Don't Know Much About History . . .

Cara/Andrea here, Today, I’m going to be talking about history. Okay, no surprise there, as our regular readers know that all of us Wenches are pretty passionate about the subject. But rather than wax poetic over some fascinating bit of research I’ve uncovered, I thought I’d share a really fun test of knowledge that fellow author Jody Novins recently e-mailed to me.



Now, I have to confess, I usually feel “above the salt” when it comes to British history. The Regency and Edwardian eras are the periods I know best, but I read enough to feel comfortable in other era . ..so when I saw that Jodie had forwarded the link to a History Prize competition that British 13-14yr. olds are invited to take, I thought . . . piece of cake.

Yeah, me and Marie Antoinette. In other words, I was toast.

Suitably humbled, I was intrigued enough to do a little research on the competition. According to its website, “The Townsend-Warner History Prize, started 126 years ago, is one of the oldest institutions in the preparatory school world. It has proved endurably popular in encouraging the study of history.  It is not linked to any national testing or examinations, but aims to provoke interest and delight in historical reading, facts and analysis . . .”

They go on to explain, “The Prize consists of two papers.  The first has 100 questions demanding one-word, or one-sentence, answers from world history, but with a strong emphasis on British history. Many are straightforward, some a little more obscure. Two hundred candidates qualify from Paper 1 to sit Paper 2.  This is in the form of essay questions, but allows candidates a very wide choice so that they can write on what they know, but also show analytical skill and historical imagination . . .”

Over 700 students took the first part of the exam, and according to the administrators, some of the answers proved quite amusing (I was relived to see that I wasn’t the only one a little fuzzy on some of the specifics.)  When asked about the Quakers, many linked them to oatmeal (porridge in “English”) and some students thought that the seventeenth century radical group, the Levellers, ‘took part in the Highland Clearances’. (I give them an A for Logic.)

So, ready to test your knowledge of English and World History? Sharpen your pencils and let’s see how you fair on the following! (I shall also point out that the one of the students in the top 30 was a ten-year-old boy. Maybe we should ask him to make a guest appearance.) I’ve included a link to the Townsend-Warner website in case you wish to see the entire text of each section.


1.   Answer these questions about rulers of England and Britain.

a)   Which English king signed Magna Carta?
b)   Which thirteenth century English king was nicknamed ‘Longshanks’?
c)   Who was the Black Prince?
d)   Which member of the Tudor family was England’s first crowned queen?
e)   Which Stuart king wrote A Counterblast to Tobacco?
f)   Which royal house followed the Stuarts as rulers of Britain?
g)  Who was Queen Victoria’s husband?
h)  Which king abdicated in 1936?

2.   Answer these questions on Roman Britain.
a)   Who led the first invasions in 55 and 54 BC?
b)   What is the modern name of the Roman town of Verulamium?
c)   What was the name of the tribe led by Boudicca in her rebellion?
d)   What was the name of the Roman road linking Londinium with Eboracum (modern York)?
e)   What supposedly happened to the Roman Ninth Legion?
f)   What was the name of the wall built north of Hadrian’s Wall and held by the Romans for twenty years or so?. . . to continue to the entire test click here

ESSAY SECTION
1. Write fully on TWO of the following:

Boudicca’s Rebellion (61)
Roman Roads in Britain
The Fall of the Roman Empire (410 on)
St Augustine of Canterbury (d 604)
The Vikings
The Great Wall of China
The importance of the Battle of Stamford Bridge
The importance of Norman Castles
The achievements of Henry II (1054-1089)
Richard I (1089-1099)
The Wool Trade in Medieval England
Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) . . . to continue to the entire test click here

So how did you fare? Was there any question you found particularly stumping? Would you like to see American schoolkids take such a test? . . . And how do you think they would do? (Sadly enough, I shudder to think of it.)

Comments

[Jane O]

But, but, where are the answers?

[Cate S]

A dear friend of my teaches social studies.. was talking about the Irish immigration due to the potato famine... on student want to know if the famine followed the Irish to America.. groan..

[Margot]

My younger sister just (as in less than an hour ago) took the AP US history test, which is a pretty intensive test on US history for possible college credit. Most of the people taking that are about 15-17, though.

I think, if I'd actually taken a class on British history, then maybe I'd know some of these answers. As it is, I haven't taken a class on British history in years, so most of what I read about and know is 1700-1900

[Susan]

I'm running a sad 35% on these answers, I think.

I'm a history buff, but I have a poor memory for facts and dates and names.

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

LOL, Cate . . . though it's not so funny. Like science, history need some good promo to make kids know how cool it is to know!

