I Guess It's History, But Is It Historic Quiz

Answer: Pope Sylvester I

The Donation of Constatine was a forged document presented to Pope Sylvester I, allegedly from An alleged decree from Roman Emperor Constantine I, giving him authority over the Western Roman Empire. The document gave the papacy both legal and spiritual authority over secular rulers. It claimed that Constantine had moved his capital further east to allow the pope in Rome more ecclesiastical control. The Donation of Constantine was accepted as real for over 700 years (it did not "surface" until the 700s). It had a significant impact on European history. When conflicts arose between popes and kings in France, England, or Germany, the Donation was used to assert that the papacy had a superior claim to ultimate jurisdiction.

When it was discovered to be a forgery around 1440 it was evidence to protestants that the Catholic Church used a forged document to justify its authority. The Catholic Church responded with silence and eventually erased all references to it.

Answer: New York Sun

"The New York Sun", one of the new "penny" newspapers started a sensation when it published a six-part series announcing the discovery of life on the Moon. The series was written by Dr. Andrew Grant. Grant's source was the "Edinburgh Journal of Science".

The series described fantastic animals such as unicorns, two-legged beavers and furry, winged humanoids resembling bats. The newspaper's sales skyrocketed, problem was none of it was true. Dr. Grant was fictional and the "Edinburgh Journal of Science" had ceased publication years earlier.

In September, 1835 the newspaper admitted that it was all a hoax on September 16, 1835.

Answer: dancing

On a summer's day in 1518 in Strasbourg a woman left her home and began dancing in the street until she collapsed. She did this for several days in a row. Soon over 400 people were dancing in the streets for days on end, for two months in total. Over 100 of them died from exhaustion.

Theories abound, both then and now, as to the cause. Some townspeople thought it was a curse from St. Vitus (the St. Vitus Dance).

Answer: The Maginot Line

By the 1930s the French had had enough of German aggression across their eastern border. After withstanding numerous wars with Germany throughout its history, most recently WW1, France decided to build a defensive fortification that would deter future German invasions. France's Minister of War, Andre Maginot lent his name to the project.

The Maginot Line was 280 miles long, included dozens of fortresses, underground bunkers, minefields, and gun batteries. It was air-conditioned and contained rooms for troops.

It was fortified with millions of tons of steel. When WW2 came along, the Germans simply went around it and attacked France from the north, through Belgium. Thus, France's state-of-the-art fortification was a "boondoggle".

Answer: uncontrollable laughter

The uncontrollable laughter spread like a wildfire from village to village. It went on for months and affected hundreds of girls. The excessive laughter brought on stomach pain and fainting. It was called as case of mass psychogenic sickness. The actual cause has never been found.

Answer: Pope Formosus

Pope Stephen VI ordered that the cadaver of Pope Formosus be brought to court, dressed in papal clothing and tried for breaking canon law, perjury and illegally serving as a bishop. This was a period of great turmoil in Rome. The Holy Roman Empire was crumbling. With no effective leader and the Vikings invading from the north and the Muslims from the south the Empire and the Papacy were in disarray. Pope Stephen VI and Pope Formosus were on opposite sides of an on-going secular argument. Pope Stephen VI wanted to please his benefactors, thus the trial of Pope Formosus. Upon conviction Pope Formosus' body was dragged through the streets and unceremoniously dumped in the Tiber River.

Answer: rabbits

In 1726 Mary Tofts claimed to have given birth to rabbits. A surgeon was called and witnessed her give birth to 9 rabbits. The surgeon to King George I was called and he was present when she gave birth to her 15th rabbit. A third surgeon was called and he delivered a rabbit part from Mary.

He became suspicious and reported to King George that it was all a hoax. King George then sent yet another doctor who, after the birth of a 17th rabbit reported it as a hoax. Mary was taken to London where, finally, after several months of deception she admitted it was all a hoax. Mary was imprisoned for 4 months, then released.

Many songs and pamphlets were written.

Answer: Mount Tambora

Mount Tambora, a 13,000-foot-high volcano on the island of Sumbawa, near Bali, Indonesia, was the primary cause of the Year Without a Summer. The eruption happened in April of 1815 and was one of the greatest volcanic eruptions in history. The temperatures plummeted worldwide.

In New England USA it snowed in June and states there recorded a hard frost for every month of the year. Lack of sunlight, caused by an ash cloud the size of Australia and unseasonably cold temperatures, led to crops failing which in turn led to food shortages, which in turn led to rising crime rates.

Answer: emu

The emu is a large flightless bird with powerful legs that is capable of reaching speeds up to 30 mph (48 kmh). During a dry spell in Western Australia in 1932 a group of emus invaded some villages and destroyed crops. The army was summoned. They used weapons, including machine guns to disburse the invaders, but the emus were too quick and won the Great Emu War.

Answer: Los Angeles, California

"The Battle of Los Angeles" occurred on the night of February 25, 1942, just over two months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. People on the west coast of the USA were told to expect an attack on the U.S. mainland. Two nights earlier a Japanese submarine fired at an oil refinery in Santa Barbara, so the populace was nervous. Searchlights filled the sky and troops fired anti-aircraft guns.

The next morning revealed that there was no attack. The only damage reported was from shrapnel from the anti-aircraft shells.