Q 01/05

Which European capital is the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state?

A) Stockholm

B) Tallinn

C) Helsinki

D) Reykjavík

Answer · why

D) Reykjavík

Reykjavík. Its Old Norse name means 'bay of smoke', said to have been given by early settlers who saw steam rising from the hot springs nearby.

Q 02/05

Which island capital is named after the commander who held off an Ottoman siege in 1565?

A) Valletta

B) Nicosia

C) Reykjavík

D) Dublin

Answer · why

A) Valletta

Valletta. Jean de Valette laid the first stone of the new fortress city in 1566, within months of the siege, but died two years later and never saw it...

Q 03/05

Malta's capital was built in the 16th century by which order?

A) The Knights Hospitaller

B) The Jesuits

C) The Teutonic Knights

D) The Knights Templar

Answer · why

A) The Knights Hospitaller

The Knights Hospitaller. Having survived the Ottoman siege of 1565, the order built the city as its fortress and ruled Malta until French forces expel...

Q 04/05

Which country has no official capital, only a 'federal city' that acts as its de facto capital?

A) Netherlands

B) Switzerland

C) Liechtenstein

D) Belgium

Answer · why

B) Switzerland

Switzerland. To avoid concentrating power, its founders named no capital; in 1848 parliament simply chose Bern, ahead of Zurich and Lucerne, as the 'f...

Q 05/05

Bern's old town is surrounded by which river?

A) The Rhine

B) The Limmat

C) The Rhône

D) The Aare

Answer · why

D) The Aare

The Aare. The river bends around the old town's narrow peninsula on three sides, which is why the city's founder chose the spot in 1191: it was easy t...