15th Century Trivia

15th Century trivia explores a century marked by the Renaissance, the fall of Constantinople, and the voyages that began to connect distant parts of the world more directly. From royal rivalries and artistic breakthroughs to odd historical details, it offers an engaging way to test what you know about one of history’s most transformative eras.

Easy 15th Century Trivia

13 questions

These easy 15th Century trivia questions are great for beginners and kids around age 12 and under.

Question 1
Who was the Ming admiral whose major voyages began in the early 15th century?
Answer: Zheng He
Zheng He was the Ming admiral known for major voyages that began in the early 15th century.
Question 2
What kind of sail is triangular rather than square?
Answer: lateen sail
A lateen sail is defined by its triangular shape.
Question 3
In what year did the Battle of Bosworth Field take place?
1. A.1507
2. B.1485
3. C.1455
4. D.1494
Answer: 1485
The Battle of Bosworth Field took place in 1485.
Question 4
The Treaty of Tordesillas was signed in which year?
1. A.1485
2. B.1455
3. C.1513
4. D.1494
Answer: 1494
The Treaty of Tordesillas was signed in 1494.
Question 5
When did the Wars of the Roses begin?
Answer: 1455
The Wars of the Roses began in 1455.
Question 6
Which famous book was among the earliest major books printed in Europe with movable metal type?
1. A.The Prince
2. B.The School of Athens
3. C.Arnolfini Portrait
4. D.Gutenberg Bible
Answer: Gutenberg Bible
The Gutenberg Bible was one of the earliest major books printed in Europe using movable metal type.
Question 7
True or false: Machiavelli wrote The Prince during the 15th century.?
Answer: False
The Prince was written in 1513, after the 15th century had ended.
Question 8
Which Early Netherlandish painter was active in the first half of the 15th century?
1. A.Sandro Botticelli
2. B.Michelangelo
3. C.Raphael
4. D.Jan van Eyck
Answer: Jan van Eyck
Jan van Eyck was an Early Netherlandish painter active in the first half of the 15th century.
Question 9
Which English king was the last to die in battle?
Answer: Richard III
Richard III holds the distinction of being the last English king to die in battle.
Question 10
Which artist worked in Florence during the 15th century?
1. A.Sandro Botticelli
2. B.Jan van Eyck
3. C.David Garrick
4. D.Richard III
Answer: Sandro Botticelli
Sandro Botticelli worked in Florence during the 15th century.
Question 11
Which Caribbean island was one of the first colonized by Spain after 1492?
1. A.Florence
2. B.Beijing
3. C.Muscovy
4. D.Hispaniola
Answer: Hispaniola
Hispaniola was one of the first Caribbean islands colonized by Spain after 1492.
Question 12
What sculpture by Michelangelo was completed at the very end of the 15th century?
Answer: Pietà
Michelangelo's Pietà was completed at the very end of the 15th century.
Question 13
True or false: The Waldseemüller map was published during the 15th century.?
Answer: False
The Waldseemüller map was published in 1507, after the 15th century.

15th Century Family Trivia

12 questions

These family 15th Century trivia questions are built for mixed-age game nights, classrooms, and groups.

Question 1
Which NFL team has appeared in the big game but has never won a Super Bowl?
Answer: The Cincinnati Bengals have never won a Super Bowl.
The Bengals have never won a Super Bowl.
Question 2
In which Louisiana city are the Saints based?
Answer: The Saints are based in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The Saints are based in New Orleans.
Question 3
Behind the mask, what is Spider-Man's civilian name?
Answer: Spider-Man's civilian identity is Peter Parker.
Spider-Man's civilian identity is Peter Parker.
Question 4
Which island is traditionally linked with the visions described in Revelation?
Answer: Patmos is the island linked with the visions of Revelation.
The provided fact directly links Revelation's visions with Patmos.
Question 5
What kind of bridge is the Golden Gate Bridge?
Answer: The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge.
The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge.
Question 6
Before he became Carolina's captain, which player had already played for the team?
Answer: Jordan Staal played for Carolina before becoming its captain.
The fact says Jordan Staal played for Carolina before later becoming captain.
Question 7
The Rams are an NFL franchise in which U.S. state?
Answer: The Rams are a National Football League franchise in California.
The listed fact places the Rams in California.
Question 8
Superman first showed up in the pages of which comic series?
Answer: Superman made his first appearance in Action Comics.
Superman's first appearance was in Action Comics.
Question 9
Which city name is one of the two used in the Chargers' franchise name over time: Los Angeles or Sacramento?
Answer: Los Angeles is one of the two city names used in the Chargers' franchise name.
The fact says the Chargers have used both Los Angeles and San Diego in their franchise name.
Question 10
What year gave LAFC its first MLS Cup title season?
Answer: LAFC's first MLS Cup title season was 2022.
2022 was LAFC's first MLS Cup title season.
Question 11
The Giants have a longstanding rivalry with which team?
Answer: The Giants have a longstanding rivalry with the Dallas Cowboys.
The Giants have a longstanding rivalry with the Dallas Cowboys.
Question 12
Which player did Toronto draft in 2021?
Answer: Toronto drafted Scottie Barnes in 2021.
Scottie Barnes was drafted by Toronto in 2021.

