War in the Trenches Trivia Quiz

Answer: Young Bosnia

Gavrilo Princip, the assassin of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife, was a Serb nationalist obsessed with martyrdom and a key member of the group Young Bosnia; it was made up primarily of students and intellectuals in Bosnia and Herzegovina who sought an end to Austro-Hungarian rule. The Black Hand was associated with Young Bosnia, but was made up primarily of military officers. Both groups had the same goal. Austria-Hungary had, 10 years earlier, annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Princip was sentenced to 20 years after the assassination of the Archduke and his wife, but died in prison in 1918.

Answer: The Entente Powers

As a result of German expansionism and an alliance Germany had formed with Italy and Austria-Hungary in 1882, Britain, France and Russia formed an informal alliance (entente) in 1907. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy were called the Triple Alliance while the pact between Britain, France and Russia was called the Triple Entente.

By the time war broke-out in 1914 the Triple Entente became The Entente Powers (also sometimes known as the Allies) with the addition of Italy (they switched sides), Japan, and the United States. The Central Powers, as the alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire was called had formed by 1914.

Answer: Belgium

The Pool of Peace, also known as the Lone Tree Crater, is located near Heuvelland, Belgium. It is the largest crater left by the explosion of 19 mines along the Messines Ridge. The British Army was to blow these mines to signal the start of the Battle of Messines in June 1917.

Answer: False

False. Dogs, especially collies and retrievers, were the preferred method of communication among front-line commanders. In trench warfare, dogs could easily traverse the battlefield. Collies and retrievers were chosen for their reliability and trainability. Carrier pigeons were typically used for long-distance communication.

Answer: a howitzer

Big Bertha was a 42cm (16.5 inch) howitzer manufactured by Germany's Krupp firm. Bertha was the name of Frau Krupp. It weighted 47 tons and had a range of 5.8miles (9,300 meters). It was used to destroy French and Belgian forts. By comparison, a 16 inch naval gun used during WW2 had a range of 24 miles (39 km).

Answer: a main cause of U.S. entry into WWI

The Zimmermann Telegram was one of the main reasons for the U.S. entering WWI in 1917. Arthur Zimmermann was the German Foreign Minister. He sent a telegram to the Foreign Minister of Mexico that was intercepted and decoded by British Naval Intelligence.

The telegram stated that Germany planned to resume unrestricted submarine warfare and if, as a result the U.S. declared war on Germany, Mexico was urged to join a military alliance with Germany and declare war on the U.S. In return, Mexico would receive German assistance in reclaiming its lost territories in the U.S. Within a month of the telegram's public release, the U.S. declared war on Germany.

Answer: Austria-Hungary and Serbia

Exactly one month after the assassination of Prince Ferdinand, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Serbia responded by mobilizing for defense. A few weeks later, Germany, which backed Austria-Hungary, declared war on Russia and France, causing Great Britain to declare war on Germany due to the complicated network of alliances that had been made before the war.

Answer: Dreadnoughts

The term dreadnought means fear nothing. The British had the first dreadnought, the "HMS Dreadnought" in 1906. The dreadnoughts made the pre-dreadnoughts obsolete, but they still played a backup role in WWI. By WWI the British had 21 dreadnoughts. The Germans had 14, and so the naval race was on. With the exception of the Battle of Jutland, these ships saw relatively little action in WWI.

Answer: portable x-ray machine

While Marie Currie is best known for her work with radioactivity, she also invented the portable x-ray machine. She modified vehicles by equipping them with x-ray machines, thereby negating the need for wounded soldiers to travel to hospitals for x-rays. This allowed doctors to locate metallic objects faster, thereby saving countless lives.

Answer: the flamethrower

The modern flamethrower was invented by Richard Fiedler in 1901. It was portable and used pressurized gas to project a stream of burning oil. World War I saw its first widespread use. Needless to say, it caused panic among opposing troops.