A Man For All Seasons Trivia Quiz

Answer: He remained true to his principles regardless of the changing situation around him

Thomas More was strongly dedicated to the Catholic Church and its principles. When King Henry VIII withdrew England from the Church, many changed their views to avoid angering Henry, but Thomas More never changed his views and made no secret of that fact.

He resigned as Chancellor, refused to attend the coronation of Anne Boleyn as Queen of England, and refused to take the Oath of Supremacy which affirmed allegiance to the king as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. He must have known what the ultimate outcome would be of adherence to his principles, but he did so regardless.

Answer: Robert Bolt

The play "A Man for All Seasons" was written by the English playwright Robert Bolt. An early form of the play had been written for BBC radio in 1954, and a one-hour live television version was presented by the BBC in 1957. A movie version was issued in 1966 with Fred Zinnemann as director and with Robert Bolt himself doing the adaptation.

Answer: Utopia

The book was written in Latin by More in 1516 and was published in Belgium. It describes a perfect society based on an island in the Atlantic Ocean. It is intended to be a work of satire and indirectly criticizes Europe's political corruption and religious hypocrisy.

Answer: Wearing a hair shirt under his clothing

A hair shirt, also known as a cilice or sackcloth, is an undergarment made of coarse cloth or animal hair which is worn close to the skin. It is designed to irritate the skin as a self-imposed means of repentance for whatever sins you may have committed.

Answer: He considered it to be heresy

More believed that the Protestant Reformation was a threat to the unity of both church and state and regarded Martin Luther's call to destroy the Catholic Church to be a call to war.

Answer: Had him burned alive

After the execution, More expressed his satisfaction and is quoted as saying "He burned as there was never a wretch more worthy". It is said that he would personally break into Lutherans' houses and send men to be burned at the stake. Richard Marius is an American scholar and author of a biography of Thomas More who claimed that despite More being a humanist, he was eager to exterminate Protestants.

Answer: He educated them

Back in the days of Renaissance, girls were generally educated only in the practical matters of maintaining a home. More had four children by his first marriage and insisted on giving his daughters the same classical education that his sons received.

His elder daughter, Margaret, was greatly admired for her scholarship and was considered one of the most learned women of 16th century England.

Answer: Monk

Erasmus of Rotterdam said that More once seriously considered abandoning his legal career to become a monk. Between 1503 and 1504 he lived near the Carthusain monastery outside of London and joined in their spiritual exercises. In 1504 he decided to remain a layman and ran for election to Parliament instead.

Answer: For refusing to take an oath

Thomas More opposed the Protestant Reformation and opposed King Henry VIII's separation from the Catholic Church. Consequently, when the Oath of Supremacy was issued, requiring every person taking public or church office in England to swear allegiance to the monarch as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, More refuse to take it. King Henry charged More with treason and had him executed by beheading.

Answer: It was fixed on a pike over the London Bridge

After the head of Thomas More had been separated from his body, it was parboiled, stuck on a pike and exhibited on the London Bridge, which was pretty common for enemies of the state at that time. After a month, his daughter Margaret bribed the bridge-keeper to knock it down and she smuggled it home. When she died in 1544, the head was buried with her.