History50 randomly selected History questions for quizmasters. New random selection made weekly. Next update: Monday 15th December 2025 (Please note: Questions are taken from our database of previous quizzes. Some questions and answers may be outdated.) |
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| 1. | In which year did India gain independence from the United Kingdom? |
| 2. | What was the name of the flagship on which Sir Francis Drake became the second ever, after Ferdinand Magellan, to circumnavigate the world? |
| 3. | The defeat of the Prussian army in the 1792 Battle of Valmy played a significant role in which well known conflict? |
| 4. | What 20th century Pope was in office for just 34 days before his death? |
| 5. | What continent was explored by the Burke and Wills expedition in 1860–61? |
| 6. | Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared in 1967 while doing what? |
| 7. | Who deposed Milton Obote during a military coup in January 1971? |
| 8. | The transistor radio, integrated circuit, videotape, and correction fluid were all invented in what decade of the 20th century? |
| 9. | What scientist was charged with heresy in 1633 by the Roman Catholic Church for his view that the earth orbits the sun? |
| 10. | Following a referendum in 1905, Norway gained independence from which country? |
| 11. | Who is most well known for the discoveries of the wrecks of the RMS Titanic in 1985, the battleship Bismarck in 1989, and the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown in 1998? |
| 12. | Who, most famously, was watching a play called Our American Cousin on 14th April 1865? |
| 13. | Acadia was a 17th and early 18th century North American colonisation by what European country? |
| 14. | The 1960 Valdivia earthquake of Sunday 22nd May 1960 was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded, rating 9.5. On the coast of what country was its epicenter? |
| 15. | Nicknamed the Milwaukee Cannibal, what American serial killer and sex offender killed and dismembered seventeen males between 1978 and 1991? |
| 16. | What four letter word describes this ancient Egyptian symbol representing the key of life? |
| 17. | In 2001, Hillary Clinton became the first former First Lady elected to federal office, when she won a senate seat representing what U.S. state? |
| 18. | The 7th Duke of Medina Sidonia commanded which famous fleet? |
| 19. | On 30th January 1835, just outside the United States Capitol Building, Richard Lawrence made what is thought to be the first attempt to kill a sitting President of the United States. Who was the President? |
| 20. | Leading up to and during World War II, what name was given to the German defence line opposite France's Maginot Line? |
| 21. | After which war was the League of Nations formed? |
| 22. | In what U.S. state was the Declaration of Independence signed on 4th July 1776? |
| 23. | What was the name of the supertanker that ran aground off the coast of Cornwall in 1967, causing the worst oil spill in British history? |
| 24. | In a war lasting just two days in October 1961, India defeated what European country to end 451 years of overseas provincial governance in Goa? |
| 25. | Dubbed the worst volcanic disaster of the 20th century, on which Caribbean island did Mount Pelée erupt in 1902, destroying the city of Saint-Pierre and killing more than 30,000 people? |
| 26. | Born in 1765, who is best remembered as the mistress of Lord Nelson? |
| 27. | What is the name of the monoplane flown by Charles Lindbergh in May 1927 on the first solo non-stop transatlantic flight? |
| 28. | In a competition in October 1829, what beat Cycloped, Novelty, Perseverance and Sans Pareil? |
| 29. | Born in Leicester, England on 5th August 1862, by what name is Joseph Merrick better known? |
| 30. | In April 1968, the City of London famously sold London Bridge to an American, Robert P. McCulloch. Dismantled brick-by-brick, shipped and eventually reconstructed in 1971, in which U.S. state is the bridge now located? |
| 31. | The Hundred Days Offensive is used to describe the final period of what war? |
| 32. | Who was British monarch at the outbreak of World War I? |
| 33. | Legend says it fell from the heavens at the Battle of Valdemar on 15th June 1219; which country has the oldest state flag in the world still in use by an independent nation today? |
| 34. | John F. Kennedy was assassinated on 22nd November 1963. On what date was Lee Harvey Oswald murdered by Jack Ruby? |
| 35. | In 1511, who became the first European country to colonise South-east Asia by conquering the Sultanate of Malacca, part of modern day Malaysia? |
| 36. | What battle of 1746 in Scotland ended the Jacobite rising? |
| 37. | Sukarno became the first President of what newly-created Republic in 1945? |
| 38. | What is the name of the treaty first signed on 6th February 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and Māori chiefs from the North Island of New Zealand? |
| 39. | What incident in June 1993 between John and Lorena Bobbitt made world headlines that year? |
| 40. | What was established in Western Europe in 1478 and not disbanded until 1834? |
| 41. | What 'B' describes this ancient siege device? |
| 42. | Who was President of the United States from 1953 until 1961? |
| 43. | One of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, what name was given to the war in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648? |
| 44. | Who was King of Jordan from the abdication of his father in 1952 until his death in 1999? |
| 45. | In what country was Leon Trotsky assassinated in August 1940 by Ramón Mercader, a Spanish-born Soviet agent? |
| 46. | What Scottish-American industrialist led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and is famously quoted as saying "The man who dies thus rich dies disgraced"? |
| 47. | What was Admiral Nelson's first name? |
| 48. | For what did the United States pay the Russian Empire $7.2million on 30th March 1867? |
| 49. | The 1812 Overture was written in 1880 to commemorate the defeat of Napoleon in what city? |
| 50. | How old was Adolf Hitler when he committed suicide on 30th April 1945? |
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