May It Please Your Highness Trivia Quiz

Answer: Canada

The Mi'kmaq people called it Abegweit, meaning 'Cradled on the Waves', and the French named it after Saint John. It had a brief spell under the guise of 'New Ireland' before being named in honour of King George III's son in 1799. The prince was commander of the British forces in North America at the time. In 1873, it became the seventh province in Canada.

Answer: Kingston upon Hull

The River Hull is a river in Yorkshire that empties into the Humber Estuary in the city of Kingston upon Hull. The land on which Kingston upon Hull now stands was owned by Meaux Abbey in the 13th century. A tiny settlement called Wyke was built there but in 1293 King Edward I acquired the land from the monks.

In 1299, a royal charter renamed the site King's Town upon Hull or Kingston upon Hull. The city's name is often abbreviated to just 'Hull'.

Answer: Victoria

Queen Victoria's (the only royal listed who was alive in that century) grandchildren, Prince Albert and Prince George, visited the island in 1880. While they were there, they planted two poui trees outside St Stephen's Anglican Church. The trees were still standing near the church over 130 years after they were planted.

The town was renamed Princes Town after the two royal visitors. Prince George later became King George V in 1910.

Answer: Charleston

Thanks to Oliver Cromwell, England was monarch-less for an eleven-year period between 1649 and 1660. After Cromwell's death, there was a general consensus that the monarchy should be restored. King Charles II (the Merry Monarch) returned from exile and took the throne. Ten years on in 1670, some of the first settlers to arrive in what is now South Carolina (U.S.A.) named their town after him.

Originally, it was called Charles Towne, but over time the title became one word and some of the letters were dropped, leaving Charleston.

Answer: The Bahamas

Charles Towne was built on New Providence Island in honour of the contemporary king, Charles II (like Charleston, South Carolina). It was completely destroyed in a Spanish raid and when it was rebuilt, it was renamed Nassau. William III became king of England, Scotland and Ireland in 1689, just as plans for the new city were being laid out. Originally from the Netherlands, William was a member of the House of Orange-Nassau, which is where the city's name came from.

Anyone who has played the video game "Assassin's Creed Black Flag" will recognise Nassau as the centre of a pirate republic. During the golden age of piracy, outlaws outnumbered the town's residents. Benjamin Hornigold was one of the first pirates to take refuge there in 1713 and many others followed. The pirate republic came to an end in 1718 when George I issued a pardon to any pirates who came forward. Some of the Caribbean's most notorious pirates turned pirate hunters for the Crown.

Answer: Southern Atlantic Ocean

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands is a British overseas territory in the southern Atlantic Ocean. In the early 20th century, the island was used by whalers, but in 1924 the UK government set up a scientific research station at King Edward Point (named after the British King Edward VII). The Islands have no runway for aircraft and they are around a five days' sail away from mainland South America. The islands are continually occupied, but usually by government officials and scientists who live there on rotation.

The British Antarctic Survey set up a base at King Edward Point. When operational, it was home to a station leader, a few scientists and field assistants, a couple of boating officers, a couple of technicians, and a doctor.

Answer: Victoria

At Victoria Falls, the Zambezi River crashes into a chasm below a 108 metre drop. The local Kalolo-Lozi people called the falls Mosi-oa-Tunya, which translates to
"The Smoke That Thunders", because the torrent of water creates a roaring sound and sends a mist of spray into the air. Renowned explorer David Livingstone named the falls after Queen Victoria. He was the first European to see the natural landmark during an expedition in 1855.

Answer: Maryland

It seems that Anne was a popular name in Maryland's history: to this day, Queen Anne, Princess Anne, and Anne Arundel crop up here and there. Ms Arundel was the wife of a baron and colonial settler. When Anne Arundel County was founded in 1650, it was named after her. The Town that bore her name was given a new one in 1695, just after it became the new colonial capital. It was called Annapolis after the British Princess Anne who later became queen in 1702. But the history of Annapolis doesn't stop there. Notably, the city was famous for George Washington's resignation there in 1783.

Maryland also has a county and a town called Queen Anne, and another town called Princess Anne.

Answer: Ireland

The seeds of the British Empire were initially spread close to home - beginning in the 12th century with the Norman invasion of Ireland. During the Tudor period, Protestant settlers from England and Scotland began to relocate across the Irish Sea. The original (often Catholic) inhabitants were sometimes forced off their land and were known to fight back. Fortified towns like Jamestown were built to protect the settlers and keep the native inhabitants out.

The famous Jamestown Colony that was established on the shores of Virginia was named after the same King James, though 15 years earlier in 1606.

Answer: Queensland

The initial European settlement in Queensland was a penal settlement in Brisbane. When that closed in 1839, private landowners moved in, but the area was still within the boundaries of the British colony of New South Wales. As the population and economy of the north began to grow, Queen Victoria approved a north-south separation. Queensland became a distinct colony in 1859 with its own Governor and constitution.

The Australian state of Victoria was also named after the same queen, but is south of New South Wales.