Who Were These Great Romantic Icons?
Who was the female poet who wrote many poems about attraction and love, famously dwelling on the island of Lesbos in ancient Greece?
- Sappho's works were not only popular in her heyday, in the mid-600s B.C., but they remain well-liked today.
Do you know the name of possibly the most infamous romantic text of all time, the "Kama Sutra"?
- This classical Indian author lived around the 5th century A.D. and penned one of the most well-known erotic works, ever.
What was the name of the author who wrote "Frankenstein", but was also known to keep her dead husband's heart in her desk drawer as a token of eternal love?
- She might be known for 1818's "Frankenstein", but once her poet husband Percy Bysshe Shelley (and their young son) died at sea, she kept his preserved heart. How romantic!
Classic Hollywood cinema was full of actor pairs who encapsulated romanticism and true love. Which silver screen duo carried on a publicized affair before getting married, divorced, and remarried to each other again?
- After meeting when both actors were filming 1963's "Cleopatra", Taylor and Burton carried on a tumultuous journey of love and passion that would last for decades.
What was the name of the Roman Emperor Hadrian's closest companion, someone who historians attest was likely the ruler's lover?
- After Antinous drowned while in Egypt, Hadrian was so distraught that he deified him, buried Antinous in his personal villa, and ordered many temples built in Antinous' honor — things that Hadrian likely wouldn't have done if he was simply a friend.
What did the Romans call the goddess of love and beauty?
- Venus was the Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess Aphrodite.
In December 1936, King Edward VIII abdicated the English throne in order to marry his true love, who was a divorced woman and thus couldn't marry into the Royal Family. What was her name?
- Because the Royal Family, Parliament, and the Church of England did not allow a monarch to marry a divorcee, King Edward chose the life of a commoner rather than be separated from the woman of his dreams, Wallis Simpson.
In Homer's "Iliad", what was the name of the Trojan prince who angered the gods and started a 10-year-long war just to bring back the woman he fell in love with, Helen of Sparta?
- Paris was responsible for capturing Helen from Sparta, also known as Argos, and bringing her back to Troy with him, sparking the conflict featured in Homer's iconic epic poem.
Which famous composer created many of his most famous romantic operas and symphonies in honor of women he admired, and later, his own wife?
- Always the romantic, Wagner penned "Tristan and Isolde", a classic tale of star-crossed lovers, as well as composing a gorgeous orchestral piece, the "Siegfried Idyll".
Responsible for one of the most iconic buildings on Earth and one of the Seven Wonders of the World, can you name the Indian emperor who ordered the Taj Mahal to be built as a mausoleum for his beloved wife?
- Of his three wives, Mumtaz Mahal was Shah Jahan's favorite. And when she died in childbirth in 1631, the Shah was heartbroken and started the creation of the Taj Mahal to house her tomb.
