Historical Highlights | Answers

The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.

Joseph Bonaparte, king of Spain, in coronation robes, 1808.
Image Wikipedia
  1. On 15 June 1808 Joseph Bonaparte became King of…
    • Spain—Bonapartist Spain, established in 1808 by Napoleon, was a Napoleonic client state. Napoleon forced the ruling Spanish Bourbons to abdicate and installed his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, on the Spanish throne.
      Magna Carta, 1215.
      Image British Library/Encyclopædia Britannica
  2. Today in 1215, King John of England placed his seal on a charter of liberty and political rights. What is this charter known as?
    • Magna Carta—a royal charter of rights, was agreed to by King John of England in 1215 to make peace with rebel barons. It promised protection of church rights, baronial rights and limitations on feudal payments.
      The Civil War Unknowns Monument, c. 1866.
      Designed by Montgomery Meigs. Arlington National Cemetery.
      Image Wikipedia
  3. On 15 June 1864, the creation of a national cemetery on the former Arlington Estate was authorised by the US Quartermaster General Montgomery Meigs. This estate had previously belonged to whom?
    • Robert E. Lee, Confederate General-in-Chief—Arlington National Cemetery, the largest in the United States National Cemetery System, is one of two maintained by the United States Army. Spanning 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia, it holds the remains of over 400,000 people. Arlington National Cemetery was built on land confiscated from the private ownership of Confederate States Army general Robert E. Lee’s family by the US federal government. This land was the Arlington Estate. The confiscation occurred due to a tax dispute over the property.
      Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset (1519-36).
      Image Wikipedia
  4. Henry Fitzroy, born on this day in 1519, was the illegitimate son of which English king?
    • Henry VIII—the Fitzroy surname is Norman French for ‘son of the king’. He was the son of Henry VIII’s mistress Elizabeth Blount, younger half-brother to Mary I and elder half-brother to Elizabeth I and Edward VI.
  5. On 15 June 1888 a crown prince became emperor. Due to the death of his predecessors 1888 is the Year of the Three Emperors. What empire had its Year of the Three emperors in 1888?
    • German Empire—The Year of the Three Emperors, 1888, saw the rapid succession of three German Emperors: Wilhelm I, Friedrich III, and Wilhelm II. The mnemonic drei Achten, drei Kaiser (three eights, three emperors) is still used to remember this year.
Wilhelm I
Friedrich III
Wilhelm II

The Year of the Three Emperors, 1888. Left to right
Wilhelm I (reign 18 January 1871 – 9 March 1888) Image Wikipedia
Friedrich III (reign 9 March – 15 June 1888) Image Wikipedia
Wilhelm II (reign 15 June 1888 – 9 November 1918) Image Wikipedia

Historical Highlights

Historical Highlights connected with today’s date, June 15th.

  1. On 15 June 1808, Joseph Bonaparte became King of…
    • Italy
    • Spain
    • The Two Sicilies
  2. Today in 1215, King John of England placed his seal on a charter of liberty and political rights. What is this charter known as?
    • Domesday Charter
    • Magna Carta
    • Reculver Charter
  3. On 15 June 1864, the creation of a national cemetery on the former Arlington Estate was authorised by the US Quartermaster General Montgomery Meigs. Who previously owned this estate?
    • Jefferson Davies, President of the Confederate States
    • Robert E. Lee, Confederate General-in-Chief
    • Thomas Jonathan ‘Stonewall’ Jackson, Confederate General
  4. Henry Fitzroy, born on this day in 1519, was the illegitimate son of which English king?
    • Edward V
    • Henry VII
    • Henry VIII
  5. On 15 June 1888, a crown prince became emperor, making 1888 the Year of the Three Emperors. Which empire had its Year of the Three Emperors in 1888?
    • Austro-Hungarian Empire
    • German Empire
    • Russian Empire

Good luck! I will post the answers later today.

Hotchpotch II | Answers

Detail of Zephyrus with Aura
from
Sandro Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus.
Image Wikipedia

The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.

