Historical Figures Trivia Questions
Total Questions: 1307
What is the hometown of Jose Marti?
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havana
Which historical figure captured Alexandria in 1798 and held it until 1801?
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napoleon
In 1818, what rank did Davy Crockett attain in the Tennessee militia?
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colonel
Who did Oliver Wolcott seek advice from on fiscal policy, whom he later succeeded as Secretary of the Treasury?
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alexander hamilton
Which reformer chose to omit the word 'obey' from her vows when she married Henry Brewster Stanton in 1840?
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elizabeth cady stanton
Who became Secretary of the Treasury in 1981 after serving as chairman and CEO of Merrill Lynch & Company?
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donald regan
What item did Cleopatra famously use to be carried to Caesar, perhaps while wearing only lint?
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carpet
Who was executed in 1535 for his vision of a Utopian society?
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thomas more
Who succeeded his mother as Prime Minister of India on the day she was assassinated in 1984?
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rajiv gandhi
Who was sentenced to life imprisonment and later became South Africa's first black leader in 1994?
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nelson mandela
Who was formally titled 'Great Khan of the Mongols' in 1206?
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genghis khan
Which Austrian psychologist's Vienna home, now a museum, contains his walking stick and other personal items?
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sigmund freud
Who is the only vice president in history to be born in Maryland?
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spiro agnew
Who called for a declaration of war against Germany in 1917 with the statement 'The world must be made safe for democracy'?
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woodrow wilson
Who was the Cape Colony prime minister whose 1899 will established a famous scholarship program?
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cecil rhodes
Which First Lady escaped with the Declaration of Independence before the British burned the White House in 1814?
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dolley madison
Who was the New York mayor known as 'Beau James' and the city's 'Playboy Mayor' during the Roaring '20s?
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jimmy walker
Who was the Underground Railroad conductor that served as a spy for the Union during the Civil War?
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harriet tubman
Who wrote 'My Life: An Attempt at an Autobiography' in 1930 after being banished from the USSR?
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leon trotsky
To which Scottish hero, executed as a traitor on August 23, 1305, do we raise our Gibsons?
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william wallace
Who announced her resignation from NASA on her 36th birthday on May 26, 1987?
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sally ride
Which brother of John Wilkes Booth gave his last performance on April 4, 1891, playing Hamlet in Brooklyn?
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edwin booth
Which largest island in the Mediterranean was ruled by the 12th-century Norman king, William the Good?
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sicily
Which future Ethiopian king, born in 1892, became governor of Harar as a teenager?
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haile selassie
Who was the author of popular stories about a 'Bad Boy' and later became the governor of Wisconsin in 1891?
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george wilbur peck
Which strong demi-god did Antony try to emulate by wearing his tunic low on his hips, as mentioned in Plutarch's Lives?
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hercules
Who served as George Washington's private secretary for four years during the American Revolution before becoming a future Treasury Secretary?
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alexander hamilton
Who remarked about a famous 1955 incident, saying, 'All I was doing was trying to get home from work'?
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rosa parks
Who is the woman who earned the nickname 'The Miracle Worker' for teaching Helen Keller to communicate?
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anne sullivan
Which sport led to Teddy Roosevelt being virtually blinded in his left eye during a match?
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boxing
Who received the Distinguished Service Medal for her work directing the Salvation Army effort in World War I?
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evangeline booth
Who served as the mayor of West Berlin from 1957 to 1966?
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willy brandt
During the reign of which Mongol leader did Marco Polo visit China?
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kublai khan
Which great Frankish king was represented by the king of hearts in many early decks of cards?
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charlemagne
Who served as the governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and again from 1784 to 1786?
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patrick henry
What is the middle name of Aristotle Onassis, which is also the name of a famous Greek philosopher?
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socrates
Who persuaded Pope Adrian I to crown his sons Pepin and Louis as kings of Italy and Aquitaine in 781?
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charlemagne
Who is recorded to have opened a brewery at St. James Gate in 1759?
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arthur guinness
Who was the daughter of a Quaker abolitionist and known as the champion of women's rights?
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susan b. anthony
In 1952, which Maine senator was named the most charming woman in government?
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margaret chase smith
Which 1988 nominee honored his immigrant father's 'Abiding faith in the promise of America'?
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michael dukakis
Who was Alfonso of Aragon's wife, whose brother Cesare ordered his murder in 1500?
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lucrezia borgia
Which lesser-known ancient Roman was notoriously difficult to understand due to constant jaw muscle lock-ups?
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tetanus
Who is commemorated during National Hospital Week in the week of May 12 for her 1820 birth in Italy?
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florence nightingale
Which heroine of the Battle of Monmouth has a life-size statue marking her grave in Carlisle, Pennsylvania?
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molly pitcher
Which reformer, who passed away before the 19th Amendment was enacted, is the namesake of its popular nickname?
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susan b. anthony
Who became the prince regent of Japan on November 25, 1921?
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hirohito
Who is the highest ranking woman in President Clinton's cabinet?
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madeleine albright
After leaving school to foment unrest, Castro returned to get a degree in what field?
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law
Who was the Apache warrior that became a popular celebrity at many U.S. fairs in his later years?
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geronimo
Which historical figure was assassinated with an ax on August 20, 1940, in Mexico?
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leon trotsky
Which famous woman joined the Sisters of Loreto in 1928 and later founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1948?
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mother teresa
Who was the editor of the New York Tribune that suggested Lincoln should negotiate a peace with the Confederacy?
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horace greeley
Who succeeded Hamilcar Barca's successor, Hasdrubal, as the commander in Spain?
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hannibal
Which 1960s Russian premier once said, 'Without Spam, we wouldn't have been able to feed our army during WWII'?
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nikita khrushchev
Who took 37% of the vote in the 1992 New Hampshire GOP primary while co-hosting CNN's 'Crossfire'?
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pat buchanan
Which English explorer is known to have claimed an unspecified area in North America in 1497?
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john cabot
In 1765, who was the man Boswell recorded as receiving an honorary doctorate from Trinity College?
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samuel johnson
Which ancient Greek philosopher's works, including 'Physics', were popularized by Albertus Magnus during the Middle Ages?
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aristotle
Who was freed in 1857, two months after the Supreme Court made its famous decision?
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dred scott