Why Is It Dark in Here? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Early Middle Ages

Despite the collapse of the (Western) Roman Empire, the ways of life still continued after the fifth century AD as they were now instilled in many European countries' cultures. During the 500 years that followed, few records were kept and so the time has often been referred to as the Dark Ages. However, a lack of records does not mean that there was a lack of intelligence, culture or development.

Famously, in the eighth century, the Carolingian Empire, with Charlemange as its leader, promoted art, literature and learning with zeal. Similarly, the later Ottoman Empire and the English kingdom of Wessex under Alfred the Great underwent a period of heightened culture and discovery. Historians now believe that it is fair to say that these "Dark Ages" were not a period of decline and chaos as first thought. In fact, it was a time of recovery and growth after the fall of Rome.

Answer: Austria

Adolf Hitler was born in 1889 in Braunau am Inn, a small town in Austria, close to the German border. When he was 3 years old (1892), his family relocated briefly to Germany, moving to Passau in Bavaria, but they returned to Austria in 1894. After leaving school, Adolf Hitler then led a bohemian existence in Vienna (1905-1913) before moving to Germany (specifically Munich). When World War I broke out, he volunteered to serve in the Bavarian Army as an Austro-Hungarian citizen.

Although he returned to Munich following World War I and despite formally renouncing his Austrian citizenship in 1925, it was not until 1932 (just 11 months (!) before he became Chancellor of Germany) that he gained German citizenship. Between 1925 and 1932 his position as a stateless person meant that he could be deported to the country of his most recent citizienship and it also made him unable to run for public office. In fact, in 1924, at the end of his trial for the Munich Beer Hall putsch, the prosecutor called for his extradition to Austria when he had served his sentence. However, the presiding judge, a secret Nazi party member, rejected this request in view of Hitler's 'German outlook'.

(There is also a small town called Broumov in northern Bohemia. Its German name is also Braunau. It is said that confusion between the two places called Braunau was behind Hindenburg's reference to him as the 'Bohemian Corporal').

Answer: Cattle bones have been found close to the Pyramids.

During excavations of many sites close to the pyramids, archeologists have discovered the towns and villages in which the builders of the pyramids lived whilst they worked on their huge projects. In many of these settlements, huge quantaties of cattle bones have been discovered, as well as those of sheep and goats. Given that slaves would certainly not have been given such quantities of meat (if any) and common labourers would not be able to afford such luxuries (at least not in such quantities), it is clear to many historians that skilled workers, who were paid well, were the builders of the Pyramids.

This is further evidenced by the finding of many tombs and burial sites of these workers very close to the pyramids they had built. For Pharohs to allow these so close to their own chosen sites of rest suggests that these builders were respected by all.

Though the common misconception is an image of slaves hauling huge stones accross the desert in searing heat, historians now suggest that any hauling would have been done during Egypt's winter months, when the temperature was lower, and that it was unlikely to have been done by slaves.

Answer: Crab Claws

The Smithsonian institution in Washington DC formed laser scans on one of the four still existing sets of George Washington's false teeth and found that, contrary to popular belief, they are not made from wood. The materials found to comprise the teeth include gold, hippopotamus ivory, lead, human teeth, horse teeth and donkey teeth.

It was also found that the dentures had springs to open them and bolts to keep them together.

Answer: An extension to Saint Basil's Cathedral

Saint Basil's Cathedral (also known as Pokrovsky Cathedral) was built from 1555-61 at the command of Ivan the Terrible to commemorate Russian victories over Kazan and Astrakhan during the Russo-Kazan wars of the mid sixteeth century. By the time the workers built the extension to the Cathedral, Ivan the Terrible had been dead for four years. The story of their blinding is unanimously held by historians to be untrue.

The identity of the main architects is unknown, though the official Russian Cultural Heritage Register lists them as "Barma and Postnik Yakovlev". There is also evidence of stonemasons from Germany.

Answer: Entranceway for crowds to enter and exit an ampitheatre.

There is no evidence at all to suggest that the Romans followed such a binge-based diet, let alone that they had a custom of vomitting after each meal. Vomitoria (plural) are aisles/entraceways beneath the seating rows in classical ampitheatres which allow crowds quicker entrace and exit routes.

Whilst it is true that the word does derive from the Latin "vomeo", meaning "to spew forth", there is no evidence that this relates in any way to vomiting as we understand the word in the modern sense.

Answer: Hanged

Of the 150 people accused of being witches during the period of mass hysteria running from February 1692 to May 1693 (known as the Salem Witch Trials), over 150 people from Salem, Massachusetts and its neighbouring towns were accused of being witches. Of these, some died in prison awaiting trial, but the majority were never found guilty.

Around 20 people were ever actually found guilty of witchcraft during this time, and they were hanged. Burning might have been suggested as a means of disposing of so-called witches, but it was not practiced in Massachusetts at that time.

Answer: 5 feet 6 inches

Historians have long stated that Napoleon was of a normal height. The average for French men at the time was around 5 feet 3 inches. Previously, historians have stated that he was 5 feet 2 inches tall, but due to a discrepancy between French and English measuring systems, they now consider that he was more likely to have been around 5 feet 6 inches tall.

There is a perceived psychological issue named "Napoleon Complex" whereby men (usually) of small stature are often considered to be "over compensating" for their height with outrageous actions or displaying overly aggressive behaviour. It is often (incorrectly) said that Napoleon himself sought power and war on this basis.

Answer: Took a weekly bath

Artifacts discovered from the ages of Viking exploration have included large numbers of ear spoons, tweezers, razors and brushes. Whilst they may have kept their hair long, the number of combs found from that era suggest that brushing it was a priority. The images of Vikings as dirty barbarians are largely myths. Like the people of the Muslim world at the time, the Vikings showed superior methods of personal hygiene and cleanliness than many other races in Europe, prizing clean water and vessels as well as clean clothes.

In some Scandanadian languages, the word for Saturday is still Lördag/lørdag (etc), stemming from the old words for "washing day".

Answer: No

Although the Italian railway system was looking rather dilapidated after World War I, much of the repair work was carried out straight after the war, prior to 1922 when Mussolini and the Fascists came to power. The improvements were substantial and the network was efficient, but it was not perfect and the trains did not all run on time, though the drastic improvements may have made the end result look almost perfect! Mussolini undoubedtly took credit for the completed works, but they were not ordered nor implemented by him or his party.

The main reason why Mussolini claimed this as his own achievement was, as most historians now believe, in order to claim benefits for Fascism. "Efficiency" was a key word in Fascist propaganda, as the party hoped that their popularity would rise if people saw benefits to a dictatorial regime.