Climbing the Walls Online Trivia | Mixed Bag

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. One of the most famous walls in British history was built in the North of England, close to the modern Scottish border, by the Roman Emperor Hadrian. At over 100km long, what is considered to have been its primary goal?

Answer: To keep the barbarians out of England

Hadrian ruled the Roman Empire from 117 - 138 AD. He experienced numerous rebellions across the world (including in Libya and Egypt) and feared another in England. The inhabitants of what is now Scotland and the far north of England were commonly considered to live as "barbarians" in comparison to the orderly and civilised Roman way of life and were, therefore, considered a threat whether they were attacking or not.

Many historians now believe that there were relatively few threats of attack by the inhabitants of the North and that, actually, there were more economic and social advantages to Hadrian's wall than defensive advantages. The gates served as customs posts, providing extra taxation, whilst the watch towers were used to keep records of the numbers of passers-through and immigrants.

Hadrian's wall is now ruined, but parts of it still survive as a UNESCO heritage site in the North of England.

2. During World War II Nazi Germany was concerned that the Allies, with their advanced and vast naval forces, might launch an attack on mainland Europe. Their answer was to build defenses around the Western coast of mainland Europe, from Norway down to the South of France. It was never quite finished but parts of it remain today. What was this wall called?

Answer: Atlantic Wall

Construction on the Atlantic Wall started in 1942, when Hitler ordered extra defenses around naval and submarine bases. In 1943, efforts began to build up a continuous wall of defences on the Atlantic coast of mainland Europe.

Rather than being a brick or stone wall, as one might expect, the Atlantic Wall was made up of fortifications, bunkers and minefields. The wall was not finished, but some well preserved parts of it remain. In particular, in the Channel Islands German outposts surrendered peacefully soon after the war ended, leaving well preserved garrisons and fortresses which once formed integral parts of the Atlantic Wall.

3. Which Israeli site, also known as the Western Wall, is a site of pilgrimmage for Jewish people and is said to be the last remains of the Holy Temple of King Solomon?

Answer: Wailing Wall

In Jewish tradition, the Western Wall was said to have been built by King Solomon (though historically, it is more likely that it was built by Herod the Great) as the Western wall of a temple that should never be destroyed. It is believed that the Western Wall is the last remnant of the Holy Temple; it is one of the holiest sites in the world for Jews.

It is likely that the name the "Wailing Wall" arose on the basis that many Jews have prayed at the wall for hundreds of years. The singing of prayers in Hebrew is likely to have been considered akin to wailing by those nearby.

4. The Peace Lines are a series of barriers and walls built in Belfast, Northern Ireland from the 1960s to separate which two groups during The Troubles?

Answer: Nationalists and Unionists

The Troubles (outbursts of violence) in Northern Ireland began in the late 1960s following decades of ill-feeling following the split of Northern Ireland (which remained part of the UK) from the Republic of Ireland. Though the conflict was mainly political, there were religious elements to it as the majority of the Unionists seeking to remain part of the UK had Protestant backgrounds and the majority of the Nationalists sought a reunification of Ireland as one independent state were Catholic.

The Peace Lines were originally temporary structures built to try to counter violence. Often, these lines separate just two streets from each other. After the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, more Peace Lines were built than ever before, but in more recent times they have become unecessary and more of a tourist hotspot.

5. In 1961 the Berlin Wall was erected in a desperate attempt to prevent East Germans from continuing to escape to the West. Though it started life as a wire fence with military guards, by 1962 most sections had been rebuilt with reinforced concrete. In which year did the wall finally begin to be torn down following demonstrations by East Germans?

Answer: 1989

The Berlin Wall went up pretty much over night, leaving many people stranded away from their families in unfamiliar parts of Berlin. Many people tried to escape and many were killed. It was not until 1989, 28 years later, that East Germany declared that its borders were open and people were finally let through. On that night, thousands of East Germans passed through the gates and tore down parts of the wall with their bare hands. They passed into West Berlin and danced into the night with West Germans.

