Forgotten Countries #1 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Baden

Unfortunately for Baden, its entire western border is made by the Rhine, which is also Germany's border with France. During the rule of Louis XIV, Baden was ransacked and several major cities were razed. After Napoleon took over France, Baden was hit once again by a vastly superior force, and by 1805 Baden was actually fighting with Napoleon. Baden was on the fence during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, and after the Prussian victory, quickly joined the German Empire.

After the Nazis took over Germany, the country was united as a whole, and Baden lost its status as a separate state.

Answer: Connaught

Connaught (also spelled Connacht) was originally ruled by the ancient line of Connaught kings, but that changed in the 4th century AD when the Tara dynasty displaced them. Turlough O'Connor and his son Rory O'Connor were the most powerful rulers of Connaught, both becoming the High King of Ireland. Rory was the last High King without opposition, because in 1175 he signed the Treaty of Windsor with King Henry II of England, giving half of Ireland to the Normans.

In 1225 it was invaded and colonized by the Normans in full.

Answer: Kanem-Bornu

The Kanem-Bornu Empire is sometimes split into 2 separate historical empires. The Kanem Empire existed from sometime in the mid-9th century to the late 14th century, when the Bulala forces from the east pushed them out of Kanem. The Sayf dynasty moved to Bornu, and existed there until 1846, when a civil war put Umar of Bornu in power. Umar's son could not hold off Sudanese warlord Rabih az-Zubayr, who conquered Bornu in 1893, ending the Kanem-Bornu Empire.

Answer: Moravia

Great Moravia was created by Prince Mojmír I, and expanded rapidly under his successors Rostislav and Svatopluk. It was powerful enough during Rostislav's reign that the Byzantine missionaries Cyril and Methodius were invited to spread Christianity to the region, and accepted. Following Svatopluk's rule, Great Moravia fell apart, and a Magyar attack in 906 was the final blow for the kingdom.

Answer: Vijayanagar Empire

Established by King Harihara Raya I in 1336, the Vijayanagar Empire spanned four dynasties, though the Aravidu dynasty came into power after the Battle of Talikota. Fearing the Deccans would storm the capital, King Tirumala Deva Raya emptied the treasury and left for Penukonda with it all on the backs of around 550 elephants. Within the next 100 years, the capital would change from Vijayanagara to Chandragiri and later to Vellore, but the name remained the same.

In 1646, the Sultanates of Bijapur and Golkonda conquered the empire, bringing about its end.

Answer: Reuss

In 1673, the leaders of the Reuss Elder and Younger lines were both named counts to the Holy Roman empire, attaining the closest position they had ever received to their namesake in Henry VI. Both would also attain the title of prince, though the Elder (1778) would receive it before the Younger (1806). On April 4, 1919, directly following World War I, the territories merged into the People's State of Reuss, but on May 1, 1920, both were absorbed by the newly-established Thuringia.

Answer: Parthian Empire

Roman general Marcus Licinius Crassus attacked the Parthian Empire because of his desire for the great wealth that the Iranian state held. Unfortunately, the Parthian commander Surena set a trap for the Roman forces and in the Battle of Carrhae that followed, both Marcus Crassus and his son Publius were killed.

Despite that military power, the Parthian Empire fell to the Sasanians in 224, when leader Artabanus IV was killed. The leader of the Sasanian forces, Ardashir, created the Sassanid Empire in its place, which lasted until 651 AD.

Answer: Songhai Empire

Songhai was a very powerful Muslim state in Africa during its existence. The Sonni dynasty conquered the remnants of the Mali Empire in the 1460s, leading to Songhai becoming larger than all of western Europe. Askia Muhammad the Great fought wars against the Mossi, Borgu, the Diara, Fouta-Toro, and Hausa states during his reign.

While not the greatest military tactician, Askia was incredibly powerful, and died at the age of 96 (having been deposed at age 80 by his son). Invading Moroccan forces crushed Songhai in 1591 using firearms despite being vastly outnumbered.

The Dendi Kingdom was then set up by the Songhai people, and it lasted until it was conquered by the French in 1901.

Answer: Umayyad Dynasty

The Umayyads, despite their small ruling lifespan, went through 2 different branches of the family. The Sufyanids launched a campaign against the Byzantine Empire, though they were ultimately unsuccessful. The end of the Sufyanids came in 684, when a civil war caused the death of Yazid I and Mu'awiyah II.

The Marwanids took over and reigned until the end of the dynasty in 750. 'Abd al-Malik saw the greatest expansion of Umayyad control, conquering lands from India to Morocco, all the way up to France. Following defeat to the Byzantine Empire in 717, the decline began. Eventually, the Abbasids took over the Umayyads, and the entire Umayyad dynasty was hunted down. 'Abd ar-Rahman survived and created the Caliphate of Cordoba in Spain, which lasted until 1031.

Answer: Teutonic Order

The Teutonic Order, formally called the "Fraternal House of the Hospitalers of Saint Mary of the Teutons in Jerusalem," started in the city of Thorn, in what is today Poland. There, they helped Conrad of Mazovia conquer the "heathen" Prussians, and slowly conquered lands all along the Baltic Sea. Both Poland and Lithuania grew somewhat hostile to the growing power of the Teutonic Knights (yet another name applicable to them), since both were cut off from the Baltic Sea by the Order.

In 1466, Poland finally defeated the Order, and ceded much of its land to Poland.

The remainder of the Teutonic Order became a vassal of Poland, and in 1525 the last Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach, adopted the Lutheran faith and took the title of Duke of Prussia.