Explorers, trailblazers, gallavanters, and pioneers… No matter what name they go by, history is chock-full of plucky seafarers and stouthearted globetrotters bubbling over with wanderlust. Whether questing for glory, God, or gold, these OG flat-earthers were willing to risk it all for a taste of adventure.
Think you’re ready to stand amongst giants like Vespucci and de Gama? Want to show Shackleton and Shaw who’s boss? Then prepare to hoist anchor as you circumnavigate a brave new world of explorer trivia questions and answers that will prove just how big of a history buff you are.
These questions will test your knowledge to its limit- and prove how much explorer knowledge you have.
Once you’re done dodging dreaded sea monsters and conquering far shores, why not take a crack at trivia about Africa, Europe, or geography? Or kick it old school with an ancient and medieval trivia quiz that’ll keep you entertained all knight.
Jacques Cartier discovered which country?
Canada
Mexico
Brazil
United States
Who was Ferdinand Magellan?
A 19th century philosopher
The Archduke of Austria who was assassinated in Sarajevo
economist and social reformer
A Portuguese explorer and the first European to cross the Pacific
Who was David Livingstone?
A Dutch scholar and humanist of the Protestant Reformation
A famous diplomat and spy during World War I
A Scottish missionary and explorer in Africa
A British author who wrote ‘Oliver Twist’
What name was given to the islands we now know as Hawaii when they were first discovered by Europeans?
Gilbert Islands
Spice Islands
Marshall Islands
Sandwich Islands
T. E. Lawrence became famous as Lawrence of …?
America
Arabia
Afghanistan
Algeria
In 1963, who became the first woman to fly in space?
Anna Kournikova
Valentina Kournikova
Valentina Terranova
Valentina Tereshkova
Who conquered the Greeks around 2,100 years ago?
Persians
Egyptians
Romans
Babylonians
Which famous ship was sunk in 1545?
Mary Rosalind
Mary Rhonda
Mary Rose
Millie Rose
In what capacity was Vasco Nunez de Balboa famous in history?
Explorer
Led the Spanish Armada
Royal artist
Wrote ‘Don Quixote’
Who discovered Greenland?
Erik The Blue
Erik The Red
Erik The Green
Erik The Black
Who was king when Columbus discovered America?
Edward VI
James I
Charles I
Henry VII
Who was Richard E. Byrd?
The Vice President to Richard Nixon
A Soviet spy during the Cold War
A famous New York gangster during the1940s
A pioneering American aviator and polar explorer
Which explorer gave the name Canada?
Amerigo Vespucci
Jacques Cartier
Christopher Columbus
Marco Polo
Who was Roald Amundsen?
A 19th and 20th century social reformer
The last King of Norway
A Norwegian explorer and the first man to reach the South Pole
A 20th century author and journalist who opposed totalitarianism
Who arrived in Massachusetts from England in 1620?
Pilgrim Potter
Perky Mothers
Pilgrim Fathers
Pilgrim Friends
Where did the British establish an outpost in 1803?
Van Dimming Land
Van Dinsen Land
Van Diemen’s Land
Van Densing Land
Who discovered the Lost City of Machu Picchu in 1912?
Hiram Bingham
James Brightman
William Shelton
Alfred Hanson
Who was the first man to conquer Mount Everest?
Edmund Stacy
Edmund Sarah
Edmund Hillary
Edmund Veronica
Who discovered Canada?
Christopher Columbus
Amerigo Vespucci
Marco Polo
Jacques Cartier
Walter Raleigh named which US state after Elizabeth I?
Virginia
Dakota
Hawaii
Utah
Which famous explorer’s ship was called The Discovery?
Caption Smith
Captain Scott
Captain Scott
Captain Ahab
Which explorer first claimed Canada for France?
Christopher Columbus
Jacques Cartier
Amerigo Vespucci
Marco Polo
Who carried out the second circumnavigation of the world?
Jacob Le Maire
John Hawkins
Thomas Doughty
Francis Drake
Where did explorers first arrive in Canada?
Cape Breton
Goose Bay
Fredericton
L’Anse aux Meadows
Who was John Cabot?
A Victorian pioneer of archaeology
An 18th and 19th century pioneer of vaccination and immunology
A 15th century Italian explorer
The U.S. President who won the Civil War and abolished slavery
What did Captain Cook discover in 1778?
The Sandwich Islands
New Zealand
Tasmania
Christmas Island
Which of the following four ships was launched the earliest?
Mayflower
SS Great Britain
Cutty Sark
Discovery
Who claimed the East Coast of Australia as British in 1770?
