How much do you know about the real Middle Ages?

Here's the lowdown on the real time period.

1. The adjective that means 'in/from the Middle Ages' is…
   
   • mediaeval. (Or medieval. 'Mediaeval' looks cooler.)
2. The Phantom Time Hypothesis says that the Middle Ages…
   
   • were shorter than commonly believed. (Good news for history students.)
3. The early Middle Ages are called the Dark Ages because…
   
   • Renaissance people thought they were sooo clever. (Yeah, sure. The 'Dark Ages' are what came before us enlightened folk. Go chop off that heretic's head for me, will you?)
4. The Battle of Agincourt was fought in 1415 because…
   
   • Henry V thought he should be king of France. (The king of France was psychotic, but that was no reason to dethrone him.)
5. To use a halberd, you need…
   
   • both hands. (And you can pull knights off horses with it.)
6. If you were a king in the Middle Ages, you probably…
   
   • had important relatives. (So what else is new?)
7. In the Twelfth Century, the far-famed Isle of Wight was an autonomous fiefdom (yay!) ruled by the renowned de Redvers family. What were they famous for importing to the mystical isle?
   
   • Rabbits. (Ask Bluebottle. Oh, yeah, we did.)
8. What was the Middle Ages' equivalent of the EU?
   
   • The Holy Roman Empire. (It wasn't holy, it wasn't Roman, and it wasn't really an empire. Sort of like the EU, right?)
9. Were all the world mine, from the sea to the Rhine, I'd give it all away if only the Queen of England lay in my arms.
   
   Who was this poem written about?
   
   • Eleanor of Aquitaine. (She was a major media personality.)
10. Cynewulf the English poet was really well-known once. (Such is fame.) His works inspired…
    
    • Tolkien. (You thought Middle Earth was a modern idea? Shame on you.)

Now that the educational portion of our programme is over, we will return you to Game of Thrones. Tonight's episode: 'The Chartreuse Wedding'.

Dmitri Gheorgheni

02.05.16 Front Page

Back Issue Page