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Quiz about Kingdoms Without Kings
Quiz about Kingdoms Without Kings

Kingdoms Without Kings Trivia Quiz


There are many times in Shakespeare's works where a kingdom will be between rulers, have a confusion as to who is the king, or otherwise be a seemingly rudderless ship. Answer these questions about such instances - Long live the King! Whoever that is...

A multiple-choice quiz by merylfederman. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
346,582
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
349
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. In "Hamlet", the final scene shows us no less than *three* different "people in charge". Not all are technically crowned kings (at least not yet), but the power changes hands quite a few times! There is even a moment between the second and third person-in-charge where there is literally no king at all. Which of the characters is the last one in charge, heavily implied to be the future king of Denmark once an election can be held? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. In "Richard III," there are a tense few scenes after the death of Edward IV and before the new king can be crowned. Who is the child king and former Prince of Wales, who never actually ends up getting to his coronation during the play? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. In the opening scene of "King Lear", the title character gives up his lands but expects to keep his title and rule as King. Bad, bad idea, but more critically it leaves the land without a real king. Instead, he hands off his lands to his daughters and their husbands (well, two of his three daughters and their husbands). Which of these three pairs is NOT a pairing of a Lear daughter and her husband? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. In "Macbeth", the murder of Duncan leaves the nation without a king for a period of time - and due to fear, Duncan's two sons flee before risking their own deaths by the murderer's hand. Who is Duncan's older son, and recently declared heir to the throne, whose fear keeps him from taking up his place as king until Act Five? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. In "Titus Andronicus", the first scene opens with two ambitious brothers striving to see who will become Emperor after the death of their father. Okay, so it's not a "kingdom" per se, but still a state without a leader. As it turns out, the people select neither of the brothers, but rather a victorious general, who turns down the honor. Which of the following characters is *not* one of these three would-be candidates (brother 1, brother 2, or military leader)? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. In "Measure for Measure", the Duke (okay, again not a king, but he is very much in charge) steps down for a while, leaving the state in the hands of a deputy. While the deputy has the powers of the Duke, he's clearly not a leader in the same mold, and he goes a little power-happy pretty quickly. Which of these characters is the absent Duke, who only returns to his position in Act Five? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. In "Richard II", there is a scene where no one is 100% sure *who* exactly is king. A usurper brings in the king he's usurping to hand off the crown, and things get soaringly tense and immensely confusing. People start arguing about the right to even *do* this, about who really is king, about treason, and more. Who becomes king after this Act Four moment of intensity? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. In ancient Rome, a leader turns down a crown three times, and before he can become king, he is murdered by those who fear his rapid ascent to power. This leaves the state in the hands of a triumvirate, but doesn't stop years of civil war from happening. Who is this legendary leader whose death precipitates such turmoil? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. In "King John", an entire war goes on to see who should be king of England - who is the young child, son of Constance, who may have a stronger claim to the throne than King John himself? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Back to "Hamlet" for the final question - the backstory of Hamlet involves a war for the kingdoms of Scandinavia that led to a crisis of succession in Norway. Who were the kings of Norway and Denmark who fought each other (in single combat!) a generation ago? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. In "Hamlet", the final scene shows us no less than *three* different "people in charge". Not all are technically crowned kings (at least not yet), but the power changes hands quite a few times! There is even a moment between the second and third person-in-charge where there is literally no king at all. Which of the characters is the last one in charge, heavily implied to be the future king of Denmark once an election can be held?

Answer: Fortinbras

In the last scene of Hamlet, Claudius starts out as king. After Hamlet kills Claudius, as the heir apparent he technically would be the favorite to be king, and he certainly rules the scene for those few moments before his own death. Right before Hamlet dies, he tells Horatio that he will vote for Fortinbras, a victorious Norwegian military prince, with his dying breath.

After Hamlet dies there is a space of time when there is no ruler, until Fortinbras enters the scene, fresh off his victory in Poland. Fortinbras appears and "embraces his fortune" of becoming the ruler of Denmark. Horatio witnesses all of this but is never in charge.
2. In "Richard III," there are a tense few scenes after the death of Edward IV and before the new king can be crowned. Who is the child king and former Prince of Wales, who never actually ends up getting to his coronation during the play?

Answer: Edward V

Edward IV's son Edward, the Prince of Wales, is usurped by Richard III, his uncle (the younger brother of Edward IV). While his coronation is planned in a few scenes, it never actually happens. There is, however, a scene where citizens panic about how the land will go to hell since there is no adult hand reigning over them.
3. In the opening scene of "King Lear", the title character gives up his lands but expects to keep his title and rule as King. Bad, bad idea, but more critically it leaves the land without a real king. Instead, he hands off his lands to his daughters and their husbands (well, two of his three daughters and their husbands). Which of these three pairs is NOT a pairing of a Lear daughter and her husband?

