Ancient Civilizations
Which river valley civilization is known as the "cradle of civilization"?
Mesopotamia
Who founded Buddhism?
Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha).
What period is known as the "Age of Faith"?
The Middle Ages.
Who conquered the Persian Empire in 330 BCE?
Alexander the Great.
Who sailed to the Americas in 1492 under Spain’s flag?
Christopher Columbus.
What war was fought between Athens and Sparta?
The Peloponnesian War.
What writing system did the Sumerians invent?
Cuneiform
In Hinduism, what is the cycle of rebirth called?
Reincarnation (samsara).
What European cultural movement emphasized humanism and classical learning?
The Renaissance.
Who was the leader of the Soviet Union during World War II?
Joseph Stalin.
Which Portuguese explorer was the first to reach India by sea?
Vasco da Gama.
Who fought in the Punic Wars?
Rome and Carthage.
Who was the first emperor of China?
Qin Shi Huang.
The Ten Commandments are central to which religions?
Judaism and Christianity.
The Industrial Revolution started in which country?
Great Britain.
Who was the British Prime Minister during most of World War II?
Winston Churchill.
What was the main purpose of the Columbian Exchange?
To transfer plants, animals, and goods between the Old and New Worlds.
Who was the French king executed during the French Revolution?
Louis XVI.
Which civilization developed democracy first?
Ancient Athens
What is the holy book of Islam?
The Qur’an.
The Stone Age ended with the discovery of what metal?
Bronze.
Who was the first president of the United States?
George Washington.
Who circumnavigated the globe first?
Ferdinand Magellan
What revolution inspired Karl Marx’s writings?
The Industrial Revolution.
What structure connected the Roman Empire for trade and military movement?
Roman roads.
What religious movement did Martin Luther begin in the 1500s?
The Protestant Reformation.
What was the Cold War primarily a conflict between?
The United States and the Soviet Union.
Who led India’s nonviolent independence movement?
Mahatma Gandhi.
Which Viking reached North America around 1000 CE?
Leif Erikson.
What event started World War II in Europe?
Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939.
Which ancient civilization built the city of Machu Picchu?
The Inca.
What Buddhist concept means “release from the cycle of rebirth”?
Nirvana.
The Great Depression began in what year?
1929.
Who was the first emperor of Rome?
Augustus.
What did Marco Polo write about that inspired explorers?
His travels to Asia.
The Hundred Years’ War was fought between which two countries?
England and France.