Taking Over the World in Ten Easy Steps Quiz

Answer: Denmark

Despite its construction beginning in the 18th century, the Christianborg Palace as it stands today was not completed until 1928. This was not the result of slow builders, but rather that the first and second constructions of this legislative house burned down due to fires in 1794 and 1884 respectively. The current structure was built upon the remains of the previous buildings and was based on the architectural design of Thorvald Jorgensen.

Since 1995, Transparency International has produced an annual Corruption Perception Index, which ranks countries on how corrupt a their public sectors are perceived to be. Such an index is based on various surveys, but is clearly open to criticism since such activities are by their very nature hidden from public knowledge. Nevertheless, Denmark regularly appears as one of the nations deemed to have the least corrupt public sectors.

Answer: Japan

The Japanese parliament, known as the National Diet, is made up of two houses - the House of Representatives and the House of Councillors. The building itself is located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and was a variation on an idea selected from a public design competition. Its construction was completed in 1936.

Answer: United States

Originally constructed in the late 1700s in the neoclassical style, the Capitol Building was partially burnt during the War of 1812. Its distinctive dome emerged during the rebuilding. The building was expanded in the 1850s to accommodate the growing legislature, and some of the construction was done by slaves.

The statue atop the dome called the Statue of Freedom was ironically cast by a slave named Philip Reid.

Answer: Romania

The Palace of Parliament in Bucharest has an area of 3.55 million sq ft, compared to the Capitol Building in the US which has an area of "only" 175,000 sq ft. This lavish building was intended by Ceausescu to be a place for the government to operate, but also as a personal palace for him and his family.

The dictatorship of Ceausescu rapidly stimulated anger from the Romanian people who started to protest against his rule. After Ceausescu ordered the shooting of protestors, the protests grew and became more violent, causing Ceausescu to flee.

He was captured, however, and was subsequently executed by firing squad.

Answer: Ukraine

The Verkhovna Rada building is located in the city of Kiev and is based on the design of the architect Vladimir Zabolotny. The rapid construction was typical of the Stalinist regime (it took just three years from the acceptance of Zobolotny's design for it to be completed).

The building was destroyed during the Second World War, but by 1947 had been restored almost exactly as it was before. Under Soviet rule, the parliament of the Ukraine was known as the "Supreme Soviet".

Answer: Hungary

Construction of the ornate Hungarian Parliament Building began in the late 1800s and was completed in 1904. The Gothic-revival style building includes gold and precious stones and is not only the home of the unicameral Hungarian legislature, the Diet, but is also a major tourist attraction in Budapest.

Answer: Wales

The Senedd is a modern building and was completed in 2006. It is located in Cardiff (Wales' capital) and it houses the National Assembly of Wales with its 60 members, all of whom are elected for four-year terms. As of 2011, the National Assembly is able to create and pass laws without having to consult the UK parliament.

The Senedd was designed by the Italian-born British architect Richard Rogers, who incorporated slate and Welsh oak into the building.

Answer: Colombia

The Capitolio Nacional is located in Bolivar Square in Bogota, the capital of Colombia. It is the home of the Congress of Colombia, which consists of two houses - the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives. The Senate consists of 102 seats, 2 of which are reserved for representatives of Colombia's "indigenous people".

While Bolivia is named for Simon Bolivar - a Spanish revolutionary who was pivotal in the independence movement of the Latin American countries - so are many places in Colombia, Venezuela, and Peru. Bolivar even has a street in Germany named for him.

Answer: Canada

Centre Block was originally constructed in the mid-1800s and featured Victoria Tower as its centerpiece. A massive fire destroyed nearly all of Centre Block in 1916, and when it was reconstructed in a similar Gothic-revival style, the name of the tower at its center was changed to the Peace Tower (Tower of Victory and Peace).

The name was selected due to the timing of its construction, at the end of World War I.

Answer: Canberra, Australia

Canberra's impressive Parliament House is the centre point of Australian politics. Situated in, yes, Capital Hill, it overlooks one of the Australian Capital Territory's largest artificial lakes - Lake Burley Griffin. As is typical of other Australian state parliament buildings (with the exception of Queensland which doesn't have a Senate), Canberra's Parliament House complex includes the green House of Representatives chamber and the red Senate chamber.

When it was built (between 1981 and 1988), it carried a hefty price tag. Construction cost more than $1 billion Australian dollars.