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Quiz about The Victorian Underworld
Quiz about The Victorian Underworld

The Victorian Underworld Trivia Quiz


The Victorian era was a confident, dynamic time - but there was a shadowy side away from the bright lights and technical innovations.

A multiple-choice quiz by Flapjack44. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
Flapjack44
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
245,448
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
6471
Awards
Top 5% quiz!
Last 3 plays: Guest 92 (7/10), Guest 120 (10/10), lethisen250582 (7/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. Victorian slums were notoriously dark, dangerous, overcrowded and often ill smelling places. Some of the older ones were given a nickname: Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. A fiercely inward looking community, these people were notable for their flash way of dressing (when business was good) but their livelihood was dependent on many variables - the weather, the availability of stock (they sold whatever was plentiful at any given time) and whether their barrow had been confiscated by the police. Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. What is a 'bawdy house'? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. This group of travelling labourers had a fearsome, tough reputation. However, they were crucial in the development of the railways (and before that, the canals). What were they called? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. There was one crime which was commonly dominated by children due to their deftness. If they were able to keep the skill and dexterity necessary, when they grew up they could be one of the 'swell mob'. Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Illegal bare-knuckle prize fights could, despite their illegal status, attract crowds of well over 10,000 people.


Question 7 of 10
7. What was a cracksman? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Houses of assignation were found in cities. These were places where lovers could meet away from the prying eyes of society - or indeed away from their own spouses.


Question 9 of 10
9. What did (1) coiners, (2) bulk-dealers and (3) smashers do? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Begging was prevalent in Victorian times due to the lack of any support system/welfare state for the poor. One common way of collecting a crowd to deliver the begging spiel to, was to pretend to collapse in a fit. What was used to create the foaming at the mouth effect? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Mar 27 2024 : Guest 92: 7/10
Mar 04 2024 : Guest 120: 10/10
Mar 02 2024 : lethisen250582: 7/10
Feb 24 2024 : Guest 88: 8/10
Feb 24 2024 : Guest 86: 7/10
Feb 21 2024 : glenjue: 8/10
Feb 15 2024 : GillIngham: 9/10

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Victorian slums were notoriously dark, dangerous, overcrowded and often ill smelling places. Some of the older ones were given a nickname:

Answer: Rookeries

St Giles rookery was possibly the most famous due to its location between Great Russell Street at its north side, Long Acre to the south and Charing Cross Road/Drury Lane on the east and west respectively. This meant that respectable people visiting the shopping streets or entertainments of the west-end feared they would be the victims of crime, only to have the miscreant melt back into the impenetrable darkness of St Giles.
2. A fiercely inward looking community, these people were notable for their flash way of dressing (when business was good) but their livelihood was dependent on many variables - the weather, the availability of stock (they sold whatever was plentiful at any given time) and whether their barrow had been confiscated by the police.

Answer: Costers/Costermongers

Costers were tough, sharp people who loathed all forms of authority and took the principle that you look after your own seriously. Costers who found trouble with the law, or financially, would benefit from a whip-round. Visible for wearing a large silk handkerchief at their neck (a 'kingsman') when times were good, clothing got very flash - velveteen coats, embroidered boots and pearl buttons! Some think that modern-day pearly kings and queens originated from the costers' sartorial preferences.
3. What is a 'bawdy house'?

Answer: A brothel

The link between prostitution and the theatre is long standing, and until at least late Victorian times 'actress' was a very disreputable description for a woman. There was even an old rumour that a secret underground tunnel linked London's Lyceum theatre with a nearby brothel.
4. This group of travelling labourers had a fearsome, tough reputation. However, they were crucial in the development of the railways (and before that, the canals). What were they called?

Answer: Navvies

Working up to a seven day and a seventy hour week was considered normal to navvies (the name derives from 'navigator'). Navvies dug the ground and they laid thousands of miles of railway lines without the use of machinery. Unwinding at the end of a job consisted of getting very drunk and sometimes fighting - to the terror of the local population.
5. There was one crime which was commonly dominated by children due to their deftness. If they were able to keep the skill and dexterity necessary, when they grew up they could be one of the 'swell mob'.

Answer: Pickpocketing

The 'swell mob' were in the upper, highly skilled echelons of pickpocketing. They were fashionably dressed and frequented gatherings of the wealthy. The career was usually short however, as any thief caught and sent to jail would find their skilful hands lose their touch after being subjected to the rough work forced on prisoners.
6. Illegal bare-knuckle prize fights could, despite their illegal status, attract crowds of well over 10,000 people.

Answer: True

In previous eras (for example in Regency England), bare-knuckle fighting attracted respectable crowds and even royalty. The Victorian era however saw the crowds attending fights change, and they became dominated by violent drunken mobs.
7. What was a cracksman?

Answer: Burglar

Servants were often unknowingly targeted by burglars who appeared to be friendly. This allowed the villain to simply sneak upstairs or, more subtly, work out the plan of the house and the comings and goings of its inhabitants so a more elaborate job could be planned. Any servant suspecting they may have been responsible for such a theft must have been tempted to make up a cover story. One theory suggested Spring Heeled Jack could be one such story, but others remain unconvinced.
8. Houses of assignation were found in cities. These were places where lovers could meet away from the prying eyes of society - or indeed away from their own spouses.

Answer: True

Houses of assignation often had more respectable businesses as fronts for what went on in the upstairs bedrooms (including Mrs Leverson's Beautiful Forever cosmetics shop). Unfortunately however,
they provided prime opportunities for blackmail and many customers of these houses must have regretted their patronage of the facilities.
9. What did (1) coiners, (2) bulk-dealers and (3) smashers do?

Answer: (1) Forge coins, (2) Pass the forged coins ready for distribution, (3) Get the coins into general circulation

Forged coins would usually find their way into general currency at at big events of public entertainment or the rougher public houses. A pothouse in Bethnal Green, London run by 'Cokey Hogan' was one such place as was Seven Dials in the St Giles rookery.
10. Begging was prevalent in Victorian times due to the lack of any support system/welfare state for the poor. One common way of collecting a crowd to deliver the begging spiel to, was to pretend to collapse in a fit. What was used to create the foaming at the mouth effect?

Answer: Soap

Many articles concentrate on how many fake beggars there were in the Victorian era. It could be argued however that in a time when employment rights were non-existent and there was no welfare system to tide people over difficult times, many normal people would resort to begging - why should they spoil their chances of putting food on the family table by not learning the tricks of the trade?
Source: Author Flapjack44

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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