- 1. Irish history is a rich tapestry weaving together tales of ancient Celts, Viking invasions, Norman conquests, and English rule. Spanning thousands of years, Ireland's history is marked by periods of conflict and resistance, poetry and myth, famine and emigration. From the prehistoric sites of Newgrange and the Hill of Tara to the Easter Rising of 1916 and the Troubles of the late 20th century, Ireland's past is a complex and fascinating story of identity, culture, and resilience.
Who was the first President of Ireland?
A) Éamon de Valera
B) Mary Robinson
C) Douglas Hyde
D) Michael D. Higgins
- 2. What event took place in 1916 that is considered a pivotal moment in Irish history?
A) Battle of the Boyne
B) Good Friday Agreement
C) Easter Rising
D) Great Famine
- 3. Which famous Irish leader was known as 'The Liberator'?
A) Éamon de Valera
B) Michael Collins
C) Daniel O'Connell
D) Gerry Adams
- 4. What year did Ireland officially declare itself a republic?
A) 1937
B) 1969
C) 1922
D) 1949
- 5. In which year did the Good Friday Agreement bring peace to Northern Ireland?
A) 1916
B) 1998
C) 1922
D) 1985
- 6. Who was the first female President of Ireland?
A) Mary Robinson
B) Margaret Thatcher
C) Angela Merkel
D) Queen Elizabeth II
- 7. What event marked the beginning of the Troubles in Northern Ireland in 1969?
A) Omagh bombing
B) Bloody Sunday
C) Downing Street Declaration
D) Battle of the Bogside
- 8. What year did Ireland gain its independence from Britain?
A) 1916
B) 1949
C) 1922
D) 1801
- 9. Who was known as 'The Father of the Land League' for his work in agricultural reform in Ireland?
A) Michael Davitt
B) Padraig Pearse
C) Arthur Griffith
D) Charles Stewart Parnell
- 10. What is the name of the historic political agreement that aimed to resolve the conflict in Northern Ireland?
A) St. Andrews Agreement
B) Belfast Agreement
C) Good Friday Agreement
D) Dublin Accord
- 11. What Irish pirate was known for his exploits along the coast of the Americas in the 16th century?
A) Captain Kidd
B) Blackbeard
C) Anne Bonny
D) Grace O'Malley
- 12. Who was the founder of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in 1884?
A) Eoin MacNeill
B) Patrick Pearse
C) Michael Cusack
D) Croke Park
- 13. What is the Irish name for the Great Famine that occurred in the mid-19th century?
A) An Gorta Mór
B) The Potato Blight
C) Black '47
D) The Hunger
- 14. In what year did Ireland join the European Union?
A) 1992
B) 1973
C) 2001
D) 1960
- 15. Which Irish leader played a significant role in the negotiation of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921?
A) Michael Collins
B) Arthur Griffith
C) James Connolly
D) Éamon de Valera
- 16. What year was the Easter Rising in Dublin led by Irish republicans against British rule?
A) 1922
B) 1916
C) 1941
D) 1932
- 17. What is the meaning of the name 'Treaty of Limerick'?
A) A treaty that established the Irish Free State in 1922
B) A treaty signed in 1921 between Britain and Ireland for independence
C) A peace agreement between Irish and Viking forces in the 9th century
D) A treaty signed in 1691 that ended the Williamite War in Ireland
- 18. What Irish king is known for his victory over the Vikings at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014?
A) Mael Sechnaill II
B) Niall of the Nine Hostages
C) Brian Boru
D) Cormac Mac Airt
- 19. What was the name of the law passed by the British in the 17th century to restrict the power of the Irish Catholic majority?
A) Penal Laws
B) Statute of Kilkenny
C) Act of Union
D) Plantation of Ulster
- 20. What influential historical figure established the monastic settlement of Glendalough in the 6th century?
A) St. Patrick
B) Brendan the Navigator
C) St. Kevin
D) Columbanus
- 21. Which Irish landmark was built around 3200 BC, making it older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids?
A) Bunratty Castle
B) Newgrange
C) The Rock of Cashel
D) Blarney Castle
- 22. Who was the last High King of Ireland before the Norman invasion?
A) Cú Chulainn
B) Brian Boru
C) Niall of the Nine Hostages
D) Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair
- 23. Which Irish Nobel laureate is known for his play 'Waiting for Godot'?
A) Samuel Beckett
B) William Butler Yeats
C) Seamus Heaney
D) George Bernard Shaw
- 24. Who was the leader of the Irish Citizen Army during the Easter Rising?
