The Head Girl of the Chalet School Quiz

Answer: The Falls of Rhine

The group are travelling from the New Forest, where Miss Maynard lives, to the Tyrol and are planning to stay in Paris and then Basle to break up the journey. Grizel is desperate to go to Schaffhausen and see the Falls of Rhine, but Miss Maynard refuses as it is too far and there won't be enough time. Grizel plans to go behind Miss Maynard's back, which angers Joey, and the two have an argument about it. Grizel sneaks off and gets the train to Schaffhausen, but has a fit of conscience and returns to the hotel where the group are staying, only to discover that Miss Maynard has taken the other girls and their luggage and gone to Schaffhausen. Frau Betts, the proprietor, has a carriage take Grizel to Schaffhausen and sends a message to Miss Maynard. Miss Maynard is angry and later asks Madge if Grizel is really suitable for the position of Head Girl because of her impulsive behaviour. Madge decides that Grizel should keep the job, to Grizel's relief, but on condition that she behaves herself.

Answer: A pair of old women the party encounter on the train

The 'Stuffer' and Maria are a couple of old women sharing the group's carriage. The 'Stuffer', whose real name we never find out, is so called because she insists on keeping the window closed, even though it makes the carriage hot and stuffy. She talks loudly about foreigners letting young girls travel on their own (to the amusement of Miss Maynard, who is in her early twenties!). Miss Maynard asks Grizel to open the window and let in some fresh air, only for the 'Stuffer' to close it and get into an argument with Miss Maynard, which wakes the Robin up. An Austrian man complains about the noise and opens the window so tightly that it cannot be closed. Miss Maynard recognises him as Professor Christian von der Witt, a 'fresh air fiend'. Miss Maynard offers the 'Stuffer' and Maria some coffee and rugs, and Joey tells them about the Chalet School.

Answer: She burns Grizel's harmony book, which also contained the last letter from her grandmother.

As Head Girl, Grizel's first task is to dole out the prefects' jobs. While most of the prefects accept their jobs, Deira complains about being made Hobbies Prefect as she wants to be Music Prefect. Grizel refuses to let her change her job, stating that Vanna di Ricci is better suited as she knows Herr Anserl better, and Deira can either accept it or have no job at all. Grizel later searches for her harmony book, as she has kept the last letter from her late grandmother in it and wants to read it.

When she mentions it to the other prefects and tells them about the letter, Deira panics and eventually admits that she burned the book. An argument breaks out and Miss Maynard sends Deira out to calm down. Madge speaks to both girls and although Grizel accepts her role in the event, Deira refuses to say anything and has little to do with the other girls.

Answer: Deira throws a stone at Grizel and knocks her out.

As the weather is relatively fine, Madge allows the girls to have a snowball fight, with Grizel and Gertrud Steinbrücke leading teams. Grizel throws a snowball at Gertrud, but Gertrud dodges and it hits Deira instead. Deira thinks Grizel is deliberately attacking her and throws a snowball at her in a rage.

Unfortunately, the snowball contains a stone, which hits Grizel on the head and knocks her out. Deira panics, worrying that Grizel will die. Grizel is taken to the school sick bay and the Robin asks Deira what has happened to her. Deira tries to explain what happened without incriminating herself, but the Robin guesses it was Deira who threw the stone, and Deira breaks down in tears. Madge calms her down and tells her not to tell anyone. She later apologises to Grizel and their feud ends.

Answer: Florence

Grizel originally wanted to be a PE teacher, and now wants to study maths like Juliet Carrick, but her parents insist that she study music instead and that she go to Florence for it. As anyone who's read the Armishire/St Briavel's books will know, she later becomes the school music teacher and is feared by pupils because of her sarcastic tongue and nasty temper.

While Grizel is studying under Herr Anserl and is a talented pianist, she doesn't see herself as a 'real musician'. Evadne Lannis comments that her father would let her do what she wanted if she asked and tells Grizel she should write to hers, but Grizel tells her she is too young to understand.

The Tyrolean girls, by contrast, say that they would never disobey their fathers. (In the next book, 'The Rivals of the Chalet School', it is revealed that Grizel has become friends with Gerry Chaloner of 'Gerry Goes to School' by the same author, who is studying under the same teacher.)

Answer: The Robin is not appropriately dressed as a queen should be, and does not have jewels.

Miss Maynard asks the girls where the Robin is and no-one knows. Joey suggests using Rufus to track her, as he did with Princess Elisaveta when she got kidnapped, and she and Grizel take him out to help find her, while Grizel orders the other girls to get everything ready for the Robin's return. Rufus picks up the Robin's scent and leads the girls to an unfamiliar part of the Bärenbad Alpe, which the locals avoid as they believe it's haunted by devils.

