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500+ History Trivia Questions & Answers

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I've sorted all 500+ multiple choice questions into five levels, from super easy to really hard, so you can start simple and work your way up. Get ready to learn cool facts, quiz your friends, and discover more about History trivia - all while having a great time!

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Very Easy History Trivia Questions

These History trivia questions are perfect for beginners, young kids, and toddlers. If you want to play History trivia with children, try these very easy difficulty questions to get started.

1.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

2.) What ship famously sank on its maiden voyage in 1912 after hitting an iceberg?

  • Lusitania
  • Olympic
  • Queen Mary
  • Titanic

3.) Which ancient civilization built the pyramids?

  • Egyptians
  • Greeks
  • Mayans
  • Romans

4.) Which war was fought between the North and South regions in the United States?

  • Civil War
  • Revolutionary War
  • World War I
  • World War II

5.) Who was the first man to walk on the moon in 1969?

  • Buzz Aldrin
  • Michael Collins
  • Neil Armstrong
  • Yuri Gagarin

6.) Who was the famous civil rights leader who delivered the "I Have a Dream" speech?

  • Frederick Douglass
  • Malcolm X
  • Martin Luther King Jr.
  • Nelson Mandela

7.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

8.) What ancient structure is located in Egypt and is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World?

  • Colosseum
  • Great Pyramid of Giza
  • Stonehenge
  • Taj Mahal

9.) What major world event happened between 1939 and 1945?

  • American Civil War
  • Russian Revolution
  • World War I
  • World War II

10.) In which city is the landmark known as 'Big Ben' located?

  • London
  • New York
  • Paris
  • Rome

11.) What historic document was signed on July 4, 1776?

  • The Bill of Rights
  • The Declaration of Independence
  • The Magna Carta
  • The Treaty of Versailles

12.) Which country was Adolf Hitler the leader of during World War II?

  • France
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Japan

13.) Who was assassinated on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • John F. Kennedy
  • Malcolm X
  • Martin Luther King Jr.

14.) What large stone statue is located near the Great Pyramid of Giza?

  • Colossus of Rhodes
  • Moai
  • Statue of Zeus
  • The Sphinx

15.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

16.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • George Washington
  • James Madison
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

17.) Which ancient civilization built the pyramids?

  • Aztecs
  • Egyptians
  • Greeks
  • Romans

18.) Which empire was ruled by Genghis Khan?

  • British Empire
  • Mongol Empire
  • Ottoman Empire
  • Roman Empire

19.) What is the name of the ship that famously sank on its maiden voyage in 1912?

  • Britannic
  • Carpathia
  • Lusitania
  • Titanic

20.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

21.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

22.) What ancient civilization built the pyramids of Giza?

  • Aztecs
  • Egyptians
  • Greeks
  • Romans

23.) What was the last name of the famous civil rights leader named Martin Luther King Jr.?

  • Jackson
  • Jefferson
  • Kennedy
  • King

24.) Which country gifted the Statue of Liberty to the United States?

  • England
  • France
  • Germany
  • Spain

25.) Who discovered the Americas in 1492?

  • Christopher Columbus
  • Ferdinand Magellan
  • Marco Polo
  • Vasco da Gama

Easy History Trivia Questions

These History trivia questions are perfect for kids in elementary school. If you want to play History trivia with schoolchildren, try these easy difficulty questions to get started.

26.) Who was the British monarch during World War II?

  • King Edward VIII
  • King George VI
  • Queen Elizabeth II
  • Queen Victoria

27.) In what year did World War II end?

  • 1939
  • 1940
  • 1945
  • 1950

28.) What is the name of the ship that carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620?

  • Endeavour
  • HMS Beagle
  • Mayflower
  • Santa Maria

29.) Who was the leader of the Soviet Union during the Cuban Missile Crisis?

  • Joseph Stalin
  • Leonid Brezhnev
  • Nikita Khrushchev
  • Vladimir Lenin

30.) Which famous wall divided East and West Berlin during the Cold War?

  • Berlin Wall
  • Great Wall of China
  • Hadrian's Wall
  • Western Wall

31.) Who was the queen of France married to King Louis XVI during the French Revolution?

  • Anne of Brittany
  • Catherine de Medici
  • Eleanor of Aquitaine
  • Marie Antoinette

32.) Who was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence?

  • Alexander Hamilton
  • Benjamin Franklin
  • George Washington
  • Thomas Jefferson

33.) Who was the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom?

  • Golda Meir
  • Indira Gandhi
  • Margaret Thatcher
  • Theresa May

34.) Which explorer is credited with reaching the Americas in 1492?

  • Christopher Columbus
  • Ferdinand Magellan
  • Marco Polo
  • Vasco da Gama

35.) Who was assassinated on April 14, 1865, at Ford's Theatre?

