Can you name the historical figures in ascending chronological order?

created by TJL
  • Enter a Historical Figure in the box below
  • Correctly named Historical Figures will show up below
  • Click any empty Description or Historical Figure to answer for that location
  • If you're confused about this: In this quiz, each figure lived at the same time as the person before and after him, and not at the same time as anyone else, forming a ladder.Some dates are approximate
  • This quiz has not been verified by Sporcle
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DescriptionHistorical FigureYears Born and Died
King of Israel who established his capital at Jerusalem and in the Bible defeated the giant Goliath1040-970 BC
King of Israel and son of the above who built the First Temple of Jerusalem1011-931 BC
Archon of Athens, sharing his name with several famous Athenians possibly descended from him950-892 BC
Assyrian king who campaigned in Lebanon and greatly expanded Assyrian territory900-859 BC
Wife of King Ahab of Israel who converted him to the worship of Baal and was later defenestrated885-842
King of Tyre who expanded Phoenician trade into the Mediterranean and is reputed to be the brother of Dido 843-785 BC
King of Urartu who founded the fortress of Erebuni, around which the Armenian city of Yerevan is built810-753 BC
Founder and first king of Rome771-717 BC
Lydian king who in legend turned everything he touched into gold738-696 BC
King of Judah who reinstituted pagan worship and is credited with the death of Isaiah709-643 BC
Assyrian King who established a library at Nineveh685-627 BC
Babylonian King who built the Hanging Gardens and sent the Jews into Exile634-562 BC
Founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire600-530 BC
Chinese philosopher who devised a system of moral ideals551-479 BC
Athenian General during the first part of the Peloponnesian War495-429 BC
Athenian philosopher who was executed by drinking hemlock469-399 BC
Student of the above who composed philosophical dialogues such as the Republic and Symposium428-348 BC
Macedonian who conquered the territory of the Persian Empire and founded many cities named after himself356-323 BC
Founder of the Maurya Empire who was the first to unify India340-298 BC
King of Epirus who fought against the Romans, defeating them at heavy costs to his army319-272 BC
Syracusan Geometer and Inventor who developed the screw pump and is known for yelling out 'Eureka'287-212 BC
Carthaginian general who crossed the Alps with elephants247-182 BC
Leader of the Jewish revolt against the Seleucid Empire who is commemorated at Hanukkah190-160 BC
Roman agrarian reformer of the Populares faction who was killed by an angry mob168-133 BC
Roman dictator who enacted many constitutional reforms intended to bring about stability, then retired peacefully138-78 BC
Roman orator, philosopher, and poet who held the office of consul during the Catilinarian Conspiracy and was executed for his opposition to Antony106-43 BC
DescriptionHistorical FigureYears Born and Died
First Roman Emperor63 BC-14 AD
Founder of Christianity who was crucified in Jerusalem6 BC-33 AD
Roman historian and natural philosopher who died in the eruption of Vesuvius23-79 AD
Roman Emperor known for a wall he built in Britain76-138 AD
Last of the 'Five Good Emperors,' who conquered the Parthians and wrote the Meditations121-180 AD
Carthaginian Christian apologist who was the first known author to write on the Trinity160-220 AD
Founder of Neoplatonism and teacher of Porphyry204-270 AD
Roman Emperor who ended the crisis of the 3rd Century and established the Tetrarchy244-311 AD
Roman Emperor who made Christianity legal272-337 AD
Bishop of Tours who destroyed pagan shrines in the interior of Gaul316-397 AD
'The Last of the Romans'-A Roman General who repelled the invasion of Attila the Hun396-454 AD
Germanic general who deposed the last Western Roman Emperor and established the Kingdom of Italy 433-493 AD
Eastern Roman Emperor who reconquered the territory of the Western Empire and codified Roman law into the Corpus Juris Civilis483-565 AD
Gallo-Roman Historian and Bishop of Tours538-594 AD
Prophet and founder of Islam570-632 AD
Last truly powerful Merovingian Frankish King603-639 AD
Pope of Syrian origin elected by the general population with the support of the Byzantine Emperor635-686 AD
British historian; wrote An Ecclesiastical History of the English People673-735 AD
Last Umayyad Caliph688-750 AD
Frankish King who styled himself Emperor of the Romans and initiated the Carolingian Renaissance742-814 AD
Pope who consolidated the power of the papacy and is one of four popes called 'the great'800-867 AD
First English King to be called 'King of the Anglo-Saxons,' who defended Southern England from the Viking invasions849-899 AD
Abbasid Caliph who ascended to power at age 13895-932 AD
King of France who ruled from England at first, giving him the nickname 'Transmarinus'920-954 AD
Byzantine Emperor who sent a fleet to recapture Crete from the Muslims938-963 AD
Half-brother of Aethelred the Unready who was murdered after a reign plagued by civil war and famine962-978 AD
DescriptionHistorical FigureYears Born and Died
Norse explorer who established a settlement at Vinland, most likely in Newfoundland970-1020 AD
Persian scholar of medicine, astronomy, Islamic theology, and philosophy, who studied Aristotle extensively980-1037 AD
Norman conqueror of England1028-1087 AD
Spanish general who fought the invading Moors1043-1099 AD
Cistercian Abbot who preached in support of the Second Crusade1090-1153 AD
Archbishop of Canterbury who refused to sign the Constitutions of Clarendon, and was murdered in Canterbury Cathedral1118-1170 AD
Founder of the Mongol Empire1162-1227 AD
Catholic theologian and philosopher who wrote Summa Theologica and Summa Contra Gentiles1225-1274 AD
Italian poet who wrote the Divine Comedy1265-1321 AD
Mali Emperor who went on a pilgrimage to Mecca1280-1337 AD
Turco-Mongol who conquered a large Central Asian empire with capital at Samarkand1336-1405 AD
Flemish painer noted for his oil paintings1395-1441 AD
Ottoman Sultan who conquered the Byzantine Empire1432-1481 AD
Explorer who is given credit for discovering the New World1451-1506 AD
English King known for his wives and creating the Church of England1491-1547 AD
Protestant reformer who proposed the concept of predestination1509-1564 AD
English playwright known as 'the Bard of Stratford upon Avon' who wrote Hamlet, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet, among others1564-1616 AD
Sachem of the Wampanoag who helped the Pilgrims survive their first winters in Massachusetts1581-1661 AD
First British King of the House of Hanover1660-1727 AD
French Philosopher and author of The Social Contract and Discourse on Inequality1712-1778 AD
U.S. President and author of the Declaration of Independence1743-1826 AD
U.S. President during the American Civil War, who freed the slaves and was assassinated in 18651809-1865 AD
Scottish missionary and explorer who met Henry Stanley on the shores of Lake Tanganyika1813-1873 AD
Advocate for Indian independence who led peaceful protests against British rule in accordance with his belief of ahimsa1869-1948 AD
WWII Era British Prime Minister and historian1874-1965 AD
Current President of the United States1961 AD-
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Ladder of History Quiz

  1. by TJL
  • Created May 12, 2011 in History
  • Game Plays 280

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