They spot a cleft in the rock where an old man with a long beard and deerskins for clothes is sleeping with the Robin.

The Robin tells them that Herr Arnolfi was taking her to see fairies, but they got tired and had to rest. Herr Arnolfi claims that the Robin is the Queen of the Fairies and that he is a fairy himself, but Grizel manages to talk her way out of the situation by claiming that the fairies are asleep and that the Robin is not dressed 'as befits a queen'. Joey ties the Robin onto Rufus and he carries her home, but Herr Arnolfi chases after them and they have to run.

Although they manage to escape him and the Robin gets home safely, Joey and Grizel tire and are rescued by some men who take them to a local chalet. They are then taken back to the school and have to rest up for a week, and Mlle Lepattre gives the Robin a telling-off for putting herself and the other girls in danger.

Answer: Her hair is singed and has to be cut.

While Mr Lannis goes to a meeting, Suzette, the family's French maid, looks after the girls and takes them sightseeing and shopping. During the night, a fire breaks out in the hotel and the girls have to escape through a window onto a fire escape. On the way, they encounter Frau Berlin, the unpleasant woman Joey and Madge met on the train in 'The School at the Chalet'. Frau Berlin tries to make a dash for the fire escape while the girls are going down it, but Mr Lannis holds her off while another man takes care of Suzette, who has collapsed.

When the group go to another hotel, Grizel tries to tie her hair back, but gets a shock when strands of it come loose. Mr Lannis takes her to have a haircut and to buy new clothes for the girls and replace the souvenirs they bought, as their things were lost in the fire.

Answer: Marie Pfeiffen

Although Wanda is engaged to Friedel von Glück, the wedding is between Marie, the school cook, and Andreas, Jem's manservant. The pair have a typical Tyrolean peasant wedding and the whole school are invited to the feast. The girls get an insight into Tyrolean wedding customs, such as the giving of cash gifts and shooting matches, and some extreme Tyrolean dancing! Herr August, Marie's uncle, knows about what happened to the Robin and warns Joey that Herr Arnolfi has been seen recently. Cornelia Flower, a new girl from the USA, doesn't know the story and Joey fills her in. Margia Stevens wonders if the cleft leads to the salt caves that Wanda von Eschenau's father-in-law mentioned. Jack Maynard, Miss Maynard's brother, later arrives to inform Joey that Madge has given birth to a baby boy (who is later named David after her father), and needs to see her.

It turns out that Madge has had a difficult birth and has been ill.

Answer: Wet sponges

Several other girls dislike Cornelia and she overhears them talking about her while she has been confined to her dormitory for pinching Simone. Mary Burnett calls her 'an absolute little brute' and Margia says that she cheats and lies. Cornelia plots revenge on the other girls and grows restless and fidgety in class, and is sent to her room again after a collision with Miss Maynard.

She soaks her roommates' sponges and puts them in their beds but luckily for the other girls, Matron spots them in time and punishes Cornelia by putting her on a diet of bread and milk, and making her change the bedding (which involves sewing, a task Cornelia hates). Cornelia is not happy about missing out on a gift of cakes from the Marani family.

She is allowed out when a group of Old Girls come to visit, and is sent over to Le Petit Chalet for the night.

Answer: The salt caves

Cornelia decides to go to the caves to get one over on Joey, who has been talking about discovering the salt caves near the lake. She gets information about the caves from Marie and while the girls are asleep, she escapes from the school and finds the cleft, and goes into the caves.

She falls asleep and awakens several hours later to find that she is in a different part of the cave, and that Herr Arnolfi has effectively kidnapped her. He plays the zither and sings to her, and then falls asleep, but she wakes him up when she tries to escape.

While running away, she hits her head and collapses. Friedel, Joey and Grizel go into the caves as Joey figures Cornelia must have gone there. Friedel takes the lead and orders them to wait for him until he gives their cue, and he finds Herr Arnolfi, who is dying of a head injury.

The madman is dead by the time Joey and Grizel arrive. Friedel finds Cornelia and bandages her head, and a group of adults enter the caves, including Professor von der Witt, who Joey recognises from the train.

He later investigates the caves further and discovers the remnants of an old city down there, in keeping with a local legend about a city being swallowed by the lake. The Bettany family later come to visit, Wanda and Friedel are married, and the girls hold a concert in the school garden. Joey starts a cheer for an emotional Grizel, who thanks both her and Madge.