Joejoe needs a hug. Making comments about the supposed ignorance of Americans only makes you yourself look ignorant. I cannot for the life of me understand why none of you America-bashers ever sense the irony in your "Americans are bad because think they are so much better than everyone else. How dare they? Now here's why we're so much better than Americans..." rants. It would be amusing if it weren't so sad.
Americans only know 3 because they are humans much like any other, and they care about things that are relevant to their own lives. Brits can name more than 3 US presidents because US presidents are more relevant internationally. But how many kings of Nepal can you name?
So extremely bored of this cliche that Americans are more ignorant of the world than anyone else. It's just so laughably demonstrably false. I've been traveling through Europe and the Near East for nearly 2 years now. I get asked all the time where I drove my car from and when I say "Bahrain," I think... of the hundreds of Europeans who asked me that question, maybe ONE has known that Bahrain was a country or where it was located. When I tell *Europeans* that I am in Thessaloniki, or Odessa, or Minsk, or Vilnius, or Riga, I can't believe it but the most common response is "where?" You don't even know you're own continent! Americans don't know where Vilnius is, either, but they know Las Vegas! (same population)
I can't help it that American cities are more famous than yours. There's no good reason for you to not have heard of Thessaloniki, Odessa, or St Petersburg. Meanwhile Minsk, Vilnius, and Riga are all national capitals and I've lost count of how many times I've read some indignant European complaining that every micronation of Europe is important to know because they are sovereign nations, unlike US states. But if this were true then it is disproven by their own ignorance of said sovereign nations as like I mentioned whenever I was in some major city in Eastern Europe at least half the Europeans I spoke to in other countries didn't know where I was.
someone: if you ask any American where Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, or Vancouver is I bet 95% would at least be able to tell you Canada. A similar proportion would know that Mexico City, Juarez, or Tijuana were in Mexico. I had people in neighboring countries in Eastern Europe not know where I was when I was in some of those cities I listed.
I literally know where every single one of those cities is, I also know that Bahrain is an island country connected to Saudi Arabia by the King Faad Causeway (although not sure of the spelling for ‘Faad’).. I could also name a few kings of Nepal if it came to it. Maybe both sides could knock off the generalisations. America and Europe are United insofar as they both contain plenty of smart people, as well as some pretty dumb people.
36, not bad for a "simple Southern farmer". OK, I have a degree in history. Also, Downton Abbey helped. A few names tripped me up- I typed gallstone several times before correcting to Gladstone.
That's a really bad excuse in my opinion. Just because they don't teach you about certain things in school (say British prime ministers or politics in other countries) doesn't mean that you can't read and educate yourself about it! I'm from Sweden and they didn´t teach us all about the British prime ministers either, but a new quite a few from reading history, news and books about the world. You should do the same!
It would be interesting to see quiz stats based on quizzers' countries. Maybe add "home country" when registering as a user, or maybe the system could work that out anyway?
That's not true. Maybe they didn't in your history classes, or maybe you just weren't paying attention, but I know for a fact when I was in school we at least learned the names of Winston Churchill, Neville Chamberlain, and Margaret Thatcher. I also distinctly remember Pitt the Elder/Younger coming up, as well as the Duke of Wellington, and I think maybe Disraeli. I recall learning about the Balfour Declaration so we probably read his name, too.
Did you learn in school that the Duke of Wellington was prime minister? I definitely remember learning in some detail about his victory at Waterloo, but I don't recall learning he was prime minister. I was surprised to see him on this list only because it seems like something my teachers should have mentioned when discussing him, even if the focus was on his military exploits.
We've replaced the worst PM in living memory with a man who was our worst ever foreign secretary. Fail, abysmally, at one job and have your party decide you are the ideal man to run the country. Genius. This can only end well.
The fat albino Turk is thankfully no more - not quite as massive a liar as that orange freak over the water, but thoroughly dishonest nonetheless. Good riddance to bad rubbish!
I see my Bojo prediction wasn’t too far off the mark.
Not expecting much from Truss, she will (hopefully) lie less than Bojo but the standard of politicians in the UK (and indeed globally) is woefully low at the minute.
I think it reasonable that Americans would know Prime Ministers who had a lot of contact with Americans because of world events. The best example of this is the relationship between Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt, but all of the World War Prime Ministers are reasonably well known for various reasons (Asquith, Lloyd George, Chamberlain, Churchill and Atlee). Thatcher and Blair received ample American press coverage, and John Major was a principal American ally during Desert Shield/Desert Storm.
Honestly everyone should be able to figure out there was a guy named Peel from looking at the political parties key. Guessing "Smith" gets you another free one.
Don't half these putzes have their own name or do they just want to be remembered to history as the same Duke of Potsie as the ones a century prior and in the future?
This Englishman got 44 but I think I was helped by the fact that my son had to do some research on British PMs a few days ago. Never knew homework could have a positive effect.
Funny that so many people in the comments have to state that they are american. In other quizzes you dont see nearly as many comments saying, "but im not american" (mostly none, but sometimes a few)
This will need an update in a month or two as Theresa May is resigning this Friday. She will remain prime minister until the new Conservative Party leader is elected.
I think the average American over 30 would at least know Churchill, Thatcher, Blair and May. With many being able to name Cameron, Brown, Chamberlain, Major, Disraeli, and Boris. And a few being able to name some others.
