Emperors, legions, gladiators and one very famous wall. Twelve centuries of history, 10 questions. How far can you march?
From the legendary founding of Rome to the day the Western Empire fell, this quiz covers emperors, legions, the Colosseum and Hadrian's Wall. 10 questions, no looking it up. When in Rome, play fair.
Pick your level
Rome started as a small settlement on the Tiber and ended up ruling everything from the sands of North Africa to the windswept hills of northern Britain, where Hadrian's Wall still stands today. Kingdom, Republic, then Empire: over twelve centuries, Rome produced some of the most famous names and dates in all of history.
This quiz takes you through the highlights: the Ides of March that Shakespeare made unforgettable, the opening games of the Colosseum, the size of a Roman legion, and the year it all came crashing down. Whether you studied the classics or just binge documentaries, there is something here to test you.
All ten easy level questions, with the answer and the reasoning behind it.
Correct answer: Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar, after a rather quick victory in 47 BC.
Correct answer: 10
10, and it still appears on plenty of clock faces.
Correct answer: Gladiator
Gladiator, by Ridley Scott, with an Oscar for Crowe.
Correct answer: Remus
Remus, and it did not end well between them.
Correct answer: The Mediterranean
The Mediterranean, which they controlled on every side.
Correct answer: Mars
Mars, who gave his name to a planet and a month.
Correct answer: Water
Water, sometimes over many miles and with only a gentle slope.
Correct answer: Neptune
Neptune, the Roman equivalent of the Greek Poseidon.
Correct answer: Nero
Nero, who probably did not fiddle at all, as the fiddle did not exist yet.
Correct answer: A sewer
A sewer, and parts of it still survive under the city.
Want to warm up before playing or double-check something? Open any question to reveal the correct answer and a short explanation.
Correct answer: 753 BC
Roman tradition, fixed by the scholar Varro, dates the founding to 753 BC. Romulus killed his twin brother Remus in a quarrel and named the city after himself.
Correct answer: Augustus
Octavian took the name Augustus in 27 BC, the date historians use for the start of the Empire. Julius Caesar, despite the popular belief, was never actually an emperor.
Correct answer: AD 122
Work on Hadrian's Wall began in AD 122 and took at least six years. It ran 73 miles from the Tyne to the Solway and marked the Empire's north-west frontier for nearly 300 years.
Correct answer: Titus
Titus celebrated the opening with 100 days of games, during which over 9,000 wild animals were reportedly killed. His father Vespasian had started the project around AD 70-72.
Correct answer: The expulsion of King Tarquin the Proud
Tarquin the Proud, the last king of Rome, was driven out by nobles led by Lucius Junius Brutus. Two elected consuls replaced the king, and Rome swore never to be ruled by one again.
Correct answer: 5,000
A legion numbered around 5,000 legionaries, organised into cohorts and centuries. Each legion carried a number and a nickname, like Caesar's famous Tenth Legion.
Correct answer: 15 March
Caesar was stabbed on 15 March 44 BC by a group of senators including Brutus. Shakespeare turned the soothsayer's warning into one of the most famous lines in English drama.
Correct answer: Pompeii
Pompeii vanished under a rain of ash, along with its neighbour Herculaneum. The ash preserved the city so well that its rediscovery in the 18th century stunned all of Europe.
Correct answer: Bread and circuses
Juvenal was mocking his fellow citizens for caring only about free grain handouts and spectacular games. The phrase is still used today to describe cheap political distractions.
Correct answer: AD 476
In AD 476 the barbarian general Odoacer deposed the young emperor Romulus Augustulus. In a neat twist of history, Rome ended with an emperor named after its legendary founder.
Stuck on one, or just curious how nasty it gets? Every hard mode question is here with its answer and the reasoning behind it.
Correct answer: Cannae
Cannae, still studied in military academies for its encirclement.
Correct answer: Brutus and Cassius
Brutus and Cassius, both defeated at Philippi two years later.
Correct answer: Milvian Bridge
The Milvian Bridge, just north of Rome, after his famous vision.
Correct answer: Istanbul
Istanbul, formerly Byzantium, renamed after the emperor in 330.
Correct answer: The Iceni
The Iceni, from what is now East Anglia. Her forces burned London around AD 60.
Correct answer: Virgil
Virgil, who asked for it to be burned on his deathbed. Augustus declined.
Correct answer: Protecting the emperor
Protecting the emperor, and at times replacing him.
Correct answer: The Visigoths
The Visigoths. It was the first time the city had fallen to a foreign enemy in about 800 years.
Correct answer: Via Appia
The Via Appia, running from Rome towards Brindisi.
Correct answer: Varus
Varus. Augustus is said to have cried: 'Varus, give me back my legions!'