Fun History V: Who am I? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoleon was exiled twice. First to Elba, quite a nice little place, and then to St Helena where he died.

Answer: Bismarck

Otto von Bismarck was known as the Iron Chancellor; a well built handsome man standing 6' 2", he was the guiding light of the German Empire under Wilhelm I of Prussia. Bismarck fell from favour not because of any incompetence, but rather, because his towering personality had become an annoyance. Bismarck dominated Wilhelm I by sheer force of personality and when thwarted would threaten to resign to get his way.

When Wilhelm I died, his son Frederick III became Kaiser but reigned for only three months before dying of cancer. Frederick's son Wilhelm II then became Kaiser and Bismarck considered him to be a mere lightweight and had no respect for his views. Wilhelm II, on the other hand, had fanatasies about gaining popularity among the working classes and, strange as it may sound, becoming a 'people's Kaiser'. Eventually, in 1890, things came to head. Bismarck resigned in 1890 at the age of 75.

When handing in his resignation he assumed that it wouldn't be accepted, but it was - with alacrity.

Answer: Attila the Hun

Attila, King of the the Huns, also known as 'The Scourge of God', rampaged through the Roman empire causing dire panic and distress. He invaded Gaul in 451 A.D and seemed invincible. However, the 'scourge of God' was himself scourged at the battle of Chalons-sur-Marne where he was heavily defeated. He died in 453 A.D.

Answer: Alexander the Great

Alexander died in Babylon in June 323 BC. He never fully got over the death of his lifelong friend Hephaestion.

Answer: King John

King John is believed to have murdered his nephew Arthur with his own hand and thus cleared the way to kingship. Arthur was the nominated successor of Richard I, John's elder brother.

Answer: Thothmes III

After the death of his wife Hatshepsut Thothmes III (BC 1504-1450) went on a brilliant conquering spree. Whilst alive his wife had been the senior partner and had kept a firm leash on his ambitions.

Answer: George III

George III suffered bouts of what appeared to be madness. These were generally of quite short duration. Modern medical historians consider that George III suffered from an hereditary metabolic disorder known as variegate porphyria, which gives the symptoms of unsoundness of the mind. His sufferings at the hands of physicians were really quite awful.

Answer: Charles I

King Charles I was executed in 1649 after a lengthy civil war. He believed that kings ruled by divine right and his haughty demeanour made him few friends.

Answer: George Washington

Lord Cornwallis surrendered to General George Washington at Yorktown in October 1781. This was the decisive moment in the war of American Independence.

Answer: Xerxes I

Xerxes I crossed the Hellespont in 480 B.C. He won the battle of Thermopylae but at far greater cost than he anticipated. The Spartan king Leonidas along with 300 Spartans and some 6,000 troops from other Greek states made the Persian king pay dear for his victory.

The battle of Salmis in September of 480 was a huge victory for the Greeks but in fact did not drastically alter the situation on land. The Persian army remained in possession of much of Greece. It was at the battle of Plataea in 479 that Persian dominance was finally and irrevocably destroyed.