Companies Older Than Countries
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Companies Older Than Countries — Daily trivia Tuesday, May 26, 2026: questions and answers
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Q 01Which iconic Canadian fur-trading firm received its royal charter in 1670, well before Confederation in 1867?
- ACanadian Pacific Railway
- BTim Hortons
- CHudson's Bay Company
- DBombardier Inc.
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Hudson's Bay Company
A royal charter from King Charles II incorporated the Hudson's Bay Company on 2 May 1670, granting it a monopoly over the vast watershed draining into Hudson Bay - Rupert's Land, more than a third of modern Canada. That is 197 years before Confederation in 1867.
Q 02Which American plantation, family-run since 1638, is North America's oldest family-owned business?
- AMount Vernon
- BShirley Plantation
- CBoone Hall Plantation
- DMonticello
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Shirley Plantation
Shirley Plantation in Charles City County, Virginia, was settled in 1613 and has been run by the Hill-Carter family since 1638, making it the oldest family-owned business in North America, well before independence in 1776.
Q 03Which institution, established in 1694 as the English Government's banker, predates the 1707 Act of Union?
- ABank of England
- BRoyal Bank of Scotland
- CHSBC
- DBarclays
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Bank of England
The Bank of England was founded on 27 July 1694 to act as the English government's banker and debt manager, raising GBP 1.5 million under the Tonnage Act to fund the war against France. That is 13 years before the Act of Union of 1707.
Q 04Which Swedish maker of outdoor power products, firearms and sewing machines was founded in 1689?
- ASaab
- BHusqvarna
- CSKF
- DElectrolux
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Husqvarna
Husqvarna was founded in 1689 as a firearms manufacturer. When rifle demand fell after 1872 the same machinery was turned to sewing machines, and lawn mowers followed from 1918 - a lineage 87 years older than the United States.
Q 05Which Savile Row tailor, tracing its origins to 1771, has dressed British royalty and military figures for centuries?
- AGieves & Hawkes
- BErmenegildo Zegna
- CBrioni
- DHugo Boss
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Gieves & Hawkes
Thomas Hawkes began his tailoring business in 1771, serving British Army commanders, which brought in King George III as a customer. At 1 Savile Row, the firm has held royal warrants since 1809, predating Italian unification by 90 years.
Q 06Which British coinage institution traces its origins to 886 AD?
- ALloyd's of London
- BThe Royal Mint
- CBank of England
- DRoyal Mail
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The Royal Mint
The Royal Mint traces its origins to about 886 AD, over 1,100 years ago. England's many mints were unified under a single system at the Tower of London in 1279 - still centuries before the 1707 Act of Union created Great Britain.
Q 07Which Italian firearms maker, founded in 1526, is one of the world's oldest continually operating businesses?
- AFiat
- BLamborghini
- CBeretta
- DFerrari
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Beretta
Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. was founded in 1526 in Gardone Val Trompia, Italy. It is an incredibly enduring company, operating for over three centuries before the various states of the Italian peninsula were unified into the Kingdom of Italy in 1861.
Q 08Which company, tracing its roots to a 1288 copper mine in Falun, Sweden, is one of the oldest in the world?
- AEricsson
- BIKEA
- CVolvo
- DStora Enso
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Stora Enso
Stora Enso, a Finnish-Swedish pulp and paper company, has its earliest documented origins in the Swedish mining company Stora Kopparbergs Bergslags Aktiebolag, with a share certificate from 1288. This makes its corporate lineage centuries older than Finland's independence in 1917.
Q 09Which Austrian restaurant, founded in 803 AD, is one of Europe's oldest continuously operating eateries?
- ASt. Peter Stiftskulinarium
- BGriechenbeisl
- CFiglmüller
- DAugustiner-Keller
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St. Peter Stiftskulinarium
St. Peter Stiftskulinarium, located in Salzburg, Austria, traces its origins back to 803 AD, documented in a charter by Charlemagne's scholar Alcuin. It has served guests for over 1200 years, long before the formal establishment of the Austrian Empire in 1804.
Q 10Which Japanese temple-building company was founded in 578 AD?
- ATakenaka Corporation
- BShimizu Corporation
- CKajima Corporation
- DKongō Gumi
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Kongō Gumi
Kongo Gumi was purportedly founded in AD 578 to build and maintain Buddhist temples, making it the world's oldest documented company. It lost its independence in January 2006, becoming a subsidiary of the Takamatsu Construction Group.
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