Royal Consorts Trivia

1. King James I of Scotland married his wife, Joan, as part of the deal which released him from 18 years of captivity in England. She was a member of what powerful family, the descendants of John of Gaunt and Katherine Swynford?

From Quiz The Wives of Kings James

Answer: Beaufort

Joan Beaufort married King James I of Scotland in 1424, shortly before his release from his lengthy captivity in England. He had been captured by pirates and turned over to King Henry IV of England in 1406 while en route from Scotland to France at the age of just 11. His uncle, the Duke of Albany, assumed leadership of Scotland in his nephew's absence. Albany was, unsurprisingly, unwilling to relinquish this power and therefore refused to pay the demanded ransom and James ended up remaining in England for 18 years. Joan Beaufort was a (half) first cousin of King Henry V of England, both of them being grandchildren of John of Gaunt, the fourth son of King Edward III. She was therefore of royal blood, and a good match for the Scottish king. Katherine Swynford had been John of Gaunt's mistress for many years before their marriage and their children had all been born out of wedlock. As a result, King Henry IV had declared that all of their descendants were excluded from the line of succession to the English throne. However, Henry Tudor (the son of Margaret Beaufort) became king of England in 1485, while Joan's great-great-great-great grandson became James I of England in 1603. Edmund of Langley and Thomas of Woodstock were younger brothers of John of Gaunt. King Henry IV was known by the name Henry Bolingbroke until he seized the throne in 1399.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Edward

Answer: Bessie Wallis Warfield

Wallis Simpson was born Bessie Wallis Warfield in Pennsylvania in 1896. She married her first husband, Earl Winfield Spencer, in 1916 but the marriage ended in divorce in 1927. It was during her second marriage to Ernest Simpson that she first met the Prince of Wales, who was later to become King Edward VIII. Following his accession to the throne (and Wallis's decision to divorce Simpson) he declared his plan to marry her but was thwarted when the government, led by prime minister Stanley Baldwin, refused to support him. He chose to abdicate on the 11th December 1936, broadcasting that decision to the nation with the statement: "I have found it impossible to carry the heavy burden of responsibility and to discharge my duties as king as I would wish to do without the help and support of the woman I love."

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Henry

Answer: Edith

Matilda of Scotland's marriage to King Henry I in 1100 was an important factor in the improved relations between England and Scotland in the early 12th century. Henry's reign (1100-1135) saw an unusual period of peace between the two countries, at a time when three of Matilda's brothers (Edgar, Alexander I, and David I) were consecutively on the throne of Scotland. Their marriage also helped to secure the support of the English lords for Henry, as she was descended from the previous line of English kings, from whom Henry's father, William the Conqueror, had taken the throne at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Matilda's father, King Malcolm III of Scotland, is featured as a character in the play 'Macbeth' by William Shakespeare. In the play, Malcolm's father, King Duncan, was murdered by Macbeth following a prophecy made by three witches that Macbeth would one day become King of Scotland. However, the historical King Duncan is believed to have been killed in battle, against forces led by Macbeth, in 1040.

From Quiz England's Royal Consorts, 868-1837

Answer: Elswitha

Elswitha of the Gaini and Alfred were married in 868 or 869. She outlived him by three years, dying in 905. The name Elgifu was shared by the first queen of Edmund the Elder, and the wife of Edwy the Fair. Judith was the second queen of Ethelwulf, and Wulfryth was either the second wife, or the mistress, of Edgar the Peaceful.