A) Countess Markievicz
B) Padraig Pearse
C) James Connolly
D) Éamon de Valera
- 25. Who famously penned the Irish rebel song 'The Foggy Dew'?
A) Canon Charles O'Neill
B) Christy Moore
C) Wolfe Tones
D) The Dubliners
- 26. In what year did the Great Famine ravage Ireland?
A) 1779-1783
B) 1601-1603
C) 1689-1691
D) 1845-1852
- 27. Which Irish author wrote the novel 'Ulysses', considered a masterpiece of modernist literature?
A) Bram Stoker
B) Oscar Wilde
C) James Joyce
D) Samuel Beckett
- 28. Which Viking king founded the city of Dublin in the 9th century?
A) Sigtrygg Silkbeard
B) Ivar the Boneless
C) Erik Bloodaxe
D) Olaf the White
- 29. Which Irish leader signed the Good Friday Agreement in 1998?
A) Bertie Ahern
B) Gerry Adams
C) Martin McGuinness
D) Ian Paisley
- 30. What was the name of the paramilitary organization founded by Michael Collins during the War of Independence?
A) Sinn Féin
B) The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
C) The Irish Republican Army (IRA)
D) The Black and Tans
- 31. What name is often given to the conflict in Northern Ireland between loyalists and republicans that lasted from the late 1960s to the late 1990s?
A) The Belfast Strife
B) The Irish War
C) The Northern Conflict
D) The Troubles
- 32. Which Irish musician is famous for songs like 'The Parting Glass' and 'Rocky Road to Dublin'?
A) Enya
B) Bono
C) Luke Kelly
D) Hozier
- 33. Who led the Irish independence movement and later became the first President of Ireland?
A) James Connolly
B) Charles Stewart Parnell
C) Michael Collins
D) Éamon de Valera
- 34. Which political party in Ireland was founded in 1926 by Éamon de Valera after he left Sinn Féin?
A) Social Democrats
B) Fianna Fáil
C) Labour Party
D) Fine Gael
- 35. In which year was the Bloody Sunday massacre in Derry, Northern Ireland?
A) 1972
B) 1981
C) 2003
D) 1998
- 36. Which Irish saint is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland in the 5th century?
A) Saint Brendan
B) Saint Columba
C) Saint Brigid
D) Saint Patrick
- 37. Which famous book was written by James Joyce and is set in Dublin?
A) Ulysses
B) Dracula
C) Pride and Prejudice
D) To Kill a Mockingbird
- 38. Which Irish musician is known for hits like 'Brown Eyed Girl' and 'Moondance'?
A) U2
B) Van Morrison
C) Hozier
D) Enya
- 39. What year did Northern Ireland officially come into existence as a separate entity?
A) 1969
B) 1916
C) 1921
D) 1949
- 40. Which Irish writer was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923?
A) George Bernard Shaw
B) Samuel Beckett
C) Bram Stoker
D) William Butler Yeats
- 41. Which famous ship sank off the coast of Cork in 1915, leading to the loss of over a thousand lives?
A) The Titanic
B) The Lusitania
C) The RMS Oceanic
D) The Britannic
- 42. In which county did the Battle of the Boyne take place in 1690?
A) County Meath
B) County Wexford
C) County Tyrone
D) County Antrim
- 43. Which of the following cities is the capital of the Republic of Ireland?
A) Dublin
B) Cork
C) Galway
D) Belfast
- 44. Who was the leader of the Provisional Sinn Féin party during the Troubles in Northern Ireland?
A) Ian Paisley
B) Martin McGuinness
C) Bobby Sands
D) Gerry Adams
- 45. Which event marked the beginning of the Irish War of Independence in 1919?
A) The Soloheadbeg Ambush
B) The Battle of O'Connell Street
C) The Easter Rising
D) The Anglo-Irish Treaty
- 46. In 1845, what event devastated Ireland, leading to mass starvation and emigration?
A) The Great Famine
B) The Plantation of Ulster
C) The Easter Rising
D) The Irish Rebellion
- 47. The peace wall separating Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods in Belfast is known as?
A) The Conflict Line
B) The Peace Line
C) The Barrier
D) The Division Wall
- 48. Who was the British monarch responsible for the forced planting of Scottish and English settlers in Ulster in the 17th century?
A) James I
B) Henry VIII
C) Elizabeth I
D) Charles I
- 49. Who was the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland when it was established in 1921?
A) Edward Carson
B) James Craig
C) David Lloyd George
D) Michael Collins
- 50. What is the name of the ancient Irish symbol of a three-leafed plant, often associated with good luck?
A) Daffodil
B) Four-leaf Clover
C) Shamrock
D) Thistle
|