World War I Quiz

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About This Quiz

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the event that launched the world into a war that would span more than four years and occupy every ocean and nearly every continent of the world. But do you know which terrorist group was responsible for the assassination of Ferdinand?

This was the war that pitted the Central Powers (Germany. Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire) against the eventual winners, the Allied forces. But with advancements in warfare strategy and military technology, more than 16 million people, soldier and civilian alike, died by the end of the war, leaving many to wonder if there ever was a winner.Â

This was the war to end all wars, yet would sadly be repeated with even worse carnage 20 years later. How much do you know about the first world war? Well, you're about to test your limits. Do you know which weapon discovered by the Greeks was never implemented in warfare until World War I? Or, can you recall the nickname for the famous German fighter ace later parodied by a comical dog?

The history of World War I is a horrific time in history, but thanks to buffs like you, we'll be cautioned against repeating the past. Are you ready to arm the trenches and take up this quiz? It's time to lead the attack!

While World War I was fought from 1914-1918 on every ocean and on almost every continent, where did most of the fighting take place?

South Pacific

Australia

Russia

Europe

What weapon, patented in the US in 1884, was introduced to widespread use in WWI?

Uzi

Machine gun

M79 grenade launcher

H-2 Seasprite helicopter

What was the nickname of Mafred von Richthofen, World War I's leading fighter ace?

Bomber George

The Balloon Buster

The Red Baron

Cockney Sparrow

Which of the following was NOT a nickname for World War I?

The Great War

The War of the Nations

The War to End All Wars

The War Unlike Previous Wars

What was the original name for "tanks?"

Chiefs

Sparkies

Bablu

Landships

What was the term coined to describe the reaction of some soldiers in WWI to the trauma of battle?

Postconcussional syndrome

Blunt trauma

Shell shock

Combat fatigue

What was the name of the terrorist group responsible for the assassination of Franz Ferdinand?

Party of Free Life

Red Brigades

Black Hand Sarajevo

Tanzim

What is the name for the land warfare that uses occupied fighting lines and a no-man's-line between two enemies?

Trench warfare

Blitzkrieg

Siege warfare

Tunnel warfare

What does the German word "Schrecklichkeit" refer to in the context of WWI?

The German tactic of blockading the British Royal Navy

Germany's war policy, intended to terrify civilians in occupied areas so that they would not rebel.

Germany's intention for the war to be over within a few months.

Which of the following war terms originated in WWI?

Dogfight

Scuttling

Parthian shot

Rampart

When did World War I start?

January 1, 1914

July 28, 1914

March 7, 1915

August 28, 1917

When did World War I end?

January 13, 1914

March 29, 1916

November 11, 1918

June 23, 1919

Britain entered the war in response to Germany's invasion of which neutral country?

France

Belgium

Switzerland

Serbia

What was the name given to the combined military forces of Russia, Britain, and France?

Triple Alliance

Allied Powers

Central Powers

Triple Entente

Which of the following is NOT an empire that collapsed after WWI?

Ottoman

Austro-Hungarian

British

German

Which country did Germany offer an alliance in the infamous Zimmerman Telegram?

Mexico

Canada

United States

Cuba

Approximately how many men fought in World War I?

5 million

15 million

30 million

65 million

Which battle was notable for over a million soldiers killed, and for the first use of the tank?

Battle of Neuve Chapelle

Battle of the Somme

Battle of Gorizia

Battle of Amiens

In what year did the unofficial Christmas truce take place?

1914

1915

1916

1917

What was the real name of the woman best known as Mata Hari, the Dutch exotic dancer accused of being a double agent?

Famke Janssen

Britt Eklund

Margaretha Zelle

Doutzen Kroes

As part of the Treaty of Versailles, which country infamously accepted responsibility for "all the loss and damage" of the war?

Austria-Hungary

Serbia

Germany

France

Despite first being used by the Greeks in the 1st century AD, which weapon didn't come into use in modern times until World War I?

Flamethrowers

Grenades

Submarines

Tanks

What was the total cost of World War I for the US?

$103 million

$1 billion

$23 billion

$113 billion

What was the first country to use tear gas grenades against enemy troops in WWI?

France

Russia

United States

Italy

What was the most widely used chemical weapon leveraged in WWI, and often cited as the most effective?

Tear gas

Urotropine

Mustard gas

Phosgene

Approximately how many total civilian and military casualties, including deaths and serious injuries, are attributed to World War I?

5 million

10 million

20 million

35 million

When did US troops fight their first battle of WWI, near the vIillage of Cantigny, France?

December 13, 1915

April 4, 1914

August 22, 1916

November 2, 1917

Which type of animal was prominently used in World War I?

Dogs

Pigeons

Both

Neither

When and where did the Battle of Verdun take place?

June 1915, along the Italian Front

July, 1915, on the Gallipoli peninsula

September 1918, in the Flanders region of Belgium

February-December 1916, in north-eastern France

Which country exited the war in March 1918 by signing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?

France

United States

Italy

Russia

What was "Little Willie?"

A famous messenger dog used in battle.

An advanced submarine that was very difficult to detect.

The first prototype tank in WWI.

The nickname for a 48-ton howitzer gun.

Which of the following WWI battles came first chronologically?

Battle of Tannenberg

Battle of Verdun

Battle of Ypres

Battle of Caporetta

How many ships were sunk by German U-boats between 1914 and 1918?

6,596

1,265

3,374

5,003

What was the name of the British nurse who saved soldiers from all sides and become a popular propaganda figure?

Sienna Guillory

Anna Popplewell

Edith Cavell

Rachel Weisz

What was Big Bertha, a nickname for a short gun for firing shells on high trajectories at low velocities, named after?

It was an informal nickname given by the gun operators that just stuck.

It was named after the wife of the weapon's designer.

The nickname was somehow derived from the Czech word "DobÅ™e."

How many African Americans served in World War I?

More than 200,000

Approximately 100,000

Approximately 75,000

Less than 10,000

What happened in World War I to create what's known today as The Pool of Peace in Belgium?

200 tons of TNT ignited in a gunpowder mill near Faversham, Kent.

The British Army detonated a mine that was 88 feet deep, containing 91,000 lbs of ammonal explosive.

In Jersey City, New Jersy, German agents sabotaged approximately 1,000 tons of explosives bound for Europe, causing the Black Tom explosion.

Torpedoes from the British destroyer HMS Onslaught broke the German ship SMS Pommern in half during the Battle of Jutland.

Which battle is renowned as one of the greatest Ottoman victories during the war and a defining moment in the nation's history?

Battle of Gallipoli

Battle of Cantigny

Battle of Pozières

Siege of Tsingtau

Which of the following is NOT one of the ways soldiers were instructed to protect themselves against poisonous gas attacks?

Hold urine-soaked cloth over their faces.

Use a gas mask with filter respirators.

Wear safety goggles and hold their breath.

Which battle, also known as the Third Battle of Picardy, was the opening phase of the Allied strategy later known as the Hundred Days Offensive?

Battle of Amiens

Battle of Nasiriyeh

Battle of Lone Pine

Samarrah Offensive