Serious about history trivia? Then you absolutely need to know these ten facts. These aren't obscure historical footnotes; they're some of the fundamental building blocks of historical understanding, the information that forms the basis of countless history trivia questions. If these leave you scratching your head, it's a clear sign you need to brush up on your history before your next trivia showdown. Consider this your essential history trivia checklist.
Which four presidents are on Mount Rushmore?
Answer: The monument, located in South Dakota, features George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt
What was the first country to use paper currency?
Paper banknotes were developed in China in the 7th century AD
Who was the first Black Supreme Court justice in the United States?
Thurgood Marshall, who successfully argued Brown v. Board of Education before the Supreme Court, desegregating schools, later became the court's first Black justice.
What is considered the largest contiguous empire in history?
Forged by the unyielding will of Genghis Khan, the Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire, stretching from Eastern Europe to the Sea of Japan.
What event is commonly believed to have sparked World War I?
The 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo, Bosnia. This event triggered a chain reaction of declarations of war between European nations, leading to the outbreak of World War I.
Which ancient figure is often considered the founder of Western philosophy?
Socrates, the Greek philosopher, is renowned for his contributions to ethics and his method of inquiry.
Which mountain in Alaska was previously known as Mount McKinley?
North America's tallest peak, Denali (formerly Mount McKinley), had its Indigenous name officially restored in 2015.
Who was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize of any kind?
Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, winning the award for Physics in 1903. More impressively, her 1911 Nobel Prize in Chemistry made her the first person to win or share two Nobel Prizes. She and Linus Pauling (who won Nobel Prizes in Chemistry and Peace) are the only two individuals to have been awarded Nobel Prizes in two different fields.
In 1996, a sheep became the first mammal cloned from an adult somatic cell. What was the name of that sheep?
The cloning of Dolly the sheep in 1996 marked a significant breakthrough in genetic research.
Who was the first human to journey into space?
In 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to reach outer space.
Bonus: Laika, a Soviet space dog, was one of the first animals in space and the first to orbit Earth.
What else would you include? Share in the comments below!