History Guild General History Quiz 137
See how your history knowledge stacks up!
Want to know more about any of the questions? Once you’ve finished the quiz click here to learn more.
Have an idea for a question? Suggest it here and we’ll include it in a future quiz!
The stories behind the questions
1. Which country enslaved the greatest number of Africans and transported them across the Atlantic?
Portugal – The most active country in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, Portugal used the forced labour of Africans in their Latin American colonies in present-day Brazil. Almost 3.9 million enslaved Africans were forced to embark on Portuguese ships. British ships also transported around 3 million Africans who were forcefully removed from the continent. French ships carried 1.3 million enslaved Africans.
2. Where was the oldest surviving world map created?
Babylon – In 600 BCE, the Babylonians produced a ‘world map’ with Babylon at the centre, surrounded by nearby regions and an expansive ocean. The map is a symbolic representation of how the Babylonians saw the world – not a realistic one – as areas known to the Babylonians at the time were deliberately omitted.
3. When was NATO formed?
1949 – NATO was formed in the wake of the 1948 Berlin Blockade and Berlin Airlift. At formation its members were: France, UK, The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, United States, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland.
4. Where and when did the Battle of 42nd Street take place?
Crete, 1941 – The Battle saw Australian and New Zealand troops charge a German Mountain Regiment, surprising them and temporarily turning the tide in the Battle of Crete.
5. Who lead the first successful voyage through the Northwest passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific?
Roald Amundsen – In 1903, Amundsen led the first expedition to successfully traverse the Northwest Passage, with a team of six men in a 45-ton fishing vessel, Gjøa. This shallow draft vessel allowed him to hug the coast and was outfitted with only a tiny 13 horsepower paraffin engine.
6. When was the US Republican Party founded?
1854 – Founded in 1854 by anti-slavery activists who opposed the Kansas–Nebraska Act, which allowed for the potential expansion of chattel slavery into the western territories, it has been the main political rival of the Democratic Party since then. Its predecessor was the Whig Party and it initially consisted of Northern Protestants, factory workers, professionals, businessmen, prosperous farmers, and after 1866, former black slaves. The party’s ideological shift to the right began in 1912, when former Republican president Theodore Roosevelt formed the Progressive Party, taking may of his former Republican supporters with him.
7. In WW1 which country declared war on Germany, was defeated and signed a peace treaty, and then declared war once again?
Romania – Romania entered the war in August 1916 on the side of Russia, Great Britain, and France. Romania fought hard to push the front to the West and conquer Transylvania. In early 1918, when Russia’s Bolshevik Revolution and Communist takeover made it exit the war and therefore abandon its Romanian allies, Romania signed a very one-sided peace treaty with Germany and the other Central Powers. In late 1918 Romania took advantage of German weakness and re-entered the war, securing Transylvania as a part of Post War Romania.
8. Which aircraft is this?
Douglas C-47 Skytrain – Also known as the Dakota, this military transport was introduced to service in 1941. Over 10,000 were produced, making it the most ubiquitous Allied transport plane of WW2. It went on to be used by the militaries of over 90 countries and is still in service today.
9. Who composed ‘Ride of the Valkyries’?
Richard Wagner – Composed in 1851, it occurs at the beginning of act 3 of Die Walküre, the second of the four operas that make up Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen or Ring cycle.
10. Which country has an AK-47 depicted on it’s flag?
Mozambique – Adopted in 1983 the Teal stands for the riches of the land, the white fimbriations signify peace, black represents the African continent, yellow symbolises the country’s minerals, and red represents the struggle for independence. The AK-47 rifle with a bayonet attached stands for defence and vigilance, the open book symbolises the importance of education, the hoe represents the country’s agriculture, and the star symbolizes the spirit of the international solidarity of the Mozambican people. It is one of four national flags that include a firearm. The others are Guatemala, Haiti and Bolivia, but their flags all depict cannons or muskets rather than a modern weapon.
