10 Questions about "Hamilton" Quiz | Musicals

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which historian wrote the 2004 biography "Hamilton" that inspired the creation of "Hamilton: An American Musical"? (Look at the sphere in the picture and consider other words to describe its shape to suggest the author's first name.)

Answer: Ron Chernow

If you think of a sphere as "round", you might have guessed the correct answer was "Ron" Chernow (a sounds similar clue). Born in 1949, Ron Chernow has written several other biographies including ones about John D. Rockefeller and George Washington (for which he won the Pulitzer Prize).

His biography about Alexander Hamilton spent three months on the New York Times bestseller list. Ron Chernow served as a historical consultant for the production of the musical.

2. Lin-Manuel Miranda is certainly a name that has come up in connection with "Hamilton". Which role did he play in both the off-Broadway production and the original Broadway cast? (Consider the place that is shown in this stamp--if you look closely, you can see its name--and who might have a connection with it.)

Answer: Alexander Hamilton

Born in 1980, Lin-Manuel Miranda is a native New Yorker of Puerto Rican descent. In addition to playing the title role, Miranda also wrote the book, lyrics, and music for the show. Best known for "Hamilton", Miranda also wrote the 2012 musical "Bring It On".

The place in the stamp is Columbia University, which Hamilton attended. Burr attended Princeton, Jefferson attended William and Mary, and Washington did not attend college.

3. In the musical, Hamilton was a resident of which state? (Look at the stamp and you see an image of a bridge at the border of Ontario and this state.)

Answer: New York

Hamilton moved from the West Indies to New York City as a teenager to attend Kings College (now Columbia University). In real life, as in the musical, Hamilton was part of an artillery company that participated in the defense of New York City in 1776. Hamilton later signed the Constitution as a delegate from New York. The Niagara Falls Bridge spans from Ontario to New York

4. Leading up to the Battle for New York in 1776, Hamilton joined the Continental Army hoping to see action in battle and perhaps a battle command. On whose staff did he instead serve? (Whose image do you see in this stamp? He is one of the most common people to appear on US stamps.)

Answer: George Washington

The stamp was part of a early 20th century series that all had an image of George Washington. The song "Right Hand Man" refers to this event. Hamilton received the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in his role where he served Washington as an emissary in many functions. Hamilton finally got his desired battle command when he was assigned to lead a light infantry battalion at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781, where he acquitted himself well.

5. Ambitious to rise in the world, Hamilton married one of the daughters of the wealthy Schuyler family. Which one? (Who do you see in this stamp?--A bit of translation might help.)

Answer: Eliza

The stamp shows Queen Isabella of Spain. Isabella is Spanish for Elizabeth. Elizabeth Schuyler was usually referred to as Eliza in the musical. Elizabeth Schuyler (1757-1854) lived to be almost 100 and outlived Hamilton by 50 years. Elizabeth and Hamilton had eight children together.

After his death, she was heavily involved in preserving his legacy and also in various charitable works. The relationship of Eliza and Hamilton is a major theme of the musical.

6. One of the best places to read Hamilton's thoughts on government--especially the US Federal Government--is in "The Federalist Papers". He worked with two other collaborators. Which man did not work with him on this project? (As a hint, consider what is clearly marked on this man, what this is called, and look at the four answers.)

Answer: Aaron Burr

The initial purpose of "The Federalist Papers" was to convince the voters of New York State to ratify the US Constitution. Alexander Hamilton was the most active member of the three, writing more than half of the 85 essays in the collection. James Madison (1751-1836) was also active, writing a significant number including the famous Number 10 which describes how the Constitution will weaken the spirit of faction. John Jay (1745-1825) only wrote five of the essays, but can be excused as he suffered from a sickness during much of the period (1787-1788) when the essays were written.

In the musical, Hamilton approaches Burr to join the collaboration, but Burr turns him down. Aaron Burr (1756-1836) in real-life was an important anti-Federalist in New York.

In the drawing, I hoped that you would notice that the man's stomach muscles or "abs" were emphasized and that "ab" would get you to "A"aron "B"urr.

7. With the US Constitution ratified, Hamilton was offered a position in the first President's cabinet despite his wife's concerns (as mentioned in "Non Stop"). Which one? (Look at the type of stamp that is shown. Which government department might have a connection to it?)

Answer: Secretary of the Treasury

Hamilton's once and future rival Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) was Secretary of State. Henry Knox (1750-1806) was Secretary of War. Edmund Randolph was Attorney General. All four men served under George Washington. From those who supported Hamilton and those who supported Jefferson developed the First Party System of the United States: Federalist v. (Democratic-)Republican.

The stamp is a "Revenue Stamp". I hoped that revenue would get you to think about money and money would get you to think about the Treasury.

8. In the musical (and in real life) who succeeded Washington as the second president of the United States? (Look at what is on the stamp and think about with which part of the US that object is associated.)

Answer: John Adams

In real life, Jefferson was the third president and Madison was the fourth. Hamilton himself never served as President and as much the musical might show us Hamilton's good side, I think Hamilton would have been hard pressed to have won enough votes even from the restricted electorate of the late 1700s and early 1800s.

The song "The Adams Administration" reflects the real-life coolness of relations between Hamilton and Adams. The stamp shows the "Mayflower" which landed at Plymouth which is now part of Massachusetts (home state of John Adams.)

9. The Election of 1800 dragged on and on as there was no clear victor as referenced in the song "The Election of 1800". When the election went to the House of Representatives, which candidate did Hamilton throw his support behind? (Consider the person that would be associated with the location shown on the stamp.)

Answer: Thomas Jefferson

As originally established by the Constitution, each state had a number of electors based on the number of representatives and senators sent to Congress. Each elector was chosen in a manner of the state's choosing (popular vote, appointment by the state legislature, etc.). Each elector voted for two choices (presumably one was for president and one for vice president).

The candidate with the most votes would be president and the candidate with the second most votes would be vice president. In 1796, the president (John Adams) and vice president (Thomas Jefferson) belonged to different parties.

In 1800, two candidates from the same party (Jefferson and Aaron Burr) received the same number of votes and more than any other candidate. The election then went to the House of Representatives where each state's delegation had one vote. Hamilton felt that Jefferson was a better choice than Burr to be president and was able to convince enough representatives to change their votes or not vote to allow Jefferson to win.

The stamp shows the Louisiana Purchase which occurred during Jefferson's presidency.

10. In the musical, how did Hamilton die? (Look at the stamp.)

Answer: He is shot

In Weehawken, NJ, in 1804, Hamilton and Burr fought their famous duel. Hamilton purposely shot his pistol into the air while Burr's shot wounded Hamilton fatally. There is irony to Hamilton's often repeated line "I am not throwing away my shot." Yet, Hamilton is far more positively remembered today than Burr is.

Source: Author bernie73

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor looney_tunes before going online.
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10 Questions about "Hamilton" Trivia Quiz

These ten questions are about "Hamilton", the hit musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda.

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