6. Sacsayhuam�n is a walled fortress on a steep hill overlooking the Peruvian city of Cuzco. The interlocking stones helped these walls survived earthquakes for hundreds of years. Which civilisation built these polished stone walls in around the fifteenth century?

Answer: Incas

The huge size of the stones used in the walls of Sacsayhuam�n is highly unusual for buildings of the time. Their elevation and interlocking placements have allowed them to withstand the earthquakes that ravage their region, as well a number of siege and invasion attempts over the centuries and, believe it or not, not a bit of mortar was used!

In 1536, the Spanish conquistadores used a puppet ruler, Manco II, and his army to lay siege to Cuzco. It has become clear from writings of the time that the labyrinth layout of the walls of Sacsayhuam�n, coupled with their elevation, made that area of the city almost impossible to take, saving the entire city form invasion.

7. In 1982, a long, black wall bearing hundreds of names was designed by artists Maya Lin and erected in Constitution Gardens, Washington D.C. It was designed as a memorial for US veterans of which war, also known as the "American War"?

Answer: Vietnam War

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund worked with Congress to commission the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. A design competition was run from 1980 to 1981. The wall is 246 feet 9 inches long and contains over 50,000 names of those killed or missing in action during the Vietnam War, one of America's longest and most controversial wars.

The black colour and simple design caused public outcry following its dedication. Some supporters of the project even withdrew their support. Statues and a women's tribute have since been added, rendering the site more attractive to visitors.

8. The fired-clay walls around a famous ancient city state in the area that is now modern-day Iraq were once considered a wonder of the ancient world due to their length and size. They were built by a number of rulers, though Nebuchadnezzar II increased their size significantly around 600 BC. Which city did they stand around?

Answer: Babylon

The fame of the walls is largely due to the Greek writer Herodotus, who greatly exaggerated the size and length of the walls. Given that he never actually visited Babylon, this is unsurprising, but it has been archaeologically proven that the walls were indeed over 8km long and extremely high. A text from the time shows that Nebuchadnezzar II said of the walls: "What no King has done before me, I did... I completed Babylon".

When the walls began to decay and collapse, they were replaced on the list of the world's seven ancient wonders by the Lighthouse of Alexandria.

9. Great Zimbabwe is a ruined walled city in the country now known as Zimbabwe. The ruined city is named after the ruins themselves, which are known as "zimbabwes", with the "Great" having been added in tribute to the 11 metre high walled Great Enclosure where most inhabitants would have lived. What indigenous people built the city's walls?

Answer: Bantu

The Bantu peoples comprise over 600 tribes of Africa. It is likely that the kings of the Monomatapa tribes, a Bantu people that settled in Southern Africa on the Zambezi, built the Great Zimbabwe complex.

Great Zimbabwe is the largest of over 200 such sites in Southern Africa. The dry-stone walls are mortarless and range from 5 metres to 11 metres high. Over 18,000 inhabitants are likely to have lived within the complex at any one time prior to its ruin and it is the largest ancient structure south of the Sahara Desert.

10. The Great Wall of China is probably the most famous wall on the planet. It stretches for almost 9,000km across Northern China and large sections are still well-preserved. Although the most famous part of the wall is that built by the first Emperor of China around 200 BC, most the wall was built by which dynasty between around 1368 and 1644?

Answer: Ming Dynasty

The Great Wall of China is a conglomeration of many walls. It has been rebuilt and maintained many times since the first section was built in around 200 BC by Emperor Qin Shi Huang. It was built to protect the Northern borders of China from nomadic tribes

The entire Great Wall is around 8,850 kilometers (5,500 miles) long and it remains a major tourist site. It is said that the wall can be seen from space, though this has since been shown to be untrue.

Source: Author suzidunc

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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Climbing the Walls Trivia Quiz

Throughout history, walls have kept people out, kept people in, marked territories, created boundaries and both won and lost wars. This quiz is on some of history's most famous walls!

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