Up In Smoke Trivia Quiz

Answer: Rome

Of course, I'm referring to Emperor Nero and the Great Fire of Rome. While historical accounts differ on the cause of the fire, Tacitus noted that at the time many people lay the blame at the emperor's feet. (Subsequent study suggests that this was almost certainly an unjust accusation). In turn, Nero pointed the finger at local Christians, then a small religious sect.

The extent of persecution against Christians is also under dispute in academic circles; however, there is consensus that the legend of Nero "fiddling" while Rome burned is just that - legend, with no basis in reality.

Answer: Constantinople

At the crossroads between Europe and Asia, Constantinople was an imperial jewel - of more than one empire in the course of time. It was part of the Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire, Latin and Ottoman Empires at different stages of its history, and was the richest city in Europe in the 12th century. Not surprisingly, given its geopolitical significance, the city came under repeated attack.

The burning of Constantinople wasn't limited to sieges, either. For example
* in the 6th century, half the city was destroyed in riots that began at a chariot race.
* more recently, an accidental fire in 1870 killed 900 people and destroyed 3,000 buildings, including the British Embassy.

Answer: Amsterdam

Amsterdam was founded as a village on the banks of a river around the 12th century. As it became an important trade centre the population expanded rapidly. However, large parts of the city were destroyed by fire on three separate occasions in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Aiming to prevent such a disaster from happening again, the city forbade the use of wood as a building material in exterior walls; stone or brick were to be used instead. Houten Huys ("Wooden House") is one of very few old houses that remain standing in Amsterdam. As such, it has earned its status as a tourist attraction.

Answer: Oslo

Founded approximately 1,000 years ago, medieval Oslo endured more than a dozen major fires. After being largely destroyed in 1624, King Christian IV of Denmark and Norway ordered that the reconstruction take place to the west of the Aker river, near the Akershus Fortress that served to protect the capital. Oslo was rebranded "Christiania", and the old site became a village outside the gates of the capital, retaining its original name. A Norwegian spelling reform introduced in the 1870s modified the name again, to Kristiania.

As the capital expanded in population and geographical footprint, its suburban reach took over the village of Oslo. In 1925 the entire city reverted to the original name - a move proposed by a committee and opposed by a petition of 28,000 citizens. To no avail!

Answer: The Globe Theatre

Roughly 80% of the city was destroyed in the Great Fire of London, which spread rapidly through closely-packed neighbourhoods. The city was completely remodeled in the ensuing reconstruction, with wider streets, more accessible fire exits and a ban on thatching material in roofs.

The Globe Theatre of Shakespearean fame was itself destroyed by fire in 1612. It was rebuilt but closed down just 30 years later before being demolished. A modern reconstruction was built in the late 20th century and opened as "Shakespeare's Globe" in 1997. It has a thatched roof in keeping with the original design (albeit well protected by fire retardant materials and automatic sprinklers) - the first thatched roof permitted in London in more than 300 years.

Researchers are now confident that roof thatching had little to do with the spread of the great fire after all!

Answer: Wisconsin

The town of Peshtigo is located near Green Bay in upper Wisconsin, 400km (250 miles) from Chicago.

Between 1500 and 2500 people lost their lives in the firestorm that consumed Peshtigo and 11 surrounding communities - a death toll 5 times or more higher than that of the Great Chicago Fire.

Answer: Royal Palace of Madrid

The Royal Palace of Madrid is built on the site of the Royal Alcázar, a 9th century Moorish castle that became the official residence of the Spanish royal family. The Alcázar burned down on Christmas Eve 1734. The new palace has thus far avoided the same fate.

St James' Palace was built by Henry VIII and was the residence of various Tudor, Stuart and Hanover monarchs (as well as sundry relatives and mistresses). Parts of the building were damaged by fire in 1809; however, it remains a functional palace and the official location of the Royal Court.

Russia's Winter Palace burned down in 1837, leaving only the Hermitage behind.

The Tuileries Palace, Parisian home of French monarchs and site of the National Convention of Revolutionary France, was gutted by fire during "Bloody Week" violence during the suppression of the Paris Commune, 1871.

Answer: An electrical fire, which could not be extinguished by water

The factory was located on the upper floors of the 10-storey Asch Building in New York City. Inside, around 500 mostly immigrant women worked more than 50 hours per week making blouses.

On 25 March 1911 a fire that broke out on the 8th floor quickly spread through flammable piles of fabric. Workers trying to escape were hampered by a flimsy fire escape, flames engulfing one stairway and locked door at another. Consequently many victims jumped to their death from 8 storeys or higher rather than burn alive inside the building. The owners of the Triangle Waist Company were later ordered to pay compensation for wrongful death in a civil lawsuit - an amount of $75 per fatality, roughly equal to 6 weeks' wages.

The tragedy inspired the founding of the American Society of Safety Engineers (the first such organisation in the world), growing support for union campaigns for better conditions for garment workers, and legislation mandating improved safety standards in factories.

Answer: Communists

The destruction of the Reichstag was a key event in the rise of Nazi Germany. In the federal elections held three months earlier, the Nazi Party had failed to win enough seats to ensure a governing coalition in the national parliament, with its main rivals being the left wing Social Democratic and Communist Parties. Through a series of political machinations Adolf Hitler rose to the Chancellorship in January 1933, and immediately arranged for the Reichstag to be dissolved and new elections organised.

The Reichstag fire took place one week before the fresh round of elections was due. A Dutch communist, Marinus van der Lubbe, was quickly arrested and charged with the arson attack. While van der Lubbe was executed in 1934, historians and politicians continued to debate his guilt, and the question of whether he acted alone, for decades.

An emergency decree suspending many civil liberties was brought down the day after the fire. Claims of a communist plot to take over Germany were spread through the media and thousands of communists, including the Party's political leadership, were arrested. In the elections of 5 March 1933 the Nazi Party saw its share of the vote increase by one-third, and less than three weeks later a constitutional amendment gave the Chancellor powers to enact laws without parliamentary assent.

Answer: Kuwait

During the Persian Gulf War, as Coalition forces pushed the Iraqi military back across Kuwait the latter employed a scorched earth policy, setting fire to more than 600 oil wells as they retreated. Uncontrolled burning raged from January to April, and it took until November before the last of the fires could be extinguished. All in all an estimated one billion barrels of oil went up in smoke, by far the greatest loss in the petroleum industry's history.

Smoke from the oilfield fires led to a dramatic decline in air quality in the region; however, fears of severe global consequences akin to a "nuclear winter" thankfully did not come to pass.