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World History - How Did They Die?

We give you three choices. You choose the one that best describes how these people from world history met their end.
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Quizmaster
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Last updated: March 9, 2023
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First submittedMarch 9, 2023
Times taken72,776
Average score73.3%
Rating4.92
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1. Julius Caesar (44 BC)
Alcohol poisoning
Stabbed in the Roman Senate
Trampled at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge
2. Marie Antoinette (1793)
Beaten by an angry mob
Beheaded by guillotine
Ovarian cancer
3. Leonidas I of Sparta (480 BC)
Fighting the Persians at the Battle of Thermopylae
Poisoned by his wife
Sacrified himself to the gods
4. Marie Curie (1934)
Anemia likely caused by radiation exposure
Gassed by the Nazis
Slipped in the bath and struck head
5. Adolf Hitler (1945)
Hanged by Russian soldiers
Killed by Mossad agents in Buenos Aires
Suicide by hand gun
6. Steve Irwin (2006)
Heart pierced by stingray barb
Plane crash
Trapped underwater while cave diving
7. Mohandas Gandhi (1948)
ALS disease
Assassinated by a Hindu nationalist
Hunger strike
8. Che Guevara (1967)
Malnutrion / exposure in Soviet gulag
Radiation poisoning
Summary execution in Bolivia
9. Socrates (399 BC)
Crucifixion
Shipwreck in the Adriatic Sea
Suicide by drinking poison hemlock
10. Ferdinand Magellan (1521)
Beheaded by Spanish government
Killed in Philippines after trying to convert natives
Marooned on the Galapagos Islands
11. Muammar Gaddafi (2011)
Killed by Libyan rebels
Lethal injection after arrest by U.S. coalition forces
Private jet bombed by terrorists
12. Karl Marx (1883)
Bronchitis
Dysentery in prison
Hanged by Prussian government
13. Grigori Rasputin (1916)
Opium overdose
Poisoned, shot twice, tied up, and dumped in freezing river
Trampled by horses pulling a sled
14. Joan of Arc (1431)
Burned at the stake
Childbirth
Plunging a sword into her own heart
15. Jeanne Calment (1997)
At age 122, Jeanne Calment was reportedly the oldest person to ever live, although the quizmaster is skeptical
Extreme old age
Kicked by a horse
Mixing wine, cocaine, and quaaludes
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57 Comments
Neodymium
+2
Level 63
Mar 9, 2023
Nice quiz!
FreeStater
+2
Level 81
Mar 9, 2023
Only missed Marx. I could've sworn he died in prison, though... the root of a new Mandela Effect?
Dimby
+45
Level 83
Mar 9, 2023
What's the Mandela Effect? I've only ever heard of the Marx Effect.
Neodymium
+8
Level 63
Mar 9, 2023
Mass missremembering of events. People belived Nelson Mandela died in prison during Apartheid....he didn't.
FreeStater
+27
Level 81
Apr 5, 2023
You must be mistaken... nobody believes that.
Conradd23
+6
Level 58
Jan 24, 2025
I realize this was two years ago, but regardless... r/woooosh
Neodymium
+3
Level 63
Jan 24, 2025
just realised lol
loganite
+14
Level 93
Mar 10, 2023
Bronchitis!? Ain't nobody got time for that!
JeffreyChambrpot
+1
Level 46
Oct 6, 2025
Guessed on the last one, but got 100%
Dimby
+29
Level 83
Mar 9, 2023
I've never seen a toxicology report on Jeanne Calment. Just saying.
loganite
+30
Level 93
Mar 10, 2023
I heard she quit the cocaine and quaaludes just after her 120th birthday. ;)
RobNobody
+5
Level 80
Jun 26, 2023
Well, see, there was her mistake. They were obviously what kept her going for so long.
dunkinggandalf2
+2
Level 72
Oct 19, 2023
To be fair, she was already alive when people still thought cocaine was an ideal cure for headaches.
JFM01
+1
Level 56
Apr 7, 2025
She actually quit smoking at 119.
ItzIngenious
+12
Level 66
Mar 10, 2023
Nobody:

Ra Ra Rasputin:

