River Severn - Quiz
  • 1. Who is the legendary princess that the River Severn is named after?
A) Estrildis
B) Hafren
C) Gwendolen
D) Cornwall
  • 2. Which author included the story of Princess Hafren in Historia Regum Britanniae?
A) John Rhŷs
B) Brutus of Troy
C) Geoffrey of Monmouth
D) Arthur Granville Bradley
  • 3. Who invaded the kingdom of Lloegyr from Germania?
A) Locrin
B) Corineus
C) Humber the Hun
D) Brutus
  • 4. Who was the father of Locrin?
A) Brutus of Troy
B) King Corineus
C) Father Plynlimon
D) Humber the Hun
  • 5. Where did Locrin build secret apartments for Estrildis?
A) In a palace in Cornwall
B) In a cave underground
C) In the kingdom of Germania
D) Near the River Stour
  • 6. What is the name of the daughter of King Corineus of Cornwall?
A) Hafren
B) Estrildis
C) Gwendolen
D) Rheidolyn
  • 7. Near which river did the battle between Gwendolen and Locrin take place?
A) River Rheidol
B) River Stour
C) River Wye
D) River Severn
  • 8. How was Locrin killed during the civil war battle?
A) By drowning
B) In a sword fight
C) He was captured and executed
D) By a single arrow
  • 9. According to the myth, why did Gwendolen rename the river after Habren?
A) To allow the girl to enjoy immortality
B) To honor the memory of Locrin
C) To spite the kingdom of Germania
D) To celebrate the end of the war
  • 10. In the second Welsh tradition, who is the father of the three sister rivers?
A) Humber the Hun
B) Brutus of Troy
C) Father Plynlimon
D) King Corineus
  • 11. Who first recorded the legend of the three sisters in the 1840s?
A) John Rhŷs
B) Arthur Granville Bradley
C) Geoffrey of Monmouth
D) Brutus of Troy
  • 12. Which river is identified as 'Gwy' in the legend of the three sisters?
A) River Stour
B) River Rheidol
C) River Severn
D) River Wye
  • 13. In the legend where the sisters race to the sea, what does their father promise as a dowry?
A) Title to the mountain of Plynlimon
B) The kingdom of Lloegyr
C) Palatial apartments underground
D) All the territory they can cover before dark
  • 14. In the race to the sea legend, which direction does Hafren take?
A) East
B) South
C) North
D) West
  • 15. What reward did Hafren receive for reaching the sea first?
A) The kingdom of Cornwall
B) Immortal status
C) The most fertile country
D) A crown of gold
  • 16. Approximately how many lives have been lost in disasters on the River Severn?
A) 300
B) 500
C) 1000
D) 100
  • 17. In what year was the Severn Railway Bridge demolished?
A) 1960
B) 1980
C) 1950
D) 1970
  • 18. What were the names of the two barges involved in the 1960 accident?
A) Shrewsbury Pride and Bewdley Belle
B) River King and Bridge Runner
C) Severn Star and Gloucester Queen
D) Arkendale H and Wastdale H
  • 19. Which towns are specifically mentioned as experiencing frequent flooding from the River Severn?
A) Gloucester and Bristol
B) Berkeley and Sharpness
C) Shrewsbury and Bewdley
D) Welshpool and Stourport
  • 20. In which recent years did major floods occur on the River Severn?
A) 2007 and 2019-20
B) 2005 and 2015
C) 2000 and 2010
D) 2012 and 2022
  • 21. Between which two locations is there a public right of navigation on the River Severn?
A) Shrewsbury and Diglis
B) Gloucester and Bristol
C) Pool Quay and Stourport
D) Welshpool and Gloucester
  • 22. Which act of Parliament created the Severn Commissioners?
A) British Waterways Act 1963
B) Canal & River Trust Act 2012
C) Severn Navigation Act 1842
D) Transport Act 1947
  • 23. Which of these is a location where the Severn Commissioners constructed locks and weirs?
