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People in History by Wikipedia Descriptions #3

Can you name these people in history by excerpts from their Wikipedia pages?
Some excerpts have been altered slightly
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Quizmaster
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Last updated: September 25, 2019
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First submittedSeptember 25, 2019
Times taken36,153
Average score66.7%
Rating4.49
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Excerpt
Person
He met his future wife, Jacqueline Bouvier, when he was a congressman
John F. Kennedy
Her re-establishment of Roman Catholicism was reversed by
her younger half-sister and successor Elizabeth
Queen Mary I
The people of France saw her death as a necessary step toward completing the revolution
Marie Antoinette
Trotsky was assassinated in Mexico, eliminating the last of his opponents among the
former Party leadership
Joseph Stalin
He was the first known European to have set foot on continental North America
Leif Erikson
The Royalists returned to power along with King Charles II in 1660, and they had his
corpse dug up, hung in chains, and beheaded
Oliver Cromwell
A Hungarian-born American illusionist, noted for his sensational escape acts
Harry Houdini
He argued that the working class should carry out organised
revolutionary action to topple capitalism
Karl Marx
Early sources that attest to his historical existence include the works of
the historians Josephus and Tacitus
Jesus Christ
Shakespeare portrays him as having a hunch, a limp and a withered arm
King Richard III
A well-known account of his life is presented in the film Braveheart
William Wallace
Under his direction, the city of Philadelphia was planned and developed
William Penn
He began planning a major novel about social misery and injustice as early as the 1830s,
but a full 17 years were needed for Les Misérables to be realised
Victor Hugo
His Aeneid has been considered the national epic of ancient Rome
Virgil
As a patron of the arts she presided over the age of the Russian Enlightenment
Catherine the Great
Known as "the Master of Suspense", he directed over 50 feature films
Alfred Hitchcock
She was the first and, to date, the only female Prime Minister of India
Indira Gandhi
A major figure of the Cuban Revolution, his stylized visage has become a ubiquitous
countercultural symbol of rebellion
Che Guevara
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42 Comments
mf3
+2
Level 90
Sep 25, 2019
Isn't Leif Erikson the first European BELIEVED to have set foot on continental North America?
Arp2600
+3
Level 89
Sep 25, 2019
My question would rather be: is Newfoundland considered continental North America?
Cooldrive
+4
Level 64
Sep 26, 2019
Even Greenland is considered part of North America.
Arp2600
+4
Level 89
Sep 27, 2019
Those are islands, parts of North America but not "continental" imo.
BiggieSmalls
+2
Level 76
Dec 25, 2019
The definition of "continental" is: forming or belonging to a continent. Since Newfoundland and ALL the other islands ARE part of the North American continent, then I would say that YES, they are part of continental North America.
Arp2600
+3
Level 89
Jan 23, 2020
And a continent is a large continuous land. An island is by definition not continental. Newfoundland is on the North America plate, but not part of the continent strictly speaking.
Kalleanon
+6
Level 66
Jan 23, 2020
So, for example, Manhattan and Long Island aren't part of the continental US?
Arp2600
+1
Level 89
Jan 23, 2020
Not quite indeed, they are very close to the continent though, and there are a bunch of bridges. I don't think there's a bridge between Newfoundland and continental Canada?
pctjunkie
+5
Level 92
May 26, 2022
That's ridiculous. By your rationale as long as there is a bridge then the island could be considered part of the continent? So if we built a bridge from say Boston to London, then the UK would be part of North America? Silly.
Ferbin
+1
Level 79
May 27, 2022
Also, what about islands within the continent, like in a lake? Are they not part of said continent?
wiifly
+5
Level 63
May 29, 2022
It’s only silly because you’re coming up with bizarre counter points
CaptainUnderpant
+1
Level 81
Oct 11, 2023
Seems like the clue should just say North America but excluding Greenland to avoid the continent/island ambiguity and the ridiculous non sequitur that somehow bridging London and Boston would make the UK part of North America.
APHill
+1
Level 77
Sep 26, 2019
Only 50% got the author of the Aeneid? I'm scared for our future.
QRU
+16
Level 75
Sep 26, 2019
Why?
Cooldrive
+2
Level 64
Sep 26, 2019
It's okay. I'm one of those who got it, and I usually stink at these quizzes. So you can miss it and still be smart, I think.
cornflakesfu
+37
Level 89
Sep 28, 2019
There are a lot of good reasons to be scared about the future. This is not one of them.
Phil
+3
Level 58
Jan 23, 2020
What's Aenid?
jmellor13
+9
Level 68
Jan 23, 2020
There are so very many historical names to know. Virgil ranks pretty low on the list.
howard38
+6
Level 61
Jan 23, 2020
Oh, please.
JWatson24
+1
Level 71
May 27, 2022
I'd consider myself fairly well read and I've never picked up Virgil in my life. If a more famous or recent author, like Dickens or Hemingway, was below 50% that might be a cause for concern, but certainly not Virgil.
Ferbin
+2
Level 79
May 27, 2022
He's also an important character in a rather renowned poem called The Divine Comedy. You may have heard of it.