  • Abraham Lincoln
  • James A. Garfield
  • John F. Kennedy
  • William McKinley

36.) What was the capital city of the Roman Empire at its peak?

  • Alexandria
  • Athens
  • Carthage
  • Rome

37.) Which U.S. state was the first to ratify the Constitution?

  • Delaware
  • Massachusetts
  • New York
  • Virginia

38.) What world event is commemorated on November 11th?

  • End of World War I (Armistice Day)
  • End of World War II
  • The fall of the Berlin Wall
  • The signing of the Magna Carta

39.) What empire was ruled by Genghis Khan?

  • Mongol Empire
  • Ottoman Empire
  • Persian Empire
  • Roman Empire

40.) What nationality was Joan of Arc?

  • English
  • French
  • German
  • Spanish

41.) Who famously said 'I have a dream' in a speech about racial equality in the U.S.?

  • John F. Kennedy
  • Malcolm X
  • Martin Luther King Jr.
  • Nelson Mandela

42.) The Great Sphinx is located near which ancient Egyptian city?

  • Alexandria
  • Cairo
  • Giza
  • Luxor

43.) What type of ancient script was used by the Egyptians?

  • Cuneiform
  • Hieroglyphics
  • Latin
  • Runes

44.) Who was the U.S. president during most of World War II?

  • Dwight D. Eisenhower
  • Franklin D. Roosevelt
  • Harry S. Truman
  • Herbert Hoover

45.) Who was the first President of the United States?

  • Alexander Hamilton
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • Thomas Jefferson

46.) What ancient civilization is known for pyramids and pharaohs?

  • Aztecs
  • Egyptians
  • Greeks
  • Romans

47.) Which European city was divided by a wall until 1989?

  • Berlin
  • Prague
  • Vienna
  • Warsaw

48.) Who was the British Prime Minister during World War II known for his speeches?

  • Harold Wilson
  • Margaret Thatcher
  • Neville Chamberlain
  • Winston Churchill

49.) Which ship famously sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg?

  • Britannic
  • Lusitania
  • Queen Mary
  • Titanic

50.) In what year did the Declaration of Independence get signed?

  • 1750
  • 1776
  • 1783
  • 1804

Medium History Trivia Questions

These History trivia questions are perfect for older kids, teenagers, and adults. If you want to play History trivia with friends and family, try these medium difficulty questions

51.) What is the name of the famous battle where Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated in 1815?

  • Battle of Hastings
  • Battle of Trafalgar
  • Battle of Waterloo
  • Battle of the Somme

52.) What document, signed in 1215, limited the power of the English King?

  • Bill of Rights
  • Constitution
  • Declaration of Independence
  • Magna Carta

53.) Which empire was known for its nearly invincible fleet, the Armada?

  • British Empire
  • Ottoman Empire
  • Roman Empire
  • Spanish Empire

54.) Which revolutionary leader helped free many South American countries from Spanish rule?

  • Che Guevara
  • Emiliano Zapata
  • Pancho Villa
  • Simón Bolívar

55.) What significant event in US history took place on July 20, 1969?

  • Cuban Missile Crisis
  • End of World War II
  • Moon Landing
  • Start of the Vietnam War

56.) Which structure was originally built as a fortress and later used as a royal palace and prison in Paris, France?

  • Mont Saint-Michel
  • The Bastille
  • The Louvre
  • The Parthenon

57.) What was the name of the first successful English colony in America, established in 1607?

  • Charleston
  • Jamestown
  • Plymouth
  • Savannah

58.) Who was the final ruler of the Egyptian Ptolemaic dynasty?

  • Cleopatra VII
  • Ptolemy XIII
  • Ramses II
  • Tutankhamun

59.) What was the capital city of the Aztec Empire?

  • Chichén Itzá
  • Cuzco
  • Machu Picchu
  • Tenochtitlán

60.) Which amendment to the United States Constitution abolished slavery?

  • 13th Amendment
  • 14th Amendment
  • 15th Amendment
  • 19th Amendment

61.) The Magna Carta, a charter of rights, was originally issued in what year?

  • 1066
  • 1215
  • 1492
  • 1648

62.) Who was the first emperor of the Roman Empire?

  • Augustus
  • Caligula
  • Julius Caesar
  • Nero

63.) What historic event took place on July 14, 1789?

  • Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
  • Construction of the Eiffel Tower begins
  • Signing of the Declaration of Independence
  • Storming of the Bastille

64.) Who was the British Prime Minister at the start of World War II?

  • Clement Attlee
  • David Lloyd George
  • Neville Chamberlain
  • Winston Churchill

65.) Who was the ruler of the Soviet Union during the Cuban Missile Crisis?

  • Joseph Stalin
  • Leonid Brezhnev
  • Mikhail Gorbachev
  • Nikita Khrushchev

66.) What was the primary cause of the Hundred Years' War?