ConradBrunstrom
+5
Level 82
Mar 10, 2023
1793 for Marie Antionette, not 1792.
Quizmaster
+4
Level ∞
Mar 10, 2023
Fixed
vitriden
+1
Level 84
Mar 10, 2023
Great quiz!
AntiMatter8192
+4
Level 78
Mar 10, 2023
Wait, it's possible to die of old age?
WilderA
+12
Level 56
Mar 10, 2023
Well, it's not necessarily old age but rather complications that accompany it, such as heart failure.
Speed4TheNeed
+1
Level 88
Mar 10, 2023
Said no doctor, ever.
idontkn1
+12
Level 94
Mar 10, 2023
We all know that Hitler escaped to South America and was cryogenically frozen. His DNA was later sampled and the sources of thousands of clones implanted in Nazi sympathizers around the world. At least that's the truth if you believe the myriad of 70s conspiracy theory movies.
flatcap
+7
Level 43
Mar 10, 2023
everyone out here dying uniquely, jeanne calment with the options of extreme old age kicked by a horse and the legendary wine, coke and quallueedes mixed
Neodymium
+4
Level 63
Mar 10, 2023
Most legendary option there is, second to Rasputin.
IsleAuHaulte
+2
Level 92
Mar 10, 2023
I tried answering C) Mixing wine, cocaine, and quaaludes, but it didn't take it it. Any reason why?
bestanford
+11
Level 73
Apr 5, 2023
Her natural life would have been 137... the drugs took her so young.
InterAlia
+2
Level 83
Jan 24, 2025
I tried mixing wine, cocaine, and quaaludes, but didn't take it either. Not sure why.
Dimby
+7
Level 83
Mar 10, 2023
Fun fact: the whole story of Rasputin being poisoned, shot, and generally refusing to die is likely greatly exaggerated. The primary source of events comes from one of the assassins, who made a great deal of money from a book he wrote about Rasputin’s death. I think most historians take that account with a grain of salt.
ItzIngenious
+9
Level 66
Mar 10, 2023
He allegedly survived the cyanide poisoning, then was shot once and fell down, pretending to be dead. When the assassin went to ensure he was dead, Rasputin jumped up and assaulted him. However, the assassin shot him, point blank to the forehead, and that killed him. Then they dumped his body into the river under a bridge. (If I remember correctly)
loganite
+15
Level 93
Mar 10, 2023
Your memory may have faded...you must have been pretty young in 1916! ;)
ItzIngenious
+8
Level 66
Mar 11, 2023
Admittedly, it is a bit fuzzy
IsleAuHaulte
+5
Level 92
Mar 11, 2023
Great. Now I have the "Dumb Ways To Die" meme song stuck in my head again. Way too catchy.
dtron50000
+1
Level 68
Jan 24, 2025
Amazing. Simply amazing.
MarcellDAvis
+14
Level 80
Apr 5, 2023
Calling Socrates' death a suicide is a bit of a stretch, isn't it?
duckwantbread
+10
Level 66
Apr 5, 2023
I agree, he was sentenced to death by hemlock poisoning, it isn't suicide if you're being made to drink the hemlock. I suppose you could argue that as he rejected offers to help him escape it could be viewed as suicide but that's a bit of a stretch.
partdavid
+1
Level 74
Jul 21, 2023
Probably lots of martyrs who were hanged, burned or drawn and quartered could have escaped, or made a deal, or at least tried, but didn't.

I agree that calling it suicide isn't the best description.

dunkinggandalf2
+2
Level 72
Oct 19, 2023
Sure, but he was also given every opportunity to escape. His adversaries mainly wanted to exile him, and considered that killing him would likely be more of an embarrassment. When given the opportunity to suggest a milder sentence than death, he proposed being fed on the public dime, which was a bit of a dick move. Then, once his condemnation was final, he was given plenty of opportunities to escape prison, but refused. So, although there for sure was some pressure on him, he also didn't exactly fight for his life, and, in the end, drank the hemlock on his own. That is if you believe the accounts of his followers, of course!
Clarkie96
+8
Level 69
Apr 5, 2023
"Stabbed in the Roman Senate" sounds like an amusing euphemism......!!
Ortz6062
+1
Level 39
Apr 5, 2023
Guessed them all, only got Muammar Gaddafi wrong, so not too bad
oranje
+2
Level 65
Apr 5, 2023
It only happens to be the most recent one too
Maxibon
+1
Level 73
Apr 5, 2023
Ah yes the extremely weird death of Rasputin.

Good Quiz!

SpartanLlama
+1
Level 79
Apr 5, 2023
Just missed the last one
txbdog
+2
Level 45
Jan 24, 2025
what did Grigori Rasputin do, cause wow
9876542
+4
Level 37
Jan 24, 2025
What didn't he do?
Pontiac
+1
Level 62
Jan 24, 2025
Rasputin was a very strong man, he was also Russian and lived a long time ago. Do you need a better explanation? The men who killed him were killed themselves though!
RoboquizM86
+2
Level 61
Jan 24, 2025
10 out of 15, not bad at all considering a lot of them were educated guesses.
nations12345eat
+1
Level 49
Jan 24, 2025
how did i get most of the ones i guessed on right
WizzzyTM
+2
Level 7
Jan 24, 2025
Nice quiz but one thing, Its Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Learnin77
+1
Level 45
Jan 24, 2025
14/15. Did not know who Irwin was. Interesting and well-put together quiz though!
GlassMonkeyOLD
+1
Level 69
Jan 24, 2025
I can't believe it, I won!
McKenzieFam
+1
Level 68
Jan 24, 2025
Well this is a pretty good idea. I missed Marx and Gaddafi, but those were the only two I had to guess on. 13/15 is a score I can live with!
ZedeFire
+1
Level 61
Jan 25, 2025
Milvian Bridge got me laughing, I've a test about the fall of Western Roman Empire in two days
RhodieCapitalist
+1
Level 42
Apr 28, 2025
I am pretty sure the answer with Buenos Aires one is correct. Haha
majaczek
+2
Level 23
May 17, 2025
It's Maria Skłodowska-Curie, not Marie Curie
Adi217
+1
Level 44
Feb 3, 2026
*Maria Skłodowska-Curie
Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Apr 30, 2026
Gonna put an auto-ban filter on the word Skłodowska.
hyoobtoob
+1
Level 69
May 1, 2026
Bro. I didn't read the other Hitler options when I took the quiz because the correct answer was so obvious.

...But then I saw that 99% got it right and the other 1% said killed by Mossad in Argentina. I AM DYING OVER HERE. The 1% knows their answer is wrong in the quiz, but they're saying Argentina on principle lol

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