  1. In which of these national parks are zebra a native breed?
    • Kruger National Park—in South Africa spans 19,623 km2 across Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces. Established in 1926, it is South Africa’s first national park and part of the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere. It is home to 25,000 to 35,000 plains zebra (Equus quagga). Cairngorms National Park, Scotland, UK was established in 2003. It is the largest national park in the UK and covers the Cairngorms mountain range and surrounding hills. Goonengerry NP, New South Wales, Australia is within the Nightcap Range Important Bird Area, home to the largest population of Albert’s lyrebirds.
  2. A light or westerly wind which was also a large car (Ford of Britain) replaced by the Granada in 1972 is a…
    • Zephyr—In ancient Greek mythology and religion, the god Zephyrus was the personification of the west wind and the bringer of light spring and early summer breezes.
      Googol.
      Image
  3. How many zeroes follow the digit ‘1’ (one) when writing the number known as a googol?
    • 100—10100 or ten to the power of one hundred or ten duotrigintillion. The largest ‘named’ number, the term ‘Googol’ was coined in 1920 by 9-year-old Milton Sirotta, the nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner. It’s possible that Sirotta was inspired by the contemporary comic strip character Barney Google.
      Romeo and Juliet.
      Image Wikipedia
  4. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet how old is Juliet?
    • Thirteren—her mother indicates that she is not fourteen until Lammastide, which is two weeks away.
      1931 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Barker Sedanca de Ville
      Image Wikipedia
  5. A 1964 film staring Rex Harrison and Jeanne Moreau was…
    • The Yellow Rolls-Royce—the film follows the story of three very different owners of a yellow 1931 Rolls-Royce Phantom II. The owners include an English aristocrat, a Miami gangster and a wealthy American widow. The film is set in the years leading up to and including the start of World War II.

Hotchpotch II

A mixture of questions for you to peruse.

Plains zebra (Equus quagga).
Image Wikipedia
  1. In which of these national parks are zebra a native breed?
    • Cairngorm National Park
    • Goonengerry National Park
    • Kruger National Park
  2. A light or westerly wind which was also a large car (Ford of Britain) replaced by the Granada in 1972, is a…
    • Chinook
    • Sirocco
    • Zephyr
  3. How many zeroes follow the digit ‘1’ (one) when writing the number known as a googol?
    • 10
    • 100
    • 1,000
  4. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet how old is Juliet?
    • Thirteen
    • Sixteen
    • Nineteen
  5. A 1964 film staring Rex Harrison and Jeanne Moreau was…
    • My Little Red Corvette
    • Ozzy, the Orange VW Camper
    • The Yellow Rolls-Royce

Good luck! I will post the answers later today.

Hotchpotch | Answers

The Carpenters.
Image Wikipedia

The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.

  1. Since 2011, Algeria has been the largest country in Africa by area. What is the second largest?
    • Democratic Republic of Congo—is a Central African country, the second largest in Africa and the most populous Francophone country in the world. It is bordered by several countries and the South Atlantic Ocean, with terrain ranging from dense rainforests to mountains.
  2. Which Carpenters song begins by asking: “Why do birds suddenly appear/Every time you are near?”?
    • (They Long to Be) Close to You—The Carpenters, an American vocal and instrumental duo consisting of siblings Karen and Richard Carpenter, achieved major success with hit singles like (They Long to Be) Close to You and We’ve Only Just Begun. Their melodic pop produced a record-breaking run of hit recordings on the American Top 40 and Adult Contemporary charts. Karen’s death from heart failure in 1983, due to complications from anorexia, ended the duo.
      A page from Thomas Blount’s Glossographia (publ. 1661)
      Image Wikipedia
  3. Thomas Blount’s Glossographia, published in 1656, was what?
    • English Dictionary—Blount’s Glossographia, published in 1656, was the largest English dictionary of its time, defining 11,000 hard words. It was the first dictionary to include illustrations, etymologies, and source citations, and many of its words were not included in later dictionaries.
  4. Prior to colliding with the ice berg, where had been RMS Titanic’s last port of call?
    • Queenstown, Ireland—Titanic’s maiden voyage began on 10 April 1912, with passengers boarding in Southampton, Cherbourg and Queenstown, Ireland from where the ship set sail for New York City. It was carrying a total of 2,224 passengers and crew of which some 1,500 died.
      Dan Brown.
      Image Wikipedia
  5. What 1998 thriller was the first to carry Dan Brown’s name?
    • Digital Fortress—was published in 1998. (Angels & Demons, 2000 and Deception Point, 2001) and is a techno-thriller novel by Dan Brown, exploring government surveillance and its ethical implications. The story follows the NSA’s struggle to crack a revolutionary code, Digital Fortress, created by Ensei Tankado, who died mysteriously. Amidst a web of deceit and murder, the NSA’s head cryptographer, Susan Fletcher, uncovers the truth behind Tankado’s death and the code’s creator, ultimately preventing a catastrophic data breach.

