History Trivia Questions & Answers
A set of 107+ trivia questions and answers on History — hand-checked and ready for game nights with friends and family. Better yet, play them live in QOOL.
History questions & answers
What is the name of the first human to walk on the moon?
Answer Neil Armstrong
In which year did the Titanic sink?
Answer 1912
What was the largest contiguous land empire in history?
Answer The Mongol Empire
Who built the Taj Mahal?
Answer Emperor Shah Jahan
Who invented the telephone?
Answer Alexander Graham Bell
Who was the first president of the United States of America?
Answer George Washington
In which year did the Berlin Wall fall?
Answer 1989
Who founded the Mongol Empire?
Answer Genghis Khan
In which year did Christopher Columbus discover America?
Answer 1492 CE
What is the name of the Greek historian known as the 'Father of History'?
Answer Herodotus
Who invented the electric light bulb?
Answer Thomas Edison
In which year was the Suez Canal opened?
Answer 1869
Who was the first astronaut to reach space?
Answer Yuri Gagarin
In which year did World War I begin?
Answer 1914
Who founded the Ottoman Empire?
Answer Osman I
What is the name of the ship Columbus sailed on?
Answer Santa Maria
Who was the founder of the Umayyad Caliphate?
Answer Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan
When did the French Revolution take place?
Answer 1789 CE
What is the name of the battle in which Napoleon was finally defeated?
Answer Battle of Waterloo
Who invented the printing press?
Answer Johannes Gutenberg
In which year did British colonisation of India end?
Answer 1947
Who led India's independence movement?
Answer Mahatma Gandhi
When was the United Nations founded?
Answer 24 October 1945
In which year did the Soviet Union collapse?
Answer 1991
Which commander is the Strait of Gibraltar named after?
Answer Tariq ibn Ziyad
In which year did the Battle of Hattin take place?
Answer 1187 CE
Who founded the city of Baghdad?
Answer Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur
Who was the first caliph after the death of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ?
Answer Abu Bakr al-Siddiq
Who was the last Ottoman sultan?
Answer Mehmed VI (Vahideddin)
"Name them all" group questions
Questions where each team names as many answers as they can — perfect for the Auction round in QOOL.
Name the Allied countries in World War II.
Answer USA — UK — France — Soviet Union — China — Canada — Australia
Name the Axis countries in World War II.
Answer Germany — Italy — Japan
Name the great ancient civilisations.
Answer Egyptian — Roman — Greek — Persian — Chinese — Maya — Inca — Sumerian — Indian
Name major battles of World War II.
Answer Stalingrad — Normandy — El Alamein — Coral Sea — Midway — Berlin — Atlantic
Name countries that were part of the Soviet Union.
Answer Russia — Ukraine — Belarus — Kazakhstan — Uzbekistan — Azerbaijan — Georgia — Armenia — Turkmenistan — Tajikistan — Kyrgyzstan — Moldova — Latvia — Lithuania — Estonia
Name notable battles of the Islamic conquests.
Answer Badr — Uhud — Khandaq — Yarmouk — Qadisiyyah — Hattin — Ain Jalut
Name countries colonised by Britain.
Answer India — Egypt — Sudan — South Africa — Australia — Canada — New Zealand — Nigeria — Kenya — Jordan — Iraq — Palestine
Name major revolutions in modern history.
Answer French — American — Russian — Industrial — Iranian — Chinese
Name the great empires in history.
Answer Roman — Mongol — Ottoman — British — Persian — Islamic — Spanish — Chinese
Name notable peace treaties in history.
Answer Versailles — Camp David — Oslo — Westphalia — Portsmouth — Lausanne
Name countries colonised by France.
Answer Algeria — Morocco — Tunisia — Senegal — Mali — Ivory Coast — Syria — Lebanon — Cameroon — Vietnam
Name inventions that changed history.
Answer Printing press — Steam engine — Electricity — Telephone — Airplane — Internet — Penicillin
Name countries under Italian colonisation.
Answer Libya — Eritrea — Somalia — Ethiopia
Name Napoleon Bonaparte's most notable battles.
Answer Austerlitz — Waterloo — Eylau — Borodino — Nile — Pyramids — Leipzig
Name countries where communist regimes fell after 1989.
Answer East Germany — Poland — Czechoslovakia — Romania — Hungary — Bulgaria — Yugoslavia — Albania
Name historical figures who changed the course of history.
Answer Alexander the Great — Genghis Khan — Napoleon — Hitler — Lincoln — Gandhi — Mao Zedong — Nelson Mandela
Name countries Spain colonised in Latin America.
Answer Mexico — Colombia — Peru — Argentina — Chile — Venezuela — Ecuador — Bolivia — Paraguay — Uruguay
Name the major civilisations of Mesopotamia.
Answer Sumerian — Akkadian — Babylonian — Assyrian — Chaldean
Name notable treaties ending World War I.
Answer Versailles — Sevres — Lausanne — Saint-Germain — Neuilly — Trianon
Name the EU founding countries.
Answer France — Germany — Italy — Belgium — Netherlands — Luxembourg
Name major pandemics in history.
