History Around the World 4 Trivia Quiz

Answer: England and Scotland

The Battle of Flodden Field was fought outside the village of Branxton, Northumberland in northern England on September 9, 1513. The invading Scots led by King James IV was decimated by Thomas Howard's English army.
That this was the biggest battle ever between England and Scotland is particularly strange since the Scots only reason for invading was in order to divert English troops away from their war against the French, with whom the Scots were allied at the time. King James IV was the most notable casualty, although his son, Alexander, was another of the more than 10,000 Scottish deaths.
This was the last great medieval battle fought in Britain, although English long-bowman continued to have success overseas. Future battles would be primarily fought with cavalry and artillery.

Answer: 1713

The various treaties that ended the 'War of Spanish Succession' and established the so-called 'Peace of Utrecht', were signed in March and April of 1713. As a result of the treaty, the grandson of French King Louis XIV, the Duke of Anjou, became King Philip V of Spain. Spain's European Empire was also divided up, with The Holy Roman Empire gaining Spanish Netherlands, Sardinia and the Kingdom of Naples, while Britain acquired Gibraltar and the Balearic island of Minorca.
In retrospect this was a minor concession compared to what France gave up -- their claims to the disputed North American territories. These included Newfoundland, Acadia (now the Canadian Maritime provinces and parts of Quebec and Ontario, plus the whole of New England and the eastern seaboard of the USA as far south as Philadelphia) and Rupert's Land (not most of Quebec and Ontario, the whole of Manitoba, most of Saskatchewan and Alberta and parts of Minnesota and North Dakota).

Answer: Thailand

Bhumibol Adulyadej became King Rama IX of Thailand in June 1946 at the age of 18. In 2008, he was the world's longest-serving monarch, ahead of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, who ascended the throne six years later.
Thailand is the world's 51st largest country in terms of area (slightly smaller than France or Sweden and slightly larger than Spain), and at 63 million is the 20th in population (just less than France and slightly more than the U.K. and Italy). Formerly called Siam, it is the only southeast Asian country that was never colonized by Europeans.

Answer: Turku

Originally settled in the late 13th Century, Turku is Finland's oldest city and was the country's largest until overtaken by Helsinki in the middle of the 19th century. It is now Finland's third largest metropolitan regions, after Helsinki and Tampere. Turku still retains the seat of the Archbishop of Finland. Along with Estonia's capital, Tallin, Turku has been named as the 'European Capital of Culture' for 2011.

It is also notable as the birthplace of Finland's greatest ever athlete, the legendary Paavo Nurmi, who won nine gold and three silver medals as a middle and long-distance runner at the 1920, 1924 and 1928 Olympics.

Answer: Princess Margaret

Princess Margaret was Queen Elizabeth II's younger sister by nearly four and a half years. Her marriage to photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1961 was the first royal wedding in the 'television age'. Armstrong-Jones was given the title Lord Snowdon when they married, and thus Princess Margaret also became Countess of Snowdon by marriage. They had two children, David Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley, and Lady Sarah Chatto. Sarah is the Queen's only niece, and (born in 1964) she is the youngest of the six grandchildren of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

Answer: The Little Mermaid (Copenhagen)

This Danish tourist attraction sits on a globe-like rock in Copenhagen harbor. The naked statue is only about 4' tall and has been a regular target for vandals over the years. In 1964, her head was actually sawn off. It was never recovered and the one you see today is a copy of the original.

Her head was again taken in 1998, although it was returned two days later. In 2003, she was actually blown off her rock with dynamite. She has been covered in paint numerous times -- in 1961, someone painted a bra on her.

In 2007, she was draped with a Muslim dress and head scarf, prompting city officials to announce that she is to be moved further out into the harbor to prevent further vandalism (and to stop tourist climbing on her). Of the alternatives, the Statue of Liberty was dedicated in October 1886 to commemorate the centennial of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The first stone of the Lincoln Memorial was laid on February 12, 1914 (the 105th anniversary of Lincoln's birth) and the finished monument was dedicated in may 1922. Nelson's Column is by far the oldest of the four, built between 1840 and 1843 with the famous Edwin Landseer lions being added in 1867.

Answer: Reims, France

Genraloberst Jodl signed Germany's unconditional surrender on behalf of Karl Doenitz, who had taken over as head of the German state following Hitler's suicide three weeks earlier. The surrender was signed on May 7, 1945 in Reims, France, and hostilities officially ceased the following day, on May 8, which is celebrated as V-E Day.
Alfred Jodl was subsequently tried at the Nuremberg Trials, where he was found guilty of all charges, and executed on October 16, 1946.

In 1953 a Munich court quashed his Nuremberg convictions, but the judgement was
overturned under pressure from U.S., which at the time occupied Bavaria.

Answer: Paramount

Paramount is Hollywood's oldest movie studio, having been founded a month before Universal. Paramount's early stars included the likes of Douglas Fairbanks, Rudolf Valentino, Gloria Swanson, Clara Bow and Mary Pickford. With the advent of the talkies, Paramount remained a market leader with icons such as Bing Crosby, Gary Cooper and Mae West.
With the advent of the growing television market of the 1960s, Paramount made its mark with such classics as 'Mission Impossible' and 'Star Trek'. It's modern contribution to society is, perhaps, less intellectually stimulating, but popular nonetheless -- 'Beverley Hills Cop' and 'Friday the 13th' series of films, for example.
Since 1994, Paramount has been owned by Viacom.

Answer: Bavaria

Under the 1832 'convention of London' Greece became an independent kingdom under the protection of Britain, France and Russia. The first monarch was the Austrian-born, 17-year old King Otto I, former Duke of Bavaria.
remarkably, Otto managed to retain the throne for 30 years, unsuccessfully trying to keep each of the 'Great Powers' happy whilst simultaneously representing the wishes of the Greeks. After assassination attempts on his family, Otto was deposed in 1862 and died five years later in exile in Bavaria.

Answer: 1

Of the 43 US Presidents from George Washington to George W. Bush, it seems remarkable that only one has been endowed with more than one middle name -- George Herbert Walker Bush.
Perhaps even more amazing is that 17 of the 42 had no middle name. These include Harry S Truman -- the 'S' is an initial only and didn't stand for anything. Similarly, the 14th President is sometimes called Franklin K. Pierce, although records show that he had no middle name.
Three of the 42 were known by their middle name -- John 'Calvin' Coolidge Jr, Stephen 'Grover' Cleveland and Thomas 'Woodrow' Wilson. It is moot whether Ulysses S. Grant also belongs in this list -- his given name was Hiram Ulysses Grant, and he changed it when he joined the Army.
(Neither of the 2008 Presidential candidates changes the answer to this question either -- each has precisely one middle name).