From Quiz Queen Consorts of the Kings of England - 1066-1553

Answer: Mathilda of Flanders

She was the daughter of Baldwin V of Flanders. William was able to negotiate her hand in marriage on the strength of his military successes within Normandy and against neighbouring nobles. They had three sons, and several daughters; there is debate about exactly how many. Herleve was the name of William I's mother. She was the daughter of a tanner in Falaise. Adela was William's daughter, and she was the mother of King Stephen.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings James

Answer: Netherlands

Mary of Guelders was (rather ironically) born in Grave, in the Netherlands, in around 1434. She was the daughter of Arnold, Duke of Guelders and Catherine of Cleves, making her a distant relation of Anne of Cleves, the fourth wife of King Henry VIII of England. Guelders was a Duchy of the Holy Roman Empire until it was subsumed into the Habsburg Netherlands in 1543. Its territory now lies mainly within the modern day Netherlands, although parts of it have also ended up in Germany. Mary and James's wedding took place at Holyrood Abbey in Edinburgh in 1449. The marriage lasted for 11 years until James was killed by an exploding cannon whilst besieging Roxburgh Castle. Mary then became regent for her eldest son, the new King James III, until her own death just three years later.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Edward

Answer: Denmark

Princess Alexandra of Denmark (known to her family as Alix) was one of the six children of King Christian IX of Denmark. While Alexandra eventually became queen consort of the United Kingdom and empress consort of India, most of her siblings also became high profile European royals. Her elder brother was King Frederick VIII of Denmark, another brother became King George I of Greece and her sister Dagmar changed her name to become the Russian Empress Maria Feodorovna. Alexandra's son, King George V, and Dagmar's son, Tsar Nicholas II, were particularly noted for sharing a close family resemblance.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Henry

Answer: None

Adeliza of Louvain's birth date is unknown but she is believed to have been in her late teens when she married the 53 year old King Henry I in 1121. They were married for 14 years until his death in 1135, but had no children together. The widowed queen remarried three years later and had at least seven children by her second husband, William D'Aubigny. Through these children she was an ancestor of Henry V, Henry VI, Henry VII and Henry VIII of England. King Henry I had only two known legitimate children by his first wife, Matilda of Scotland, although he was the father of a large number of illegitimate children by numerous different mistresses. Following the death of his son he named his daughter, Empress Matilda, as his heir. However, on his death the throne was seized by his nephew, King Stephen, plunging England into a nineteen year civil war known as The Anarchy. Louvain is the French name for the Belgian city of Leuven. Adeliza's father held the title of Count of Louvain. Adeliza was also known under a number of other names, including Adela, Adelicia and Aleidis.

From Quiz England's Royal Consorts, 868-1837

Answer: Emma of Normandy

Emma of Normandy was the queen of Ethelred the Unready, and after his death she married his enemy, Canute, who ruled England from 1016-1035. Her sons were Hardecanute and Edward the Confessor, who ruled England from 1040-1042 and 1042-1066 respectively. Edith was the queen of Edward the Confessor; they had no children because he had taken a vow of chastity. Matilda of Scotland was the first queen of Henry I, and their son was drowned in the sinking of 'The White Ship'. Another of Henry I's sons, Richard, was also killed in this incident, but opinion is divided as to whether he was a legitimate child. Eleanor of Aquitaine was also wife of two kings and mother to two kings. She was married to King Louis VII of France, eventually divorced him, and soon after married Henry II of England. She was the mother of Richard the Lionheart and John.

From Quiz Queen Consorts of the Kings of England - 1066-1553

Answer: Edith of Scotland

William I was succeeded by William II, or William Rufus, who didn't marry and had no children. Henry was William II's younger brother. Marriage to Edith of Scotland (She changed her name to Matilda upon her marriage to Henry in 1100, upon his request, and was also known as Maud of Scotland) brought peaceful relations between England and Scotland during Henry's reign. He had a legitimate son - William, who died in the White Ship when it sank in the English Channel. He also had illegitimate sons but they were not allowed to expect to follow their father as King of England or Duke of Normandy. Instead, he was succeeded by his nephew, Stephen. Adeliza was Henry's second wife, with whom he had no children.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings James