Answer Black Death — Smallpox — Spanish Flu — Cholera — Polio — Ebola — COVID-19
Name major wars of the 20th century.
Answer WWI — WWII — Korea — Vietnam — Gulf War — Yom Kippur — Falklands
Name the nuclear-armed countries.
Answer USA — Russia — UK — France — China — India — Pakistan — Israel — North Korea
Name the dynasties that ruled ancient Egypt.
Answer 1st — 2nd — 3rd (pyramid builders) — 18th (Thutmose & Ramesses) — 26th
Name territories ruled by Alexander the Great.
Answer Macedonia — Greece — Egypt — Persia — Babylon — India — Afghanistan — Syria
Name key discoveries of the European Renaissance.
Answer Discovery of America — Sea route to India — Heliocentrism — Printing press — Anatomy — Perspective in art
Name the main causes of the fall of the Roman Empire.
Answer Barbarian invasions — Economic crises — Corruption — Division — Military weakness — Political problems
Name major pre-colonial civilisations of the Americas.
Answer Maya — Aztec — Inca — Olmec — Teotihuacan — Mississippian
Name countries formed after Yugoslavia broke up.
Answer Slovenia — Croatia — Bosnia — Serbia — Macedonia — Montenegro — Kosovo
Name key agreements that shaped the modern Middle East.
Answer Sykes-Picot — Balfour — Lausanne — Sevres — Cairo — Wadi Araba
Name countries that participated in the Crusades against Muslims.
Answer France — England — Germany — Italy — Austria — Hungary — Portugal — Spain — Belgium — Netherlands
Name one of the Rightly Guided Caliphs (Rashidun).
Answer Abu Bakr al-Siddiq — Umar ibn al-Khattab — Uthman ibn Affan — Ali ibn Abi Talib
Name a famous Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt.
Answer Tutankhamun — Ramesses II — Akhenaten — Hatshepsut — Cleopatra — Thutmose III — Amenhotep III — Mentuhotep II — Khufu — Khafre — Menkaure — Nefertiti (queen) — Senusret III
Name a famous explorer in history.
Answer Ibn Battuta — Christopher Columbus — Vasco da Gama — Magellan — Marco Polo — James Cook — Amerigo Vespucci — Hernán Cortés — Francisco Pizarro — Ibn Jubayr — Henry the Navigator — David Livingstone — Roald Amundsen — Robert Scott
Name a Roman emperor.
Answer Julius Caesar — Augustus — Nero — Caligula — Claudius — Trajan — Hadrian — Marcus Aurelius — Constantine the Great — Diocletian — Justinian — Titus — Vespasian
Name a famous Ottoman sultan.
Answer Mehmed the Conqueror — Suleiman the Magnificent — Selim I — Selim II — Murad I — Bayezid I — Abdul Hamid II — Mahmud II — Osman I — Orhan Gazi — Murad IV
Name a famous American president.
Answer George Washington — Thomas Jefferson — Abraham Lincoln — Theodore Roosevelt — Franklin Roosevelt — John F. Kennedy — Richard Nixon — Ronald Reagan — George H. W. Bush — Bill Clinton — George W. Bush — Barack Obama — Donald Trump — Joe Biden
Name a Muslim scholar or philosopher from the Golden Age.
Answer Ibn Sina (Avicenna) — Ibn Rushd (Averroes) — Al-Khwarizmi — Al-Biruni — Al-Farabi — Ibn al-Haytham — Al-Razi — Al-Kindi — Jabir ibn Hayyan — Al-Zahrawi — Ibn Khaldun — Al-Idrisi — Ibn al-Nafis — Ibn Battuta — Al-Ghazali
Name an invention that changed the course of human history.
Answer Printing press — Steam engine — Electricity — Internet — Automobile — Airplane — Telephone — Light bulb — Penicillin — Gunpowder — Compass — Paper — Radio — Television — Electric motor — Computer
Name a historical event that changed the world in the 20th century.
Answer World War I — World War II — Russian Revolution — Founding of the UN — Cold War — Fall of the Berlin Wall — Collapse of the Soviet Union — Telecommunications revolution — Moon landing — September 11 attacks — Establishment of Israel 1948 — Vietnam War — October 1973 War
Name a Muslim military commander in history.
