The Truth About the Great Cities Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The city is: San Francisco History: A mayor of San Francisco was murdered by a man who proffered depression and a junk food diet as his defense. Geography: The Haight-Ashbury district, epicenter of 1967's Summer of Love, is within the San Francisco city limits. Which of the above facts is true?

Answer: Both

November 27, 1978 was a horrible day in San Francisco's history.
Dan White shot and killed Mayor George Moscone and openly gay (and proud) City Supervisor Harvey Milk. You can read about White's so-called "Twinkie Defense" at http://www.ohnonews.com/twinkie.html

Haight and Ashbury streets converge not far from Golden Gate Park.

A wonderful website filled with all things San Francisco can be found at www.sfheart.com.

2. The city is: Rome History: The famous sculptor and painter Michelangelo was also the official architect of St. Peter's Basilica. Geography: Although the Tiber river flows through Rome, the Po River encircles the city as well and forms two of its ancient boundaries. Which of these facts is true?

Answer: The history fact only

The multi-talented Michelangelo was appointed official architect of St. Peter's in 1546 and designed the soaring dome. St. Peter's was part of Rome until 1929, when Vatican City was established.

The Po River is in northern Italy.

3. The city is: Tokyo History: Japanese emperors, including Emperor Hirohito, were crowned at the Aoyama Palace in Tokyo. Geography: The port city for Tokyo is Hiroshima. Which of the above facts is true?

Answer: Neither

Although Emperor Hirohito was born at the Tokyo palace, he was crowned in Japan's ancient capital, Kyoto.

Tokyo's port is Yokohama.

4. The city is: Paris History: Both Joan of Arc and Marie Antoinette were executed in Paris. Geography: The Eiffel Tower is located on an island in the middle of the River Seine. Which of these is true?

Answer: Neither

Although Marie Antoinette was indeed guillotined in Paris, the Maid of Orl�ans was burned at the stake in Rouen, France, in 1431.

The Eiffel Tower is on the Left Bank (Rive Gauche) in Paris. However, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame is on the Ile-de-la-Cit�, an island in the Seine. Like so many Catholic holy places, it is built on the site of a former pagan Roman temple.

5. The city is: Amsterdam History: The oldest building in Amsterdam is the Oude Kerk (Old Church). Geography: Although Amsterdam once had more canals than Venice (and was called "The Venice of the North"), most of them have been filled in and the resulting land used for building. Which of these facts is true?

Answer: The history fact only

The Oude Kerk dates from the second half of the 13th century, although there have been many additions and renovations since then. It is not to be missed if you are in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam's canals remain a prominent, lovely, and useful feature of the "Venice of the North".

6. The city is: Cairo History: The medieval warrior Saladin built a stronghold in Cairo. Geography: Cairo lies almost exactly due south from Athens, Greece. Which of these facts is true?

Answer: The history fact only

Salah-el-Din the Ayyubid, or Saladin, became governor of Egypt in 1169. He is best known for fighting Richard the Lion-Hearted of England in the Crusades, but he also built a fortification in Cairo, called the Citadel, which still exists today.

If you travel due south from Athens, you will wind up in Libya, west of Egypt. Cairo is south of Turkey.

7. The city is: Moscow History: The Kremlin in Moscow was founded by Ivan the Terrible. Geography: Moscow, like Rome, is built on seven hills. Which of these facts is true?

Answer: The geography fact only

The Kremlin, the historic heart of Russia, was founded in 1156 by Grand Duke Yuri Dolgoruky, who also founded the city of Moscow. Ivan the Terrible (Ivan IV) became the first Tsar of Russia much later, in 1547.

Initially, I thought it both fascinating and significant that the "Third Rome" was also built on seven hills. However, while researching the subject I discovered a list of 35 other cities that claim to be built on seven hills. Rome and Jerusalem, sure, but also such diverse cities as Plovdiv (Bulgaria), Antananarivo (Madagascar), and Marshall (Texas, USA) are all cities of the seven-hilled variety.
(http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/List%20of%20cities%20claiming%20to%20be%20built%20on%20seven%20hills)

8. The city is: Dublin History: One of the earliest historical references to Dublin is in the writings of Ptolemy, who called it "Eblana". Geography: Dublin is located where the River Shannon meets the Irish Sea. Which of these facts is true?

Answer: The history fact only

"The first known settlement on the site of Dublin was called Eblana, a name found in the writings of the 2nd-century Alexandrian geographer Ptolemy, though the earliest accounts of the city go back to AD 140. The town later appears in history as Dubhlinn (Gaelic, "Black Pool")."
(from "Dublin (city)," Microsoft� Encarta� Online Encyclopedia 2004)
In Gaelic, Dublin is Baile �tha Cliath, "Town of the Ford of the Hurdles".

Dublin is located on the River Liffey and Dublin Bay, which is part of the Irish Sea.

9. The city is: Bangkok History: Bangkok became the capital of Siam (later Thailand) in 1782. Geography: Bangkok's many canals ("klongs") give the city its nickname, "Venice of the East". Which of these facts is true?

Answer: Both

Siam's ancient capital was Ayutthaya, which was burned by the Burmese in 1767. In 1782 King Rama I established his capital in the place now called Bangkok, although the Thai people know it as Krung Thep, "City of Angels".

While many of the klongs have been filled in and paved over (and many of the remaining ones are polluted and malodorous), more than 50,000 people a day still take canal buses in Bangkok.

10. The city is: Jerusalem History: The Jerusalem historic site most sacred to Islam is the Ka'ba. Geography: The River Jordan does not flow through Jerusalem. Which of these facts is true?

Answer: The geography fact only

The Ka'ba is indeed the site most sacred to Islam, but it is located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The Jerusalem site most sacred to Islam is the Dome of the Rock, built on the site where, according to Islamic tradition, the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven.

The River Jordan flows south from its source near Mount Hermon, ending at the Dead Sea. Jerusalem is about 35 km west of the town of Jericho, which is located on the Jordan.

I hope you have enjoyed this trip to some of the world's great cities, and that you will tour some of my other quizzes. Thank you!

Source: Author LilahDeDah

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

The first of two quizzes inspired by the Time-Life book series "The Great Cities". For each city, this quiz provides two facts--one from the city's history, and one about its geography. You decide if one, both, or neither are true. Bon voyage!

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>