History · General Awareness

Ancient and World History

4,979 Questions

Ancient and world history covers the rise and fall of major civilizations, their cultural practices, and their administrative developments. Topics span from the Persian and Byzantine empires to the architectural marvels of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. This collection of practice questions is tailored for candidates preparing for history and general studies sections.

Ancient CivilizationsMilitary TacticsByzantine EmpirePersian EmpireCultural Blending

Ancient and World History Questions

Multiple choice

Which civilization was built and developed on the banks of the Tiber river?

  1. Russian Civilisation

  2. Roman Civilisation

  3. Arian Civilisation

  4. Indus Valley Civilisation
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Roman civilization was founded on the banks of the Tiber River in central Italy. Rome's legendary founding dates to 753 BCE along the Tiber, which provided water, transportation, and fertile soil for agricultural development.

Multiple choice

Alexander defeated porus in 326 BC at the battle of

  1. Panipat

  2. Tarain

  3. Thaneswar

  4. Hydaspes
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The Battle of Hydaspes was fought in 326 BC between Alexander's army and King Porus of the Paurava kingdom. The battle took place on the banks of the Hydaspes River (modern-day Jhelum River in Pakistan). Alexander won this battle but was so impressed by Porus's bravery that he allowed him to continue ruling his kingdom.

Multiple choice

Why did the Admiral circumnavigate Africa?

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions that follows.

Before telling how the ancients got to know that part of the world with which they finally became acquainted when the Roman Empire was at its greatest extent, it is as well to get some idea of the successive stages of their knowledge, leaving for the next chapter the story of how that knowledge was obtained. As in most branches of organised knowledge, it is to the Greeks that we owe our association with ancient views of this subject. In the early stages, they possibly learned something from the Phœnicians, who were the great traders and sailors of ancient times and who coasted along the Mediterranean, passed through the Straits of Gibraltar, and traded with the British Isles, which they visited for the tin found in Cornwall. It is even said that one of their admirals, at the command of Necho, King of Egypt, circumnavigated Africa, for Herodotus reports that on the homeward voyage, the sun set in the sea on the right hand. But the Phœnicians kept their geographical knowledge to themselves as a trade secret, and the Greeks learned, but little from them.

  1. He did so by his own wish.

  2. He wanted to rule Africa.

  3. He did so by the command of Necho.

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The line 'It is even said that one of their admirals, at the command of Necho .... homeward voyage the sun set in the sea on the right hand' suggests the answer. 

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

It was after the period of Homer and Hesiod that the first great expansion of Greek knowledge about the world began, through the extensive colonisation which was carried on by the Greeks around the Eastern Mediterranean. Even to this day the natives of the southern part of Italy speak a Greek dialect, owing to the wide extent of Greek colonies in that country, which used to be called "Magna Grecia", or "Great Greece". In the East, too, Greek cities were dotted along the coast of the Black Sea, one of which, Byzantium, was destined to be of world-historic importance. So, in North Africa too, and among the islands of the Ægean Sea, the Greeks colonised throughout the sixth and fifth centuries BC, and in almost every case, communication was kept up between the colonies and the mother-country.

What are Greek colonies referred to in the passage?

  1. Greece town

  2. Great Greek

  3. Magna Grecia

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

They were called "Magna Grecia", or "Great Greece".

Multiple choice

Who was the first emperor of Qin?

  1. Mيnnيng

  2. Quin Shi Huangdi

  3. Hَnglى

  4. Hong Taiiji
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Qin Shi Huang (259-210 BCE) was the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. He is credited with unifying China in 221 BCE and beginning the construction of the Great Wall. The correct spelling is 'Qin Shi Huang' - the option B has a typo spelling it as 'Quin Shi Huangdi'.

Multiple choice

“Zero” as a numeral was discovered in the second century BC by the

  1. Arabs

  2. Egyptians

  3. Greeks

  4. Indians
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Zero as a complete number with arithmetic properties was developed by Indian mathematicians. Brahmagupta formalized zero's use in the 7th century CE, explaining operations like addition and subtraction with zero. While Babylonians used a placeholder symbol, Indians were the first to treat zero as a number in its own right.

Multiple choice

Export trade in pre-Gupta age was most extensive with:

  1. South-east Asia

  2. Roman Empire

  3. Central Asia

  4. China
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

During the pre-Gupta period (roughly 200 BCE - 300 CE), the Roman Empire had the most extensive maritime trade with India, particularly through the Red Sea ports. The discovery of Roman coin hoards and the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea document this robust trade relationship. While trade existed with Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and China, Roman trade was unmatched in volume and value.

Multiple choice

Our information regarding Alexander's invasion is derived from the account left by three of the following. Point the odd one out:

  1. Diodorus

  2. Ctesias

  3. Nearchus

  4. Plutarch
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Diodorus Siculus, Ctesias of Cnidos, and Nearchus were contemporaries of Alexander the Great who wrote firsthand accounts of his campaigns. Plutarch, however, wrote 'Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans' nearly 150 years after Alexander's death (c. 46-120 CE). His biography of Alexander is derived from earlier sources, making him the odd one out among these ancient writers.

Multiple choice

Alexander the great fought with Porus in the battlefield of Kari on

  1. The bank of the Jehium

  2. The banks of the Ravi

  3. The banks of the Beas

  4. The banks of the Sutlej
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The Battle of the Hydaspes was fought on the banks of the Jhelum River (called 'Jehium' here, likely a typo for Jhelum/Jehlum) between Alexander and King Porus.

Multiple choice

Which was the last feudal dynasty to rule China?

  1. Hong Chu

  2. Manchu

  3. Chiang

  4. Kaisher
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Qing Dynasty (also called the Manchu Dynasty) was China's last feudal imperial dynasty, ruling from 1644 until 1912 when the Republic of China was established. The Manchus were an ethnic group from northeast China who conquered China and established the Qing.

Multiple choice

Who were the first to call the river Sindhu, ' Hindu' ?

  1. Persians

  2. Greeks

  3. Turks

  4. Egyptians
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The ancient Persians were the first to refer to the river Sindhu as 'Hindu' because their language did not have the 's' sound, so they replaced it with 'h'. This term later evolved into 'Hindu' and 'India'.

Multiple choice

Which of the following civilisations had the features of being well planned with well built towns?

  1. Vedic Civilisation

  2. Indus Valley Civilisation

  3. Egyptian Civilisation

  4. Persian Civilisation
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan civilization) is renowned for its advanced urban planning with grid-based street layouts, sophisticated drainage systems, and standardized baked brick construction. Vedic civilization was primarily rural with no major cities.

Multiple choice

Who built the 'Hanging Gardens' of Babylon?

  1. Nebuchadnezzar

  2. Augustus

  3. Demetrius

  4. Ptolemy Philadelphus I
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

King Nebuchadnezzar II (605-562 BCE) of the Neo-Babylonian Empire built the Hanging Gardens for his wife Amytis of Media, who missed the green hills of her homeland. The Gardens were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Augustus was a Roman emperor, Demetrius was a Greek general, and Ptolemy Philadelphus I ruled Egypt.

Multiple choice

The potter's wheel was first used in

  1. Mesopotamia

  2. China

  3. Egypt

  4. India
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The potter's wheel was invented in Mesopotamia around 3500 BCE during the Ubaid period, revolutionizing pottery production. This invention allowed for faster, more uniform pottery production. While other civilizations later developed pottery techniques, Mesopotamia was the first to use the wheel. China and Egypt developed significant pottery traditions later, and India's pottery came even later.