What do the Nepalese royal family, the Hanseatic League, and Chris Patten have in common? They are all topics that featured in questions posed at last weekend’s History Bee and Bowl British Championships held at Eton.
On Sunday 14 May, Marten Schools played host to more than 100 pupils from over seven different schools. These schools brought teams in four age categories, ready to compete in a game-show-style history quiz. With very challenging questions that spanned almost all of human history, the teams were impressive.
Eton fared particularly well, winning both the Junior Varsity (Year 10 and Year 11), and Middle School (Year 9) competitions. Unfortunately, we were beaten narrowly by a very strong team from City of London in the Varsity (Sixth Form) category.
In addition to the Bowl (team) competition, a History Bee (individual) competition was also held. Everyone from Eton who participated also took part in this. Once again, we did admirably well, with Evan C winning in the Junior Varsity competition. But the highlight of the day was achieving a clean sweep in the Middle School category with Felix dM in first place, Aaron S in second, and Conrad L in third.
Competition from other schools noted that it was a spectacular day with great ‘esprit de corps.’ It was certainly enjoyed by all and for many, the best part was having the chance to visit all three of Eton’s wonderful museums.
Many thanks go to David Madden, Nolwenn Léon Madden, and William Tippins from International Academic Competitions for organising the event, Dr Yuravlivker for preparing the Eton team through our practice session, Dr Davies for assisting in the running of the competition and Bekynton for catering a wonderful lunch.
By virtue of our performance at this event, Eton has qualified for the International History Bee and Bowl European Championships which will be held in Barcelona in June. More to follow!
