Ladies and Gentle Ladies Trivia Quiz

Answer: Ada Lovelace

Ada Lovelace was born on December 10, 1815. She was the only child of Byron and his wife. All his other children were out of wedlock. She married William King-Noel, Earl Lovelace. She is acknowledged as the first computer programmer because of her help for Charles Babbage in his efforts to design a device that could carry out algorithms and solve problems. She died on November 27, 1852.

Answer: Helen Keller

Helen Keller was born on 27 June, 1880. She lost both eyesight and hearing from scarlet fever or meningitis when she was two years old. As a result of the handicap, she was not able to communicate effectively for years, until her mother, daughter of CSA Colonel Charles W. Adams, hired Anne Sullivan as a tutor for her daughter.

She was the first deafblind to earn a bachelor's degree and was later awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Lyndon Johnson in 1964. She died on 1 June, 1968.

Answer: Indira Gandhi

Indira Gandhi was born on November 19, 1917. Her maiden name was Nehru, being daughter of the man who later became the first Prime Minister of India. She herself was the third person and the first woman to occupy that position. As a leader, she was very popular among her people and in 2001 she was voted the best Prime Minister of India in a poll organized by the magazine "India Today".

She was assassinated on October 1, 1984.

Answer: Hypatia

The exact birth date of Hypatia is unknown, but she was born between 350 and 370 AD. She was a Neoplatonist philosopher in Alexandria, Egypt. She was the head of the Platonist school in Alexandria and she taught not only philosophy, but also math and astronomy.

Historian Socrates Scholasticus wrote that she surpassed all the other philosophers of her era. She was murdered by a Christian mob in 415, because she was accused of making matters worse in a feud between the Governor of Alexandria and the local bishop.

Answer: Kallipateira, Diagoras' daughter

Kallipateira was the only woman known to have entered the Olympic Games in Antiquity. There was a law that forbade access to all women, except priestesses of Demeter, because athletes performed naked. Kallipateira disguised herself as a male trainer (she had indeed been a trainer for her son, Peisirodos) in order to enter the Games, but she was caught and the Hellanodikai (the judges) initially considered sentencing her to death.

She defended herself, saying that is anyone was to break this law it should be her, because her father, her three sons and a nephew son had been winners there.

She was not condemned, but a law passed that obliged trainers (as well as competitors) to enter the Games naked.

Answer: Theodora

Theodora was born in AD 500 of humble origins, which alienated many of Justinian's consuls. She was a pillar of strength for Justinian and played a pivotal role during the Nika riots (AD 532). The phrase was spoken in that situation, when Justinian was close to deciding to abdicate from the throne, thinking he could not control the rioters.

Theodora persuaded him to stay and take strict measures to suppress the rebellion, including the massacre of more than 30,000 rebels in the hippodrome of Constantinople and the execution of Hypatius, who was proclaimed as Emperor by the rioters.

She died in 548.

Answer: Ilse Koch

Koch was born on September 22, 1906, she was the wife of Karl-Otto Koch, the commandant of Buchenwald concentration camp . Though not a prison guard she became notorious for her cruelty, abuse and murder of the prisoners and gained the nickname "The Beast of Buchenwald".

She was first tried by an American court in 1947, and sentenced to life imprisonment but this later commuted to five years. She was, however, released after in 1949. Brought before a West German court later the same year, she was convicted of a range of serious crimes including incitement to murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.

She committed suicide in prison in 1967.

Answer: Lucrezia Borgia

Lucrezia Borgia was born on April 12, 1480. She was the daughter of Pope Alexander Borgia and Vannozza dei Catannei. Cesare Borgia was one of her brothers. She married three times in the course of her life and rumors spread that she had many extramarital affairs.

Many people claim that they are possibly descendants of hers, inclduing Juan Carlos I of Spain, Albert II of Belgium and Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard.

Answer: Queen Anne

Queen Anne was born on February 6, 1665 during the reign of Charles II. Being Anglican and Anti-Catholic, she did not appreciate the Whig Party and favoured Tory politicians, mostly of the moderate fraction. The Treaty of Utrecht, signed when Anne was the monarch, was the start of Britain's dominance over other European powers and put an end to the French domination of Europe. Queen Anne left no heir to the throne and with her death ended the reign of the House of Stuart.

Answer: Sarah Bernhardt

Sarah Bernhardt was born on October 23, 1844 and was a child of unknown father. In order to make herself eligible for the Légion d'Honneur, she created false birth records. Her talent in every aspect of her activities made her well-known worldwide and earned her the nickname "The Divine Sarah". She did in 1923.