Once I Was a Capital, But I Am No More Quiz

Answer: Hampshire

Originally a Celtic settlement, then a Roman town named Venta Belgarum ("Venta of the Belgae"), Winchester (from the Old English "Wintanceaster", meaning "Fort Venta") is the county town of Hampshire, in the south-central part of England. It lies on the River Itchen, west of the South Downs National Park, and north of the port of Southampton. The city was completely rebuilt in the 9th century by Alfred the Great, who made it the capital of the Kingdom of Wessex, and later of the Kingdom of the Anglo-Saxons, which became the Kingdom on England in 927. After the Norman conquest of 1066, Winchester lost its capital status to London.

Present-day Winchester is one of the UK's most affluent and expensive cities. Its most prominent landmark is the majestic cathedral, built between 1079 and 1532, which has the distinction of being the world's longest medieval cathedral. Famed English author Jane Austen died in Winchester in 1817, and is buried in the north aisle. Some parts of the walls built around the city by Alfred the Great still survive; a bronze statue of the king with his sword raised stands in the city centre.

None of the three counties listed as wrong answers is located in the southern part of England. New Hampshire was one of the original 13 colonies that rebelled against British rule, and later became the United States of America.

Answer: Trondheim

One of Norway's most populous urban areas, Trondheim lies on the south shore of the Trondheim Fjord, the country's third-longest coastal inlet. Founded by Viking king Olav Tryggvason in 997 AD with the name of Kaupangen ("trading place"), it later became known as Nidaros ("mouth of the Nid") because of its location at the mouth of the River Nid (now Nidelva). Nidaros was the capital of Norway until 1217, when it was replaced by Oslo. Its cathedral, built from 1070 to 1300, houses the shrine of Saint Olav (King Olav II), Norway's patron saint, and is the traditional location for the crowning of the country's monarchs.

Present-day Trondheim is known as a thriving centre for science and technology, hosting a number of reputed research institutions. It is also a lively arts centre, influenced by the culture of the students that form one-fifth of its population. In spite of its northerly latitude, the city enjoys a relatively mild climate.

Tallinn is the capital of Estonia, while Tampere is one of Finland's most populous cities, and Ternopil (formerly known as Tarnopol) is in Western Ukraine.

Answer: university

Located on a fertile plain, just 70 km (43 mi) north of Stockholm, Uppsala has been the ecclesiastical centre of Sweden since 1164. Its towering Gothic cathedral (Scandinavia's largest) was for a long time the site of the coronation of the country's monarchs. The city was regarded as Sweden's secondary capital during the Swedish Empire (1611-1721), but lost its position after most of its buildings were destroyed or damaged by a large fire in 1702.

The River Fyris divides Uppsala in two distinct parts, with the historic centre - where the cathedral, the castle and the university are located - on the western side, and the modern centre on the eastern side. The 16th-century Uppsala Castle (shown in the photo) was used as a royal residence until the fire of 1702, which considerably damaged the structure; it is now the administrative centre of Uppsala County. Uppsala University was founded in 1477, and became one of Europe's foremost academic institutions in the early 17th century, as Sweden also developed into a political and military power. Famous 18th-century scientists Carl Linnaeus and Anders Celsius were among the many notable people who studied at Uppsala University.

Answer: Novgorod

Also known as Veliky Novgorod ("Novgorod the Great") to distinguish it from Nizhny Novgorod ("Novgorod of the Lower Lands"), which was founded over 200 years later, Novgorod is located to the south of St Petersburg, along the River Volkhov. First mentioned in a chronicle dating from 859, at that time it was probably already a thriving station on the trade route between the Baltic Sea and Byzantium. Novgorod was briefly the capital of Kievan Rus', the state established by the Rurik dynasty (of Swedish origin) in the late 9th century; then, in the 12th century, became the capital of the Novgorod Republic, a state that stretched from the Gulf of Finland to the Urals, and was annexed by the Grand Duchy of Moscow in 1478.