Fun 15th Century Trivia

13 questions

These fun 15th Century trivia questions highlight surprising moments and playful facts for game-night groups.

Question 1
What year did Christopher Columbus first reach the Caribbean, kicking off one of history’s most famous ocean detours?
1. A.1453
2. B.1498
3. C.1431
4. D.1492
Answer: 1492
Columbus first reached the Caribbean in 1492.
Question 2
Which year saw Vasco da Gama reach India by sea, a major milestone in ocean travel?
1. A.1460
2. B.1498
3. C.1492
4. D.1452
Answer: 1498
Vasco da Gama reached India by sea in 1498.
Question 3
In what year did Constantinople fall to the Ottomans?
1. A.1475
2. B.1431
3. C.1453
4. D.1492
Answer: 1453
Constantinople fell in 1453.
Question 4
Which famous embroidered artifact is a total time traveler here because it was made centuries before the 15th century?
Answer: The Bayeux Tapestry
The Bayeux Tapestry was created centuries before the 15th century.
Question 5
Who founded the Tudor dynasty in England?
Answer: Henry VII
Henry VII founded the Tudor dynasty in England.
Question 6
Which historical figure was executed in 1431?
1. A.Joan of Arc
2. B.Isabella I
3. C.Michelangelo
4. D.Marco Polo
Answer: Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc was executed in 1431.
Question 7
Which Renaissance genius arrived first, being born in 1452?
Answer: Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452.
Question 8
Born in 1475, which future master entered the world late in the 15th century?
Answer: Michelangelo
Michelangelo was born in 1475.
Question 9
Name the Portuguese explorer who reached India by sea in 1498.?
1. A.Marco Polo
2. B.Vasco da Gama
3. C.Christopher Columbus
Answer: Vasco da Gama
Vasco da Gama was the explorer who reached India by sea in 1498.
Question 10
What city served as the capital of the Inca Empire?
Answer: Cuzco
Cuzco was the capital of the Inca Empire.
Question 11
Which city was a major maritime republic in the 15th century, basically making waves in politics and trade?
1. A.Mainz
2. B.Venice
3. C.Lisbon
4. D.Granada
Answer: Venice
Venice was a major maritime republic in the 15th century.
Question 12
Which title belongs nowhere near the 1400s because it was compiled in 1086?
Answer: Domesday Book
Domesday Book was compiled long before the 15th century, in 1086.
Question 13
Which Leonardo painting was created in the 1490s?
Answer: The Last Supper
Leonardo da Vinci painted The Last Supper in the 1490s.

Funny 15th Century Trivia

13 questions

These funny 15th Century trivia questions highlight playful moments, odd facts, and inside jokes.

