Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) and Answers on World History
Question 1: Who authored the Declaration of Independence (USA)?
a) George Washington
b) Benjamin Franklin
c) Thomas Jefferson
d) Calvin Coolidge
Answer: (c)
Question 2: Who among the following was the author of ‘Common Sense’ the revolutionary pamphlet of the American Revolution?
a) Thomas Paine
b) Thomas Jefferson
c) George Washington
d) Samuel Adams
Answer: (a)
Question 3: In which country did the Industrial Revolution begin in the year 1750?
a) France
b) Italy
c) Germany
d) England
Answer: (d)
Question 4: The International body which was formed in Europe in 1889 to coordinate the efforts socialists all over Europe was called
a) Social Democratic Party
b) Commune
c) Second International
d) Labour Party
Answer: (c)
Question 5: The scientist who first studied the world of microscopic life was?
a) Kepler
b) Bacon
c) Copernicus
d) Leeuwenhoek
Answer: (d)
Question 6: The outstanding city of the Italian Renaissance was
a) Milan
b) Rome
c) Turin
d) Florence
Answer: (d)
Question 7: The concepts in the Declaration of Independence are based on the ideas of the philosopher
a) Descartes
b) Hobbes
c) Smith
d) Locks
Answer: (d)
Question 8: The first Emperor of France was
a) Napoleon
b) Martel
c) Louis XIV
d) Charlemagne
Answer: (a)
Question 9: The Reign of Terror is associated with which country?
a) Germany
b) France
c) Italy
d) Britain
Answer: (a)
Question 10: The slogan ‘Liberty, Equality, Fraternity’ was actually given by the
a) Russian Revolution
b) French Revolution
c) American war of Independence
d) Industrial Revolution
Answer: (b)
Question 11: With which one of the following is the ‘Tennis court Oath’ associated?
a) English Revolution
b) American Revolution
c) French Revolution
d) Russian Revolution
Answer: (c)
Question 12: The cornerstone of English Democracy is the document known as the
a) Declaration of Independence
b) Rights of Man
c) Petition of Rights
d) Magna Carta
Answer: (d)
Question 13: The Russian Revolutionaries derived their ideology from the doctrines of
a) Lenin and Stalin
b) Marx and Lenin
c) Marx and Engels
d) Lenin and Engels
Answer: (c)
Question 14: The ruler who stated “I am the state” was
a) Louis XIV
b) Frederick the Great
c) Napoleon
d) Catherine the Great
Answer: (a)
Question 15: In which country did the first Marxist Revolution take place?
a) Germany
b) Italy
c) Great Britain
d) Russia
Answer: (d)
Question 16: Which of the following were the watch words of the French Revolution?
a) Right, Liberty and Equality
b) Liberty, Equality and Justice
c) Liberty, Equality and Fraternity
d) Right, Equality and Justice
Answer: (c)
Question 17: Napoleon was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo by armies under
a) Alexander
b) Bismarck
c) Metternich
d) Wellington
Answer: (d)
Question 18: Which one of the following countries never taken over by any European power as a colony?
a) Brunel
b) Indonesia
c) Thailand
d) Singapore
Answer: (c)
Question 19: The Provisional Government of 1917 was headed by
a) Alexander Karensky
b) VI Lenin
c) Prince Lvov
d) Joseph Stalin
Answer: (b)
Question 20: “Blood and Iron” was the political and economic policy of
a) Frederick the Great
b) Kaiser William I
c) Bismarck
d) Hitler
Answer: (b)
Question 21: The French people supported Napoleon because they hoped he would
a) adopt the ideas of the Protestant Reformation
b) restore Louis XIV to power
c) provide stability for the nation
d) end British control over France
Answer: (c)
Question 22: Which one among the following sums up Marx’s view about history?
a) History is a record of the wars between various people
b) History is a succession of struggle between the oppressor and the oppressed classes
c) History is a faithful record of the past events
d) None of these
Answer: (b)
Question 23: Which statement describes a direct effect of the Renaissance on Western Europe?