A) Alney Island
B) Berkeley
C) Welshpool
D) Diglis
  • 24. What can cause the river to be closed to navigation?
A) Low water levels
B) Spring freshet
C) Bridge maintenance
D) Heavy traffic
  • 25. At Upper Parting, the river flows on either side of which island?
A) Stourport Island
B) Chapel Rock
C) Lyde Rock
D) Alney Island
  • 26. Which channel of the river at Alney Island is no longer navigable?
A) South Channel
B) North Channel
C) West Channel
D) East Channel
  • 27. What marks the Normal Tidal Limit of the East Channel?
A) Gloucester Docks
B) Upper Parting
C) Llanthony Weir
D) Lower Parting
  • 28. Who acts as the competent harbour authority for the tidal section below Gloucester?
A) Canal & River Trust
B) Gloucester Harbour Trustees
C) British Waterways Board
D) Severn Commissioners
  • 29. Where are navigation lights maintained by the Gloucester Harbour Trustees?
A) Diglis and Bevere
B) Holt and Lincomb
C) Shrewsbury and Bewdley
D) Chapel Rock and Lyde Rock
  • 30. In what year was the Severn Tunnel completed?
A) 1906
B) 1886
C) 1856
D) 1950
  • 31. Which railway company commissioned the Severn Tunnel?
A) Gloucester Transport Authority
B) South Wales Railway
C) British Rail
D) Great Western Railway
  • 32. What is the name of the railway line that passes through the Severn Tunnel?
A) Great Western Main Line
B) Severn Estuary Express
C) South Wales Main Line
D) Gloucester Coastal Line
  • 33. Which original line ran from Gloucester before the tunnel was built?
A) South Wales Railway
B) Great Western Tunnel Route
C) Severn Valley Railway
D) Lydney to Newport Line
  • 34. How many round trips did car-transporting trains make daily in the 1950s?
A) Five
B) One
C) Three
D) Ten
  • 35. What type of locomotive pulled the flat bed carriages carrying cars?
A) Pannier tank locomotive
B) Steam turbine locomotive
C) Electric engine
D) Diesel locomotive
  • 36. Why were car owners advised to cover their vehicles with a sheet?
A) Sparks from the steam locomotive
B) Dust from the tunnel walls
C) Falling debris from the track
D) Heavy rain in the tunnel
  • 37. What was the approximate cost to transport a car in the early 1950s?
A) Five pounds
B) Ten shillings
C) Thirty shillings
D) One shilling
  • 38. In which Welsh county does the River Severn lie?
A) Powys
B) Cardiff
C) Monmouthshire
D) Gwynedd
  • 39. What is the first town the Severn encounters downstream of its source?
A) Welshpool
B) Newtown
C) Shrewsbury
D) Llanidloes
  • 40. What is the last town on the Severn's course in Wales?
A) Welshpool
B) Abermule
C) Llandinam
D) Newtown
  • 41. Which English county does the Severn enter after leaving Wales?
A) Shropshire
B) Worcestershire
C) Herefordshire
D) Gloucestershire
  • 42. Which town is known for having the world's first iron arch bridge?
A) Shrewsbury
B) Bewdley
C) Ironbridge
D) Worcester
  • 43. The Severn joins the Warwickshire Avon outside which town?
A) Worcester
B) Bridgnorth
C) Tewkesbury
D) Gloucester
  • 44. What was the name of the ferry used before the first bridge was built in 1966?
A) Gloucester Ferry
B) Aust Ferry
C) Severn Ferry
D) Wales Ferry
  • 45. Which bridge was Thomas Telford's first ever bridge design?
A) Montford Bridge
B) Mythe Bridge
C) Over Bridge
D) Bewdley Bridge
  • 46. Which bridge is the only one to cross the Severn between Worcester and Tewkesbury?
A) Haw Bridge
B) Upton Town Bridge
C) Holt Fleet Bridge
D) Mythe Bridge
  • 47. Which bridge carries the M50 motorway?