Cpt James Cook
Cpt Jimmy Cool
Cpt James Copthorne
Cpt James Corol
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay were the first men to climb which mountain?
Mount Olympus
Mount Doom
Mount Rushmore
Mount Everest
Which ‘Apollo’ mission landed the first humans on the Moon?
13
12
11
15
The tomb of which boy king was first discovered in 1922?
Akhenaten
Ramesses
Tutankhamen
Khufu
What was the name of a famous Norse explorer in the 10th Century?
Erik The Red
Erik The Blue
Erik The Black
Erik The Green
What was the name of the ship that James Cook used on his first voyage of discovery to Australia and New Zealand?
HMS Eagle
HMS Endeavour
HMS Discovery
HMS Resolution
What was the name of the ship on which the Pilgrims came to America?
Ark
Dove
Discovery
Mayflower
Who was the first man to circumnavigate Australia?
Nicolas Baudin
George Bass
Matthew Flinders
Arthur Philip
Who was the first to explore Germany?
Strabo
Herodotus
Eratosthenes
Pytheas
Meriwether Lewis was an American what?
Lawyer
Doctor
Explorer
Politician
Which explorer died en route to Tahiti?
William Dampier
Nicolas Baudin
Matthew Flinders
George Bass
In which century did James Cook discover the Hawaiian islands?
16th
18th
17th
19th
Marco Polo was an explorer from which country?
Brazil
Morocco
Italy
Scotland
Which British captain and explorer proved that New Zealand was not a part of a continent?
Ferdinand Magellan
Amerigo Vespucci
Christopher Columbus
James Cook
Who was Leif Ericson?
The last King of Sweden
A Victorian pioneer of computer science
An 11th century explorer who may have discovered the Americas
A 16th century scientist and pioneer of magnetism
Who first sailed around the Cape of Good Hope?
Ferdinand Magellan
Vasco da Gama
Francois Emerald
Marco Polo
What led to the growth of California in 1848?
Oil
Diamonds
Gold
Tin
Which Dutch navigator led the first European expedition to sight the Fiji island group?
Jan Carsenszoon
Willem Janszoon
Dirk Hartog
Abel Tasman
Who was Vasco da Gama?
Italy’s Fascist dictator during World War II
A Portuguese explorer and navigator
The President of Portugal during World War I
A famous 16th century pirate who terrorized the Caribbean
Why was Easter Island named Easter island?
The indigenous people used to paint eggs
Jacob Roggeveen had sailed east when he found it
The indigenous people wore feathers in their hair
It was discovered on Easter Sunday
What name is given to the 11 ships that sailed from Great Britain on 13 May 1787?
First Fleet
Southern Settlers
Pilgrim Fathers
Israelites
In what year did Roald Amundsen reach the South Pole?
1916
1907
1902
1911
In what year did Christopher Columbus discover America?
230
1601
1492
1512
Which English explorer credited with ‘the establishment of the first English settlement in North America was born on New Year’s Day 1580?
Joseph Smith
David Smith
John Smith
Jack Smith
Who is credited with discovering America?
Christopher Columbus
Jesse James
Thomas Edison
William Shakespeare
Who was the first woman in outer space?
Gertrude Bell
Osa Johnson
Mae Jemison
Valentina Tereshkova
Where did the marauding Vikings come from?
Scandinavia
China
Portugal
Middle East
What did the Europeans want from Asia?
Diamonds
Spices, gold, and silk
Slaves
Cotton, tobacco, and food
How did Europeans learn about Asia?
Columbus told them
Reference books
Native Americans
Soldiers returning from the Crusades
Who discovered the sea route to India?
Ferdinand Magellan
Francois Emerald
Marco Polo
Vasco da Gama
Which explorer was the first to circumnavigate the globe?
Marco Polo
Magellan
Drake
Columbus
Cpt James Bligh captained which famous ship?
HMS Snickers
HMS Wispa
HMS Bounty
HMS Galaxy
Which year did the Americans launched their first satellite Explorer 1?
1970
1969
1985
1958
Which of these happened first?
Diaz Rounds Cape of Good Hope
De Gama reaches India
Columbus visits Jamaica
Madeira and Azores discovered
Man finally landed on the moon in which year?
2009
1999
1939
1969
Which explorer first entered San Francisco Bay in 1579?
Henry Hudson
Juan Ponce de Leon
Amerigo Vespucci
Francis Drake
In which century was explorer Marco Polo born?
16th
13th
15th
14th
Which explorer’s expedition was the first to circumnavigate the earth?
