Queen Consorts of the Kings of England - 1066-1553 Quiz

Answer: Mathilda of Flanders

She was the daughter of Baldwin V of Flanders. William was able to negotiate her hand in marriage on the strength of his military successes within Normandy and against neighbouring nobles. They had three sons, and several daughters; there is debate about exactly how many.

Herleve was the name of William I's mother. She was the daughter of a tanner in Falaise. Adela was William's daughter, and she was the mother of King Stephen.

Answer: Edith of Scotland

William I was succeeded by William II, or William Rufus, who didn't marry and had no children. Henry was William II's younger brother. Marriage to Edith of Scotland (She changed her name to Matilda upon her marriage to Henry in 1100, upon his request, and was also known as Maud of Scotland) brought peaceful relations between England and Scotland during Henry's reign.

He had a legitimate son - William, who died in the White Ship when it sank in the English Channel. He also had illegitimate sons but they were not allowed to expect to follow their father as King of England or Duke of Normandy.

Instead, he was succeeded by his nephew, Stephen. Adeliza was Henry's second wife, with whom he had no children.

Answer: Matilda of Boulogne

Stephen was the son of William the Conqueror's daughter, Adela. He married the daughter of the Count of Boulogne in about 1125 and they had two sons, Eustace and William. The Empress Maud is another name of Matilda, against whom Stephen was defending his throne. She married the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, hence her title of Empress.

Answer: Eleanor of Aquitaine

Eleanor was married to Louis VII of France before she married Henry but this marriage was annulled on the grounds of consanguinity. She then married Henry (1152), to whom she was as closely related as she was to Louis. They had five sons and three daughters.

Answer: Berengaria of Navarre

A marriage was arranged between Richard and Alice, the sister of King Philip II of France, but Henry, Richard's father, made her his mistress and therefore discouraged Richard from the marriage. Instead he married the daughter of Sancho VI of Navarre in 1191, in Limassol. They had no children. Queen Joan, wife of William II of Sicily, was Richard's sister.

Answer: Mariam

John and Isabel married in 1189, but had no children. Their marriage was annulled around the time of his accession to the throne. He married his second wife, Isabella of Angouleme in 1200.

Answer: Eleanor of Provence

Henry and Eleanor were married in Canterbury Cathedral, in England, in January 1236. They had nine children, six sons and three daughters, but only four of them survived.

Answer: Eleanor of Castile

Edward and Eleanor married in 1254 and ruled England from 1272-1307. They had 16 children. Most of these did not survive, only two or three of them outliving their parents. Eleanor died in Nottingham in 1290 and was buried at Westminster Abbey. The 'Eleanor Crosses' Edward erected are still standing today.

Answer: Isabella of France

Although Edward preferred the company of his favourites, notably Piers Gaveston, and neglected his wife, they had four children. Isabella finally joined Roger Mortimer against her husband and the two of them deposed Edward and governed together. While Edward III was a minor they continued to rule, but when he came of age the new king had Mortimer executed and banished his mother from court.

Answer: Philippa of Hainault

Philippa of Hainault was married to her second cousin, Edward III in 1328 at York Minster. They had 13 children, five of whom were ambitious sons who lived into adulthood - they were Edward the Black Prince, Lionel of Antwerp, John of Gaunt, Edmund of Langley and Thomas of Woodstock. Philippa was famous for interceding with her husband to save the lives of the six burghers of Calais, who were going to be executed as an example to the townspeople.

Answer: True

Richard married Anne of Bohemia in 1382, and she died in 1394. She was the daughter of Emperor Charles IV of Bohemia. His second wife was Isabella of Valois, whom he married in 1396. Both marriages were childless. Richard was deposed by Henry Bolingbroke, his cousin, who became Henry IV.

Answer: Mary de Bohun

Although Mary de Bohun was the wife of Henry IV and the mother of Henry V, she never became queen. Henry married Joanna of Navarre in 1403, but they had no children.

Answer: Katherine of Valois

Katherine de Valois was Queen consort from 1420-1422, when she was exiled from court on the death of Henry V. She then either married Owen Tudor in secret, or, more likely, became his mistress and their son Edmund would become the father of the first Tudor king, Henry VII.

Answer: Margaret of Anjou

Henry and Margaret had only one child, Edward the Prince of Wales.

Answer: Elizabeth Woodville and Eleanor Talbot

Both ladies were widows and both married Edward secretly. Edward and Elizabeth married in 1464 at the time when the Earl of Warwick was trying to negotiate a marriage alliance for Edward with France. Unfortunately for Elizabeth, it was discovered that Edward had married Eleanor Talbot even more secretly and therefore her marriage was not legal. Her sons were declared illegitimate and Richard III accepted the crown. The princes were then moved to the tower, where much speculation has gone on as to their fate. Jane Shore (born Elizabeth, but used the name Jane) was his most famous mistress and Cecily Neville was his mother. She married Richard, Duke of York and was also the mother of Richard III.

[ some historians dispute the secret marriage to Eleanor happened ]

Answer: Anne Neville

Edward V was one of the Princes in the Tower; he was never crowned. Instead Richard III became king. He had married Anne Neville in Westminster Abbey in July 1472 and they had only one child, a son called Edward.

Answer: Elizabeth of York

Elizabeth of York was the daughter of Edward IV and by marrying her, Henry ensured the loyalty of the Yorkists. Henry's father, Edmund Tudor, was a half-brother of Henry VI, and his mother, Margaret Beaufort, was a descendant of Edward III. He therefore had a very good claim to the throne and once he had declared himself king following the battle of Bosworth in 1485 the Wars of the Roses came to an end.

Answer: False

Henry VIII was king from 1509-1547 and is famous for his wives. He had six in all, two of which he divorced, two were beheaded, one died and the sixth wife managed to survive her marriage to him.

Answer: Jane Seymour

Jane Seymour was Henry's third wife, and she was the mother of Edward VI. They were married on 30th May 1536 and Jane died on October 24th 1537. Henry's first wife, Katherine of Aragon, was the mother of Queen Mary I and his second wife, Anne Boleyn, was the mother of Queen Elizabeth I.

Answer: He never married

Edward came to the throne aged 9. He was not healthy and did not rule for long. His uncle, the Duke of Somerset, was the regent and during his reign a number of nobles tried to take over as Lord Protector. England became more firmly protestant during Edward's reign and it was a desire to keep his Catholic sister Mary from the throne that led to Edward supporting the claim of Lady Jane Grey to be his successor.