All About Austria, Alphabetically Quiz

Answer: Spanish Riding School

Despite its name, the Spanish Riding School is most definitely part of the history and tradition of Austria - it is actually the beautiful white Lipizzaner (or Lipizzan) horses used by the school that have their origins in Spain. Their displays at the Winter Riding School in the Hofburg Palace complex are essentially demonstrations of the art of dressage, including those skills required in Olympic competition, performed to classical music.

The Spanish Riding School was founded in the 16th century and originally performed for the benefit of Austria's ruling Habsburg dynasty and their guests - which explains why their display space is located in the former Imperial palace.

Answer: Emperor Franz Joseph I

The title of Emperor of Austria was founded in 1804 by Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor. He duly gave it to himself, becoming Emperor Francis I of Austria in addition to his more established title. He was succeeded in 1835 by his eldest son Ferdinand, who abdicated the position to his nephew, Franz Joseph, during the 1848 revolution. Franz Joseph had no surviving sons, so the throne was expected to pass to his nephew Franz Ferdinand until the actions of the Black Hand in Sarajevo in 1914 threw that plan - and European peace - into disarray.

Emperor Franz Joseph I died in 1916 and was succeeded by his great-nephew Charles (a nephew of the unfortunate Franz Ferdinand). Charles only reigned for two years as both the Austrian Empire and its monarchy were dissolved at the end of the First World War.

Answer: Hungary

Austria has a long relationship with its neighbour Hungary as the combined nation of Austria-Hungary, formed by the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, was one of the major European powers of the 19th century. However, the political connection between the two also goes back much further to the mid-16th century, the first point when both territories were under the rule of the Habsburg dynasty.

In addition to Hungary, Germany, Switzerland and Slovakia, Austria's other four neighbours are the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Italy and the tiny nation of Liechtenstein.

Answer: The Sound of Music

'The Sound of Music' (both the stage play and the film version) is based on the true story of a nun named Maria who becomes the governess of the seven children of Captain Georg Von Trapp. It details her relationship with the children, her subsequent marriage to their father and their hair-raising escape from their mountain home after the Nazi takeover of their country. Well-known songs from the musical include 'My Favorite Things', 'Edelweiss' and 'So Long, Farewell'.

Tourists visiting Salzburg who aren't fans of 'The Sound of Music' can always concentrate on viewing the historic city's beautiful architecture, which gained it UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 1996. Examples include the Hellbrunn Palace and numerous churches.

Answer: Niki Lauda

The Austrian Grand Prix was first held in 1963 at Zeltweg and moved to the circuit near Spielberg that was then known as the Osterreichring in 1970. The circuit has since undergone significant redevelopment and various changes of name - it was known as the A1-Ring when it hosted the Grand Prix between 1997 and 2003 and became the Red Bull Ring in 2011.

Niki Lauda became the first Austrian driver to win his home grand prix in F1. Lauda went on to take his third F1 world championship title later that year when he claimed victory by half a point over his team-mate Alain Prost. The event also marked the debut of another Austrian F1 race winner - Gerhard Berger.

Jochen Rindt won a non-championship race at Zeltweg in 1965 and Gerhard Berger never managed to take victory in Austria during his F1 career. Roland Ratzenberger's F1 career had barely begun before he was killed in qualifying for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix (the same event that claimed the life of Ayrton Senna).

Answer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (to use the version of his lengthy name by which he is most commonly known) was the composer in question. He learned to play several musical instruments, including the violin, at an extremely early age and was composing his own music by the time he was five years old. He got a job at the Salzburg royal court at the age of 17 and worked briefly in Paris before settling in Vienna. He was appointed as a composer to Emperor Joseph II in 1787, just four years before his death at the age of 35.

He composed over 600 works in his short life, including symphonies, concertos, chamber music, religious music and operas. 'Don Giovanni' (1787) and 'The Magic Flute' (1791) were both operas, while his unfinished 'Requiem' is an example of his religious work.

Answer: Conchita Wurst

Conchita Wurst is the stage name of Austrian singer Thomas Neuwirth. Conchita is instantly recognisable as a result of the fact that Neuwirth retains his beard when dressed as a female character. Neuwirth music career began when his appearance on the Austrian reality talent show 'Starmania' in 2007 won him a place in a boy band named Jetzt Anders! (or Now Different! in English). However, it was his appearance at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest as Conchita that made his name internationally. The song 'Rise Like a Phoenix' won the contest by over 50 points and gave Austria its first victory in the competition since 1966 when Udo Jurgens won with 'Merci, Cherie'.

Dana International won Eurovision for Israel in 1998 and Netta achieved the same result in 2018. Finnish rock band Lordi won the contest in 2006 with 'Hard Rock Hallelujah'.

Answer: Eraser

Austrian-American Arnold Schwarzenegger was Governor of California from 2003 to 2011. However, he started out as a professional bodybuilder nicknamed "The Austrian Oak" before he turned to Hollywood and starred in a range of science fiction, action and comedy films - notably 'Conan the Barbarian' and the 'Terminator' series of films in addition to those mentioned in the question and answer options.

'Eraser' was first released in 1996 and starred Schwarzenegger as a US Marshal named John Kruger who specialises in protecting federal witnesses by faking their deaths (or "erasing" them.)

Answer: Cat

The thought experiment, or paradox, in question is "Schrodinger's Cat". The theory is essentially that if you were to place a cat in a container with a radioactive substance that could kill it and then seal it up so that no-one can see in, then the cat must be both dead and alive until the container is reopened and the cat's actual state of health is assessed. The somewhat mind-boggling concept is supposed to illustrate the failings of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Schrodinger won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1923 for his eponymous equation that provided a mathematical description of the change in the wave function of a system over time.

Answer: Lower Austria

Lower Austria is located in the north-eastern part of the country and gets its name from the fact that it is located further downstream on the River Enns than neighbouring Upper Austria. It is also less mountainous than Austria's western states that include higher sections of the Alps. Lower Austria entirely surrounds the nation's capital city, Vienna (which is also classed as one of the country's nine states), and the River Danube flows through both of these areas. Lower Austria's capital is the city of St. Polten.

Styria, the second-largest state, is located south of Lower Austria; Tyrol (the third-largest) can be found in two separate parts in western Austria; and Burgenland (the third-smallest) is located in the far east of the country, along the border with Hungary.