1910s History Trivia

1. The timing of the Spanish Flu pandemic was not a coincidence. When did it occur?

From Quiz Spanish Flu - A Historical Quiz

Answer: 1918-1920 During and immediately after WWI

The epidemic started in March 1918 during the last few months of the first World War. Troop movements were responsible for much of the spread of the disease in such a short amount of time. There were four distinct but successive waves of infection before the epidemic ceased in 1920.

From Quiz 20th-Century History in the 1910s

Answer: Qing

On 10 October, the uprising started at Wuchang in Hubei province. The revolution ended more than 2000 years of imperialism in China on February 12, 1912 and the Republic of China was established. Sun Yat-sen was proclaimed as the first Provisional President of the Republic of China on January 1, 1912. He resigned on March 12, 1912 and was succeeded by Yuan Shi-kai, a former chief general of Qing dynasty.

From Quiz Where did this Happen?: 1910s Edition

Answer: China

The Qing Dynasty abolished slavery in 1910. The Qing had an elaborate slave system since the 17th century when the Qing gained power. There were millions of slaves in China at the time. Over the centuries, certain types slaves were very gradually freed by various emperors. By the time slavery was abolished, many slaves were young women and girls sold as brides. Young men and boys were also sold as slaves. Although slavery was abolished in 1910, it still persisted until 1949. The Yi People in Sichuan had enslaved the Han People for decades after the slavery abolition.

From Quiz What Else Happened In 1914

Answer: Pygmalion

'Pygmalion' has enjoyed several film incarnations, the first being in a 1938 movie of the same name. Later to become 'My Fair Lady', who could forget the wonderful Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle and Rex Harrison as 'Enry 'Iggins? Ultimately it's all about a posh bloke who tries to make a common bit of tottie into someone who is worthy of his affections.

From Quiz What Do You Know About 1913?

Answer: Established Federal Income Tax

A flat rate of income tax was first levied at 3% in the U.S. by the Revenue Act of 1861 in order to pay for the Civil War. The constitution required that 36 of the 48 states ratified the change in order for it to become law and Delaware became the 36th on February 3, 1913. Four states (Connecticut, Rhode Island, Utah and Virginia) rejected the idea and the legislatures in two (Florida and Pennsylvania) never even considered the proposal. Of the alternatives, Prohibition came in with the 18th Amendment in 1919, the 19th Amendment established Women's Suffrage in 1920, and Slavery was outlawed by the 13th Amendment in 1865.

From Quiz About 100 Years Ago

Answer: Hope Diamond purchase

The Times wrote about the purchase of the Hope Diamond. They relayed information from the time the rough blue diamond, that weighed 112 karats, was cut to 67.5 karats and brought to Paris in 1688. They recounted all the owners of the diamond and the bad luck that had befallen most of them. The diamond had been cut again and weighed in at 45.5 karats. The new owners, Mr. and Mrs. McLean of NYC, were having the stone set in a bandeau for Mrs. McLean to wear. The stone was guarded by a former Secret Service agent and two detectives.

From Quiz What Happened in ...? (1910s edition)

Answer: Halley's Comet

Halley's Comet (or, more technically, Comet Halley, 1P/Halley) has a cycle of about 75 years, and has appeared on numerous momentous dates, including the first Jewish revolt against the Romans (in 66 A.D.), the Battle of Hastings (in 1066) and Genghis Khan's assault on Europe (in 1222). Its next appearance will be in 2061.

From Quiz 1919

Answer: Quentin

Quentin Roosevelt, aged 20, died in aerial combat over France on July 14, 1918. His brothers Theodore Jr., Archie, and Kermit also served in the U.S. armed forces in World War I.

From Quiz 1917

Answer: Mexico

The Zimmermann telegram, passed via the German ambassadors in the United States and Mexico, proposed a Mexican alliance with Germany against the United States and offered the prospect of regaining lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The message was intercepted and decoded by British Naval Intelligence and eventually passed on to American authorities. Its inflammatory contents played an important role in President Wilson's decision to ask Congress to declare war on Germany. War was declared on April 6, 1917.

