The UK According to Whitaker: 1900

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. In 1900, Queen Victoria of the UK had occupied her throne for longer than any other contemporary European monarch. True False

2. What conflict involving the UK began in October 1899? the Indian Mutiny the Zulu Wars the Afghan Wars the Boer War

3. Who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 1900? Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman Joseph Chamberlain Arthur Balfour Lord Salisbury

4. In the UK, what office was held by Alfred Austin in 1900? Archbishop of Canterbury Poet Laureate Lord Chief Justice of England President of the Marylebone Cricket Club

5. What was the rate of income tax in the UK in 1900? There was no income tax in the UK before World War I Two shillings in the pound (10 per cent) Eightpence in the pound (3.33 per cent) Five shillings in the pound (25 per cent)

6. At the end of the nineteenth century London was the most populous city in the world. After London, which was the most populous city in Europe? Berlin Vienna Paris St Petersburg

7. Apart from the recently created County of London, which was the smallest county in England in area in 1900? Rutland Huntingdonshire Middlesex Bedfordshire

8. What was the life expectancy, at birth, of a male baby born in the UK in the 1870s? 49 years 65 years 58 years 41 years

9. Among the books that appeared in 1899 was a collection of school stories called “Stalky & Co.” Who was the author? Frank Richards Rudyard Kipling Thomas Hughes Robert Louis Stevenson

10. In the advertisement pages of Whitaker’s Almanac for 1900 is a charity appeal from the Temporary Home for Lost and Starving Dogs. Where was this institution, which is still going strong in 2006, located? Battersea, London Brighton, Sussex Blackpool, Lancashire Bradford, Yorkshire