Letter
|
Hint
|
Answer
|
A
|
Ruled Mercia. Left only female-to-female succession in Britain until Mary-Elizabeth
|
Aethelflaed
|
B
|
Wife of Æthelberht of Kent, canonised for support of Augustine and spread of Christianisation
|
Bertha of Kent
|
C
|
Along with her mother, leader of the WSPU
|
Christabel Pankhurst
|
D
|
British-Zimbabwean author, recipient of the Nobel for literature, known for 'The Golden Notebook'
|
Doris Lessing
|
E
|
19th century prison reformer, previously on Bank of England 5 pound note
|
Elizabeth Fry
|
F
|
Helped "Bonnie Prince Charlie" escape after Culloden
|
Flora MacDonald
|
G
|
12th century Welsh princess led army against Anglo-Normans
|
Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd
|
H
|
Author of 'Cheap Repository Tracts', 18th century moral pamphlets
|
Hannah More
|
I
|
Crowned Robert Bruce at Scone
|
Isabella MacDuff
|
J
|
Novelist best known for 'Pride and Prejudice'
|
Jane Austen
|
K
|
First wife of Henry VIII, his struggle to get an annulment from her fuelled him to support the English Reformation
|
Katherine of Aragon
|
L
|
"Mother of the Welsh steam coal trade", first exporter
|
Lucy Thomas
|
M
|
First female Prime Minister
|
Margaret Thatcher
|
N
|
First female MP who took up her seat
|
Nancy Astor
|
O
|
British-American actress in the period of 1930s-1980s, most known for Melanie in 'Gone with the Wind'
|
Olivia de Havilland
|
P
|
Artist in the British pop art movement
|
Pauline Boty
|
Q
|
Archer who won gold at the 1908 Olympics
|
Queenie Newall
|
R
|
18th century Scottish woman imprisoned by her husband on St. Kilda after she threatened to reveal his Jacobite activities
|
Rachel Chiesley (Lady Grange)
|
S
|
17th century courtier, influential on Queen Anne, Keeper of the Privy Purse
|
Sarah Churchill
|
T
|
Suffragette who whipped Winston Churchill in the face in 1909
|
Theresa Garnett
|
U
|
4th century Christian saint, in whose honour the Virgin Islands were named
|
Saint Ursula
|
V
|
19th century ruler, crowned Empress of India
|
Victoria
|
W
|
To marry her, Edward VIII abdicated
|
Wallis Simpson
|
X
|
Sister of Nicholas II of Russia, lived in Britain from the Revolution to 1960
|
Xenia Alexandrovna Romanova
|
Y
|
Policewoman shot in front of the Libyan embassy in London 1984, leading to an 11 day siege and a break off of diplomatic relations
|
Yvonne Fletcher
|
Z
|
Member of the equestrian team that won silver in the 2012 Olympics
|
Zara Phillips
|
There's not a huge amount of time.
Not sure why Katherine of Aragon is spelled with a K, especially when the etymology is Spanish.
You could maybe be a bit more generous with the spelling as well. I knew C and O and tried several possibilities, but couldn't get them quite right.
I made this quiz because I saw a few historical quizzes focused on people, including one on historical figures A-Z, and found them male-dominated. Given the unequality of history, this wasn't surprising, but I wanted to do one specifically about women to have a quiz with this focus instead.
The issue with X and Z wasn't so much that they were both obscure, but that they fulfil the role of being women in British history less - X because she was not British and was not particularly notable in a British context, Z because she's still alive. But I was struggling to think of alternatives, so there they went. In terms of general obscurity, there were some I found it difficult to find a person for and I didn't want to have too many answers that often show up on jetpunk quizzes, though I kept Jane Austen, Victoria, and Wallis Simpson.