Question 1
Which union basically got Denmark, Norway, and Sweden into a long medieval group chat for much of the 15th century?
1. A.The Hanseatic League
2. B.The Swabian League
3. C.The Grand Duchy of Lithuania
4. D.Kalmar Union
Answer: The Kalmar Union
The Kalmar Union linked Denmark, Norway, and Sweden during much of the 15th century.
Question 2
Albrecht Dürer dropped which woodcut series in 1498, proving print culture also enjoyed dramatic timing?
Answer: Apocalypse
Dürer's Apocalypse woodcut series was published in 1498.
Question 3
What was first printed in Venice in 1499, sounding like a spell and a tongue twister at the same time?
Answer: Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
Hypnerotomachia Poliphili was first printed in Venice in 1499.
Question 4
Ferdinand Magellan entered the world in which part of the timeline: before the 15th century, during the 1480s, or after 1500?
1. A.1480s
2. B.Before the 15th century began
3. C.After 1500
4. D.In 1400 exactly
Answer: During the 1480s
Magellan was born in the 1480s, after the 15th century had already begun.
Question 5
If you wanted a city in the 15th century with walls that were very committed to still being walls, where would you go?
Answer: Ávila
Ávila is famous for its medieval walls, which still stood in the 15th century.
Question 6
Which city was a major urban center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 15th century?
1. A.Vilnius
2. B.Ávila
3. C.Angkor
4. D.Kalmar
Answer: Vilnius
Vilnius was a major city of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 15th century.
Question 7
In 1492, Antonio de Nebrija published which work, giving Castilian grammar a very official desk job?
Answer: Gramática castellana
Antonio de Nebrija published a grammar of Castilian in 1492 titled Gramática castellana.
Question 8
By the late 15th century, which famous site was no longer the capital of the Khmer kingdom?
Answer: Angkor
Angkor was no longer the capital of the Khmer kingdom by the late 15th century.
Question 9
The Swabian League got started in what year, like a club that actually filed its paperwork?
Answer: 1488
The Swabian League was founded in 1488.
Question 10
Name the three kingdoms linked by the Kalmar Union; this is the medieval version of a complicated shared calendar.?
Answer: Denmark, Norway, and Sweden
The Kalmar Union linked Denmark, Norway, and Sweden during much of the 15th century.
Question 11
Which came later than the 15th century: the Cantino planisphere or Dürer’s Apocalypse?
1. A.Apocalypse
2. B.Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
3. C.Gramática castellana
4. D.Cantino planisphere
Answer: The Cantino planisphere
The Cantino planisphere dates to 1502, while Dürer's Apocalypse was published in 1498.
Question 12
What year was Dürer’s Apocalypse published, arriving just in time to make 1498 feel extra intense?
Answer: 1498
Albrecht Dürer's Apocalypse woodcut series was published in 1498.
Question 13
Which city gets bragging rights as the place where Hypnerotomachia Poliphili was first printed in 1499?
Answer: Venice
Hypnerotomachia Poliphili was first printed in Venice in 1499.

Hard 15th Century Trivia

14 questions

These hard 15th Century trivia questions are for expert fans who want a real challenge.

Question 1
Which reformer’s followers were known as the Hussites?
Answer: Jan Hus
The Hussites were followers of the reformer Jan Hus.
Question 2
A collector boasts that a volume is an incunable. What must be true about when it was printed?
Answer: It was printed before 1501.
An incunable is a book printed before 1501.
Question 3
In late medieval Catholic usage, an indulgence was associated with the remission of what exactly?
Answer: Temporal punishment for sin
An indulgence was linked to the remission of temporal punishment for sin.
Question 4
Which year is associated with a key milestone for 15th Century?
Answer: 1419
The Hussite Wars began in 1419.
Question 5
William Caxton printed which Arthurian work in 1485?
Answer: Le Morte d'Arthur
Le Morte d'Arthur was printed by William Caxton in 1485.
Question 6
Which 1493 publication was an illustrated world history?
1. A.Summa de arithmetica
2. B.Adagia
3. C.Nuremberg Chronicle
4. D.Le Morte d'Arthur
Answer: The Nuremberg Chronicle
The Nuremberg Chronicle was published in 1493 is an illustrated world history.
Question 7
Throughout the 15th century, which city remained Japan’s imperial capital?
Answer: Kyoto
Kyoto remained the imperial capital of Japan during the 15th century.
Question 8
Which city grew in political importance under the rulers of Muscovy in the late 15th century?
Answer: Moscow
Moscow grew in political importance under the rulers of Muscovy in the late 15th century.
Question 9
Name the important imperial city in the Holy Roman Empire that shares its name with a major 1493 chronicle.?
Answer: Nuremberg
Nuremberg was an important imperial city in the Holy Roman Empire.
Question 10
Late 15th-century Atlantic ventures gave which Spanish port special prominence?
Answer: Seville
Seville became a key Spanish port for Atlantic ventures in the late 15th century.
Question 11
If a late medieval mariner wanted a practical nautical map rather than a devotional manuscript, what kind of chart would fit the bill?
Answer: A portolan chart
Portolan charts were practical nautical maps used by late medieval mariners.
Question 12
Which trading city held a strategic position on the strait connecting the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea?
Answer: Malacca
Malacca controlled a strategic position on the strait connecting the Indian Ocean and South China Sea.
Question 13
Which settlement on Hispaniola was founded by the Spanish in 1496?
Answer: Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo was founded by the Spanish in 1496 on Hispaniola.
Question 14
What labor-and-rule arrangement began in the Spanish Caribbean after Columbus’s voyages?
Answer: The encomienda system
The encomienda system began in the Spanish Caribbean after Columbus's voyages.

