Historical Figures Trivia Questions
Total Questions: 273
Which Secretary of State humorously remarked, 'There cannot be a crisis next week; my schedule is already full'?
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henry kissinger
Who made an error in 1805 by identifying the wrong lake as the source of the Mississippi River and later had his fame solidified by 'peaking' in Colorado?
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zebulon pike
Who is the astrologer and psychic better known as Michel de Notredame?
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nostradamus
Who was the African National Congress leader arrested in South Africa on August 5, 1962, and held in custody for many years?
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nelson mandela
Who was the last American general of the Revolutionary War to die, in 1832, with a Civil War fort named after him?
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thomas sumter
Who became Israel's first envoy to the USSR in 1948?
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golda meir
Who is the American woman who passed away 14 years before the 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote?
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susan b. anthony
Who became prime minister of the Cape Colony in Africa in 1890 and was known as a diamond king?
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cecil rhodes
In 1924, who did half a million people write to asking for money, according to The American Chronicle?
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henry ford
Who was the flamboyant politician and mayor of New York City who created the city's sanitation department?
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jimmy walker
Which historical figure used an umbrella as a weapon during an attack on her first saloon in Medicine Lodge, Kansas?
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carrie nation
Which 1950s First Lady was born in Boone, Iowa?
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mamie eisenhower
Which fur trader paid $25,000 in the early 1800s for the area now known as Times Square?
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john jacob astor
Which American hero, who married Anne Spencer Morrow in 1929, was also known as the first person to fly solo nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean?
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charles lindbergh
Who published a 'Treatise on the Improvement of Canal Navigation' in 1796 and later became known as a steamboat designer?
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robert fulton
Which famous leader did Pope Saint Leo the Great persuade not to sack Rome in 452?
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attila
In which month did both Joseph Stalin and Julius Caesar die?
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march
What is the name of the Austrian president of Czech descent whose family name was originally Waclawik?
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kurt waldheim
Which First Lady, famously known as the 'Silver Fox,' takes pride in her natural white hair and has chosen not to dye it?
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barbara bush
Which future assassin, born near Bel Air, Maryland in 1838, made his stage debut at age 17?
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john wilkes booth
Whose candidacy for prime minister of India ended on May 21, 1991?
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rajiv gandhi
What is the name of the Mongol conqueror whose first wife was Borte, to whom he was betrothed as a child?
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genghis khan
What seafarer, known as the father of the U.S. Steam Navy, was Oliver's brother?
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matthew perry
Whose estate was auctioned at Sotheby's in New York from April 23-26, 1996?
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jacqueline kennedy onassis
Who, at the age of 15 in 1824, created a 6-dot writing system for the blind?
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louis braille
Who was the American naval hero and captain of the Ranger who raided the coast of England during the American Revolution?
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john paul jones
Which U.S. President's last words in 1885 were 'Water!'?
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ulysses s. grant
Who founded the International Working Men's Association in London in 1864?
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karl marx
Which orator spoke publicly about his experiences as a slave at an 1841 anti-slavery meeting in Nantucket?
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frederick douglass
Who was commonly known by the nickname 'Lucky Lindy'?
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charles lindbergh
Which black scientist is known for developing 325 products from peanuts as well as several products from soybeans and pecans?
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george washington carver
Who partnered with Stephen Wozniak to form the Apple Computer Company in 1976?
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steve jobs
Who declared 'I cannot and I will not recant anything' to the Diet of Worms in 1521?
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martin luther
Who is the legendary blues singer born as Eleanora Fagan in 1915?
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billie holiday
Who founded Norway's equivalent of the Nazi party in 1933 and was later deemed a traitor?
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vidkun quisling
Which historical figure, sister to Cesare and daughter of Pope Alexander VI, is now thought to have been primarily a tool of her father and brother?
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lucrezia borgia
Which historical figure is known for posting the 95 Theses on October 31, 1517, an event often considered the start of the Reformation?
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martin luther
Which artist left Tahiti for the Marquesas Islands in 1901 and died in poverty in 1903?
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paul gauguin
Who was awarded a doctorate of theology by the University of Wittenberg on October 19, 1512?
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martin luther
Which future U.S. president served as secretary to his father, the U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain, for six months in 1939?
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john f. kennedy
Which Soviet leader's daughter, Svetlana Alliluyeva, returned to the USSR in 1984 after spending 17 years in the West?
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joseph stalin
Who is the Scottish-born magnate who made his fortune in iron and steel in 19th century Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania?
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andrew carnegie
Which famous sharpshooter was known for shooting cigarettes out of her partner's lips, Frank Butler?
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annie oakley
Which social leader said, 'Let's cool it, brothers!' in 1965?
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malcolm x
Which organization had Eva Burrows as its second woman general in 1986, after Evangeline Booth?
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salvation army
Which 20th-century spy, famous for showing herself naked to the public, said, 'People came to see me because I was the first who dared to show myself naked to the public'?
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mata hari
Which Tuskegee educator is the subject of Louis Harlan's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1984 biography?
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booker t. washington
Which man had a wall named after him, built across the isthmus between the Tyne and Solway Firth?
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hadrian
Which famous leader did Marie Walewska entertain during his exile on Elba?
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napoleon
What is the better-known name of the traveling planter John Chapman?
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johnny appleseed
Which historical figure installed his brother as King Joseph I of Spain for a brief period in the early 19th century?
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napoleon
Which theologian, known for his role in the Protestant Reformation, has his tomb located in Wittenberg where he also served as a professor of biblical theology?
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martin luther
Who was born on August 17, 1786, in Tennessee and died on March 6, 1836, in San Antonio, Texas?
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davy crockett
Who was the 'Nine Days' Queen' of England and a granddaughter of Henry VIII's sister Mary?
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lady jane grey
Who was appointed commander of the army of Italy by France's new government, the Directory, in 1796?
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napoleon
Who was head of the journalism department at Drake University from 1929-1931 and later became a famous pollster?
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george gallup
Which Ethiopian emperor's coronation did Harriet Chalmers Adams attend during her 1930 world travels?
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haile selassie
Who was hanged in Israel on May 31, 1962, for his role in the mass murder of the Jews during Nazi Germany?
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adolf eichmann
Which famous 19th-century Swedish singer, born in October 1820, was known as the 'Nightingale'?
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jenny lind
Which medieval Muslim warrior and sultan, who was a Kurd, was born in Saddam Hussein's hometown?
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saladin