From Alexander the Great to Napoleon Quiz

Answer: Hephaestion

Hephaestion was born around the same as Alexander and they studied together as students of Aristotle. On campaigns Hephaestion was part of Alexander's bodyguard and the two them were very close indeed. Hephaestion died after developing a heavy fever. When the power struggle ended, Ptolemy got the part of the empire that included Egypt, Seleucus won the part that included Syria, and Antigonus ruled the part that included Asia Minor.

Answer: Bithynia

Bithynia was an ancient kingdom near Propontis, a area near the Sea of Marmara today. Hannibal was helping the King of Bithynia, Prusias, who was fighting against Eumenes II of Pergamum, an ally of the Romans, at the time. Hannibal, feeling that Prusias was planning to hand him over to the Romans, chose to commit suicide rather than be captured by them.

In 146 BC the Romans defeated Carthage, after a three-year siege, and completely destroyed the city.

Answer: Philippi

Philippi was built in 356 BC and named after King Philip II, however, it is perhaps best known for the Battle of Philippi, which was the final blow against the forces that wanted to maintain the Republic in Rome. It took place in October 42 BC in two installments.

The first, on the 3rd of October, ended inconclusively. The death of Cassius was a major loss to the Republican forces. He committed suicide, thinking that the battle was lost. The second installment came 20 days later, when troops under Brutus failed to defeat Marc Antony and ran away. Brutus was surrounded by Antony's forces and opted to commit suicide.

Answer: Inflammation of the urinary system

The inflammation was caused by prostate enlargement and the subsequent retention of urine. Heraclius managed to reclaim most of the territories that were lost to the Persians. He is best remembered for retrieving the True Cross that was taken by the Persians, and placing it back in Jerusalem.

After his death his wife, against the will of the people, seized power and declared herself, her son, and her step son as rulers. They were soon deposed and Heraclius' eleven year-old son became Emperor as Constans II.

Answer: Aachen

The year of Carolus Magnus' birth is given as 742, 747 or 748 by various historians. He was King of the Franks, King of the Lombards, and, on Christmas Day 800 AD, he became Emperor of the Romans. He was ill with pleurisy before he died on 28th of January. He was buried in the Carolingian octagon of Aachen Cathedral.
A year before his death he declared his son, Louis the Pious, who was already King of Aquitaine, as co-Emperor. Louis succeeded his father and reigned until 840.
On his death bed Louis appointed his son, Lothair, as emperor. This was not received well by Louis' other sons, and a three-year war ensued. As a result, the Empire was split up in 843 with the Treaty of Verdun.

Answer: Umayyad Mosque

Saladin, considered to be one of the most important Kurds in history, defeated the Crusaders at the Battle of Hattin in 1187, and, as a result, recaptured Jerusalem from them. He was the founder of the Ayyubid Dynasty and, after his death, he was succeeded by Al-Aziz Uthman in Egypt and Al-Afdal in Syria. The Ayyubid Dynasty lasted until 1270, when it succumbed to the Mamluks.

Answer: Ogodei

Ogodei was Genghis' third son. He greatly expanded the empire that extended from Mongolia to the shores of the Adriatic. He was the ruler of the Mongols until his death in 1241 AD. Jochi was the eldest of Genghis' sons, and Chagatai was the second. When Genghis decided to nominated his successor, he asked Jochi's opinion. Chagatai got extremely upset and called his brother illegitimate and the two were ready to fight a duel.

At that point Genghis declared that his successor would be Ogodei.

Answer: Sikandra, Agra

Akbar, who was an ancestor of Genghis Khan, was born in 1542. He was the son of Humayun who was forced to leave Delhi by an Afghan usurper. The tomb of Akbar was built by his son, Jahangir. Sikandra is a suburb of Agra.

Akbar was succeeded by Jahangir, who was followed by Shah Jahan. During Shah Jahan's reign the empire reached its peak in terms of culture, and the famous Taj Mahal was built during that time. The Mughal Empire was finally dissolved in 1857 when the last emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, was defeated by the British.

Answer: Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral

The cathedral lies within a fort with the same name. Both were built by Peter the Great when his moved his capital from Moscow. Peter died when he was 52. The power was given to his second wife, Catherine, by Peter's close associate, Prince Alexander, but was wielded by Alexander himself! That was soon changed by the formation of a Privy Council that was to be the governing body. Catherine died in 1727, and was succeeded by Peter II, who was Peter's grandson.

Answer: Dome des Invalides

Dome des Invalides was a church in the Invalides complex, which was used to house war veterans. It was chosen as his burial place to signify the close relationship that Napoleon shared with his old troops, although both the Pantheon and Arc de Triomphe were both considered. It was Napoleon's wish to be buried in France "on the banks of the Seine, in the midst of the French people whom I loved so much".