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Margot, I know the AP History test is intensive (I took it many years ago) so congrats to your sister.

I haven't ever taken a "survey" English history course either, so I'll use that as my excuse!

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Susuan, I tend not to retain facts all that well, so often have to refer to my research notes when I'm writing. But I don't think I'd be allowed notes in a test, LOL.

[Annrei]

I got all of Question 1 correct. Yay! I got all of Question 2 wrong. I guess I've read a little too much about the royal families of Britain.

I took the World History AP when I was in 10th grade. We ran through pre-history to the Cold War in nine months.

[Laura]

Yoiks. I guess I'll be glued to the Internet looking up these answers. and here I thought I knew so much history!!
As some above, I don't retain names and dates, but, still ... !
I agree with the writers above, I'm sure it's all because I haven't taken a class on British history. Yup. That must be it.

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

I'm VERY impressed, Annrei!

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Yes, I thought I knew a lot too, but was pretty humbled.

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Jane, sorry the site doesn't post the answers, so it takes some internet sleuthing to check yourself.

[theo]

Section 1: I answered a, b, g & h.

Section 2: I answered c & e

I'd take a stab at writing a paper on Boudicca's rebellion.

Other than that, I failed miserably on everything else.

I'd like to use the excuse that I've been out of school for years. And years. My memory is failing? I'm getting old? I don't tend to focus on those areas of history?

*sigh*

It was worth a try...

[theo]

ps: I found the answers to the questions you posted (not the entire test) but won't post them unless you say okay :)

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Theo, in our defense, we Americans aren't expected to know British history as well as these schoolboys. (We would probably know more than they do about American history , , ,I hope.) Still, for those of us who love British history and have read a lot of it, I thought it was a fun challenge.

And yes, please DO share the answers—I'm sure everyone would love to see them here! Thanks!

[theo]

Though I agree that we should know more about our own history, I fear we are sadly lacking in that department if DD2 is any indication. Then again, last year, she asked me if Easter was on a Sunday again, so maybe she's not the best example...

;)

And the answers to the questions you posted are below:

Section 1.
a) John
b) Edward I
c) Edward, Prince of Wales 1330-1376
d) Mary Tudor
e) James VI of Scotland
f) House of Hanover
g) Albert of Saxe-Coburg
h) Edward VIII

Section 2.
a) Julius Caesar
b) St Albans
c) Iceni
d) Ermine?
e) There is no definitive explanation but it's likely they were attacked by a horde of Celtic Tribes and wiped out, possibly led by Boudicca
f) The Antonine Wall

You all are on your own for the essays :o)

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Oh, LOL on DD2, Theo!

And BIG thanks for posting the answers!

[Jenny Haddon]

Hell's teeth, that's difficult, and I like history and studied it until I was 18. In the UK, too. Major fail here, I think.

Spent rather too long doing it and banging head on desk over stuff I nea-er-early knew but couldn't quite remember . . . .

Got desperate in the end and decided that Joseph Paxton had to have invented a cheese -- on the mad grounds that Paxton & Whitfield, in Jermyn Street (where Georgette Heyer's villains tended to hole up) was founded in 1797. For a photo of the (original) shopfront see http://www.paxtonandwhitfield.co.uk/visit-us/

Um- Paxton actually designed the Crystal Palace for Prince Albert's Great Exhibition of 1851.

I'm not going to look up anything else. I'm NOT.

Thank you for posting, Cara/Andrea. I think.

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Ha, ha, ha, Jenny! Join the crowd!

Love your guess on Paxton. On my last visit to London, I spent some time in the cheese shop chatting with the staff about its history. It's very close to Floris, which is another wonderful historic shop.

[Evangeline Holland]

This reminds me of my AP European History exam and those dreadful DBQ's we had to write! But the test is great for really digging deep into British history.

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Glad you enjoyed it too, Evangeline. it's been years since I've taken a test, so it was fun to give it a try. Sort of!

[Janice]

Well, that was fun. I was amazed at how much I remembered and how much I have forgot, if I ever did know.

I also thought it interesting that some bits were US history.

When do they post the answers?

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Janice, just scroll up a bit here and you'll find the answers, as generous;y provided by theo.

It was fun, wasn't it!

[Joanna Novins]

Yo, Cara/Andrea, can I take off points because you misspelled my name? Jody or Joanna (but never Jodie, Jodi, or Jo )

[Cara Elliott/Andrea Penrose]

Oh, gaahhh. I always got an "F" in spelling. You can birch my bottom next time you see me.

I know how to spell your name. I really do.

[jayne]

Got section 1 correct but only 1 on Romans
Whoops !