a) The philosophy of humanism brought about a decrease in the power of the Roman Catholic Church increased its power and wealth.
b) Art began to reflect an increased emphasis on religious themes
c) Nationalistic movements among the minority ethnic groups in the region declined
d) The feudal system was developed to provide stability in a decentralised political structure
Answer: (a)
Question 24: “Christians should be taught that he who gives a poor man or lends to a needy man does better than if he used the money to buy an indulgence.”
a) Commercial Revolution
b) Industrial Revolution
c) Renaissance
d) Protestant Reformation
Answer: (d)
Question 25: Which statements is a valid generalisation about the immediate results of the French Revolution of 1789?
a) The Roman Catholic Church increased its power and wealth
b) The Revolution achieved its goal of establishing peace, democracy and justice for all
c) The Revolution had little impact outside France
d) The French middle class gained more power
Answer: (d)
Question 26: A primary purpose for building the Suez Canal was to
a) encourage Jewish settlement in the nearby Palestine
b) increase trade between the Middle East, Europe and Asia
c) reduce the time needed for travel between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea
d) allow Indian merchants to reach the east coast of Africa
Answer: (b)
Question 27: Which statement concerning the Renaissance in Europe is based on opinion rather than on fact?
a) Literature began to appear in languages other than Latin
b) The art of the Northern Renaissance was superior to that of the Italian Renaissance
c) Art reflected the ideas of humanism and individualism
d) Art produced during the Renaissance had religious as well as secular themes
Answer: (b)
Question 28: The Sepoy mutiny in India, the Boxer Rebellion in China and the Islamic Revolution in were similar in that they
a) restored power to the hereditary monarchies
b) attempted to reject the traditional cultures in these countries
c) resisted foreign influence in these countries
d) reestablish the power of religious leaders
Answer: (c)
Question 29: An analysis of the Russo-Japanese War and the Boer War shows that one reasons nations go to war is to
a) assist oppressed people
b) spread religious beliefs
c) satisfy imperialist goals
d) honour provisions of a treaty
Answer: (c)
Question 30: The Great Leap Forward in China and the five-year plans in the Soviet Union were attempts to increase
a) private capital investments
b) religious tolerance
c) individual ownership of land
d) industrial productivity
Answer: (d)
Question 31: In the Renaissance period, which factor was emphasised by the philosophy of humanism?
a) Superiority of medieval thought
b) Devotion to religion
c) Value of the individual
d) Obedience to the government officials
Answer: (c)
Question 32: Which statement best describes a change that occurred during both the Renaissance and the Enlightenment?
a) Feudalism became the dominant political system
b) The use of reason and logic were discouraged
c) Technology and science were considered unimportant
d) A new questioning spirit and attitude emerged
Answer: (d)
Question 33: During the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment, one similarity in the work of many scientists and philosophers was that they
a) relied heavily on the ideas of medieval thinkers
b) favoured an improving economic conditions
c) received support from the Catholic Church
d) examined natural laws governing the universe
Answer: (d)
Question 34: In which region of the world did the American Revolution and the French Revolution have the greatest influence during the 1980’s?
a) Southeast Asia
b) Latin America
c) South Asia
d) Sub-Saharan Africa
Answer: (b)
Question 35: Simon Bolivar and Miguel Hidalgo, leaders of Latin American Independence Movements, were inspired by successful revolutions in
a) the United States and France
b) the Soviet Union and China
c) Cuba and Costa Rica
d) Egypt and Kenya
Answer: (a)
Question 36: Which quotation best reflects a feeling of nationalism?
a) ”An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”
b) “A person’s greatest social obligation is loyalty to the family”
c) ”For God, King and country”
d) ”Opposition to evil is as much a duty as its cooperation with good”
Answer: (c)
Question 37: The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains ____ workers of the world, unitel. This statement was made in response to conditions resulting from the
a) Protestant Reformation
b) Counter Reformation
c) Commercial Revolution
d) Industrialisation Revolution
Answer: (d)
Question 38: ”Congress of Vienna Restores Monarchy to France”
“Czar Nicholas I Limits Freedom of the Russian Press”
“Reform Movements Crushed in Hungary, Italy, and the German States”.