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Easy 15th Century Trivia

Who was the Ming admiral whose major voyages began in the early 15th century?

What kind of sail is triangular rather than square?

In what year did the Battle of Bosworth Field take place?

The Treaty of Tordesillas was signed in which year?

When did the Wars of the Roses begin?

Which famous book was among the earliest major books printed in Europe with movable metal type?

True or false: Machiavelli wrote The Prince during the 15th century.?

Which Early Netherlandish painter was active in the first half of the 15th century?

Which English king was the last to die in battle?

Which artist worked in Florence during the 15th century?

Which Caribbean island was one of the first colonized by Spain after 1492?

What sculpture by Michelangelo was completed at the very end of the 15th century?

True or false: The Waldseemüller map was published during the 15th century.?

15th Century Family Trivia

Which NFL team has appeared in the big game but has never won a Super Bowl?

In which Louisiana city are the Saints based?

Behind the mask, what is Spider-Man's civilian name?

Which island is traditionally linked with the visions described in Revelation?

What kind of bridge is the Golden Gate Bridge?

Before he became Carolina's captain, which player had already played for the team?

The Rams are an NFL franchise in which U.S. state?

Superman first showed up in the pages of which comic series?

Which city name is one of the two used in the Chargers' franchise name over time: Los Angeles or Sacramento?

What year gave LAFC its first MLS Cup title season?

The Giants have a longstanding rivalry with which team?

Which player did Toronto draft in 2021?

Fun 15th Century Trivia

What year did Christopher Columbus first reach the Caribbean, kicking off one of history’s most famous ocean detours?

Which year saw Vasco da Gama reach India by sea, a major milestone in ocean travel?

In what year did Constantinople fall to the Ottomans?

Which famous embroidered artifact is a total time traveler here because it was made centuries before the 15th century?

Who founded the Tudor dynasty in England?

Which historical figure was executed in 1431?

Which Renaissance genius arrived first, being born in 1452?

Born in 1475, which future master entered the world late in the 15th century?

Name the Portuguese explorer who reached India by sea in 1498.?

What city served as the capital of the Inca Empire?

Which city was a major maritime republic in the 15th century, basically making waves in politics and trade?

Which title belongs nowhere near the 1400s because it was compiled in 1086?

Which Leonardo painting was created in the 1490s?

Funny 15th Century Trivia

Which union basically got Denmark, Norway, and Sweden into a long medieval group chat for much of the 15th century?

Albrecht Dürer dropped which woodcut series in 1498, proving print culture also enjoyed dramatic timing?

What was first printed in Venice in 1499, sounding like a spell and a tongue twister at the same time?

Ferdinand Magellan entered the world in which part of the timeline: before the 15th century, during the 1480s, or after 1500?

If you wanted a city in the 15th century with walls that were very committed to still being walls, where would you go?

Which city was a major urban center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 15th century?

In 1492, Antonio de Nebrija published which work, giving Castilian grammar a very official desk job?

By the late 15th century, which famous site was no longer the capital of the Khmer kingdom?

The Swabian League got started in what year, like a club that actually filed its paperwork?

Name the three kingdoms linked by the Kalmar Union; this is the medieval version of a complicated shared calendar.?

Which came later than the 15th century: the Cantino planisphere or Dürer’s Apocalypse?

What year was Dürer’s Apocalypse published, arriving just in time to make 1498 feel extra intense?

Which city gets bragging rights as the place where Hypnerotomachia Poliphili was first printed in 1499?

Hard 15th Century Trivia

Which reformer’s followers were known as the Hussites?

A collector boasts that a volume is an incunable. What must be true about when it was printed?

In late medieval Catholic usage, an indulgence was associated with the remission of what exactly?

Which year is associated with a key milestone for 15th Century?

William Caxton printed which Arthurian work in 1485?

Which 1493 publication was an illustrated world history?

Throughout the 15th century, which city remained Japan’s imperial capital?

Which city grew in political importance under the rulers of Muscovy in the late 15th century?

Name the important imperial city in the Holy Roman Empire that shares its name with a major 1493 chronicle.?

Late 15th-century Atlantic ventures gave which Spanish port special prominence?

If a late medieval mariner wanted a practical nautical map rather than a devotional manuscript, what kind of chart would fit the bill?

Which trading city held a strategic position on the strait connecting the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea?

Which settlement on Hispaniola was founded by the Spanish in 1496?

What labor-and-rule arrangement began in the Spanish Caribbean after Columbus’s voyages?

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