Tag: ancient Egypt

  • Randomness — Answers

    Here’s the answers to my earlier questions.

    Elvis at Prestwick Airport, 3 March 1960. See question four.
    Image Daily Record.


    No date-related theme today, just five very random questions for you to ponder.

    One

    Johann Ludwig Burckhardt is best known for rediscovering two of the world’s best-known examples of rock-cut architecture in Jordan in 1812 and Egypt the following year. What are these examples of rock-cut architecture?

    Answers: Petra and Abu Simbel.

    Johann Ludwig Burckhardt (1784 – 1817) was a Swiss traveller, geographer and Orientalist. During his travels in Arabia, he adopted the alias Sheikh Ibrahim Ibn Abdallah and wrote his letters in French, signing them Louis. He is best known for rediscovering two of the world’s most famous examples of rock-cut architecture: the ruins of Petra, an ancient Nabataean city in Jordan, and the temples of Abu Simbel in Egypt. Petra remained unknown to the Western world until 1812, when Burckhardt rediscovered it. The Great Temple at Abu Simbel remained unknown to Europeans until March 1813, when Burckhardt found the small temple and top frieze of the main temple.


    Two

    ‘I can resist everything except temptation’ is a line from what play and who wrote it?

    Answer: Lady Windermere’s Fan, A Play About a Good Woman by Oscar Wilde.

    Lady Windermere’s Fan, A Play About a Good Woman is a four-act comedy by Oscar Wilde, debuting on 20 February 1892 at London’s St James’s Theatre. Lady Windermere suspects her husband of infidelity and plans to leave him for Lord Darlington. Mrs. Erlynne, the other woman, intervenes, revealing herself as Lady Windermere’s mother. She sacrifices her reputation to save the marriage, allowing Lady Windermere to return to her husband unnoticed.


    Three

    What religious organisation was founded by Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer y Alba?

    Answer: Opus Dei.

    Opus Dei, founded in 1928 by Josemaría Escrivá, is a Catholic Church personal prelature promoting holiness through daily life. Approved by the Holy See in 1950 and affirmed in 1982, it faces controversy over abuse allegations. Members, mostly laypeople, engage in secular careers and spiritual training globally.


    Four

    Elvis Presley and the beginnings of Open Golf are both linked to what town?

    Answer: Prestwick.

    Prestwick, a town in South Ayrshire on Scotland’s west coast, is approximately 30 miles (50 kilometres) southwest of Glasgow. The Prestwick Old Course hosted the inaugural Open Golf Championship in 1860 and was the venue for the first twelve Open Championships from 1860 to 1872, although the event did not take place in 1871. During World War II, the US Army Air Corps set up and maintained a base at the airport. Elvis Presley made his only visit to the UK on 3 March 1960 when his US Army transport aircraft stopped at the airport for refuelling en route from Germany.


    Five

    Who in 1762 succeeded Peter III, Emperor of Russia, and what relationship was the successor to Peter?

    Answers: Catherine II (the Great); his wife.

    Peter III, Emperor of Russia for six months in 1762, was overthrown by his wife, Catherine the Great. Despite implementing notable reforms, he is criticised for his alliance with Prussia.
    On 28 June 1762, Catherine was proclaimed heir to the Russian throne. Peter attempted to flee to Kronstadt but was repelled by the fleet’s cannons. The people of St. Petersburg armed themselves against him. After losing support from the Senate, army, and fleet, Peter was arrested and abdicated on 9 July. He was transported to Ropsha, where he died under mysterious circumstances. Officially, he died from haemorrhoidal colic and a stroke, but assassination is suspected. Some accounts suggest suffocation attempts followed by strangulation. He was buried on 3 August 1762 in the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, Saint Petersburg.


  • Randomness

    Elvis, see question four.
    Image Daily Record.


    No date-related theme today, just five very random questions for you to ponder.

    One

    Johann Ludwig Burckhardt is best known for rediscovering two of the world’s best-known examples of rock-cut architecture in Jordan in 1812 and Egypt the following year. What are these examples of rock-cut architecture?


    Two

    ‘I can resist everything except temptation’ is a line from what play and who wrote it?