A) Queenshill Viaduct
B) Haw Bridge
C) Severn Bridge
D) Over Rail Bridge
  • 48. The River Vyrnwy begins at which location?
A) Wyre Forest
B) Plynlimon
C) Clent Hills
D) Lake Vyrnwy
  • 49. At what location does the River Tern meet the Severn?
A) Stourport-on-Severn
B) Bridgnorth
C) Attingham Park
D) Shrewsbury
  • 50. Where does the River Stour rise?
A) Wyre Forest
B) Plynlimon
C) Clent Hills
D) Lake Vyrnwy
  • 51. The River Stour reaches its confluence with the Severn at which place?
A) Halesowen
B) Stourport-on-Severn
C) Wilden
D) Kidderminster
  • 52. At what location does the River Frome enter the tidal stretch of the Severn?
A) Framilode
B) Gloucester
C) Over
D) Chepstow
  • 53. Which river flows through the Avon Gorge?
A) Bristol Avon
B) Warwickshire Avon
C) Little Avon
D) River Teme
  • 54. Where do the River Usk and the Ebbw River flow into the Severn Estuary?
A) Chepstow
B) Over
C) Uskmouth
D) Framilode
  • 55. Which brook drains the Wyre Forest?
A) Mochdre Brook
B) Dowles Brook
C) Bechan Brook
D) Sylfaen Brook
  • 56. Where does the River Leadon enter the tidal West Channel of the Severn?
A) Chepstow
B) Uskmouth
C) Framilode
D) Over
  • 57. What is the final tributary to enter the Severn before the Severn Bridge?
A) The Lyd
B) Mounton Brook
C) Bideford Brook
D) Streams via Oldbury Pill
  • 58. In what year did the coalition of Danish armies attempt to annex western Mercia?
A) 888
B) 893
C) 900
D) 875
  • 59. The River Severn's current form was shaped in part by what process during the Pleistocene epoch?
A) Severe flooding
B) Volcanic activity
C) Tectonic uplift
D) Glaciation
  • 60. According to the text, the name history of the river shows influence from which group?
A) Norman
B) Roman
C) Scandinavian
D) Celtic
  • 61. What Old Norse word means 'to fare' or 'to travel'?
A) Sæfari
B) fara
C) faren
D) sær
  • 62. The Ironbridge Gorge was formed to provide the Severn with an exit to what?
A) The sea
B) The Irish Sea
C) A glacial lake
D) The Welsh border
  • 63. In the context of the name Sæfern, what does Middle English 'faren' mean?
A) river
B) sea
C) north
D) travel
  • 64. What is the total length of the River Severn?
A) 220 miles
B) 300 miles
C) 250 miles
D) 150 miles
  • 65. Where does the River Severn rise?
A) Cotswolds
B) Cambrian Mountains
C) Snowdonia
D) Pennine Hills
  • 66. What is the altitude of the River Severn at its source?
A) 750 m
B) 610 m
C) 500 m
D) 400 m
  • 67. What was the Romano-British name for the Severn?
A) Sabrina
B) Samarosina
C) Hafren
D) Sæfern
  • 68. The Welsh name 'Afon Hafren' was first recorded in which document?
A) Historia Regum Britanniae
B) Domesday Book
C) Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
D) Magna Carta
  • 69. Which people used the club-rush to make wicker baskets?
A) The Hwicce
B) The Romans
C) The Normans
D) The Vikings
  • 70. What is the Old Welsh form of the name recorded around 800 AD?
A) Habren
B) Hauren
C) Hafren
D) Sabrina
  • 71. What is the estimated drainage basin area of the Severn Estuary?
A) 5,000 square miles
B) 2,500 square miles
C) 3,200 square miles
D) 4,409 square miles
  • 72. What is the most northerly lock on the lower Severn?
A) Gloucester
B) Lincomb
C) Stourport
D) Worcester
  • 73. How far is the Lincomb lock located from Stourport?
A) 1 mile
B) 5 miles
C) 2 miles
D) 10 miles
  • 74. At which location does the Droitwich Barge Canal join the Severn?
