Monday, May 12, 2008

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

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mary Boleyn??
Julianne, you are hiding something from us: you too are beginning to write Tudor fiction on the sly!

Julianne Douglas said...

Just trying to provide plausible answers! Mary did spend time at the French Court...

If I wrote about any Tudor, it would be about Henry's daughter Mary or someone in her entourage... If only I had the time to write ANYTHING on the sly! :)

Aren't you going to play? Hold off and put up your answers tomorrow night (since you have an unfair advantage being French and all! :) ), but do put them up!

Anonymous said...

Just kidding, Julianne. I knew you were not defecting to the Tudors.

And OK, I will play tomorrow, but I don't agree about the "unfair advantage" thing.

Julianne Douglas said...

I didn't know how much of this sort of thing you learn in school in France. Some of the answers must be quite obvious to you. I think that for us here in the States, unless you major in history in college or read lots of history on your own, many of the questions will be unfamiliar.

But prove me wrong, everyone! :) Please give the quiz a try!

I can always make a harder one if this one is too easy. :)

Sarah Johnson said...

OK (gulp) I'll give this a try...
c-a-b-c-b, in order.

The history I learned in school was negligible and unmemorable - if I get any of these, it's thanks to reading historical novels!

Julianne Douglas said...

Catherine Delors answered the quiz questions in the wrong spot, so I've moved them here:

Julianne, your quizzes are too tough!
1.c
2.a Not sure at all, though.
3. What kind of question is that? Bowling and tennis (or its ancestor, jeu de paume) were popular, but I remember Henry VIII was very proud of physical strength - and Francois I beat the crap out of him at wrestling at the Camp de Drap d'Or. So I'll say c, for the heck of it.
4.c
5.b

Someone give her a challenge!!!

Julianne Douglas said...

Whoops, sorry Sarah, somehow I missed seeing your answers! Way to go, we have two brave souls! Any other contenders? Don't be shy!

See, if I see that people don't know a lot about Ren France, I'll feel justified in writing fiction set there. Broadening people's horizons and all that.... :)

Daphne said...

OK - I'll give it a try:

c,a, d, c, b