Great Rulers Trivia Quiz

Ramesses II, the third ruler of the nineteenth dynasty, is widely regarded as the most powerful and influential ruler in Egyptian history. He took power in 1279 BCE and ruled for 66 years, one of the longest reigns of any leader in history.

Ramesses II spent the early part of his reign on infra-structure, including building a new capital. He then spent his time on military adventures, dramatically expanding Egypt's regional power. The Egyptians fought the Hittites in what is modern day Syria.

Ramesses built numerous monuments throughout Egypt during his long reign. He is remembered in the 1822 poem "Ozymandius" by Percy Shelly, which points out that fame is fleeting.

Alexander of Macedon is counted among the greatest military commanders in history. From his small nation north of Greece, he expanded his empire as far as India. And did it all before he was thirty years old. He died in Babylon (modern day Iraq) at the age of 33.

Alexander's biggest contribution to world history was the spread of Greek culture, including the building of Alexandria, site of one of the ancient world's most important libraries. The spread of Greek culture has impacted world culture for the last 2300 years

Constantine, who ruled Rome from 306 to 337, is most notable for making Christianity the state religion in 325. He established the Council of Nicaea, which established the doctrines which have guided the Catholic Church for 1700 years.

Constantine also instituted numerous civil reforms, including restricting the government, establishing a new currency system and restructuring the Roman military. He also turned Byzantium into Constantinople, which served as the capital of the Byzantine and Ottoman empires from 330 to 1922. It became Istanbul in 1930. Nothing says "great" like having your own city.

Charlemagne (Charles the Great) was the son of Pepin, and became king of the Franks upon his father's death in 768. Over the next thirty years, Charlemagne was able to consolidate his power until he had control over most of western Europe. In 800, he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III.

By his death in 814, the Holy Roman Empire included most of modern day Germany and Italy as well as the Kingdom of France. Charlemagne is known as the "Father of Europe" both politically and literally - his descendants created many of the royal houses of Europe, including the Capetians in France and the Hapsburgs in Austria.

Alfred (849-October 899) was the son of the Aethelwulf, and became king in 871. After defeating the Vikings in the Battle of Edington, England was divided into Viking and Anglo-Saxon territory. Alfred ruled over the Anglo-Saxons from 886 to his death in 899.

Alfred is most notable for having captured the city of London from the Vikings in 886. However, the city would fall to the Vikings once again and remain under their control for another century. The only other British king called great was Canute, who ruled England, Denmark and Norway during the 11th century.

Tamar, daughter of King George III of Georgia, was the first female ruler of Georgia. She took the throne in 1178 and became full regent upon the death of her father in 1184. She had a son, George, and a daughter, Rusudan, who both succeeded her as leaders of Georgia.

Tamar was noted for her military exploits and her efforts to expand the boundaries of Georgia. During her thirty year reign, Georgia acquired large amounts of new territory. Tamar was immortalized by the Russian poet Mikhail Lermontov in the 1841 poem "Tamara".

Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar was the third Mughal emperor, ruling from 1156 to 1605. Akbar became emperor upon the death of his father Humayun. During his almost fifty year reign, he tripled the size of the Mughal empire, expanding its influence throughout the entire Indian subcontinent. At its height, Akbar's empire included much of present day Pakistan and Afghanistan as well as most of India.

Perhaps Akbar's most important contribution was to create the multi-religious society that exists in India today. Akbar was also noted as a highly successful general and for his significant political and economic reforms which helped to modernize India.

Peter the Great is known for reforming Russia, and turning the country into a major European power, especially economically. While he was Tsar from 1682, he became Emperor in 1721. Peter reformed the Russian military, especially the Russian Navy, and made it a major power in both the Baltic and Black Sea. He led major efforts to move the economy of Russia forward, including industrialization - an effort that even Communists such as Stalin recognized as impressive.

Peter is also known for creating Saint Petersburg, one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. Like I said, nothing says "great" like having your own city. Tragically, while Peter had fourteen children, only two of them outlived him. Most died in early childhood.

Frederick (1712-1786) first took power in 1740, and ruled Prussia until 1786. Frederick's father, Frederick Wilhelm, had created a large Prussian army, which his son used to great effect. Frederick the Great is generally regarded as one of history's great military commanders.

Frederick roughly doubled the size of Prussia during his reign, capturing sections of Poland and Silesia during the Silesian wars (1740-1745). It was his success in Silesia that earned him the title "The Great." Frederick the Great was also cultured, being both a talented musician, who supported musicians such as Johann Sebastian Bach, and a philosopher who wrote several books.

Yekaterina Velikaya (1729-1796) was empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. Born in Germany, Catherine wound up in Germany by marrying the grandson of Peter the Great. At the time, Russia was ruled by Peter's daughter Elizabeth. Impressed by Catherine, Elizabeth groomed her for the throne. When Elizabeth died in 1761, grandson Peter briefly took over and made a mess of things, leading Catherine to perform a coup d'etat with the support of the military.

During her 34 year reign, Catherine did some terrible things (the enslavement of Ukrainians is near the top of the list) and some great things (improving Russia culturally and educationally). Her most lasting contribution may be the creation of the Hermitage, one of the world's most spectacular art museums. Founded in 1764, the museum has been open to the public since 1852.