Present-day Novgorod is the administrative centre of the eponymous "oblast", and home to over 200,000 people. For centuries a major centre of Russian art and culture, the city was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. It boasts a wealth of medieval monuments, including a number of Orthodox churches and monasteries, and the 15th-century fortified complex known as Novgorod Kremlin, or Detinets (shown in the photo).

Answer: Pope John Paul II

Located in southern Poland, on the River Vistula (which also flows through Warsaw, the nation's current capital), Kraków started out as a Stone Age settlement on Wawel Hill, and became the capital of Poland in 1038. By that time, the city was already a prosperous trade centre, but its new status led to the construction of many new buildings. In the following centuries, Kraków withstood three Mongol attacks, became the seat of the second-oldest university in Central Europe, and joined the Hanseatic League. The cultural and political expansion of the city's Golden Age in the 15th and 16th centuries ended abruptly when an outbreak of plague killed thousands of citizens, and King Sigismund III moved the capital to Warsaw.

With its magnificent Old Town (recognized as the first UNESCO World Heritage site in 1978, alongside Quito, the capital of Ecuador) rich in examples of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture, Kraków is one of Europe's major tourist destinations. Home to almost 800,000 people, it also enjoys a lively academic and cultural life. In October 1978, Karol Wojtyła, Archbishop of Kraków, was elected Pope, taking the name of John Paul II; he was the first non-Italian Pope in 455 years, and was canonized in 2014, nine years after his death.

The three wrong answers are all famous Poles, though from other parts of the country; Chopin lived in the 19th century.

Answer: Saxony

The current capital of the federal state of Saxony, Dresden lies on the River Elbe, close to the border with the Czech Republic, from which it is separated by the Ore Mountains. Though established in relatively recent times (probably in the late 12th century), it quickly developed into an important urban centre, becoming the capital of the Electorate of Saxony (a state of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a prince-elector) in 1547. Dresden reached its zenith in the late 17th century, when most of the city's magnificent Baroque monuments were built. In 1806, it became the capital of the Kingdom of Saxony, established by Napoleon, which lasted until it became part of the German Empire in 1871. In February 1945, almost at the end of WWII, Dresden was bombed for three days by Allied Forces; its historic centre was almost completely destroyed, and over 20,000 of the city's inhabitants died in the firestorm.

Though the wounds from WWII have not yet disappeared, the cultural heritage of Dresden has been largely rebuilt, especially following the reunification of Germany. One of Europe's greenest cities, with 62% of its territory covered by parks and forests, Dresden is now home to over 500,000 people. Unfortunately, in 2009 the city and the surrounding Elbe Valley lost their status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site (awarded in 2004) because of the construction of a controversial road bridge.

Answer: Ragusa

Dubrovnik lies on the Adriatic Sea, on the southern coast of Croatia. Founded in the 7th century AD by refugees from the nearby Roman city of Epidaurum, Ragusa (a name of uncertain origin) became an independent republic in the 14th century, after having been ruled by the Byzantine Empire, the Republic of Venice, and the Kingdom of Hungary. The current name of Dubrovnik was first recorded in the 12th century. The Republic of Ragusa flourished in the 15th and 16th century, adopting many advanced laws and institutions - such as public health measures, and the abolition of the slave trade. Its decline begun with the catastrophic earthquake of 1667, which destroyed most of the city; in 1806, the Republic was occupied by the French Empire, and subsequently abolished.

Present-day Dubrovnik is situated in an exclave, separated from the rest of Croatia by a small strip of coast that is part of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Though only a few medieval and Renaissance buildings survived the 1667 earthquake, the old town retains its unique character, enhanced by the beauty of its natural surroundings. In 1979, the Old City of Dubrovnik was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. The historic centre, its monumental walls, and the picturesque island of Lokrum were also used as a location for the filming of HBO's popular series "Game of Thrones". This has given tourism a considerable boost, but has also forced the city to take drastic steps to reduce overcrowding.

