General Awareness ยท History

Historical Dates and Firsts

2,390 Questions

Historical dates and firsts questions test your memory of significant global milestones in sports, science, technology, and literature. These factual questions appear regularly in SSC, banking, and state PSC general awareness papers. Use these questions to quickly memorize important historical events and their exact years.

Inventions and launchesSports world firstsHistorical prize awardsTechnology milestones

Historical Dates and Firsts Questions

Multiple choice

Cement (Portland) was invented in the year

  1. 1820

  2. 1830

  3. 1824

  4. 1840
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Joseph Aspdin patented Portland cement in 1824. He named it Portland cement because the concrete made from it resembled the stone quarried on the Isle of Portland.

Multiple choice

Electronic computer was invented in the year

  1. 1943

  2. 1940

  3. 1950

  4. 1960
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The Colossus, considered the first electronic digital programmable computer, was completed in 1943. It was used by British codebreakers during World War II.

Multiple choice

Electromagnet was invented in the year

  1. 1860

  2. 1824

  3. 1830

  4. 1840
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

William Sturgeon invented the first electromagnet in 1824. It consisted of a soft iron core wrapped with a coil of wire, which became magnetic when an electric current flowed through it.

Multiple choice

Film (musical sound) was invented in the year

  1. 1935

  2. 1920

  3. 1923

  4. 1940
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The first successful synchronized musical sound film, 'The Jazz Singer', was released in 1927, but the technology for sound-on-film was patented earlier, with 1923 marking the Phonofilm demonstration.

Multiple choice

Film (moving outlines) was invented in the year

  1. 1885

  2. 1888

  3. 1889

  4. 1880
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Louis Le Prince is credited with filming the first moving pictures, known as the Roundhay Garden Scene, in 1888, though early experiments and patents date to 1885.

Multiple choice

Bifocal lens was invented in the year

  1. 1780

  2. 1788

  3. 1789

  4. 1709
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Benjamin Franklin is credited with inventing bifocal lenses in 1780. He was tired of switching between two pairs of glasses for reading and distance.

Multiple choice

Celluloid was invented in the year

  1. 1860

  2. 1870

  3. 1887

  4. 1861
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Alexander Parkes invented celluloid, the first thermoplastic, in 1861. It was originally called Parkesine and was used as an early plastic material.

Multiple choice

Film (talking) was invented in the year

  1. 1930

  2. 1922

  3. 1920

  4. 1940
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The first public demonstration of a talking film, the Phonofilm, occurred in 1922. This technology allowed sound to be recorded directly onto the film strip.

Multiple choice

Fountain pen was invented in the year

  1. 1886

  2. 1880

  3. 1889

  4. 1884
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Lewis Waterman patented the first practical fountain pen with an integrated ink reservoir and feed system in 1884. This solved the problem of uneven ink flow.

Multiple choice

Glider was invented in the year

  1. 1853

  2. 1840

  3. 1846

  4. 1850
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Sir George Cayley, known as the father of aviation, built the first successful manned glider in 1853. His work established the principles of flight.

Multiple choice

When was the 'Communist Manifesto' written?

  1. 1968

  2. 1848

  3. 1840

  4. 1980
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Communist Manifesto was written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels and published in 1848. It served as the political platform for the Communist League.