Admiraltyrefers to a member of the Board of Admiralty, governing body for the Royal Navy till 1960.

Chief Secretary of Stateis a high-ranked civil cervant, a Cabinet Minister that heads a government department.

his grace– “your Grace” is a form of address to a Duke or Duchess who isn’t a member of the Royal family of the UK.

A preparatory schoolis a part of private (also called independent) educational system. Preparatory schools are attended by children aged from 7-8 to 13 in order to prepare them for the secondary education.

Eton jacket(aka mess jacket aka spencer) is a formal single-breasted jacket that looks like a tailcoat without tails. Eton jacket is believed to be invented by the second Earl Spencer in the end of the 18 thcentury. The style was adopted by Eton college and soon became a standard boys’ uniform in private schools in England.

The Peak countryrefers to the hill area in the North of England.

Dunlop, Palmer’s – Dunlop and Palmer were common tyre brands of those days

Puritanswere members of a religious reform movement within the Church of England in the 16 thand 17 thcenturies. They were famous for self-restriction and virtuous lifestyle.

“Weald”is an Old English word that means “woodland.”

Norfolk jacketbecame popular in the second half of the 19 thcentury as a short coat suitable for sport activities, especially for hunting. A Norfolk jacket is loose, belted and single-breasted. It has box pleats on the back and front and a belt or half-belt.

Brambletye Hotelis a real still-existing hotel opened in 1866 in the village of Forest Row.

Shetlandis a subarctic archipelago that includes about 100 islands and forms the northern extremity of the United Kingdom. Shetland Islands lie approximately 210 km to the north of the Scottish mainland.

Mr. Pickwickis the protagonist of the first Charles Dickens’s novel, “The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club.” Dickens described Samuel Pickwick as round-faced plump gentleman wearing spectacles.

by turning her diamonds into paste – paste here refers to glass copies of precious stones. The advice is to sell real diamonds and replace them with fake ones.

plethoric sleeper – Holmes means that Milverton snores while sleeping

Skeleton keysare keys shaped to unlock a variety of different locks.

view-halloa – a cry of alarm

A glass-strewn copingis the top part of a wall with bits of glass embedded in it in order to make the wall less scalable.

Hooliganismderives from “hooligan,” a word that appeared (initially in the British newspapers) at the end of the 19 thcentury. Its etymology is uncertain. It is believed to originate from Irish surname Hoolihan that was used as a characteristic Irish family-name in comic songs and papers in the second part of the 19 thcentury.

High Street Stationhere refers to High Street Kensington, a London Underground station at Kensington High Street. Built in 1867, it is still in operation today.

Nihilistis a follower of the Russian philosophical doctrine of nihilism (the term originates from Latin “nihil” – nothing) which implies the negation of generally acknowleged values or social institutes such as moral, religion or state.

Teutonic= German. The term is generally used to denominate a quality that is believed to be typical for German people. The word originates from Latin “Teutonicus,” the name of a German tribe.

Italian quarter of London(aka the Italian Hill) – historical quarter that occupied the area of Saffron Hill between Clerkenwell Road, Rosebery Avenue and Farringdon Road. In the 19 thcentury it was one of the most notorious areas in London.

ne’er-do-wellrefers to a lazy useless person

black pearl of the Borgias – black pearls (aka Tahitian pearls) are grown in French Polinesia. They are characterised by black colour and big size. The Borgias were a noble Italian family with Spanish origin.

Thucydideswas an ancient Greek historian, the author of “The History of the Peloponnesian War.”

Johann Faberwas a worldwide famous pencil brand of the time.

Parlour gameis a game played in-door (usually in reception or sitting rooms). Parlour games were very popular in Victorian Britain.

Rhodesian Police – Rhodesia was the name of territory in South Africa (now Zimbabwe and Zambia), controlled by the British South Africa Company. The Company had it own police forces officially named British South Africa Police.

the Order of the Legion of Honour – The National Order of the Legion of Honour is French military and civil order of merit, founded in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.

Uppingham, established in 1584, is one of the oldest independent (private) boarding schools in the UK.

Crimean manhere refers to a participant of the Crimean War of 1853–1856, a conflict between the Russian Empire and the alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Sealing-wax knifeswere knives used for cutting off pieces of sealing-wax sticks and for opening letters.

magnum opus – great work ( Latin ); refers to the best and most important masterpiece of a scientist or an artist.

Coptic – referring to the Coptic Orthodox Church; Copts are Egyptian Christians.

Right wing three-quarterin the game of rugby is a back player positioned near the right edge of the field.

Trinity College, Cambridge – Trinity College founded in 1546 by Henry III is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is among the biggest and oldest colleges of the UK.

three-quarter line – there are four three-quarter players in the game of rugby: two wingers (right and left) and two centres (there was only one centre till 1886). Wingers should be speedy and capable of carrying out long runs as their main goal is to get into the rival team’s part of the field and score tries. At the same time wingers are responsible for the defence of their field.