Rijeka (Fiume in Italian) is also found in Croatia, though it lies in the northern part of the country. Ravenna is located in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, also close to the Adriatic coast, while Riga is the capital of Latvia. The Sicilian Ragusa, a provincial capital renowned for its Baroque architecture, is one of Dubrovnik's twin cities.

Answer: Albania

Albania's second-largest city after the capital Tirana, Durrës (Durazzo in Italian) lies in the the northern part of Albania, in the southeastern corner of the Adriatic Sea, between the mouths of the Rivers Erzen and Ishëm. Founded by Greek colonists in the 7th century BC with the name of Epidamnos, it became known as Dyrrhachium (a name of Greek origin that referred to the difficult nature of its rocky coastline) in Roman times. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the city and its surrounding area became a Byzantine province, providing an important link between the Empire and Western Europe. In 1272, Durrës became the capital of the Kingdom of Albania, established by Charles I of Anjou; after over a century of almost constant conflict, the city eventually became part of the Republic of Venice (1392). Between 1914 and 1920, Durrës was a capital again - this time of the short-lived Principality of Albania.

Thanks to its closeness to Italy, which lies on the western side of the Adriatic Sea, the port of Durrës is now one of the busiest in the eastern Mediterranean; daily ferry services connect the city with the Italian ports of Ancona and Bari (which is one of its twin cities). The beaches around the city are also popular tourist destinations. The Roman amphiteatre, built under Emperor Trajan, and the 5th-century Byzantine castle and walls are the most significant remains of the city's long history. The photo shows the Great Mosque of Durrës, built in 1931; Albania is one of the few Muslim-majority countries in Europe.

Romania and Bulgaria only have coastlines on the Black Sea, while Serbia is landlocked.

Answer: Tyrrhenian

Located in the northwestern part of Sicily, Palermo lies in a basin known as the Conca d'Oro (Golden Bowl), surrounded by mountains that face the Tyrrhenian Sea. The city, founded by the Phoenicians in the 8th century BC, was named Panormos by the Greeks, meaning "wide harbour" - a reference to its large natural port. Palermo first became capital of Sicily under Arab rule (831-1072); after the Norman conquest, in 1130 it became the capital of the Kingdom of Sicily, and kept this status until 1816, when the island became part of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (whose capital was Naples). It was the favourite city of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, one of the most influential rulers of the Middle Ages, who is buried in Palermo's splendid cathedral.

With a population of almost 700,000 (over 1 million in its metropolitan area), Palermo is Italy's fifth-largest municipality, and the capital of the autonomous region of Sicily. The many peoples and cultures that ruled Palermo throughout the centuries are reflected in its stunning architectural diversity; in 2015, a group of Arab-Norman buildings in Palermo and the neighbouring towns of Monreale and Cefalů was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A major tourist destination, the city also offers beautiful beaches, picturesque street markets, and world-class cuisine. Connected by regular ferries to other major Mediterranean ports, as well as the smaller Sicilian islands, the port of Palermo is also home to one of the largest shipyards in the Mediterranean.

Answer: Castile

The capital of the eponymous province, Burgos is located in the autonomous community of Castile and León, in northern Spain, on the banks of the River Arlanzón. Founded in 884, the city is connected to Spain's national hero, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, the 11th-century chieftain known as El Cid, who was born in a nearby village. Its location on the Camino de Santiago, one of Europe's most important pilgrim routes, and its proximity to the Bay of Biscay contributed to Burgos' development as a major trade centre, attracting a large population of foreign merchants. In 930 Burgos became the capital of the County (Condado) of Castile, and in 1065 of the Kingdom of Castile, which in 1230 joined with the Kingdom of León to form the Crown of Castile - the core of what become unified Spain at the end of the 15th century. The language that first developed in the Burgos region eventually became the national language of Spain, which is also known as Castilian ("castellano").

A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984, Burgos' magnificent cathedral was built in the 13th century in the French Gothic style. The city also boasts many other remarkable medieval buildings, especially churches and monasteries. Surrounded by wheat fields, Burgos has a thriving economy, and its GDP is higher than the national average. It is also the seat of an important public university that attracts many international students.