  • Control of the French throne
  • Religious Conflict
  • Territorial Expansion
  • Trade Disputes

67.) Which war saw the Battle of Agincourt?

  • Hundred Years' War
  • The English Civil War
  • The Napoleonic Wars
  • War of the Roses

68.) Which British naval officer famously defeated the French at the Battle of Trafalgar?

  • Arthur Wellesley
  • Francis Drake
  • Horatio Nelson
  • James Cook

69.) Who was the last czar of Russia before the Russian Revolution?

  • Alexander III
  • Ivan the Terrible
  • Nicholas II
  • Peter the Great

70.) Which ancient civilization built the city of Tenochtitlan?

  • Aztec
  • Inca
  • Maya
  • Toltec

71.) The Opium Wars were fought between China and which Western power?

  • Britain
  • France
  • Spain
  • USA

72.) What code name was given to the Allied invasion of Normandy in World War II?

  • Operation Barbarossa
  • Operation Market Garden
  • Operation Overlord
  • Operation Torch

73.) The Great Wall of China was primarily built to protect against invasions from which group of northern nomads?

  • Huns
  • Japanese
  • Mongols
  • Russians

74.) Who discovered the sea route to India around the Cape of Good Hope?

  • Christopher Columbus
  • Ferdinand Magellan
  • John Cabot
  • Vasco da Gama

75.) Which empire was ruled by Sultans like Suleiman the Magnificent?

  • Byzantine Empire
  • Mughal Empire
  • Ottoman Empire
  • Roman Empire

Hard History Trivia Questions

These History trivia questions are perfect for teenagers and adults. If you want to play History trivia with family and friends, try these hard difficulty questions for a fun challenge.

76.) Which expedition was the first to successfully circumnavigate the globe?

  • Hernán Cortés's exploration of Mexico
  • The expedition led by Ferdinand Magellan and completed by Juan Sebastián Elcano
  • The first voyage of Christopher Columbus
  • Vasco da Gama's journey to India

77.) Who was the last Doge of Venice before it fell to Napoleon in 1797?

  • Adriano Balbi
  • Alvise Mocenigo
  • Ludovico Manin
  • Pietro Loredan

78.) Who was the ruler of Egypt before becoming a Roman province in 30 BC?

  • Akhenaten
  • Cleopatra VII
  • Ramses II
  • Tutankhamun

79.) Who was the Italian explorer credited with charting the eastern coast of the Americas during the Age of Discovery?

  • Amerigo Vespucci
  • Christopher Columbus
  • Ferdinand Magellan
  • Marco Polo

80.) Which 15th-century English conflict was depicted in Shakespeare's trilogy of historical plays?

  • The Barons' War
  • The English Civil War
  • The Hundred Years' War
  • The Wars of the Roses

81.) What was the name of the policy aimed at countering communism in Europe by providing economic assistance, formulated by the U.S. in 1947?

  • Eisenhower Doctrine
  • Marshall Plan
  • Monroe Doctrine
  • Truman Doctrine

82.) Which small country was annexed by Britain in 1888 under the pretext of combating the slave trade?

  • Bahrain
  • Malta
  • Sri Lanka
  • Zanzibar

83.) Which South American independence leader was known as "The Liberator" and helped free six nations?

  • Antonio José de Sucre
  • Bernardo O'Higgins
  • José de San Martín
  • Simón Bolívar

84.) Which city was famously besieged during the Crusades, resulting in widespread massacres by the conquering forces in 1099?

  • Alexandria
  • Antioch
  • Damascus
  • Jerusalem

85.) Which medieval queen was known as 'The She-Wolf of France' and played a crucial role in the deposition of her husband, Edward II of England?

  • Eleanor of Aquitaine
  • Isabella of France
  • Margaret of Anjou
  • Matilda of Scotland

86.) What was the name of the political system in the Kingdom of Poland and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that allowed for veto by any member of the nobility?

  • Golden Liberty
  • Hanseatic League
  • Liberum veto
  • Pragmatic Sanction

87.) Who was the philosopher that authored 'Novum Organum', contributing to the development of modern scientific methodology during the Renaissance?

  • Francis Bacon
  • Galileo Galilei
  • Immanuel Kant
  • René Descartes

88.) In 532 AD, which riots broke out in Constantinople during Emperor Justinian I's reign, resulting in the destruction of much of the city?

  • Hippodrome massacre
  • Iconoclast controversy
  • Kolettis insurgence
  • Nika riots

89.) Which 8th-century BCE Assyrian king is credited with founding the first library in the ancient world at Nineveh?

  • Ashurbanipal
  • Sennacherib
  • Shalmaneser V
  • Tiglath-Pileser III

90.) Which economist wrote 'The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation,' influencing theories of comparative advantage in trade?

