Mediaeval Mixture Trivia Quiz

Answer: Eastern and Western churches

All of these events were major upheavals in the Christian church, but 1054 saw the break between the Latin speaking Western church and the Greek speaking Eastern church. 1054 saw the separation of the two sides, leading to the Roman Catholic church being based in Rome and the Eastern Orthodox church centred on Constantinople.

The period from 1378 to 1417 is known as the Great Western Schism, when there were popes in both Rome and Avignon. The establishment of Protestantism dates from the sixteenth century and the Lollards, followers of John Wycliffe, were from the fourteenth century.

Answer: Bread

Of course, the wealthy could afford the best of all these food stuffs although uncooked fruits were regarded with some suspicion and left mainly to the poor. The manchet was made from the finest wheat flour, and was often flavoured with spices. The poor, by contrast, had to eat bread made from barley or oats. Rye was used only by country folk.

The manchet survives in the form of the Bath bun and Sally Lunn, which are sweet breads with some similarities to brioche.

Answer: Warwick

The site of Warwick Castle has been used from Anglo-Saxon times, with early fortifications dating from 914. William the Conqueror ordered the building of a motte and bailey castle in 1068 with this being replaced by a stone castle in the twelfth century. The buildings have been repaired and rebuilt several times, and are a major tourist attraction in the region.

Of the options listed, only Warwick is situated in the Midlands. Pembroke is in south west Wales, while Bodiam is in East Sussex and Windsor is in Berkshire.

Answer: Children's Crusade

The traditional stories of the Children's Crusades have been challenged, but it seems that there were two separate uprisings, one in Germany and the other in France. The French version was led by Stephen of Cloyes, while the German one was led by Nicholas of Cologne, both of whom claimed to have been called by God to lead a crusade consisting of young people to remove the Muslims from the Holy Land. None of the participants managed to cross the Mediterranean, with many dying en route, others being captured and sold as slaves, with a lucky few managing to return to their homes.

Answer: Katherine Swynford

John of Gaunt, named for his birthplace of Ghent, was the fourth son of King Edward III, and became the first Duke of Lancaster in 1362. By his first wife, Blanche, he was the father of Henry IV, who deposed his cousin Richard II in 1399, immediately after the death of John of Gaunt. Katherine Swynford had been John of Gaunt's long term mistress and married him in 1396.

The children she had borne during their relationship were legitimised after their marriage and Henry Tudor, who became Henry VII in 1485, claimed the throne through his descent from this line.

Answer: Arm

The rerebrace protected the arms above the elbow, while the vambrace was the protection for the lower arm. Each part of a suit of armour had its own name - the elbow was covered by a couter while the armour for the shoulder was called a pauldron. The hands, of course, were covered by gauntlets.

Answer: Troubador

Although often described as a minstrel, Blondel was of a higher status as a troubador. Minstrels were servants employed to entertain the nobles with duties including singing, juggling, recitations and so on. Troubadors often composed their own poems which covered topics such as courtly love and also told stories about foreign lands. Blondel's name has lasted due to his, probably mythical, involvement with freeing Richard the Lionheart from captivity.

Answer: War horse

The destrier was the name given to the most sturdy war horses, chosen to bear kings and knights into battle. They were chosen for their strength and were used only for fighting or in jousting - for everyday transport, the knight would use a palfrey.

The other items listed were used in mediaeval warfare. The battle axe was used to cut and could remove the limb of an opponent with a single stroke. The mace was a round piece of metal, often with additional spikes, used to disable or kill. The broadsword, named for the width of its blade, was used by knights and nobles for cutting opponents.

Answer: Diamond

Heraldry has a language of its own, much of it derived from French. The names of the colours include gules for red, azure for blue and or for gold. The designs were originally used to distinguish knights from each other, with slight variations denoting different members of the same family.

The lozenge is a shape normally used for women in UK heraldry. Other shapes include the fusil, which is a narrower lozenge, the annulet, which is a ring shape, and the roundel, a circular disc.

Answer: Franciscan friar

Bacon was known as Doctor Mirabilis, or wonderful teacher. He lived in the thirteenth century and studied at Oxford University. He later taught at the same university and in Paris, although his early interests appear to have been in philosophy rather than science. Bacon recorded his ideas and thoughts, although it seems many of his 'experiments' were never actually carried out.

As a friar, his publications broke the rules of his order but he was protected by the patronage of Pope Clement. Among Bacon's areas of interest were alchemy, mathematics, calendar reform and astronomy.