Hotchpotch

Today’s questions are a hotchpotch.

RMS Titanic departing Southampton on 10 April 1912.
Image Wikipedia
  1. Since 2011, Algeria has been the largest country in Africa by area. What is the second largest?
    • Democratic Republic of Congo
    • State of Libya
    • Republic of the Sudan
  2. Which Carpenters song begins by asking: “Why do birds suddenly appear/Every time you are near?”?
    • Bless the Beasts and Children
    • The Rainbow Connection—
    • (They Long to Be) Close to You
  3. Thomas Blount’s Glossographia, published in 1656, was what?
    • Atlas in colour
    • Bible in English
    • English Dictionary
  4. Prior to colliding with the ice berg, where had been RMS Titanic’s last port of call?
    • Cherbourg, France
    • Queenstown, Ireland
    • Southampton, England
  5. What 1998 thriller was the first to carry Dan Brown’s name?
    • Angels & Demons
    • Deception Point
    • Digital Fortress

Good luck! I will post the answers later today.

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall! | Answers

The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.

Ronald Reagan speaking at the Brandenburg Gate on June 12, 1987. (Ronald Reagan Library).
US National Archives
  1. In a speech made on 12 June 1987, US President Ronald Reagan publicly challenged Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet leader, with the words quoted above. Where was the speech made?
    • Brandenburg Gate—On 12 June 1987, US President Ronald Reagan delivered a speech at the Brandenburg Gate, famously calling for Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall”. The speech, written by Peter Robinson, became a defining moment of the Cold War.
      Photo of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra.
      Image Wikipedia
  2. On this day in 1963, a film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton was released in the US. It was the most expensive film made at the time. What was it?
    • Cleopatra—is a 1963 American epic historical drama film about the struggles of Cleopatra VII of Egypt against Roman ambitions. The film, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, faced production delays, budget overruns, as well as an affair between the leads. Despite mixed reviews and initial financial losses, it became the highest-grossing film of 1963 and won four Academy Awards.
      Last known photo of Anne Frank, May 1942.
      Image Wikipedia
  3. On 12 June 1942, a now-famous diarist received a diary for their thirteenth birthday. Where did they live?
    • Amsterdam—Anne Frank, a German-born Jewish girl, documented her life in hiding during the German occupation of the Netherlands in a diary. The diary detailed her family’s life in an Amsterdam attic from 1942 until their arrest in 1944. Anne and her sister, Margot, were transferred from Auschwitz to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in November 1944, where they died of typhus a few months later.
      John Rhys-Davies as Sallah in the Indiana Jones franchise.
      Image
  4. Today in 1981, the first Indiana Jones film was released. Who played Sallah in Raiders of the Lost Ark and was also a main character in The Lord of the Rings trilogy?
    • John Rhys-Davies—Rhys-Davies, standing at 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m), played the dwarf Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
      John Rhys-Davies as Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
      Image Pinterest
  5. The Chaco War, which ended on 12 June 1935 with the signing of a ceasefire, involved which two nations? Bolivia and Paraguay—The Gran Chaco region, known in Spanish as Chaco Boreal, was the site of this conflict between Bolivia and Paraguay from 1932 to 1935. The dispute centred on control of the northern part of the region, which was believed to be rich in oil.

