Toledo: Historic City Trivia Quiz

Answer: Rio Tagus

The Tagus River surrounds Toledo on three sides providing a natural barrier to attacking armies. The Tagus is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. It is 1,007 km long, 716 km in Spain, 47 km along the border between Portugal and Spain and 275 km in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean near Lisbon.

While in Toledo it is worth visiting the Puente de Alcantara bridge which spans the dramatic gorge of the Tagus River. Originally an ancient Roman structure, the bridge was completely rebuilt by the Moors in 866. The present bridge dates mainly from the 13th and 14th centuries.

Answer: Hannibal

Hamilcar Barca (275-228 BC) fought in the First Punic War (264-241BC) and had three sons Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago who all fought against the Roman army in the Second Punic War (218-201 BC). Today there is a significant trade, and many shops offer all kinds of swords to their customers, whether historical or modern films' swords, as well as medieval armors and from other times, which are also exported to other countries.

Answer: A fort

Originally constructed in Roman times and used as a palace in the third century, Alcazar Fortress is today the site of the Army Museum. It was rebuilt in the 1500s and became the first example of a square fortress with towers on each of the corners.

Answer: Hindu

In 1986 Toledo was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for extensive cultural and monumental heritage and historical co-existence of Christian, Muslim and Jewish cultures.

Answer: Ohio

Toledo, Ohio was formed in 1833 by the merging of the towns of Port Lawrence and Vistula. It became a sister city of Toledo, Spain in 1931. Interestingly there are at least 45 places throughout the world named Toledo, with 11 in the USA alone!

Answer: A series of escalators in the hillside

Due to its high building density with winding and narrow streets, Toledo faced the dilemma of how to support its lucrative tourism industry. In 2001 a series of six escalators was built into the hillside to transport tourists to the top. As many as 40,000 people per day use the escalators which have a number of landings to take in the surrounding views.

Answer: Central Spain

Toledo is situated about 80km south of the Spanish capital of Madrid, and is the capital of the province of Toledo.

Answer: Marzipan

Today Toledo is famous for its marzipan and it is made and sold throughout the city. Like almost anything in Toledo, marzipan also has a legendary origin inspired by the city's intense history. The legend states that during the Arab siege, the nuns of the convent of San Clemente ground almonds from the numerous almond trees surrounding Toledo into a paste with mallets, hence it name is derived from "bread of mallet". Of course this is only a legend as many other places in the world lay claim to the origins of the sweet.

Answer: Semi arid

Toledo has a typical cold semi-arid climate. Winters are cool while summers are hot and dry. Precipitation is low and mainly concentrated in the period mid autumn through to mid spring. The highest temperature ever recorded in Toledo was 43.1 °C or 109.5°F on 10 August 2012; the lowest was −9.1 °C or 15.6 °F on 27 January 2005.

Answer: El Greco Museum

El Greco Museum was built to house many artworks dating from the 16th and 17th centuries, including the work of Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Greco), a Cretan artist. Nowadays exhibits have been extended to include the Mannerist and Baroque artists. Of particular interest is a plan of Toledo and several male portraits painted by El Greco himself.