From Quiz 1916

Answer: Berlin

Antwerp hosted the Games in 1920, Paris in 1924, and Amsterdam in 1928. Berlin eventually staged the Games in 1936.

From Quiz People, Places and Events --1910-1919

Answer: King George V

Edward had ruled Britain for 9 years. Power passed immediately to his son, George, Prince of Wales, who ruled as George V.

From Quiz The 20th Century - 1911-1920

Answer: New York City

The fire led to demands for reforms in working conditions among New York's garment workers.

From Quiz Spanish Flu - A Historical Quiz

Answer: One third

The number of people who were infected is internationally agreed at an estimated 500 million people. With a world population 1.8-1.9 billion at the time, (compared with over seven billion when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020), which corresponded to one third of the world which was infected with influenza during the three years of the pandemic. What is not known is how many people died. There are various reports published over the years with the figures ranging between 17 to over 100 million. This represented 1-6% of the world's population. At that point in time the only epidemic that killed more people was the Bubonic plague (Black Death) of the middle ages where up to 50% of people in Eurasia died from this disease.

From Quiz 20th-Century History in the 1910s

Answer: Arizona

Arizona became the 48th state and the last state in mainland America to be admitted into the union. The state used to be part of Alta California in Spain, and became part of Mexico in 1821. After the Mexicans were defeated in the Mexican-American War in 1848, much of the territory was ceded to the United States. In 1853, the southernmost portion of the state was acquired through the Gadsden Purchase.

From Quiz Where did this Happen?: 1910s Edition

Answer: Morocco

In April 1911, France had expanded its presence in Morocco. Germany wanted compensation from the French for its increased presence in North Africa. Germany sent the Panther warship as a means to stir up nationalist feelings and test the British-French alliance. War was avoided when France gave up its territory in Central Africa near the Congo to Germany. Although war was averted, the Agadir Crisis increased tensions between Britain (as it opposed the German aggressiveness) and Germany who were already in an arms race.

From Quiz What Else Happened In 1914

Answer: Threat of civil war in Ireland

The key problem for the British government in the run-up to war was the tensions in Ireland between Republicans and Loyalists and the rioting that occurred, particularly in Belfast, concerning the so-called Irish Home Rule Bill. Immigration wasn't an issue and the first national strike came about in 1926. Interestingly, the term 'birth control' was popularised in 1914.

From Quiz What Do You Know About 1913?

Answer: Jesse Owens

James Cleveland Owens was born the youngest of ten siblings in Oakville AL on September 12, 1913. In the Berlin Olympic Games of 1936 he won gold medals in the 100m, 200m, long jump and 4x100m relay. He died of lung cancer aged 66 in 1980. Of the alternatives, legendary Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry was born in Texas in 1924, Boston Red Socks superstar Ted Williams was born in San Diego CA in 1918, and 4-time U.S. Open Golf champions Bobby Jones was born in Atlanta GA in 1902. Another American sporting hero was also born in Alabama but a year later, in 1914, World Heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis.

From Quiz About 100 Years Ago

Answer: harem skirts

Pope Pius X was born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto in 1835 in the Austrian Empire. In 1903, after the death of Pope Leo XIII, Pope Pius X became the 257th Pope of the Catholic Church. He was known for his church reforms and conservative theology. He spoke against modernists and relativists. In 1910, he issued the Oath Against Modernism that had to be sworn by certain Catholics until 1967. In 1911, Pius X declared he disapproved of harem skirts and that anyone wearing one would not be allowed in the church. The harem skirts of the early 1900s were not nearly as risque as the harem pants we know today but I'm sure they were pretty provocative in their day. They were made from exotic materials and designs. Skirts were made from billowy material that crossed over in the front, somewhere between the ankle and the knee, leaving some leg exposed.

From Quiz 1919

Answer: Rosa Luxemburg

Rosa Luxemburg (1870-1919), was a Marxist theorist and founder of the Spartakusbund, precursor to the Communist Party in Germany. She was killed along with her lover, Karl Liebknecht. Russian-born anarchist Emma Goldman lived most of her life in the United States, but witnessed the Russian Revolution first-hand. Käthe Kollwitz was a German artist whose works were deeply affected by the loss of her son in World War I. Gertrude Himmelfarb, wife of Irving Kristol, has been an active conservative cultural historian in the later 20th century.

