Battles of the 2nd Millennium Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Battle of Hastings (Norman Conquest)

The Battle of Hastings was fought on 14th October 1066.

Following the death of Edward the Confessor (January, 1066), who left no heir, Harold Godwinson (Harold II) claimed the throne of England (he was Edward's brother-in-law). His rule was short-lived as William of Normandy made good on his own claim to the throne (he was Edward's first cousin, once removed) by invading and killing Harold at Hastings. This was the major battle in the Norman conquest of England, which ended the line of Anglo-Saxon kings. William the Conqueror would go on to reign from 1066 until 1087.

Answer: The Battle of Jaffa (Crusades)

The Battle of Jaffa occurred during the Third Crusade and was the final battle between the armies of King Richard I (the Lionheart) and the Sultan Saladin, taking place between July 27th and August 8th of 1192.

Within sight of Jerusalem, Richard was forced to withdraw his forces from the Holy Land in order to deal with treasonous happenings back in England. He pulled out of his base of operations at Jaffa, only to see Saladin move in and take the city behind him. The Crusaders retook the city from Saladin, and repulsed Saladin's attempted counterattack. In the aftermath, Saladin retreated to Jerusalem, and a three-year truce between the forces was negotiated.

Answer: The Battle of Yamen (Song-Yuan Wars)

Also known as the Naval Battle of Mount Ya, this conflict took place on March 19th, 1279.

The Battle of Yamen significantly marked the fall of the Song dynasty to the invading Mongol Yuan dynasty. This naval battle was the Song dynasty's last stand, and even though their fleet outnumbered the Yuan's by a factor of 10 to 1, the Mongols, they were defeated. In an effort to protect their emperor (on a boat in the middle of their fleet), the Song commander (Zhang Shijie) ordered a thousand ships to be chained together in the bay. The Yuan commander (Zhang Hongfan) used subterfuge to hide his assault force (more men aboard the ships) and made his foes think that they were only going to fight off a small skirmish. Instead, the Yuan got a crucial hold on the center of the formation and then proceeded to a decisive victory.

Answer: The Battle of Lake Poyang (Red Turban Rebellion)

The Yuan dynasty - firmly established as the rulers of China following the Battle of Yamen in 1279 - eventually fell to the Ming rebel group in 1368. The Battle of Lake Poyang took place between August 30th and October 4th, 1363, and was crucial in determining which rebel group would come to power when the Yuan dynasty was toppled.

The three strongest groups in rebellion to the Yuan dynasty were the Ming, the Han, and the Wu. By the time of the Battle of Lake Poyang, it was down to the Han and the Ming as they fought each other for dominance. Despite being outnumbered, the Ming fleet's more nimble ships were able to defeat the Han's heavier vessels. This was one of the largest naval battles in history, with a reported 850,000 sailors and soldiers involved.

Answer: The Battle of Castillon (Hundred Years' War)

The Battle of Castillon was fought on 17th July 1453, marking the end of the Hundred Years' War.

The series of conflicts (between England and France) that happened between 1337 and 1453 are referred to as the Hundred Years' War. By 1451, the French had driven the English almost entirely off the Continent, leaving only one English stronghold at Calais. The war was essentially over, but one last attempt was made to recapture their previous holdings with a force of 3,000 men under the command of John Talbot, the Earl of Shrewsbury. They landed near Bordeaux on 17th October 1452 and proceeded to capture the city and much of Western Gascony before the winter set in. The French (under Charles VII) counterattacked in the spring with three separate armies. At Castillon (now held by the English), the French laid siege, drawing Talbot out of Bordeaux to fight. The English forces were routed, and Talbot (and his son) were killed. Bordeaux was recaptured in October, effectively ending the Hundred Years' War.

Answer: The Battle of Chaldiran (Ottoman-Persian Wars)

The Battle of Chaldiran occurred on the 23rd August 1514. This marked the beginning of a long and drawn-out conflict between the Ottoman and Safavid Empires.

Selim I became Sultan of the Ottoman Empire in 1512, putting his brothers and nephews to death to secure his throne. The Battle of Chaldiran marked the beginning of the expansion of the Ottoman Empire's territory by 70% during his reign.

The battle was quite lopsided, as the Ottomans employed artillery and gunpowder weapons against a traditional Safavid cavalry.

Significantly, Selim's victory at Chaldiran resulted in the capture of the Safavid capital (Tabriz) and the annexing of Eastern Anatolia and northern Mesopotamia from the Safavid Empire. These regions would continue to be contested (three Ottoman/Safavid wars in the span of 107 years), but the Battle of Chaldiran marked the beginning of what would be a nigh-permanent Ottoman presence in the region (until the Empire was dissolved in the 20th Century).

Answer: The Battle of Worcester (English Civil War)

The Battle of Worcester took place on 3rd September 1651, marking the end of the English Civil War.

Without getting into the nitty gritty details, the English Civil War saw the Royalists (Cavaliers) fighting against the Parliamentarians (Roundheads) in a series of conflicts between 1642 and 1651. These conflicts saw the defeat of the Royalists (initially led by Charles I, then by Charles II after his father's execution) and the establishment of the Commonwealth of England and the subsequent Protectorate under Cromwell.

The Battle of Worcester was the final battle of the English Civil War, as Cromwell's 28,000-strong New Model Army defeated Charles II's smaller (16,000) force in a back-and-forth battle that finally led to a rout and the capture of the city of Worcester (although Charles II escaped).

Answer: The Battle of Poltava (Great Northern War)

The Battle of Poltava happened in June of 1709 (or July, depending on which calendar you use - Old Style or New), marking the beginning of the decline of Sweden and the rise of Russia under Peter I (the Great).

Sweden's King Charles XII was coming from a long but victorious campaign in Saxony-Poland in 1706, forcing Peter I of Russia to withdraw his forces from the region. Despite Peter I offering all of the Baltics in a bid for an end to hostilities, Charles XII refused, deciding to push on for Moscow. Beginning his campaign in August of 1707, it would be two years of heavy losses for the Swedes, as Peter adopted a scorched-earth policy to deny resources to the invading Swedes. By the Battle of Poltava in the summer of 1709, the Swedish force was half its original size and largely demoralized. With over twice the number of soldiers, the Russians were able to achieve a decisive victory.

Answer: The Battle of Gettysburg (American Civil War)

The Battle of Gettysburg took place from 1st-3rd July 1863 and came to be known as the turning point of the American Civil War.

Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia invaded the North through the Shenandoah Valley. He was met by the Union Army of the Potomac under the command of Major-General George Meade at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. After initial successes, the Confederates were held in place by Union forces (with great losses to both sides - estimated between 46,000 and 51,000 killed altogether). On 4th July Lee began his retreat through Maryland to Virginia. After that unsuccessful campaign, the tides turned, and the Union saw final victory in the conflict with Lee's surrender on 9th April 1965.

Answer: The Battle of Stalingrad (World War II)

The Battle of Stalingrad (including the entire Stalingrad campaign) lasted from the 23rd August 1942 until the 2nd February 1943. This battle was the turning point of World War II as Germany's advance into the Soviet Union was halted through severe attrition.

Recognized as one of the largest and bloodiest battles in the history of warfare, the Battle of Stalingrad involved over two million combatants, with approximately three in every four of those becoming casualties. Hitler put everything he had into his Eastern offensive, acquiring much territory in the process, but the Soviets proved to be too strong for his 6th Army, and after a hard-fought and prolonged battle, German forces surrendered. From there, the Soviets began the inexorable push back towards Germany, eventually capturing Berlin on 2nd May 1945.