World History MCQs
World History Multiple Choice Quiz Questions (MCQs) on Ancient World History, Medieval World History and Modern World History for various UPSC, PCS and other Competitive Examinations.
21. Which of the following is / are correct statements regarding the ‘Washington Consensus’?
- The consensus in Washington about matters of foreign policy.
- The ten-point guideline to liberal economic reform for development around the world
- The ten-point guideline for economic growth in Europe
Select the correct answer from the codes given below:
[A] Only 1
[B] Only 2
[C] Only 2 & 3
[D] Only 3
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Only 2 & 3]
Notes:
The term ‘Washington consensus’ originally referred to a set of policy advice on liberal economic reform being addressed by the Washington-based institutions to Latin America. Nowadays is often used interchangeably with the phrase American ‘neo-liberal policies’.
22. Which revolution was formally brought to an end through the “Coup of 18 Brumaire”?
[A] American Revolution
[B] French Revolution
[C] Russian Revolution
[D] Serbian Revolution
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [French Revolution]
Notes:
The coup of 18 Brumaire was happened on 9 November 1799 in France, which brought General Napoleon Bonaparte to power as First Consul of France and in view of most historians ended the French Revolution. This bloodless coup overthrew the Directory, replacing it with the French Consulate.
23. The “Algerian War (1954 to 1962)” was fought to gain the independence of Algeria from which country?
[A] United Kingdom
[B] Portugal
[C] France
[D] Spain
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [France ]
Notes:
The Algerian War, also known as the Algerian War of Independence or the Algerian Revolution or the War of 1 November, was fought between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria winning its independence from France. It was an important decolonization war, it was a complex conflict characterized by guerrilla warfare, maquis fighting, and the use of torture. The conflict also became a civil war between the different communities and within the communities. The war took place mainly on the territory of Algeria, with repercussions in metropolitan France.
24. Which country’s historical period was “Belle Epoque”?
[A] France
[B] Netherlands
[C] Italy
[D] Germany
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [France]
Notes:
Belle Epoque or La Belle Epoque is the term used to define a period of French history from 1880 to 1914 until the outbreak of World War I. This marked the era of the French Third Republic. This period was characterized by optimism, regional peace, economic prosperity, colonial expansion, and technological, scientific, and cultural innovations.
25. Which revolution was the theme for the famous painting “Liberty Leading the People”?
[A] Russian Revolution, 1917
[B] French Revolution, 1789
[C] French Revolution, 1830
[D] American Revolution, 1783
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [French Revolution, 1830]
Notes:
Liberty Leading the People is a painting by Eugene Delacroix commemorating the French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution of 1830, which toppled King Charles X of France. A woman of the people with a Phrygian cap personifying the concept of Liberty leads a varied group of people forward over a barricade and the bodies of the fallen, holding the flag of the French Revolution – the tricolour, which again became France’s national flag after these events – in one hand and brandishing a bayonetted musket with the other. The figure of Liberty is also viewed as a symbol of France and the French Republic known as Marianne.
26. Which country’s government was also known as the “Weimar Republic”?
[A] France
[B] Russia
[C] Germany
[D] Italy
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Germany]
Notes:
Germany’s government was also known as the “Weimar Republic”. The Weimar Republic, officially the German Reich (Deutsches Reich), was the German state from 1918 to 1933. As a term, it is an unofficial historical designation that derives its name from the city of Weimar, where its constituent assembly first took place. The official name of the republic remained the German Reich as it had been during the German Empire because of the German tradition of substates.
27. Which country’s political party was the “Nazi Party”?
[A] France
[B] Germany
[C] Italy
[D] Russia
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Germany]
Notes:
The National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP), commonly referred as the Nazi Party, was a far-right political party in Germany that was active between 1920 and 1945, that created and supported the ideology of National Socialism. The Nazi Party emerged from the German nationalist, racist and populist Freikorps paramilitary culture, which fought against the communist uprisings in post-World War I Germany. The party was created to draw workers away from communism and into nationalism. Initially, Nazi political strategy focused on anti-big business, anti-bourgeois, and anti-capitalist rhetoric, although this was later downplayed to gain the support of business leaders, and in the 1930s the party’s main focus shifted to antisemitic and anti-Marxist themes.
28. Which country was the location of the “Beer Hall Putsch”?
[A] France
[B] Italy
[C] Germany
[D] Russia
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Germany]
Notes:
Germany was the location of the “Beer Hall Putsch”. The Beer Hall Putsch, also known as the Munich Putsch or the Hitlerputsch or the Hitler–Ludendorff-Putsch, was a failed coup d’etat by the Nazi Party (NSDAP) leader Adolf Hitler to seize power in Munich, Bavaria, which took place on 8–9 November 1923. Approximately two thousand Nazis were marching to the Feldherrnhalle, in the city centre, when they were confronted by a police cordon, which resulted in the deaths of 16 Nazi party members and four police officers. Hitler, who was wounded during the clash, escaped immediate arrest. After two days, he was arrested and charged with treason. The putsch brought Hitler to the attention of the German nation and generated front-page headlines in newspapers around the world. His arrest was followed by a 24-day trial, which was widely publicised and gave him a platform to express his nationalist sentiments to the nation. Hitler was found guilty of treason and sentenced to five years in Landsberg Prison, where he dictated Mein Kampf to his fellow prisoners Emil Maurice and Rudolf Hess. On 20 December 1924, having served only nine months, Hitler was released. Once released, Hitler redirected his focus towards obtaining power through legal means rather than revolution or force, and accordingly changed his tactics, further developing Nazi propaganda.
29. Which country was the location of the “Berlin Wall”?
[A] France
[B] Netherlands
[C] Germany
[D] Belgium
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Germany]
Notes:
Germany was the location of the “Berlin Wall”. The Berlin Wall was a guarded concrete barrier that physically and ideologically divided Berlin from 1961 to 1989. Construction of the wall was commenced by the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) on 13 August 1961. The Wall cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany, including East Berlin. The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls, accompanied by a wide area that contained anti-vehicle trenches, beds of nails, and other defences. In 1989, a series of revolutions in nearby Eastern Bloc countries—in Poland and Hungary in particular—caused a chain reaction in East Germany that ultimately resulted in the demise of the Wall. The demolition of the Wall officially began on 13 June 1990 and was completed in November 1991. The “fall of the Berlin Wall” paved the way for German reunification, which formally took place on 3 October 1990.
30. What was the main context that leads to the development of the event “National Schism”?
[A] Decision whether Greece should enter World War I or not.
[B] Decision whether Greece should grant independence to Macedonia or not.
[C] Decision whether Greece should enter World War II or not.
[D] Decision whether Greece should grant independence to Cyprus or not.
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Decision whether Greece should enter World War I or not.]
Notes:
The National Schism, sometimes called The Great Division, was a series of disagreements between King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos regarding the foreign policy of Greece in the period of 1910–1922 of which the tipping point was whether Greece should enter World War I. Venizelos was in support of the Allies and wanted Greece to join the war on their side, while the pro-German King wanted Greece to remain neutral, which would favour the plans of the Central Powers.