A) Sharpness
B) Framilode
C) Lydney
D) Hawford
  • 75. What type of canal is the Droitwich Barge Canal?
A) Abandoned
B) Broad beam
C) Narrow beam
D) Tidal
  • 76. In what year were the two Droitwich canals re-opened?
A) 1986
B) 1920
C) 1966
D) 2010
  • 77. How many locks are included in the Avon Ring?
A) 200
B) 50
C) 129
D) 109
  • 78. Which company operated paddle steamers in the Severn Estuary until the late 1970s?
A) Aust Ferry Company
B) P & A Campbell
C) Waverley Excursions
D) British Waterways
  • 79. What ship has operated occasional sailings to Sharpness and Lydney since 1986?
A) MV Balmoral
B) Cardiff Queen
C) Severn Princess
D) Glen Usk
  • 80. When did the Aust Ferry close?
A) 1966
B) 1970
C) 1986
D) 1950
  • 81. When did the Hampton Loade Ferry stop operating?
A) 2016
B) 2018
C) 2010
D) 2020
  • 82. Where does the Cathedral Ferry operate?
A) Shrewsbury town centre
B) Worcester Cathedral
C) Tewkesbury
D) Ironbridge Gorge
  • 83. Where does the tidal river begin on the West Channel?
A) Aust
B) Maisemore
C) Llanthony Weir
D) Tewkesbury
  • 84. Which location has a tidal range exceeding that of the Severn?
A) The English Channel
B) Bay of Fundy
C) Ungava Bay
D) The Thames Estuary
  • 85. When did UNESCO designate Ironbridge Gorge a World Heritage Site?
A) 1966
B) 1990
C) 1979
D) 1986
  • 86. In what year was the first cast-iron arch bridge constructed across the Severn?
A) 1786
B) 1750
C) 1801
D) 1779
  • 87. Which creature was seen in Bewdley during the winter of 2011/2012?
A) A sturgeon
B) A rare water vole
C) A female grey seal
D) A swan
  • 88. What migratory route does the River Severn form part of?
A) The Western Migration Path
B) Severn-Trent flyway
C) The Celtic Corridor
D) The Great Britain Bird-line
  • 89. Where can the statue of Sabrina be found in Shrewsbury?
A) Near the railway bridge
B) The Town Square
C) Dingle Gardens at the Quarry
D) Shrewsbury Abbey
  • 90. Which deity is represented as mounted on a seahorse and riding the Severn bore?
A) Nodens
B) Poseidon
C) Neptune
D) Sabrina
  • 91. In A. E. Housman's '1887', what is compared to the Severn's overflow?
A) The Nile
B) The Danube
C) The Trent
D) The Thames
  • 92. In Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, who does Hotspur recall fighting on the banks of the Severn?
A) A group of pirates
B) Owain Glyndŵr
C) Henry V
D) Edmund Mortimer
  • 93. Which Gloucestershire composer wrote 'Western Sailors' and 'Severn Meadows'?
A) Gerald Finzi
B) Herbert Howells
C) Edward Elgar
D) Ivor Gurney
  • 94. Who published 'Severn Tide' in 1947 and 'Severn Stream' in 1949?
A) Julian Barnes
B) Brian Waters
C) Ellis Peters
D) A. E. Housman
  • 95. Gerald Finzi's 'A Severn Rhapsody' was written in what year?
A) 1954
B) 1930
C) 1923
D) 1917
  • 96. Who wrote 'The Severn Suite', Opus 87?
A) Herbert Howells
B) Ivor Gurney
C) Gerald Finzi
D) Edward Elgar
  • 97. Herbert Howells wrote which choral work inspired by the river?
A) Severn Rhapsody
B) Missa Sabrinensis
C) Severn Tide
D) The Severn Suite
  • 98. In the song 'The Last Bristolian Pirate', what is the profession of the main character?
A) A disgruntled poet
B) A local fisherman
C) A disgruntled farmer
D) A retired soldier
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