Quiz #2

Time for another Renaissance Quiz! Test your knowledge of the history and culture of 16th century Europe. Post your answers as a comment. Remember, NO GOOGLING ALLOWED! We'll review the answers and announce our winner on Thursday.

1. The royal house that ruled France from 1328 to 1589 is known as the ______ dynasty.

a. Merovingian
b. Orléans
c. Valois
d. Bourbon

2. This humanist scholar is often regarded as the intellectual father of the Reformation. He edited the works of St. Jerome, wrote New Testament commentaries, and authored such works as the Enchiridion and In Praise of Folly. In 1519 François I invited him to come to France to head the newly established college devoted to the study of the classical languages, but he refused. This scholar was:

a. Erasmus of Rotterdam
b. Melancthon
c. John Fisher
d. Sir Thomas More

3. This sport was all the rage across Europe in the sixteenth century. Nearly every fashionable château had facilities for its play. Henri II played daily; it was also a favorite pastime of England's Henry VIII.

a. archery
b. lawn bowling
c. wrestling
d. tennis

4. The Holy Roman Emperor was the elected monarch of the Holy Roman Empire, a central European state that existed during the Middle Ages and into the Early Modern period. In 1519 François I ran for the position, but he was beaten by this ruler.

a. Lorenzo de Medici
b. the Margrave of Brandenburg
c. the Hapsburg Charles V
d. England's Henry VIII

5. François I was the first French monarch to formalize the position of royal mistress, or "maîtresse en titre." Françoise de Foix, comtesse de Châteaubriant, held this position from about 1516 until 1530, when she was ousted by this woman, who remained the king's mistress until his death in 1547.

a. Mary Boleyn
b. Anne de Pisseleu, duchesse d'Etampes
c. Diane de Poitiers, duchesse de Valentinois
d. Agnes Sorel, dame de Loches