Answer Khalid ibn al-Walid — Saladin (Salah al-Din) — Tariq ibn Ziyad — Amr ibn al-As — Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas — Qutuz — Baybars — Mehmed the Conqueror — Musa ibn Nusayr — Yusuf ibn Tashfin — Uqba ibn Nafi — Jawhar al-Siqilli
Name the Rightly Guided Caliphs (Rashidun)
Answer Abu Bakr al-Siddiq — Umar ibn al-Khattab — Uthman ibn Affan — Ali ibn Abi Talib
Name famous Ottoman sultans
Answer Mehmed the Conqueror — Suleiman the Magnificent — Selim I — Selim II — Abdul Hamid II — Osman I — Murad IV — Bayezid I — Mahmud II
Name the Allied countries in World War II
Answer USA — UK — France — Soviet Union — China — Canada — Australia
Name the Axis countries in World War II
Answer Germany — Italy — Japan — Hungary — Romania — Bulgaria
Name the great ancient civilisations
Answer Egyptian — Roman — Greek — Persian — Chinese — Maya — Inca — Sumerian — Indian — Babylonian
Name countries that were part of the Soviet Union
Answer Russia — Ukraine — Belarus — Kazakhstan — Uzbekistan — Azerbaijan — Georgia — Armenia — Turkmenistan — Tajikistan — Kyrgyzstan — Moldova — Latvia — Lithuania — Estonia
Name great empires in history
Answer Roman — Mongol — Ottoman — British — Persian — Islamic — Spanish — Chinese — French — Russian
Name inventions that changed history
Answer Printing press — Steam engine — Electricity — Telephone — Airplane — Internet — Penicillin — Compass — Gunpowder — Telescope
Name major revolutions in modern history
Answer French Revolution — American Revolution — Russian Revolution — Industrial Revolution — Iranian Revolution — Chinese Revolution
Name major wars of the 20th century
Answer WWI — WWII — Korean War — Vietnam War — Gulf War — Yom Kippur War — Falklands War
Name nuclear-armed countries
Answer USA — Russia — UK — France — China — India — Pakistan — Israel — North Korea
Name civilisations of Mesopotamia
Answer Sumerian — Akkadian — Babylonian — Assyrian — Chaldean
Name countries formed after Yugoslavia broke up
Answer Slovenia — Croatia — Bosnia — Serbia — Macedonia — Montenegro — Kosovo
Name major pandemics in history
Answer Black Death — Smallpox — Spanish Flu — Cholera — Polio — Ebola — COVID-19
Name countries colonised by Britain
Answer India — Egypt — Sudan — South Africa — Australia — Canada — New Zealand — Nigeria — Kenya — Jordan — Iraq — Palestine
Name countries colonised by France
Answer Algeria — Morocco — Tunisia — Senegal — Mali — Ivory Coast — Syria — Lebanon — Cameroon — Vietnam
Name major battles of World War II
Answer Stalingrad — Normandy — El Alamein — Midway — Coral Sea — Berlin — Atlantic
Name the EU founding countries
Answer France — Germany — Italy — Belgium — Netherlands — Luxembourg
Name NATO's founding countries
Answer USA — UK — France — Canada — Italy — Belgium — Netherlands — Luxembourg — Denmark — Norway — Portugal — Iceland
Name notable peace treaties in history
Answer Versailles — Camp David — Oslo — Westphalia — Portsmouth — Lausanne
Name historical figures who changed history
Answer Alexander the Great — Genghis Khan — Napoleon — Lincoln — Gandhi — Nelson Mandela — Saladin — Omar Mukhtar
Name pre-colonial civilisations of the Americas
Answer Maya — Aztec — Inca — Olmec — Teotihuacan
Name Napoleon Bonaparte's notable battles
Answer Austerlitz — Waterloo — Borodino — Leipzig — Pyramids — Eylau
Name agreements that shaped the modern Middle East
Answer Sykes-Picot — Balfour — Lausanne — Sevres — Cairo — Wadi Araba
Name countries where communist regimes fell after 1989
Answer East Germany — Poland — Czechoslovakia — Romania — Hungary — Bulgaria — Yugoslavia — Albania
Name famous Egyptian Pharaohs
Answer Ramesses II — Tutankhamun — Khufu — Khafre — Menkaure — Thutmose III — Akhenaten — Hatshepsut — Seti I — Narmer — Ptolemy — Nefertiti
Name great Islamic empires
Answer Umayyad — Abbasid — Fatimid — Ottoman — Mughal — Safavid — Ghaznavid — Seljuk — Mamluk — Almohad — Almoravid
Name prominent World War II leaders
Answer Hitler — Mussolini — Churchill — Roosevelt — Stalin — De Gaulle — Hirohito — MacArthur — Montgomery — Rommel — Eisenhower — Tito
Name prominent 20th-century Arab leaders
Answer Gamal Abdel Nasser — Anwar Sadat — King Faisal — Yasser Arafat — Houari Boumediene — Habib Bourguiba — King Hussein — Muammar Gaddafi — Hafez al-Assad — King Abdulaziz — Ahmed Ben Bella
Name Arab Spring countries
Answer Tunisia — Egypt — Libya — Syria — Yemen — Bahrain — Jordan — Morocco — Algeria — Iraq — Sudan
Name decisive battles in Islamic history
Answer Badr — Uhud — Al-Khandaq — Al-Qadisiyyah — Yarmouk — Hattin — Ain Jalut — Zallaqa — Nahavand — Conquest of Mecca — Tours-Poitiers
How many years did World War II last?
Answer 6 years — 1939 to 1945
What is the name of the city on which the first atomic bomb was dropped?
Answer Hiroshima — Japan
What is the shortest war in history?
Answer The Anglo-Zanzibar War — lasted 38-45 minutes
Who conquered Constantinople?
Answer Sultan Muhammad al-Fatih — Mehmed II
In which country was Napoleon Bonaparte born?
Answer Island of Corsica — France
In which year did Prophet Muhammad ﷺ migrate from Mecca to Medina?
Answer 622 CE — Year 1 AH
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