Answer: Orkney and Shetland

The Orkney and Shetland Islands are two archipelagos located off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The Orkneys lie between about 10 and 60 miles off the coast, while the Shetlands are more remote at about 80 to 170 miles from the mainland. Both sets of islands were originally handed over by King Christian I of Denmark and Norway as a surety for the large dowry he had promised for his daughter. However, the king never paid the money and the islands officially became part of Scotland. Margaret was originally betrothed to James in 1460, when she was just four years old, as part of the King of France's plan to end an argument between Scotland and Denmark over the Hebrides (islands off the west coast of Scotland). The arranged marriage was reasonably successful to begin with as Margaret was popular in Scotland and gave birth to three sons, the eldest of whom went on to become King James IV. However, she later became estranged from her husband and died in 1486 at the age of just 30 - unproven rumours suggested she may have been poisoned. Lewis and Harris is in fact one single island located in the Outer Hebrides. North Uist, South Uist and Benbecula are also in the Outer Hebrides, while Skye, Rum and Eigg are islands of the Inner Hebrides.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Edward

Answer: Mary, Queen of Scots

Edward VI was only six years old and Mary was just six months old when plans for their marriage were made under the terms of the Treaty of Greenwich. The treaty was supposed to ensure peace between England and Scotland by uniting the two kingdoms with the marriage of the heir to the throne of England to the infant Queen of Scotland. The terms were proposed by Edward's father, King Henry VIII, but despite initial agreement from the Scots, the treaty was thrown out by the Scottish Parliament and the marriage plans were cancelled. The war that followed lasted about eight years but the name 'The Rough Wooing' was not applied to it until around the mid-19th century. Although the exact origin of the term is unclear, it has been suggested that Sir Walter Scott may have been responsible for popularising the description of the conflict as a 'wooing'. Mary was Edward's first cousin once removed. She was the granddaughter of Queen Margaret of Scotland, who was the elder sister of Edward's father, King Henry VIII of England. The alternative answers were all other female cousins of King Edward VI.

From Quiz England's Royal Consorts, 868-1837

Answer: Berengaria of Navarre

Richard I neglected his bride, Berengaria of Navarre, because, apart from the fact that he was absorbed in the Crusades, he was also gay. After his death she founded an abbey and became a nun. Eleanor of Aquitaine was Richard's mother, and Isabella of Angouleme married his youngest brother John. Adela of Louvain was the second queen of Henry I.

From Quiz Consorts of the Queens of England

Answer: Philip & Philip II & Felipe & Felipe II

Mary's marriage to Philip II was not popular in England. They had no children and after Mary's death Philip was interested in marrying Elizabeth. Philip's first marriage was to Mary of Portugal; Mary Tudor was his second wife; he also married Princess Elisabeth of France and Anne, daughter of Emperor Maximilian II.

From Quiz Queen Consorts of the Kings of England - 1066-1553

Answer: Matilda of Boulogne

Stephen was the son of William the Conqueror's daughter, Adela. He married the daughter of the Count of Boulogne in about 1125 and they had two sons, Eustace and William. The Empress Maud is another name of Matilda, against whom Stephen was defending his throne. She married the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, hence her title of Empress.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings James

Answer: She was granted a divorce by the pope

Margaret Tudor was the eldest daughter of King Henry VII of England and his wife, Elizabeth of York, who was the daughter of King Edward IV of England. The marriage between the English princess and the Scottish king was agreed under the terms of the Treaty of Perpetual Peace of 1502 and took place a year later when Margaret was just 14 years old (although that, frankly, was quite old for a royal bride in medieval times). Ironically, both the marriage and the 'perpetual peace' lasted just ten years. Margaret went on to marry Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, in 1514. This move cost her both the regency and custody of her young son, King James V. Although Margaret and Angus had a daughter together in 1515, the marriage soon fell apart - at one point Margaret even threatened him with a cannon! She eventually got Pope Clement VII to grant her a divorce in 1527, despite the (distinctly hypocritical) protests of her brother, King Henry VIII. She also tried and failed to divorce her third husband, Henry Stewart. Margaret was the grandmother of both Mary, Queen of Scots (via her son King James V) and of Mary's husband, Lord Darnley (via her daughter Lady Margaret Douglas).

