Early Civilizations
Which early civilization was centered around the city of Tenochtitlan?
Aztecs
What 15th-century invention by Johannes Gutenberg revolutionized the spread of knowledge in Europe?
The printing press
What pandemic in the 14th century killed an estimated one-third of Europe’s population?
The Black Death
What European empire was often said to be so vast that “the sun never sets” on it?
The British Empire
What World War I tactic involved generals repeatedly ordering troops “over the top” into machine gun fire, causing massive losses?
Trench warfare
What ancient civilization created a 365-day calendar and advanced astronomy in Mesoamerica?
The Maya
What event in 1989 symbolized the end of the Cold War and reunification of Germany?
The fall of the Berlin Wall.
What man-made disaster in 1986 caused mass radiation poisoning and the evacuation of an entire city in the Soviet Union?
The Chernobyl nuclear disaster
Which European empire was driven by the conquests of Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro?
The Spanish Empire
What ancient city ignored multiple warnings and omens before being destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 79 CE?
Pompeii
What is the name of the earliest known legal code, created by a Babylonian king?
Code of Hammurabi
What 18th-century movement emphasized reason, science, and individual rights, influencing revolutions in France and America?
The Enlightenment
What brutal conquest in the 13th century caused the deaths of tens of millions and decimated entire cities across Asia and Europe?
The Mongol Invasions under Genghis Khan
Which empire, led by Alexander the Great, stretched from Greece to India?
The Macedonian Empire
What American law in the 1920s tried to outlaw alcohol but ended up fueling organized crime?
Prohibition
Which ancient civilization developed one of the earliest known writing systems called cuneiform?
Sumerians
What 19th-century invention by James Watt transformed manufacturing and transportation worldwide?
The steam engine
What brutal campaign in China, launched by Mao Zedong in 1958, caused the deaths of tens of millions?
The Great Leap Forward
What Islamic empire ruled India and constructed the Taj Mahal?
The Mughal Empire
What 1961 failed invasion was an attempt by U.S.-backed exiles to overthrow Fidel Castro in Cuba?
The Bay of Pigs Invasion
Which early African civilization built massive pyramids at Meroë and was heavily influenced by Ancient Egypt?
The Kingdom of Kush
What development around 10,000 BCE enabled the rise of permanent settlements and civilization?
The Neolithic (Agricultural) Revolution
What genocidal campaign by the Hutus against the Tutsi's resulted in the deaths of an estimated 800,000 people in 1994?
The Rwandan Genocide
What ancient seafaring empire founded the city of Carthage and created an alphabet that influenced the Greek and Latin ones?
The Phoenician Empire
What line of defense built by France before World War II was easily bypassed by the Germans in 1940?
The Maginot Line