    Three

    What religious organisation was founded by Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer y Alba?


    Four

    Elvis Presley and the beginnings of Open Golf are both linked to what town?


    Five

    Who in 1762 succeeded Peter III, Emperor of Russia, and what relationship was the successor to Peter?


    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.


  • “Only one man in a thousand is a leader of men — the other 999 follow women.” | Answers

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

    George III of Great Britain.
    Image Google Art Project/Wikipedia
    1. The American colonies gained independence during the reign of which British king?
      • George III—George III’s reign (1760–1820) saw the British Empire expand during the Seven Years’ War but shrink with the loss of the American colonies. The Napoleonic Wars solidified Britain’s position as a European power.
        Charles De Gaulle, 1942.
        Image Wikipedia
    2. Who was the Chairman of the French National Committee from June 1940 until June 1944 during World War II?
      • Charles De Gaulle—Charles de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II. He later founded the Fifth Republic, served as its first President, and pursued a policy of “national independence” that included withdrawing from NATO and developing an independent nuclear force. De Gaulle also advocated for a Europe of sovereign nations and opposed US intervention in Vietnam.
        Ptolemaic Kingdom in the 3rd–2nd centuries BCE.
        Image Wikipedia
    3. The Ptolemaic dynasty ruled Ancient Egypt from 305 BC until 30 BC. Where served as the Ptolemy’s capital city?
      • Alexandria—Alexandria had been founded by Alexander the Great. After Alexander’s death, Ptolemy Lagides took control of Egypt, executed Cleomenes, and declared himself Pharaoh in 305 BC, moving the capital to Alexandria.
        Leif Erikson, modern statue, Duluth.
        Image Wikipedia
    4. A Norse chieftain is thought to have been the first European to set foot on continental America, who is he?
      • Leif Erikson—Leif Erikson, a Norse explorer, is believed to have been the first European to reach continental America, establishing a settlement in Vinland (possibly Newfoundland, Canada). He later became chief of the Greenland settlement after his father’s death.
    5. Arrange these three assassins in chronological order based on the date of their infamous assassinations (earliest first).
      • John Bellingham (1812), Charles Julius Guiteau (1881) and Nathuram Vinayak Godse (1948)—
        • Bellingham assassinated Spencer Perceval, a British statesman and barrister who served as Prime Minister from 1809 until his assassination in 1812. He is the only British prime minister to have been assassinated.
        • Guiteau assassinated James Garfield, the 20th US president, who served from March to his death in September 1881. Garfield had a diverse background, having served as a preacher, lawyer, Civil War general, and nine terms in the House of Representatives.
        • Godse assassinated Mahatma Gandhi, an Indian lawyer and anti-colonial nationalist, in 1948. Gandhi led India’s independence movement through nonviolent resistance and championed civil rights, religious pluralism, and self-sufficiency, inspiring global movements. Godse, a Hindu nationalist, opposed Gandhi’s support for Muslims and shot him.

  • “Only one man in a thousand is a leader of men — the other 999 follow women.”

    Groucho Marx.
    Publicity portrait, 1947.
    Image Wikipedia

    Today’s post title, a quote by Groucho Marx, is only slightly relevant to these questions about leaders and rulers.

    1. The American colonies gained independence during the reign of which British king?
      • George I
      • George II
      • George III
    2. Who was the Chairman of the French National Committee from June 1940 until June 1944 during World War II?
      • Charles De Gaulle
      • Félix Gouin
      • Philippe Pétain
    3. The Ptolemaic dynasty ruled Ancient Egypt from 305 BC until 30 BC. Where served as the Ptolemy’s capital city?
      • Alexandria
      • Memphis
      • Thebes
    4. A Norse chieftain is thought to have been the first European to set foot on continental America, who is he?
      • Leif Erikson
      • Erik Thorvaldsson
      • Thorstein Eiriksson
    5. Arrange these three assassins in chronological order based on the date of their infamous assassinations (earliest first).
      • Charles Julius Guiteau
      • John Bellingham
      • Nathuram Godse

    Good luck! I will post the answers later today.