Quiz of the Day
1066 & the Norman Conquest
Wednesday, 14 October 2026
Anchored to the Battle of Hastings (Oct 14, 1066) — explore medieval England, knights, castles, and the Bayeux Tapestry that changed a kingdom forever
1. In which year was the Battle of Hastings fought?
- 1066
- 1087
- 1016
- 1055
The Battle of Hastings took place on 14 October 1066, one of the most famous dates in English history. The clash decided the fate of the English throne in a single day of fighting. It marked the beginning of Norman rule over England.
2. From which duchy in northern France did William launch his invasion of England?
- Normandy
- Anjou
- Brittany
- Flanders
William was Duke of Normandy, a region of northern France settled generations earlier by Norse raiders — the name 'Norman' derives from 'Norsemen'. He assembled a fleet of hundreds of ships to carry his army across the English Channel. His victory earned him the title William the Conqueror.
3. Which English king was killed at the Battle of Hastings?
- Æthelred the Unready
- Cnut the Great
- Harold Godwinson
- Edward the Confessor
Harold Godwinson, crowned as Harold II, was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon king of England. He had reigned for less than a year before dying at Hastings. His death left the English leaderless and opened the path for William's coronation.
4. Just weeks before Hastings, Harold defeated an invading Norwegian king at Stamford Bridge. Who was that king?
- Harald Hardrada
- Magnus the Good
- Sweyn Forkbeard
- Olaf Tryggvason
Harald Hardrada, King of Norway, invaded northern England and was killed at the Battle of Stamford Bridge on 25 September 1066. Harold's victory came at a cost, forcing his exhausted army to march roughly 250 miles south to face William. Hardrada's death is often seen as marking the end of the Viking Age.
5. The Norman conquest is famously recorded in an embroidered cloth known as the Bayeux what?
- Banner
- Chronicle
- Scroll
- Tapestry
The Bayeux Tapestry depicts the events leading up to and including the Battle of Hastings in a strip of scenes. Despite its name, it is not a true woven tapestry but an embroidery. It remains one of the most important visual sources for the eleventh century.
6. Strictly speaking, the Bayeux Tapestry is made using which technique?
- Wool embroidery on linen
- Gold thread appliqué on velvet
- Silk weaving on a loom
- Fresco painting on plaster
The Bayeux Tapestry is embroidered with coloured woollen yarns stitched onto a linen background, not woven like a conventional tapestry. Its makers used just a handful of natural dye colours to bring the scenes to life. This distinction is why historians often call it an 'embroidery' rather than a tapestry.
7. On which day was William crowned King of England?
- Christmas Day
- Easter Sunday
- New Year's Day
- Midsummer's Day
William the Conqueror was crowned on Christmas Day, 25 December 1066, at Westminster Abbey. The ceremony was so tense that guards outside, hearing shouts of acclamation from inside, mistook them for a riot. In the confusion they set fire to nearby buildings.
8. In which building was William crowned king?
- Canterbury Cathedral
- Winchester Cathedral
- Westminster Abbey
- St Paul's Cathedral
Westminster Abbey had only recently been consecrated under Edward the Confessor, who was buried there days before Harold's own coronation. William's crowning there in 1066 continued a tradition that endures to this day. Nearly every English and British monarch since has been crowned in the Abbey.
9. What type of castle did the Normans typically build to secure newly conquered land?
- Motte-and-bailey
- Curtain-wall fortress
- Concentric castle
- Shell keep tower
A motte-and-bailey castle featured a wooden or stone keep on a raised earth mound (the motte) beside an enclosed courtyard (the bailey). They could be thrown up quickly to dominate a region after conquest. The Normans built hundreds of them across England to hold down the population.
10. The great survey of England that William ordered in 1086 is known as what?
- The Magna Carta
- The Domesday Book
- The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
- The Pipe Rolls
The Domesday Book was a vast survey recording landholdings, livestock, and resources across most of England. Its findings were considered as final and unappealable as the Last Judgement, which is how it earned its name. It remains an extraordinary record of medieval English life.
11. According to tradition and the Bayeux Tapestry, how was King Harold said to have died?
- Drowned in a river
- Struck by an arrow
- Trampled by cavalry
- Beheaded after capture
The popular story holds that Harold was killed by an arrow to the eye, an image linked to a figure in the Bayeux Tapestry. Historians still debate whether that figure truly represents the king or whether he was cut down by Norman knights. The arrow-in-the-eye tale has nonetheless become legendary.
12. Whose death in January 1066 without a clear heir triggered the succession crisis?
- William the Conqueror
- Edward the Confessor
- Edmund Ironside
- Harthacnut
Edward the Confessor died in early January 1066 leaving no direct son to inherit. Multiple claimants — Harold Godwinson, William of Normandy, and Harald Hardrada — all asserted rights to the throne. Their rival claims plunged England into the conflict that ended at Hastings.
13. A bright comet appeared in the skies over England in 1066 and features in the Bayeux Tapestry. Which comet was it?
- Halley's Comet
- Encke's Comet
- Comet Swift-Tuttle
- Hale-Bopp
Halley's Comet blazed across the sky in the spring of 1066 and was widely seen as an omen. The Bayeux Tapestry shows onlookers pointing up at it as Harold learns of it. The comet returns roughly every 76 years and was last visible in 1986.
14. The mighty stone keep William built beside the Thames, still standing today, is known as the White what?
- White Gate
- White Tower
- White Hall
- White Keep
The White Tower is the central stone keep of the Tower of London, begun under William the Conqueror. It was designed both to defend the city and to overawe the newly conquered Londoners. It gained its name after being whitewashed in the thirteenth century.
15. Roughly how long is the Bayeux Tapestry?
- About 70 metres
- About 20 metres
- About 300 metres
- About 150 metres
The Bayeux Tapestry stretches nearly 70 metres (around 230 feet) long but is only about half a metre tall. It is filled with hundreds of human figures, animals, ships, and buildings across its many scenes. The final section is missing, so its original ending remains unknown.