History Guild General History Quiz 142
See how your history knowledge stacks up!
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The stories behind the questions
1. L’Anse aux Meadows is an important archaeological site from which culture?
Norse – Found on the northernmost tip of the island of Newfoundland, the site is a Norse settlement dating to around 1010 CE. Archaeological evidence indicates that it may have served as a base camp for Norse exploration of North America.
2. When did the first US state or territory grant women the right to vote?
1869 – Wyoming granted women the right to vote while still a US territory. They retained this when the became a state in 1890, also becoming the first US state that allowed women to vote. The passage of the 19th Amendment to the US constitution in 1920 guaranteed this right for all women across the USA.
3. The Marquis de Lafayette took part in which two important historical events?
The American War of Independence and the French Revolution – Read about Lafayette’s exploits.
4. When did the last Chinese Empress die?
1908 – Ruling from 1861 to 1908 Empress Dowager Cixi oversaw a period of significant change in China.
5. When was the first steam railway in Australia opened?
1854 – It ran from Flinders Street to Port Melbourne. The line is still in use today for trams.
6. The Solomonic dynasty ruled which country from 1270 to 1974?
Ethiopia – Beginning with Yekuno Amlak and ending when Haile Selassie was deposed in 1974.
7. Who founded the British Union of Fascists in 1932?
Oswald Mosley – He launched the party after visiting Benito Mussolini in Italy. It was strongly supported by the Daily Mail and grew to as many as 50,000 members. Nazi German influence and funds led to the party becoming more violent and antisemitic. The party was banned in 1940 and 740 members, including Mosley, were interned for the period of the war.
8. When was the first Aboriginal Australian commissioned as an officer in the Australian military?
1944 – Find out more about Reg Saunders incredible story here.
9. Who wrote The Republic around 380 BCE?
Plato – Set during the Peloponnesian War, it is Plato’s best known work. It explores justice, and the ideal forms of government and the state.
10. During the Cuban missile crisis which of the following events almost led to the outbreak of war?
All of the above – On October 27, 1962, a U-2 was shot down by Soviet S-75 anti aircraft missiles and the pilot, Rudolf Anderson Jr., was killed. That same day a US warship dropping practise depth charges on Soviet submarine B-59, which almost launched a nuclear torpedo in response. On the same day the Soviet ship Grozny crosses the quarantine line, but stops after star shells are fired across her bow.