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

Here are a few questions which are related to today’s date, 12 June.

Berlin Wall in Bethaniendamm. The West Berlin side brightly painted, 1986.
Image Wikipedia

Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate!

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

  1. In a speech made on 12 June 1987, US President Ronald Reagan publicly challenged Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet leader, with the words quoted above. Where in Berlin was the speech made?
    • Brandenburg Gate
    • Reichstag
    • Schloss Charlottenburg
  2. On this day in 1963, a film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton was released in the US. It was the most expensive film made at the time. What was it?
    • America America
    • Ben Hur
    • Cleopatra
  3. On 12 June 1942, a now-famous diarist received a diary for their thirteenth birthday. Where did they live?
    • Amsterdam
    • Berlin
    • Cologne
  4. Today in 1981, the first Indiana Jones film was released. Who played Sallah in Raiders of the Lost Ark and was also a main character in The Lord of the Rings trilogy?
    • John Rhys-Davies
    • Denholm Elliott
    • Wolf Kahler
  5. The Chaco War, which ended on 12 June 1935 with the signing of a ceasefire, involved which two nations?
    • Angola and South Africa
    • Bolivia and Paraguay
    • China and Burma

Good luck! I will post the answers later today.

Six of one half a dozen of the other | Answers

The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.

Portrait of Henry VIII, c1540-1547.
Catherine of Aragon c. 1525.
  1. Henry VIII of England married for the first time on 11 June 1509, his bride, Catherine of Aragon, was his…
    • Sister-in-law—Catherine of Aragon, who was married to Arthur, Prince of Wales, became a widow at 16 when Arthur died of sweating sickness. After her father-in-law, Henry VII’s, death, Catherine married his second son, now King Henry VIII, in a private ceremony in 1509, becoming Queen of England.
      Memorial at Le Mans.
      Image Wikipedia
  2. The deadliest ever accident in motor sport occurred on this day in 1955. It happened during…
    • 24 Hours of Le Mans—The 1955 Le Mans disaster, the most catastrophic event in motorsport history, occurred when a Mercedes-Benz crashed into the spectator area, killing at least 82 people. The official inquiry blamed the track layout rather than the drivers.
  3. In 173, the Roman army was encircled by the Quadi, who had broken a peace treaty. Emperor Marcus Aurelius defeated them in a thunderstorm. This ‘miracle in the rain’ is depicted at the start of the film Gladiator (2000). During what war or wars had the actual battle taken place?
    • Marcomannic Wars—Gladiator (2000) depicts Marcus Aurelius seizing victory in the Marcomannic Wars. In reality, the war was ongoing when he died. Commodus secured peace with the two Germanic tribes allied against Rome, the Marcomanni and the Quadi, immediately after his father’s death.
      Hugh Laurie and House executive producers Katie Jacobs and David Shore, 2009.
      Image Wikipedia
  4. Which actor born 11 June 1959, links these: Prince Regent to House to Roper. Who is he?
    • Hugh Laurie—An English actor, comedian, singer, musician, and writer. He gained recognition as part of the comedy duo Fry and Laurie, and later starred as Dr. Gregory House in the medical drama series House (2004-2012).  He has also appeared in films, released blues albums and written a novel.  Pertinent to the question, as well as House his roles include George, Prince Regent in Blackadder III (1987) and Richard Onslow Roper in The Night Manager (2016).
      Millicent Fawcett.
      Image Wikipedia
  5. Born this day in 1847, who became the first woman honoured by a statue in Parliament Square, London, UK?
    • Millicent Fawcett—The statue of Dame Millicent Fawcett, a prominent leader in the women’s suffrage movement, was erected in Parliament Square to commemorate the centenary of women’s suffrage in the UK. The statue, created by Gillian Wearing, depicts Dame Millicent at age 50, holding a banner with a quote from a speech she made after Emily Davison’s death. The statue creates another first: the sculptor, Gillian Wearing, being the first woman to create a statue that stands in Parliament Square.