These headlines could be described as
a) reactions to the French Revolution
b) movements to unify all of Western Europe
c) efforts to improve the conditions of factory workers
d) attempts to promote trade between European Nations
Answer: (a)
Question 39: A main idea of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles’ Communist Manifesto is that the proletariat
a) would need foreign help to achieve its revolutionary ends
b) had to cooperate with the capitalists to gain economic rewards
c) should allow the capitalists to control the means of production
d) must unite to overthrow the capitalist class
Answer: (d)
Question 40: The modernisation of Japan during the Meiji Restoration resulted in
a) a return to a feudal system of government
b) the rise of Japan as an imperialistic nation
c) an alliance between China, Korea, Russia and Japan
d) strengthening of Japan’s isolationist policies
Answer: (b)
Question 41: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. “The ideas expressed in the quotation are based primarily on the writings of
a) Niccolo Machiavelli
b) Charles Darwin
c) Charle Magne
d) John Locke
Answer: (d)
Question 42: Which of the following is correctly matched?
a) First Anglo-Burmese War : 1775
b) First Anglo-Afghan War : 1838
c) First Anglo-Maratha War : 1775
d) Second Anglo-Mysore War : 1780
Answer: (a)
Question 43: Which among the following is/are the impact/impacts of industrial revolution in England?
a) Cottage industry was replaced by the factory system of production using machines
b) It led to the overpopulation of villages
c) Both ‘a’ and ‘b’
d) None of these
Answer: (c)
Question 44: Which of the following statements about Industrial Revolution in Europe is not correct?
a) Britain was the first country to experience the Industrial Revolution
b) From the 1780, the iron industry symbolised the British Industrial Revolution
c) England was fortunate as coal and iron resources were plentifully available, as were other minerals-lead, copper and tin-that were used in the industry
d) None of these
Answer: (b)
Question 45: What is the correct chronological order in which the historical personalities visited India?
a) Abdur Razzak-Edordo Zarbosa-Marco Polo-Nicolo di Conti
b) Marco Polo- Nicolo di Conti- Abdur Razzak-Edordo Zarbosa
c) Abdur Razzak-Edordo Zarbosa Marco Polo- Nicolo di Conti
d) Abdur Razzak Marco Polo-Nicolo di Conti Edordo Zarbosa
Answer: (b)
Question 46: Which of the following statements regarding the American Revolution is/are correct?
a) The American Revolution was a conflict between British settlers and native Americans
b) The Americans refused to pay taxes imposed by the British Parliament in which the Americans had no representation
c) Both ‘a’ and ‘b’
c) None of these
Answer: (c)
Question 47: Which of the following is correctly matched?
a) Mesopotamian Civilisation : Iraq
b) Egyptian Civilisation : Egypt
c) Chinese Civilisation : China
d) Harappan Civilisation : Iraq
Answer: (d)
Question 48: Which of the following statements related to the Boston Tea Party of 16th December, 1773 during the American War of Independence is correct?
a) The Revolutionaries stealthily entered into the ships and threw all the chests of tea into the water
b) The Revolutionaries hosted a tea party in the honour of Charles Townshend in order to place their grievances before him
c) It was a protest against the Quebec Act
d) None of these
Answer: (a)
Question 49: “A country is not merely a geographic territory. A country is also the idea given birth by the geographic territory. A country is a sense of love that unites, as one, all the sons and daughters of that geographic territory “. This quotation supports the idea of
a) totalitarian rule
b) absolute monarchy
c) mercantilism
d) nationalism
Answer: (d)
Question 50: Which of the following statements about Vasco-de-Gama is/are correct?
a) He founded a new route to India and in 1498 reached Calicut
b) He founded a factory at Cannanore during his second visit to India in 1501
c) Both ‘a’ and ‘b’
d) None of these
Answer: (c)