Cook
Magellan
Cartier
de Gama
Tutankhamen’s tomb was discovered in which decade?
1910s
1890s
1880s
1920s
Jacques Cartier claimed which part of Canada for France?
Ontario
Quebec
Manitoba
British Colombia
Who was the first to call America a ‘New World’?
Amerigo Vespucci
Amarisio Walti
Wamerico Cocci
Liam Merica
In which century did Christopher Columbus discover America?
15th
16th
17th
14th
Who was the explorer who died in Panama in 1596?
Henry Hudson
Juan Ponce de Leon
Francis Drake
Amerigo Vespucci
Which was the first continent to be discovered that had no native population?
Antarctica
America
Australia
Asia
In what year was the wreck of the Titanic discovered?
1989
1980
1983
1986
What did the early explorers originally call America?
The Colonies
New England
The Land of Opportunity
The New World
Who discovered the ‘New World’ of the Americas?
Christopher Columbus
Hernán Cortés
Francis Drake
Ferdinand Magellan
Who settled Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607?
John Winthrop
Walter Raleigh
John Smith
John Rolfe
Who was the second person to walk on the moon?
Buzz Aldrin
Neil Armstrong
Michael Collins
John Glenn
Who was the first person to reach the North Pole?
Frederick Cook
Matthew Henson
Robert Peary
Roald Amundsen
Who sailed in the ‘Santa Maria’?
Walter Raleigh
Christopher Columbus
James Cook
Amerigo Vespucci
Who was Captain James Cook?
A famous 16th century pirate who harried the Caribbean
A 18th century explorer who mapped Australia and claimed it for Great Britain
A feared British U-boat captain during World War II
The officer who mobilized the Arab Revolt of World War I
Who said ‘Dr Livingstone I Presume’?
David Linvingstone
John Hanning Speke
Henry Morton Stanley
Leopold II of Belgium
Why did Columbus call the Arawaks Indians?
It was their secret name
He thought he had reached the Indies
They told him to
They had dark skin
What nationality was the great explorer Vasco Da Gama?
Italian
French
Portuguese
Spanish
Who was Sir Richard Burton?
The Prime Minister of England during World War II
The inventor of the telephone
A British 19th and 20th century writer and Nobel Prize winner
A Victorian explorer and writer
Who was Marco Polo?
A 16th century French prophet
A 14th century theologian who translated the bible into Latin
seer and healer
A 13th century Venetian explorer of China
Where did the first fleet of British ships land in 1788?
Boitano Bay
Botswana Bay
Botany Bay
Bobby Bay
The first German immigrants to Australia settled where?
Exeter
Klemzig
Ottoway
Taperoo
Edmund Hillary was the first man to conquer which mountain?
Table Mountain
Mount Everest
Ben Nevis
K2
What was the middle name of the explorer Captain Scott?
Kestrel
Eagle
Falcon
Merlin
Which explorers expedition was the first to circumnavigate the earth?
Cook
Magellan
Cartier
de Gama
Who is credited with bringing tobacco to England?
Sir Walter Filter
Sir Walter Snuff
Sir Walter Hamlet
Sir Walter Raleigh
What was the common nationality of the explorers Vasco da Gama, Bartholomew Diaz and Ferdinand Magellan?
English
Spanish
French
Portuguese
Who was Christopher Columbus?
A 19th century inventor and electrical pioneer
A 20th century nuclear physicist and Nobel Prize winner
One of the first explorers to reach the Americas
A U.S. president who resigned after the Watergate scandal
Hiram Bingham rediscovered which archeological site in 1911?
Great Pyramid Of Giza
Great Wall Of China
Machu Picchu
Stonehenge
What did Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon discover in 1922?
DNA
Tomb of Tutankhamen
The Elgin Marbles
Diamonds
On which date of 1969 did Neil Armstrong walk on the moon?
May 12th
January 16th
July 20th
April 13th
Which famous waterfalls did David Livingstone discover in 1855?
Niagara Falls
Zambezi Falls
Angel Falls
Victoria Falls
Who was the first black woman in space?
Nichelle Nichols
Sally Ride
Mae Jemison
Bessie Coleman
Who led the team that discovered Tutankhamen’s tomb?
Harold Abrahams
Howard Carter
Howard Keel
Harold Pullman
Who discovered the sea route to India in 1497?
Marco Polo
Francois Emerald
Vasco da Gama
Ferdinand Magellan
Who discovered Tutankhamen’s tomb?
Howard Keil
Howard Carter
Harold Pullman
Harold Abrahams
What South American country is named after a famous explorer?
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Peru
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