Who wrote 'War and Peace'?
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TOLSTOY — Leo Tolstoy wrote 'War and Peace'.
Literature and history word puzzles
Last updated: 30/10/2026
From novels and playwrights to leaders and turning points, these questions reward careful reading and a little general knowledge.
60 questions with answers and short explanations.
Questions
Who wrote 'Don Quixote'?
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CERVANTES — Miguel de Cervantes wrote 'Don Quixote'.
Who wrote 'The Divine Comedy'?
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DANTE — Dante Alighieri wrote 'The Divine Comedy'.
Who wrote 'Les Misérables'?
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HUGO — Victor Hugo wrote 'Les Misérables'.
Who wrote 'Journey to the West'?
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WUCHENGEN — Wu Cheng'en wrote 'Journey to the West'.
Who wrote 'Dream of the Red Chamber'?
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CAOXUEQIN — Cao Xueqin wrote 'Dream of the Red Chamber'.
Who wrote 'How to Win Friends and Influence People'?
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CARNEGIE — Dale Carnegie wrote the book.
Who wrote 'The Alchemist'?
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COELHO — Paulo Coelho wrote 'The Alchemist'.
Who wrote '1984'?
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ORWELL — George Orwell wrote '1984'.
Who wrote 'The Lord of the Rings'?
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TOLKIEN — J. R. R. Tolkien wrote the trilogy.
Which French emperor was exiled to Elba?
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NAPOLEON — Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled to Elba.
Who was the last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt?
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CLEOPATRA — Cleopatra VII was the last active Ptolemaic ruler.
Who founded the Mongol Empire?
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GENGHIS — Genghis Khan founded the Mongol Empire.
Who led the Soviet Union during World War II?
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STALIN — Joseph Stalin led the Soviet Union.
Which US president was assassinated in 1963?
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KENNEDY — John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.
Who led the fight against apartheid in South Africa?
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MANDELA — Nelson Mandela led the anti-apartheid movement.
Who was the first human in space?
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GAGARIN — Yuri Gagarin was the first human in space.
Who was the first person to walk on the Moon?
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ARMSTRONG — Neil Armstrong was the first person on the Moon.
Who discovered electromagnetic induction?
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FARADAY — Michael Faraday discovered electromagnetic induction.
Who discovered X-rays?
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ROENTGEN — Wilhelm Röntgen discovered X-rays.
Who is traditionally credited with 'Iliad' and 'Odyssey'?
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HOMER — Homer is traditionally credited with the epics.
Who wrote 'Aeneid'?
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VIRGIL — Virgil wrote 'Aeneid'.
Who wrote 'Faust'?
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GOETHE — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote 'Faust'.
Who wrote 'The Metamorphosis'?
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KAFKA — Franz Kafka wrote 'The Metamorphosis'.
Who wrote 'In Search of Lost Time'?
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PROUST — Marcel Proust wrote the novel.
Who wrote 'The Cherry Orchard'?
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CHEKHOV — Anton Chekhov wrote 'The Cherry Orchard'.
Who wrote 'The Old Man and the Sea'?
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HEMINGWAY — Ernest Hemingway wrote the novella.
Who wrote 'The Great Gatsby'?
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FITZGERALD — F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote 'The Great Gatsby'.
Who wrote 'Pride and Prejudice'?
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AUSTEN — Jane Austen wrote 'Pride and Prejudice'.
Who wrote 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea'?
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VERNE — Jules Verne wrote the novel.
Which Roman general was assassinated in 44 BC?
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CAESAR — Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC.
Which Macedonian king built a vast empire?
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ALEXANDER — Alexander the Great built a vast empire.
Who was British prime minister during World War II?
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CHURCHILL — Winston Churchill led Britain during the war.
Which US president led for most of World War II?
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ROOSEVELT — Franklin D. Roosevelt led the US for most of the war.
Who led the Russian October Revolution?
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LENIN — Vladimir Lenin led the October Revolution.
Who led India's nonviolent independence movement?
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GANDHI — Mahatma Gandhi led the movement.
Who led the People's Republic of China from 1949?
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MAOZEDONG — Mao Zedong led China from 1949.
Who unified Germany in the 19th century?
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BISMARCK — Otto von Bismarck unified Germany.
Which US president issued the Emancipation Proclamation?
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LINCOLN — Abraham Lincoln issued it.
Who was the principal author of the US Declaration of Independence?
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JEFFERSON — Thomas Jefferson was the principal author.
Who wrote 'Oliver Twist'?
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DICKENS — Charles Dickens wrote 'Oliver Twist'.
Who wrote 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'?
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TWAIN — Mark Twain wrote 'Tom Sawyer'.
Who wrote 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'?
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WILDE — Oscar Wilde wrote the novel.
Who wrote the poem 'The Raven'?
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POE — Edgar Allan Poe wrote 'The Raven'.
Who wrote 'Moby-Dick'?
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MELVILLE — Herman Melville wrote 'Moby-Dick'.
Who flew a kite in a thunderstorm to study electricity?
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FRANKLIN — Benjamin Franklin studied electricity with a kite.
Who was the first US Secretary of the Treasury?
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HAMILTON — Alexander Hamilton was the first Treasury Secretary.
Who is called the Father of the US Constitution?
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MADISON — James Madison is called the Father of the Constitution.
Which British queen reigned from 1837 to 1901?
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VICTORIA — Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901.
Which British admiral won the Battle of Trafalgar?
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NELSON — Horatio Nelson won at Trafalgar.
Who wrote 'Middlemarch'?
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ELIOT — George Eliot wrote 'Middlemarch'.
Who wrote 'Ulysses'?
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JOYCE — James Joyce wrote 'Ulysses'.
Who wrote 'Mrs Dalloway'?
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WOOLF — Virginia Woolf wrote 'Mrs Dalloway'.
Who wrote 'The Jungle Book'?
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KIPLING — Rudyard Kipling wrote 'The Jungle Book'.
Who wrote 'Brave New World'?
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HUXLEY — Aldous Huxley wrote 'Brave New World'.
Which Roman emperor expanded the empire furthest?
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TRAJAN — Trajan expanded the Roman Empire furthest.
Who was the first Roman emperor?
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AUGUSTUS — Augustus was the first Roman emperor.
Which Byzantine emperor built Hagia Sophia?
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JUSTINIAN — Justinian built Hagia Sophia.
Who led independence in several South American countries?
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BOLIVAR — Simón Bolívar led South American independence.
Who helped unify Italy?
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GARIBALDI — Giuseppe Garibaldi helped unify Italy.
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