Answer: Elizabeth and the Duke of York

Lear's three daughters are Goneril, Regan and Cordelia, but only the first two inherit his lands. Cordelia is banished after she fails Lear's bizarre love-test in the first scene. Elizabeth and the Duke of York are not characters in this play, but rather appear in the history plays.
4. In "Macbeth", the murder of Duncan leaves the nation without a king for a period of time - and due to fear, Duncan's two sons flee before risking their own deaths by the murderer's hand. Who is Duncan's older son, and recently declared heir to the throne, whose fear keeps him from taking up his place as king until Act Five?

Answer: Malcolm

Malcolm is declared the heir apparent ("Prince of Cumberland") in Act One, but due to his father's murder he feels the need to flee to England rather than fall by the same murderer or, worse, be suspected of the murder himself. Donalbain is his younger brother, Banquo is a leading general of Scotland, and Fleance is Banquo's son.
5. In "Titus Andronicus", the first scene opens with two ambitious brothers striving to see who will become Emperor after the death of their father. Okay, so it's not a "kingdom" per se, but still a state without a leader. As it turns out, the people select neither of the brothers, but rather a victorious general, who turns down the honor. Which of the following characters is *not* one of these three would-be candidates (brother 1, brother 2, or military leader)?

Answer: Lucius

Saturninus is the elder brother (who becomes Emperor after he is endorsed by Titus), Bassianus is the younger brother, and Titus is the military leader who endorses Saturninus after declining the role of emperor himself. Saturninus looks like the less-capable and less-likable candidate, but Titus is a slave to tradition and honor, so endorsing the elder son and heir apparent is the unquestionable choice for him.
6. In "Measure for Measure", the Duke (okay, again not a king, but he is very much in charge) steps down for a while, leaving the state in the hands of a deputy. While the deputy has the powers of the Duke, he's clearly not a leader in the same mold, and he goes a little power-happy pretty quickly. Which of these characters is the absent Duke, who only returns to his position in Act Five?

Answer: Vincentio

Duke Vincentio kicks off the action in "Measure for Measure" by stepping down to go on a vacation. Instead of leaving, he stays in Vienna, disguised, to see how his deputy does, and go walking among the people to see the effects of the different styles of rule.
7. In "Richard II", there is a scene where no one is 100% sure *who* exactly is king. A usurper brings in the king he's usurping to hand off the crown, and things get soaringly tense and immensely confusing. People start arguing about the right to even *do* this, about who really is king, about treason, and more. Who becomes king after this Act Four moment of intensity?

Answer: Henry IV

Henry IV deposes the titular Richard II in Act Four of the play, calling in the deposed leader so that he can hand off the crown of his own accord. The Bishop of Carlisle argues that Richard has God's approval to rule and therefore no man is within his rights to take the crown, even if Richard were to hand it over.

When Richard finally enters, it becomes blindingly clear that he is the one who knows how to make and unmake a king, and his overwhelming power in the scene complicates things further for the infant reign of Henry IV.
8. In ancient Rome, a leader turns down a crown three times, and before he can become king, he is murdered by those who fear his rapid ascent to power. This leaves the state in the hands of a triumvirate, but doesn't stop years of civil war from happening. Who is this legendary leader whose death precipitates such turmoil?

Answer: Julius Caesar

It's the big JC alright, killed on the Ides of March by Brutus and Cassius. The other three are the triumvirate who come to power after Caesar's death.
9. In "King John", an entire war goes on to see who should be king of England - who is the young child, son of Constance, who may have a stronger claim to the throne than King John himself?

Answer: Arthur

Arthur is the son of Geoffrey, King John's deceased older brother. Since Richard I died without a son, it was a confusing question whether the middle brother's son Arthur or his younger brother John should be king. The conflict makes up much of the action of the play.
10. Back to "Hamlet" for the final question - the backstory of Hamlet involves a war for the kingdoms of Scandinavia that led to a crisis of succession in Norway. Who were the kings of Norway and Denmark who fought each other (in single combat!) a generation ago?

Answer: Fortinbras and Hamlet

Fortinbras was the king of Norway who was killed by Hamlet (Prince Hamlet's father) years ago. After Fortinbras' death his brother became king, not his son, so there's a nice Denmark parallel there.
Source: Author merylfederman

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