I Rule the Land: 1900 Edition Trivia Quiz

Answer: Serbia

Son of King Milan and Queen Natalie, Alexander I (or Aleksandar of House Obrenovic) (1876-1903) was King of Serbia from 1889 until his death by assassination. He became king at the age of 13 when his father surprisingly abdicated. A year after he assumed personal rule, he brought his father back as the commander-in-chief of the army.

The conspiracy that was responsible for Alexander's death (and that of his wife, Queen Draga) placed his successor, Peter I (of House Karadordevic) on the throne.

Answer: Spain

Son of Alfonso XII and Maria Christina, Alfonso XIII (1886-1941) was King if Spain from his birth until Spain's Second Republic was proclaimed in 1931. Since Alfonso's father died several months before his birth, his mother served as regent began then. Alfonso's rule would become increasingly unpopular during the Rif War and Rivera dictatorship, both occurring during the 1920s. Alfonso died in exile in Italy.

Answer: Portugal

Son of Louis (Luis) I and Maria Pia, Charles (Carlos) I (1863-1908) served as King of Portugal for the Braganza dynasty from 1889 to his death. During his reign, Portugal was forced to declare bankruptcy twice, in 1892 and 1902. Portugal was also forced to concede colonial claims to south-central Africa to Britain.

The assassination that killed Charles also killed Louis, the Crown Prince, leading to his second son, Manuel, becoming the last king of Portugal.

Answer: Greece

Son of King Christian IX and Queen Louise of Denmark, George I (born William) (1845-1913) was chosen by Greece to be its king in 1863. George I reigned as the first Greek king of the Glucksburg dynasty until his assassination in 1913. Ironically, had he not been assassinated, George had planned to abdicate in favor of his son, Constantine, later that year. During his reign, Athens would host the first Modern Summer Olympics.

Answer: Belgium

Son of Leopold I and Louise, Leopold II (1834-1909) was King of the Belgians from 1865 to his death. Leopold was a member of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The most infamous feature of his reign was his personal acquisition of the colony of Congo Free State in central Africa and the atrocities that occured there. With his only legitimate son dying at the age of nine, Leopold would be succeeded by his nephew, Albert.

Answer: Russia

Son of Alexander III and Dagmar, Nicholas II (1868-1918) reigned as Tsar of Russia from 1894 till his forced abdication in 1917. A weak, unskilled ruler, Nicholas's failings as ruler contributed to the turmoil that characterized his reign, culminating in Russia's poor performance during World War One. Living under house arrest after abdicating, Nicholas and his family were assassinated by the Revolutionary government.

Answer: Sweden

Son of Oscar I and Josephine, Oscar II (1829-1907) was King of Sweden from 1872 till his death and of Norway from 1872 to 1905, when the two countries separated. During his reign, Sweden continued along the path to democracy and industrialization. Oscar was a member of the House of Bernadotte.

His predecessor as King if Sweden had been his brother, Charles (Karl) XV, who died childless.

Answer: Italy

Son of Victor Emmanuel II and Adelaide, Umberto I (1844-1900) was King of Italy from 1878 until his death by assassination (one of five in this quiz). He was the second member of the House of Savoy to rule over a united Italy. Known as "the Good" among right-wing circles in Italy, he was equally despised by the left.

He would be succeeded by his more moderately-minded son, Victor Emmanuel III.

Answer: United Kingdom

Daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of York and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Victoria (1819-1901) was Queen of The United Kingdom from 1837 (shortly after her eighteenth birthday) till her death. In 1876 she would assume the additional title of Empress of India. Through her nine children, she would be related by blood or marriage to most of the royal houses of Europe in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

At the time of death, this final ruler of the House of Hanover (in the United Kingdom) was the longest-running monarch in British history.

Answer: Germany

Son of Frederick III and Victoria (daughter of Queen Victoria), William (or Wilhelm) (1859-1941) was both Emperor of Germany and King of Prussia from 1888 to 1918. This last reigning monarch of the Hohenzollern Dynasty seemed to having a love-hate relationship with the United Kingdom, feeling both envy and disdain for that nation. Forced to abdicate at the end of World War One (a war he played a role in starting), William lived in exile in the Netherlands until his death.