I heard it said that Boris only pretends to be stupid, so as to be endearing or as a political ploy. Trump tries (and fails) to look smart, but is in reality spectacularly stupid.
^ This I agree is the main difference between them. I'm not sure which one is scarier, Trump because he is so stupid, or Boris because he's actually pretty clever in some ways, but plays dumb to fool everyone.
I hope that Mr. Johnson will finally table all this Brexit nonsense and get to the people's business which is bringing forward the much needed motion of declaring Oasis the greatest British band since The Beatles and that Liam Gallagher can sod right off.
It is at least partially because he was one of the leading figures in the campaign to leave the EU. Jeremy Hunt supported remain. And there is the Trump-ness aspect as well. There are many similarities between Johnson and Trump, though obviously Trump is worse.
I guess many people support him because "politicians are all corrupt and politics is a farce anyway". They feel that guys like Trump and Johnson "bring some fresh air" and construe their lack of manners and low intellectual level as "being honest".
Johnson does not have a 'low intellectual level' - he was educated at Eton and Oxford! He is actually a very intelligent man who convincingly plays a person more stupid for the popularity - a difficult act to pull off!
Common tactic by fascists and other dishonest people. Liars will try to get you to believe that everyone lies. The corrupt will try to convince you that everyone is corrupt. Those detached from reality will try to get you to believe in alternative facts or that everything is subjective and partisan.
He's hugely popular amongst Conservatives, though detested by many of them too. Last poll I saw found him still to be the most popular Conservative in the country at large too, and the Tories are terrified of getting wiped out at the next election so, despite him being a loose cannon, they are playing it safe in a way. Not sure if his schtick translates at all internationally but he has a certain articulate but bumbling charisma that people here seem to warm to in spite of his many flaws and frequent gaffes. And after a string of charisma-free vacuums for PM it's totally possible that people will choose to vote for Bojo the clown come election time. Everything's felt like a circus for the last few years anyway...
Bojo or Corbyn. That's really not much of a choice at all. In an ideal world you would tell both parties to go away and come back with sensible leaders.
22/55, and Dutch. Pretty pleased, but i'll have to admit, i got some of 'm on guessing general British sounding names, or very vague memories (i studied history, but didn't focus on British political history......current one is 'fascinating' though. xD ).
54, stumbled as I began to type Boozy's name and ran out of time. First time I've managed to remember all the early nineteenth century aristos, doubt if I'll achieve that again :-/
Looks like you were both right. And I thought you couldn't get any worse than Boris Johnson. Let's hope the next Prime Minister is a real functioning adult.
English here. I’ve had to retake this a couple of times in recent years, so i’m up to 54/56 now i’ve scraped the rust off. I suspect i’ll be doing all this again soon! One more go to get those remaining 2.
Yeah. From what I hear, she was terrible. Like why does she lower taxes for rich people and not poor people?! The poorer people need the money way more than the rich people who 1 of them makes enough money to feed an entire town for a month!
48/57 on first attempt. (But it was only a couple of months the last time I did this.) 20th Century is easy. In fact I know everyone back to Balfour by rote. Most 19th and over half 18th. I’ll have memorised the rest by lunchtime and then I can start forgetting again!
It never ceases to amuse me that there was a prime minister named Bonar Law. I've read or heard his name so many times, and it never stops being funny to me.
Thank you, The Crown, for helping me get the few points I did get. (In my own defen[s|c]e, I'm American and y'all seem to have a new PM every fourth Tuesday these days. Liz Truss' staff didn't even have to change the bog roll before she was out.)
I need to move to Canda, who wants to join me?
So extremely bored of this cliche that Americans are more ignorant of the world than anyone else. It's just so laughably demonstrably false. I've been traveling through Europe and the Near East for nearly 2 years now. I get asked all the time where I drove my car from and when I say "Bahrain," I think... of the hundreds of Europeans who asked me that question, maybe ONE has known that Bahrain was a country or where it was located. When I tell *Europeans* that I am in Thessaloniki, or Odessa, or Minsk, or Vilnius, or Riga, I can't believe it but the most common response is "where?" You don't even know you're own continent! Americans don't know where Vilnius is, either, but they know Las Vegas! (same population)
Looked at wikipedia throught though, LOLLL
Jesus.
H.
Christ.
Not expecting much from Truss, she will (hopefully) lie less than Bojo but the standard of politicians in the UK (and indeed globally) is woefully low at the minute.
Every time I do this quiz I miss out some obvious ones - this time it was Robert Peel, who is practically mentioned in the preamble...
So, of course, we have to get all indignant. ;)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gascoyne-Cecil,_3rd_Marquess_of_Salisbury
Of course, they aren't exactly the same, but they do have their similarities
54, stumbled as I began to type Boozy's name and ran out of time. First time I've managed to remember all the early nineteenth century aristos, doubt if I'll achieve that again :-/
Most Americans only know three
I AM NOT MOST AMERICANS!
(I am not even American, am 1/2 Filipino 1/2 Chinese)
However, helping me brush up on my history.
The only one that I forgot was Balfour, so not a bad first attempt.
Thanks for your time and effort in creating this quiz.
But essentially all those people only referred to by them being the Duke of Witherchestershirehamington or whatever I had no clue about.
But come on, people like Sir Robert Walpole, John Major and Clement Attlee are really not that hard to recall, are they? ^^
Does that :D even look like a smiley face?