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Edward

Answer: Sir John Grey

Elizabeth Woodville lived during the time of the War of the Roses - the 15th century civil war between rival houses of the English royal family. Prior to her marriage her family were supporters of the Lancastrian King Henry VI, and her first husband, Sir John Grey, was killed fighting for Henry at the Second Battle of St Albans. The family had to change sides quickly when Elizabeth later married the Yorkist King Edward IV. Elizabeth faced many difficulties as queen. Her husband was briefly deposed during the period 1470-1471, her father was executed and her mother was put on trial for witchcraft.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Henry

Answer: Margaret of France

Margaret of France was the wife of Henry the Young King. Henry was crowned king during the reign of his father Henry II, but pre-deceased him and was therefore never actually king of England. Margaret's parents were King Louis VII of France and his second wife Constance of Castile. She and her husband shared two half-sisters, Marie and Alix of France, the daughters of Margaret's father and Henry's mother. Another Margaret of France did become the wife of an actual king of England when she married King Edward I in 1299. This Margaret was the daughter of King Philip III of France and the great-great-granddaughter of the younger half-brother of the wife of the Young King. Joan of Kent, Anne Neville and Constance of France were all married to sons of English kings who pre-deceased their fathers and therefore never became king themselves. Joan was married to Edward, the Black Prince (eldest son of Edward III), Anne to Edward of Westminster (only son of Henry VI) and Constance to Eustace, eldest son of King Stephen.

From Quiz England's Royal Consorts, 868-1837

Answer: Eleanor of Castile

Edward and Eleanor of Castile were married in 1254, when she was just 10 years old. She was an active queen, and accompanied her husband on crusade. After her death, he commissioned twelve crosses to be built in her honour. He also ordered that two large candles should burn forever by her tomb. Unfortunately, after burning for over 200 years, they were extinguished during the Reformation. Eleanor of Provence was Edward's mother, and was extremely unpopular with the people for her extravagance. There has never been a queen of England called Eleanor of Anjou.

From Quiz Queen Consorts of the Kings of England - 1066-1553

Answer: Eleanor of Aquitaine

Eleanor was married to Louis VII of France before she married Henry but this marriage was annulled on the grounds of consanguinity. She then married Henry (1152), to whom she was as closely related as she was to Louis. They had five sons and three daughters.

From Quiz English Royal Consorts

Answer: Eleanor of Castile

They had at least 16 children together, mostly daughters. Unusual for Royal married couples at the time, they were very much in love. Eleanor was travelling with Edward in central England when she suddenly became ill and died. Edward was devastated. He ordered her embalmed, and her body was then carried in a procession to Westminster Abbey in London. At each place where the procession stopped for the night, Edward built a memorial cross in her honour. Today only the crosses at Waltham Crossin (Hertfordshire) and at Geddington and Hardingstone in Northamptonshire remain, but the cross at Charing is remembered only in the name Charing Cross.

From Quiz Royal English Consorts

Answer: Elizabeth Woodville

Elizabeth Woodville was a very controversial figure. She married the 5 year younger Edward IV in secret in 1464. The King was so attracted to her beauty, that he promptly forgot the intentions his council, Richard Neville, had for him: to marry a French princess. He also didn't mind that Elizabeth was from a family of Lancasters, the losing side of the War of the Roses. Edward's council did mind, however, and it was even a factor in the brief overthrow of Edward IV by his brother, George, and the Kingmaker, Richard Neville. When Edward IV suddenly died, Elizabeth found herself surrounded by enemies, who were afraid of the influence her Woodville family would have if her son became the next king. Her sons were taken from her and put in the Tower by her brother-in-law, Richard III. Elizabeth joined forces with Margaret Beaufort, and support Margaret's son, Henry Tudor, in his war to dethrone Richard III.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Henry