  • Adam Smith
  • David Ricardo
  • John Maynard Keynes
  • Karl Marx

91.) What was the name of the peace treaty signed in 1713 that significantly altered the balance of power in Europe by ending the War of the Spanish Succession?

  • Treaty of Paris
  • Treaty of Utrecht
  • Treaty of Versailles
  • Treaty of Westphalia

92.) Who was the Byzantine general responsible for the pivotal reconquest of North Africa from the Vandals in the 6th century?

  • Belisarius
  • Heraclius
  • Maurice
  • Narses

93.) Which 19th-century German philosopher and economist sought to critique political economy through his work 'Das Kapital'?

  • Friedrich Engles
  • Karl Marx
  • Ludwig Feuerbach
  • Max Weber

94.) Who was the leader of the Taira clan during the Genpei War in Japan?

  • Ashikaga Takauji
  • Minamoto no Yoshitsune
  • Taira no Kiyomori
  • Toyotomi Hideyoshi

95.) Who was the last Emperor of the Aztec Empire before it fell to Spanish invaders in the early 16th century?

  • Cuauhtémoc
  • Cuitláhuac
  • Montezuma II
  • Nezahualcoyotl

96.) In the 1800s, which Italian general led the Expedition of the Thousand, contributing to the unification of Italy?

  • Camillo di Cavour
  • Giuseppe Garibaldi
  • Giuseppe Mazzini
  • Victor Emmanuel II

97.) Who was the ruler known for the 'Edict of Fontainebleau,' which revoked the Edict of Nantes in 1685 in France?

  • Henry IV
  • Louis XIII
  • Louis XIV
  • Louis XV

98.) Which treaty in 1920 concluded the state of war between most of the Allies of World War I and the Ottoman Empire?

  • Treaty of Lausanne
  • Treaty of Neuilly
  • Treaty of Sèvres
  • Treaty of Trianon

99.) Which Zulu king famously led resistance against European colonizers in Southern Africa until his assassination in 1828?

  • Cetshwayo
  • Dingane
  • Mpande
  • Shaka Zulu

100.) What was the event led by Anabaptists that resulted in the capture of Münster in the 16th century?

  • Beggars' Revolt
  • Münster Rebellion
  • Peasants' War
  • Zwickau Prophets

Very Hard History Trivia Questions

These History trivia questions are perfect for adults, college students, and advanced students. If you want to play History trivia with friends, family, or colleagues, try these very hard questions to test your knowledge about History at its limits.

101.) In the context of medieval alchemy, who is the pseudo-author of the 'Emerald Tablet,' a cryptic piece of alchemical text?

  • Albertus Magnus
  • Hermes Trismegistus
  • Nicolas Flamel
  • Paracelsus

102.) What was the name of the 1241 battle in which a Mongol army defeated a combined force of Polish and Czech soldiers securing Mongol control over Eastern Europe?

  • Battle of Grunwald
  • Battle of Legnica
  • Battle of Mohi
  • Battle of Tannenberg

103.) What agreement ended the Byzantine-Bulgarian conflict in 927 AD, and acknowledged the Bulgarian Orthodox Church?

  • Treaty of 927
  • Treaty of Ninfeo
  • Treaty of Pressburg
  • Treaty of Verdun

104.) What enigmatic Linear B Script was deciphered by Michael Ventris in 1952, revealing it to be an early form of which language?

  • Aramaic
  • Greek
  • Latin
  • Phoenician

105.) What was the name of the secret police established by Tsar Nicholas I in Russia known for its suppression of dissent in the 19th century?

  • Cheka
  • NKVD
  • Okhrana
  • Third Section

106.) What is the name of the battle in 1274 where the Mongol Empire attempted its first invasion of Japan, only to be thwarted by a typhoon?

  • Battle of Bun'ei
  • Battle of Mikatagahara
  • Battle of Nagashino
  • Battle of Sekigahara

107.) Who designed the mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna, a notable example of early Christian architecture?

  • Anthemius of Tralles
  • Apollodorus of Damascus
  • Isidore of Miletus
  • Unknown

108.) Which Islamic philosopher and polymath known as "The Second Teacher" after Aristotle significantly influenced medieval thought?

  • Al-Farabi
  • Al-Ghazali
  • Avicenna
  • Ibn Rushd

110.) Which Islamic philosopher and polymath known as "The Second Teacher" after Aristotle significantly influenced medieval thought?

  • Al-Farabi
  • Al-Ghazali
  • Avicenna
  • Ibn Rushd

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History trivia is all about fun questions and answers that test your knowledge of the past. You can learn cool facts about famous people, important events, and ancient civilizations while having a great time! I love sharing exciting history trivia because it helps you see how interesting and surprising our world’s story really is. Join me as we explore different history trivia questions and find out the answers that will amaze you!

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