The Great Stink Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cholera

Many believed that breathing in bad smelling air or 'Miasma' (as it was known), was the cause of deadly illness. Typically, the smell was generated by decomposing matter and stagnant water. In a big city like London without any real means of treating waste, you can imagine how bad it was.

Cholera is the bacterium Vibrio Cholerae. It is picked up through contaminated water or food.

The main cause of Ricketts is a lack of vitamin D. This leads to the softening of the bones causing deformity.

Chicken Pox is common amongst children but is rarely fatal. It is spread via coughing and sneezing.

Bubonic plague is an infection of the lymphatic system, usually resulting in a speedy death. The bite of an infected flea is thought to be the main cause.

Answer: River Thames

The population of London doubled between 1801 and 1841, and the volume of sewage reaching the Thames became a serious public heath hazard. Interestingly enough, some properties had their sewage collected at night by "soil men" for use as fertilizer on the fields around London. Recycling at its best, but not a nice job.

The River Wandle runs through southwest London for approximately 9 miles. It joins the River Thames at Wandsworth. The Wandle was probably used as a source of drinking water and as a sewer but became known for being polluted by industry. A little further away is The River Severn, the longest river in Great Britain, at 220 miles. It rises in Wales, then flows through Shropshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.

Back to London, the River Fleet is London's largest subterranean river. It once ran on the surface but was eventually covered over. At one time it was little more than an open sewer.

Answer: Joseph Bazalgette

Joseph Bazalgette (1819-1891) was the Chief Engineer of the Metropolitan Board of Works. Many schemes for removing London's sewage had been proposed, including transporting it as fertilizer, but Bazalgette realised this was impractical.

Fellow engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel championed Bazalgette but is better well known for his engineering achievements in railway, bridge, ship and tunnel construction.

The painter John Martin also had an interest in the improvement of London and in 1834 published plans for improvements to London's sewerage system.

Sir Edwin Chadwick was a reformer. He worked to improve sanitary conditions and public health.

Answer: Victoria Embankment

One of Bazalgette's many challenges was choosing the location of the sewers. To avoid disruption to the city of London it was decided to lay the largest sewers alongside the Thames. They were then covered over, creating the Victoria Embankment

Construction of Battersea Power Station began in 1929, and the station was closed in 1983. A famous London landmark known for its four chimneys, it is reportedly the largest brick-built structure in Europe.

King Edward VII (Queen Victoria's son), commissioned Admiralty Arch in 1910 but died before it was completed. The arch was designed by Sir Aston Webb and
forms a gateway from Trafalgar Square to The Mall, the processional road running along St. James Park and linking Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade.

The Monument was constructed in the 1670s in commemoration of the Great Fire of London (1666). The Monument is a tall stone Roman Doric column located in the City of London, near to London Bridge. It was built 61 metres (202 feet) from where the Great Fire of London started, the same distance as its height.

Answer: yes

John Snow, a British physician, established the link between drinking water contaminated with sewage, and cholera. He studied a particular drinking water pump in the Soho district of London, an area where many people had become ill and subsequently died.
Snow established his theory by removing the pump handle, thus preventing the local population from drawing water at this location leading to fewer deaths.

Answer: 1,100 miles of sewers

When planning, Bazalgette employed what we call today "future proofing". Using calculations based on the denser populations of London and their likely need, he chose a pipe diameter double the requirement of the time.
'Well, we're only going to do this once and there's always the unforeseen.' he said. Many were still in use in the early 2000s.

Answer: True

It sounds almost incredible, but this is true. The aim was to get the discharge away from populated areas, therefore reduce the risk of contaminated drinking water reaching the population of London.
It would be years before treatment plants were incorporated into the system, but even so, the project led to a vast improvement of public sanitation and was a triumph of Victorian engineering.

Answer: Toshers

Toshers were people, often whole families, who scavenged through the sewers looking for things they could sell. Before the Great Stink, Toshers were not surprisingly regarded as belonging to the very lowest reaches of the "lower classes" due to their aroma of fresh sewage. One benefit though was the tolerance they gained against sewage related disease.

Night soil men removed waste from households to use as a fertiliser in the farms surrounding London.

Rat-catchers where employed by the City of London to catch rats that lived in the sewers in an attempt to prevent the spread of disease.

Mudlarks, similar to toshers, would scavenge in the mud of riverbanks such as the Thames for anything that could be sold. Mud larks were often young children.

Answer: Chloride of lime

Its no wonder the government acted as they were directly affected by the "Great Stink".

Chloride of lime is the correct answer, the others are just random. No idea what that smells like, but lavender oil may have been nice.

Answer: Tennis

The Championships, annually held by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London, is better known as "Wimbledon". If you enjoy Tennis you will be familiar with this.

Twickenham also in South West London is probably best known for its link to Rugby Football Union.

Football history can be found all over London and the United Kingdom but the name "Wimbledon" definitely relates to tennis in most peoples mind

St John's Wood is the home of Lords Cricket Ground, the famous home of cricket. St John's Wood is in North London