May Day Quiz - The Tudor Society

Q1) On which day of May is "May Day" celebrated in the UK?

1 May

2 May

3 May

31 May

Correct!

Wrong! It's 1st May.

Q2) May Day is seen as the first day of summer and has its roots in ancient celebrations of .....

Magic

The summer solstice

Fertility

Love

Correct!

Wrong! The correct answer is fertility.

Q3) Morris dancing is a popular May Day tradition, what was its other name in medieval and Tudor England?

The polka

Clogging

Square dancing

The Morisco

Correct! The word “morisco” means Moorish, but it is not known whether the dance is called that because it is Moorish in origin or whether it is supposed to be a mock battle between the Moors and the Christians.

Wrong! It was called The Morisco. The word “morisco” means Moorish, but it is not known whether the dance is called that because it is Moorish in origin or whether it is supposed to be a mock battle between the Moors and the Christians.

Q4) What was "bringing in the May"?

Collecting flowers and branches to make garlands and wreaths

Dancing around the Maypole

Bringing poor people into your home

Collecting herbs to make tinctures

Correct!

Wrong! It was collecting flowers and branches to make garlands and wreaths.

Q5) In which year did the Evil May Day Riot take place?

1515

1520

1518

1517

Correct!

Wrong! It was 1517.

Q6) What were the young apprentices and labourers rioting about in the Evil May Day Riot?

The coinage being debased

Foreign traders

Guilds being expensive to join

Taxes

Correct! They believed that the foreign traders and merchants were damaging London's economy and taking work away from Englishmen.

Wrong! They were rioting about foreign traders. They believed that the foreign traders and merchants were damaging London's economy and taking work away from Englishmen.

Q7) Some of the rioters were saved from execution by the intercession of ........

Catherine of Aragon and the King's sisters

Cardinal Wolsey

William Warham, Archbishop of Canterbury

Their guilds

Correct! They pleaded with the King to spare the men, although one historian views it as a PR exercise thought up by Henry or Wolsey.

Wrong! It was Queen Catherine of Aragon, Mary Tudor (Queen of France) and Margaret Tudor (Queen of Scotland).

Q8) Which courtier did Henry VIII personally question on 1 May 1536 regarding his alleged affair with Queen Anne Boleyn?

George Boleyn

Mark Smeaton

Francis Weston

Henry Norris

Correct! It is said that he questioned him while the men rode from the May Day joust at Greenwich to Westminster.

Wrong! It was Sir Henry Norris. It is said that he questioned him while the men rode from the May Day joust at Greenwich to Westminster.

Q9) On May Day 1590, James VI of Scotland brought his bride to Scotland - who was she?

Marie de Guise

Anne of Denmark

Mary of Modena

Catherine of Braganza

Correct!

Wrong! She was Anne of Denmark.