46 history trivia questions and answers
This set crosses ancient building and government, medieval travel and conflict, exploration, industrial change, civil rights, world wars, and landmark events in the twentieth century.
Updated
Questions 1–20
During which dynasty were the pyramids at Giza built?
hard
The Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom of ancient Egypt
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giza_pyramid_complex?oldid=1365733545
Who was the first person to walk on the Moon?
easy
Armstrong
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Armstrong?oldid=1365168332
In which city was the Titanic built?
medium
Belfast
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanic?oldid=1365383098#Background
What did the East German government begin constructing on 13 August 1961?
easy
The Berlin Wall
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Wall?oldid=1365168976
Which empire used gladiators for public entertainment?
easy
Roman Empire
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gladiator?oldid=1361865355
In what year did Amelia Earhart make the first nonstop solo transatlantic flight by a woman?
hard
1932
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelia_Earhart?oldid=1365611830
Which single ship carried the Pilgrims after Speedwell was left behind?
medium
Mayflower
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayflower?oldid=1365650728
Which writing material gave ancient Egypt the English word paper?
easy
Papyrus
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papyrus?oldid=1364919057
By what year had Lord Stanhope built the first iron printing press?
hard
By 1800
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printing_press?oldid=1364130523#Industrial_printing_presses
Which city was buried by Mount Vesuvius in AD 79?
easy
Pompeii
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pompeii?oldid=1365390096
What single-route description does the article reject for the Silk Road?
medium
A singular east-west trade route that linked China to the Mediterranean
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_Road?oldid=1364944151
Who issued the Emancipation Proclamation in the United States?
medium
Abraham Lincoln
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation?oldid=1365345055
Which nurse became known as the Lady with the Lamp?
medium
Nightingale
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Nightingale?oldid=1358730807#The_Lady_with_the_Lamp
What did the Wright brothers achieve at Kitty Hawk in 1903?
easy
The first sustained flight by a manned heavier-than-air powered and controlled aircraft
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wright_Flyer?oldid=1365193365
What is the Constitution’s introductory paragraph called?
medium
The Preamble
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_United_States?oldid=1365316885#Preamble
Was the Magna Carta signed before or after the year 1300?
medium
1215
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta?oldid=1358721085
Which queen ruled the United Kingdom for most of the nineteenth century?
easy
Victoria
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Victoria?oldid=1364102268
What was discovered in Egypt in 1922 by Howard Carter?
medium
The tomb of Tutankhamun
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discovery_of_the_tomb_of_Tutankhamun?oldid=1363813832
Which revolution inspired the French Revolution of 1789?
medium
The American Revolution
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Revolution?oldid=1364489801#Atlantic_Revolutions
Who led India’s nonviolent independence movement against British rule?
easy
Gandhi
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahatma_Gandhi?oldid=1365511067#Legacy
Questions 21–40
What numbered amendment gave women the right to vote across the United States?
hard
The Nineteenth Amendment
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution?oldid=1358314605
Which European explorer reached India by sailing around Africa in 1498?
medium
Da Gama
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasco_da_Gama?oldid=1365337483
What name is given to the cultural rebirth that began in Italian cities?
easy
The Renaissance
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance?oldid=1365516125
How did a moat hinder the use of siege weapons?
easy
Access to the walls
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moat?oldid=1342029391#Medieval
Who was canonized in 1920 and later declared a patron saint of France?
medium
Joan of Arc
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_of_Arc?oldid=1365882862
Was democracy in ancient Athens direct or representative?
easy
Direct, rather than representative
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenian_democracy?oldid=1364574459#Ecclesia
Was British wartime rationing restricted to food during the Second World War?
medium
Not restricted to food
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationing_in_the_United_Kingdom?oldid=1362715826
Which dynasty built much of the present Great Wall of China?
hard
The Ming dynasty
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ming_Great_Wall?oldid=1364720353
How many years did the Hundred Years’ War actually last?
hard
116 years
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hundred_Years'_War?oldid=1364452038
How did the Rosetta Stone help modern scholars?
medium
Key to deciphering the Egyptian scripts
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosetta_Stone?oldid=1363760554
Which civilization developed a calendar with a Long Count in Mesoamerica?
medium
The Maya
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_calendar?oldid=1353459013
Who became South Africa’s first Black president in 1994?
easy
Mandela
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela?oldid=1365645914
What linked Ellis Island with millions of arrivals to the United States?
medium
The busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellis_Island?oldid=1365378410
Which conflict was sparked by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand?
easy
World War I
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Archduke_Franz_Ferdinand?oldid=1364675945
Name the two Japanese cities hit by atomic bombs in 1945.
easy
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki?oldid=1365553557
Who became the first female Olympic victor as a chariot owner?
hard
Cynisca
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Olympic_Games?oldid=1361027575#Equestrian_events
Whose armies does the Terracotta Army depict?
hard
Qin Shi Huang
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracotta_Army?oldid=1365740821
Who led the army in the Norman Conquest of England?
medium
The Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conqueror
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Conquest?oldid=1363795861
What did Gutenberg invent a method for mass-producing around 1440?
easy
Movable type
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printing_press?oldid=1364130523
Which people established a medieval settlement at L’Anse aux Meadows?
hard
Norse
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L'Anse_aux_Meadows?oldid=1364840253
Questions 41–46
What title did Mansa Musa hold in the Mali Empire?
medium
Mansa, 'ruler' or 'king' in Mandé
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mansa_Musa?oldid=1363724074#Name_and_titles
Which peace treaty was signed on 28 June 1919?
medium
The Treaty of Versailles
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles?oldid=1359978507
How many medium-sized ships did Columbus and his crew take on their westward voyage?
easy
Three medium-sized ships
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyages_of_Christopher_Columbus?oldid=1365538919#First_voyage_(1492%E2%80%931493)
Which city hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896?
medium
Athens
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_Summer_Olympics?oldid=1357065985
What code name was used for the Allied invasion of Normandy?
medium
Operation Overlord
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Overlord?oldid=1365553534
Which city served as the Roman and Byzantine capital from 330 until 1453?
medium
Constantinople
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantinople?oldid=1364870414
How to play
Read the date or century only when it appears in the question, then pause before names and multi-part answers. For questions asking for two places or people, say that two answers are required before starting the timer.
Plan the round and team scores
8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.
60
These are adjustable house rules. Pause whenever the group needs more time.
Team 1: 0
Team 2: 0