And why would someone like Dickens, whose fame might wildly vary depending on the country, be more cause for concern?

I might be off here, but your comment reeks a bit of anglocentrism.

wiifly
+1
Level 63
May 29, 2022
Ok
brandybuck96
+1
Level 83
Oct 18, 2024
Virgil had an immense influence on Anglophone literature, especially from the 18th century onwards. Maybe you should pick him up some time.
Tomcre
+6
Level 63
Nov 10, 2019
Ffs, I was stuck on Erik the Red, Leif Erikson's dad
ElijahCaine
+1
Level 49
May 26, 2022
Me too
Nuagoo
+2
Level 55
Jan 23, 2020
3 stars because with this much time you should be expected to know some numbers (or froce them) - Lokking at you #3
Jacktheguy
+14
Level 93
Jan 23, 2020
I wish I could understand what you just said.
Rozzi
+2
Level 61
Jan 30, 2020
Too much auto ill in, e.g. Richard - the very fact that it was Richard the third demonstrates that other Richards are available.
JonOfKent
+2
Level 60
Dec 21, 2020
Wikipedia thinks Braveheart is an "account" of William Wallace's life?? I suppose a fictionalised account is still an account...
acka
+6
Level 65
Aug 29, 2021
Lots of well known figures and a random American colonist
Froststar101
+1
Level 73
Nov 30, 2021
No? If anything this quiz is pretty British-centric, with 4 British people compared with 4 Americans.
nettybet
+1
Level 77
May 26, 2022
Actually, 6 are British and only 2 American
funnyvalentine
+2
Level 48
May 26, 2022
Random? The Penn in WIlliam Penn is where Pennsylvania comes from
HyddenRizz
+2
Level 67
Aug 26, 2022
Why is Pennsylvania significant?
CaptainUnderpant
+1
Level 81
Oct 11, 2023
Why isn't Pennsylvania significant?
Hectorselector
+2
Level 59
Feb 14, 2024
Why is significance Pennsylvanian?
OvenBobat
+1
Level 64
Jul 1, 2025
Why isn't significant Pennsylvania?
cledun2
+1
Level 94
May 6, 2022
I did this for the first time, got 5.points, but my overall points only increased by 3. Why has this been happening?
AbiA
+1
Level 87
Nov 5, 2022
As I understand it, when a quiz is reset you lose any points you won from taking it. So perhaps a quiz for which you previously won 2 points has just been reset. Look at menu>featured>new or reset quizzes to find and retake it and win your points back. Hope that helps.
cultleader1234
+2
Level 20
May 24, 2022
Any other Simpsons fans who put "Clancy Bouvier" for the first one?
sjj93gg
+1
Level 55
May 26, 2022
Strange how you only need to type in the first name for some people, and only the surname for others. Leif Ericson is the odd one though: Ericson was not a surname, it was a patronymic, so Ericson should not be accepted as an answer (possibly...!)
betseg
+1
Level 58
Nov 1, 2025
i thought it was one of the ancient philadephias in egypt or anatolia...
People in History by Wikipedia Descriptions
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