Anne here, celebrating the onset of the Festive Season with a Regency Christmas Quiz.
As usual, you will need a pen and paper to jot down your choices, then at the end, click on the link to check your answers. Don't forget to come back and tell us how you went.
1) Wassailing means:
a) to play a dirge or lament to hasten the end of winter
b) to drink to the health of a fruit tree
c) to hunt a sparrow
d) to play a game with a feathered ball
2) A roasted capon was a dish commonly served at Christmas. A capon is:
a) a stuffed, rolled slice of belly pork
b) a kind of duck
c) a castrated cockerel
d) a pudding made of fruit and nuts
3) Frumenty was often served at Christmas. Frumenty is:
a) a dish made with grains, dried fruit, nuts and sugar
b) a hot spiced alcoholic drink
c) a sweet custard made with apples and cream
d) an oat biscuit studded with nuts
4) Bullet pudding was:
a) a game often played at Christmas
b) slang for a man sentenced to die by firing squad
c) a shooting competition where the winner won a pudding
d) a pudding containing a lucky silver bullet
5) Which of these foods was NOT eaten at a Regency Christmas feast?
a) plum pudding
b) mince pies
c) ham
d) chocolates
6) Which of these was thought to bring bad luck
a) dancing inside during the twelve days of Christmas
b) dropping an uncooked potato on Christmas Day
c) decorating with greenery before Christmas Eve
d) hanging out green or blue stockings
7) The first member of the English royal family to display a Christmas tree was
a) Queen Adelaide in 1820
b) Queen Charlotte in 1800
c) Queen Victoria in 1848
d) Queen Caroline in 1825
The picture on the right is of Fairfax House in York and is from the Austen only site
8) Under Oliver Cromwell's rule (1649-53 -- and yes, I know this is well before the Regency, but it's interesting, I think)
a) Christmas celebrations were compulsory
b) Christmas carols were first sung in the street
c) Alcohol was banned for the twelve days of Christmas
d) Christmas celebrations were outlawed.
9) Mince pies in the Regency contained:
a) ground nuts
b) dried fruit and meat
c) minced steak
d) chicken and other kinds of poultry
10) Which traditional Christmas game involved snatching raisins with your bare fingers from a flaming bowl of brandy?
a) snapdragon
b) lickpenny
c) pinchfinger
d) sizzlesnap
11) When is Twelfth Night?
a) 6th December
b) 1st January
c) Christmas Day
d) 5th January
12) What was a traditional aristocratic activity for Boxing Day (26th December)
a) fox-hunting
b) fasting
c) making a bonfire of the Christmas greenery
d) playing cricket on the village green
Now that you have jotted down your answers, click on this link and check how many you got right. Then come back and tell us how you went —and which questions tripped you up.
And all the very best from me (and the wenches) for Christmas and the festive season.