Answer: The youngest, Beatrice, who was unmarried

Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence, left his lands to his unmarried youngest daughter, Beatrice. As his two eldest daughters were married to the Kings of France and England respectively, leaving Provence to either of them would have effectively handed the territory to their already powerful husbands. His third daughter, Sanchia, was also married to a powerful man, as the Earl of Cornwall was the younger brother of King Henry III. On her father's death Beatrice became a sought after heiress and shortly afterwards married the King of France's younger brother, but only on the proviso that Provence could never be inherited by the French crown. All four sisters ended up becoming queens as Sanchia became Queen of the Romans when her husband was elected King of Germany in 1256, under the title King of the Romans. Beatrice became a queen when her husband was crowned King of Sicily in 1266. Eleanor is generally considered by historians to have been a competent and ambitious queen consort who was instrumental in supporting her rather ineffectual husband. She acted as regent for her husband whilst he was abroad and raised an army to free Henry when he was captured by disaffected English barons. However she was unpopular in England with both the barons and the general populace. In one particularly notable incident in 1263 she had to be rescued from her barge on the River Thames after the citizens of London starting throwing various items such as rotten eggs and vegetables at the vessel.

From Quiz Consorts of the Queens of England

Answer: William III

William of Orange was a Protestant, as was Mary. When James II had a son, William and Mary were invited to invade England by those who feared the return of a Catholic monarchy and they landed in Devon in November 1688. They came to power with very little bloodshed in what became known as the Glorious Revolution. William became King and ruled after Mary's death until 1702.

From Quiz Queen Consorts of the Kings of England - 1066-1553

Answer: Berengaria of Navarre

A marriage was arranged between Richard and Alice, the sister of King Philip II of France, but Henry, Richard's father, made her his mistress and therefore discouraged Richard from the marriage. Instead he married the daughter of Sancho VI of Navarre in 1191, in Limassol. They had no children. Queen Joan, wife of William II of Sicily, was Richard's sister.

From Quiz English Royal Consorts

Answer: Isabella

She was also known as "Isabella the Fair." She was married to Edward at a very young age, but he showed little interest in her, thinking of her as nothing more than a breeding machine. He was almost certainly homosexual, and carried on his affairs right in front of Isabella, which must have been very hard for her. Edward was not a very competent ruler, and civil war eventually broke out. Isabella met Roger Mortimer, and began an affair with him. She tricked Edward into sending her to France, where she and Roger raised an army (aided by her brother the King of France) which deposed Edward and then he mysteriously died (Isabella most likely had him murdered). This made his young son, Edward III, King of England and Isabella regent. When Edward III came of age, he had Mortimer executed and his mother imprisoned in Castle Rising - for 31 years. When she died her body was buried next to Roger Mortimer's.

From Quiz Match the King to the Queen

Answer: Mary of Modena

Mary and James were the parents of the Old Pretender, Prince James Edward Stuart. They were deposed in 1688 and went to live in exile in France.

From Quiz The Wives of Kings Edward

Answer: Philippa

Philippa of Hainault (or Hainaut) lived from 1314 to 1369 and her marriage to King Edward III took place formally in 1328. The County of Hainault was then a part of the Holy Roman Empire and consisted of parts of modern day Belgium and northern France. Philippa was popular with the English people as she was known for her compassion and often interceded with her husband to obtain mercy for those accused of various crimes. The Queen's College (commonly known as "Queen's") was founded by Robert de Eglesfield, chaplain to Queen Philippa. It is one of the 38 colleges that make up the University of Oxford, which dates back to around the late 12th century (the date of its formal foundation is unknown) and is the oldest university in England. (This college should not be confused with Queens' College, Cambridge, which is named in honour of Margaret of Anjou and Elizabeth Woodville). Joan and Blanche were the names of two of Queen Philippa's daughters-in-law, the mothers of King Richard II and King Henry IV respectively. Isabella was the name of Philippa's eldest daughter.

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