Brother Cadfael: The Murders Quiz | Authors

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Father Abbot brought back a new priest recomended by the bishop of Winchester to replace the previous priest who had died. This new priest soon became hated and resented by most of the town and within a few days he was found dead in the mill pond. Who was this new priest?

Answer: Father Ailnoth

In "The Raven in the Foregate" Father Ailnoth was brought to the Abbey to replace Father Adam when he died. A lot of the townsfolk were quickly turned against him when the body of a young girl who had gone to confess to him was found in the river. It then fell to Cadfael to put aside personal feelings to discover who had killed the priest and who, if anyone, had killed the girl.

2. Gervase Bonel died after eating a dish of food sent by the Prior. Who was responsible for adding the poison to the food?

Answer: Meurig

Meurig, the illegitimate son of Gervase Bonel, poured monk's hood oil he had taken from the infirmary into the dish sent by the prior. Edwin, who is Gervase Bonel's stepson, was suspected of the crime and hunted down but on arrival at the abbey the sergeant was shocked to be told he had not captured Edwin Gurney but Edwin's nephew Edwy who looked almost identical to Edwin.

This is from the book "Monks Hood".

3. A great many merchants came through Shrewsbury selling their wares and not all of them left alive. Euan of Shotwick was one such unlucky merchant. What was Euan selling?

Answer: Gloves

In "St Peter's Fair" Master Thomas had come to Shrewsbury for the fair and also to pass on a secret message to his contact. Euan of Shotwick was that contact and after Master Thomas was fished out of the Severn River dead, he searched Thomas's barge in the hope that he would find the secret message.

When he didn't, he was forced to wait and hope that Thomas's niece, Emma Vernald, knew where the secret message was and who it was to be delivered to.

4. Brother Cadfael lives in a monastery with several other brothers. However, even living in the sanctuary of the Abbey, these brothers sometimes meet an untimely death. Who was responsible for the death of Brother Eluric?

Answer: Miles Coliar

Brother Eluric was found stabbed under the rose bush in the bronzesmith's garden in "The Rose Rent". At first the Abbot believes he has taken his own life but further examination by Cadfael proved that not only did Brother Eluric not take his own life, but that Miles was responsible and tried to pin the blame on Bertred whom he also killed. This is from the book "Rose Rent".

5. Sometimes even in Shrewsbury Abbey, things don't always go as planned. A prisoner swap between Shrewsbury and Wales had to be abandoned after someone important to the swap died. Who was found dead therefore preventing the swap occuring?

Answer: Gilbert Prestcote

In "Dead Man's Ransom" Gilbert Prestcote, Sheriff of Shrewsbury, was to be swapped for the release of Elis ap Cynan after a failed attack on the convent of Godric's Ford resulted in the Welshman's capture. Once Prestcote was found dead in the Abbey infirmary however, no swap could be carried out, as the Welsh wouldn't swap a live prisoner for a dead one.

6. Anybody can kill for a reason that seems good enough to them. It doesn't necessarily make sense to anyone else, but to them it was the only answer they could come up with. In which book did a Benedictine monk murder someone?

Answer: A Morbid Taste for Bones

Cadfael and some of his fellow brothers travel to Wales to bring back the remains of St Winifred. Upon arrival however, they were stopped by Lord Rhisiart who didn't believe in the holiness of what the brothers planned. Brother Columbanus took it upon himself to remove this obstacle by stabbing Rhisiart in the back, killing him.

In "The Holy Thief", Brother Jerome confesses to murder but he wasn't actually the murderer; he just believed he was. In "The Devil's Novice" Brother Meriet confesses to murder to protect his brother but neither of them were the actual murderer.

7. Snow can hide many murders. Some kill for sport and some for pleasure but among all this murder, a young nun was found dead. Who killed Sister Hilaria?

Answer: Lord Boterel

Alain le Gaucher was the head of the bandits who were going around pillaging manors and holdings in "The Virgin in the Ice" but though they murdered many people, they were not responsible for Sister Hilaria's death. Lord Boterel came across Sister Hilaria sleeping in a storage hut while he was out searching for Ermina Hugonin.

He took his revenge on her for what Ermina had done to him, before stripping her and dumping her body in a freezing brook.

8. Once the crime has been committed the murderer, if suspected, must hide to avoid arrest and hanging. Where did the murderer of Baron Huon de Domville hide?

Answer: In the abbey as a guest

In a way, this was a trick question. In "The Leper of St Giles", Joscelin Lucy was chased along the Meole brook and hunted through the forest before finally hiding in the leper hospital of St Giles but he wasn't the murderer. Simon Aguilon pointed all the blame at Joscelin to protect himself while he wandered around unhindered and unhidden.

9. When Shrewsbury fell to King Stephen, 94 men, supporters of Empress Maud, were sentenced to hang. After the executions, 95 bodies were laid out in the castle courtyard. Brother Cadfael, after examining the bodies, was able to identify which body was not supposed to be there. What was different about how the 95th person was killed?

Answer: His hands were not bound

Nicholas Faintree, the 95th man, was strangled from behind with a fishing line with his hands unbound. The remaining 94 legally executed men had all been hung, therefore dying strangled, but with their hands bound together.

The girl in disguise was Godith Adeney who hid in the abbey under the name of Godric but Cadfael found her out. This is from the book "One Corpse Too Many".

10. When Ruald the potter left his home to join the order of the Benedictines at Shrewsbury Abbey, he left his wife Generys behind after many years of marriage. She disappeared a short while later. A year later a body was dug up by a plow in a field near the original home of the potter. It was believed to be the body of the potter's wife. How did Generys die?

Answer: Poison

In "The Potter's Field", Generys was miserable after her husband joined the monastery and Lady Donata was sick with an illness, which caused her a lot of pain. The two of them made a deal and after one poured wine into two cups and added hemlock to one of them, she then went for a walk while the first woman mixed up the cups before each picked a cup and drank the contents.

They agreed that if Donata died Generys could have Donata's husband for herself and if Generys died then Donata would live out her life to the best of her abilities.

Source: Author tigergirl04

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Brother Cadfael: The Murders Trivia Quiz

Ellis Peters' character Brother Cadfael often finds himself putting aside his herbs to help solve a murder and sometimes even to clear an innocent person's name. What do you know about the murders that occurred in the books? Warning - spoilers!

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