From Quiz It Happened In 1918

Answer: Enid Markey

Lincoln and Markey returned that year in "The Romance of Tarzan." Maureen O'Sullivan was Johnny Weissmuller's Jane in the 1930s. Mary Pickford and Theda Bara were popular screen actresses of the time, but they never appeared in a Tarzan picture.

From Quiz 1917

Answer: Denmark

Danish settlement in the West Indies began on the island of St. Thomas in 1672 and soon expanded to neighboring St. John. St. Croix was purchased from the French in 1733. The United States purchased the islands as a potential naval base during the period of unrestricted German submarine warfare in the months before its entry into World War I. Danish administration of the islands officially ended on March 31, 1917.

From Quiz 1916

Answer: Henri Philippe Petain

Petain, the hero of Verdun, later in his life became infamous as leader of the Nazi-puppet Vichy regime during World War II. Foch commanded armies at the Somme and Ypres and eventually was given unified command of all Allied troops in France. Joffre was Chief of the French General Staff when the war opened. De Gaulle served as a captain at Verdun, where he was wounded and captured by the Germans. (Much later, when Petain was convicted of treason in 1945, Charles de Gaulle commuted the sentence to life imprisonment).

From Quiz People, Places and Events --1910-1919

Answer: Mona Lisa

Painted by Leonardo DaVinci, the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre where it had hung on the wall in the Great Gallery for more than a century!

From Quiz The 20th Century - 1911-1920

Answer: Turkey and Italy

The fight was about Italy's territorial aspirations in North Africa.

From Quiz Spanish Flu - A Historical Quiz

Answer: Lack of news censorship in Spain

The name "Spanish Flu" was coined early in the first wave. As Spain was neutral and not involved in WWI, it had little or no wartime news censorship. Therefore, unlike nations involved in the war, particularly France, Britain, USA and Germany, this country freely reported the epidemic's effects on the country, in particular the influenza illness of King Alfonso XIII. As a result it appeared that Spain was particularly heavily affected when in fact it actually suffered less than its European neighbours who conveyed many troop movements which contributed, greatly, to the spread of the epidemic.

From Quiz 20th-Century History in the 1910s

Answer: Ford Motors

Ford Motors set up a plant in Highland Park, Michigan to become the first manufacturer to use moving assembly line to produce the Model T. The manufacturing process was reduced from 12½ hours to 2 hours 40 minutes and eventually 1 hour 33 minutes, boosting the annual output to more than 200,000 units in that year.

From Quiz Where did this Happen?: 1910s Edition

Answer: Russia

The Lena Massacre was one of the preludes to the Russian Revolution. Hundreds of gold miners in Siberia went on strike to protest the harsh, cold working conditions and meager pay. When the planners of the strike were arrested, the other gold miners rebelled and the Imperial Russian Army began shooting at the rioters. Hundreds were killed or injured. One of the main reporters of the incident was Alexander Kerensky who would later become one of the most influential people during the Russian Revolution of February 1917. The Lena Massacre is the event that brought Kerensky his first piece of publicity.

From Quiz What Else Happened In 1914

Answer: The Tramp

The Tramp walked into Keystone studios in January 1914. Studio boss Mack Sennett had sent for Chaplin, who had only recently joined the company, to return to the set and inject some laughs into a particularly flat film. The character came to Chaplin after a moment's thought - big baggy pants, big shoes, tight jacket, a cane and a derby hat ... and a timeless hero was born.

From Quiz What Do You Know About 1913?

Answer: William Howard Taft

Former New Jersey Governor and Virginia native Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th U.S. President, serving from March 4, 1913 until the same date in 1921. Wilson was succeeded by Warren Harding and died less than three years after leaving office. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, William Howard Taft was a one-term Republican President. A former Provisional Governor of Cuba and Governor-General of The Philippines, he may be best remembered as the largest US President ever -- he had a special super-sized bathtub installed in the White House. He was appointed as Chief Justice of the United States in 1921 and is the only person to have held both of these offices.

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