Historical Figures Who Survived Assassination Attempts
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Historical Figures Who Survived Assassination Attempts — Daily trivia Friday, April 3, 2026: questions and answers
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Q 01In what year did John Hinckley Jr. shoot President Reagan outside the Washington Hilton?
- A1983
- B1985
- C1986
- D1981
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1981
President Reagan was shot on March 30, 1981, sustaining a serious wound but recovering after surgery. The attempt led to significant changes in Secret Service protocols and influenced gun control legislation.
Q 02Which 1944 plot to assassinate Hitler involved a bomb in a briefcase at the Wolf's Lair?
- ANight of the Long Knives
- BOperation Valkyrie (20 July Plot)
- CBeer Hall Putsch
- DKristallnacht
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Operation Valkyrie (20 July Plot)
The 20 July Plot, also known as Operation Valkyrie, was an attempt by German military officers to assassinate Adolf Hitler and overthrow the Nazi regime, but Hitler survived the bomb blast.
Q 03Who fired the first of the assassination attempts on Queen Victoria, shooting at her carriage in 1840?
- ARoderick Maclean
- BEdward Oxford
- CJohn William Bean
- DArthur O'Connor
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Edward Oxford
Eighteen-year-old Edward Oxford fired twice at Victoria as she rode out with Prince Albert in 1840; either both shots missed or the pistols held no shot. Six further attempts followed over the next four decades.
Q 04Who shot Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Square in 1981?
- AGavrilo Princip
- BLee Harvey Oswald
- CMehmet Ali Ağca
- DJohn Wilkes Booth
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Mehmet Ali Ağca
On May 13, 1981, Turkish national Mehmet Ali Ağca shot Pope John Paul II, who survived his injuries and later famously forgave his attacker.
Q 05In which US city was Theodore Roosevelt shot in the chest before a speech in 1912?
- AChicago
- BPhiladelphia
- CSt. Louis
- DMilwaukee
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Milwaukee
Former President Theodore Roosevelt was shot by John Schrank in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but still delivered his scheduled speech with the bullet lodged in his chest.
Q 06By what method did Franz Ferdinand survive an earlier assassination attempt on the day he was shot?
- ABomb
- BPoison
- CStabbing
- DSniping
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Bomb
On June 28, 1914, Nedeljko Čabrinović threw a bomb at the Archduke's motorcade, which bounced off the car and injured bystanders, allowing Franz Ferdinand to initially escape.
Q 07Who made the first recorded assassination attempt on a sitting US President, targeting Jackson in 1835?
- ARichard Lawrence
- BCharles Guiteau
- CLeon Czolgosz
- DJohn Wilkes Booth
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Richard Lawrence
Richard Lawrence, an unemployed house painter, attempted to shoot President Andrew Jackson outside the U.S. Capitol, but both of his pistols misfired.
Q 08Which paramilitary group organised the 1962 Petit-Clamart assassination attempt on Charles de Gaulle?
- ARed Army Faction
- BIrish Republican Army
- COrganisation armée secrète (OAS)
- DETA
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Organisation armée secrète (OAS)
The Organisation armée secrète (OAS) attempted to assassinate de Gaulle due to his support for Algerian independence, firing over 150 bullets at his car, but he emerged unscathed.
Q 09How many known assassination attempts did Otto von Bismarck survive?
- AOne
- BFour
- CThree
- DTwo
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Two
Otto von Bismarck survived two notable assassination attempts: one by Ferdinand Cohen-Blind in 1866 and another by Eduard Kullmann in 1874.
Q 10Which US president did two Puerto Rican nationalists try to kill at Blair House in 1950?
- AHarry S. Truman
- BFranklin D. Roosevelt
- CDwight D. Eisenhower
- DHerbert Hoover
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Harry S. Truman
Oscar Collazo and Griselio Torresola attacked Blair House on 1 November 1950, where Truman was living during White House renovations. He was napping upstairs and unhurt; policeman Leslie Coffelt was killed but shot Torresola dead.
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