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People in History by Wikipedia Descriptions #1

Can you name these people in history by excerpts from their Wikipedia pages?
Some excerpts have been altered slightly
Quiz by WolfCam
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Last updated: September 25, 2019
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First submittedSeptember 15, 2019
Times taken28,263
Average score66.7%
Rating4.49
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Excerpt
Person
He preserved the Union, abolished slavery, strengthened the federal government
Abraham Lincoln
On 1 May 1876, she adopted the additional title of Empress of India
Queen Victoria
Was born Gaius Octavius Thurinus into an old and wealthy equestrian branch
of the plebeian gens Octavia
Augustus
He is referred to by many appellations including Messenger of Allah
Muhammad
Shot his political rival Alexander Hamilton in a famous duel in 1804
Aaron Burr
His reported overhauling of the railway network led to the popular saying,
"Say what you like about him, he made the trains run on time"
Benito Mussolini
The phonograph, the motion picture camera, and the long-lasting,
practical electric light bulb
Thomas Edison
Ruled as the Chairman of the Communist Party of China from its establishment
in 1949 until his death in 1976
Mao Zedong
"I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat"
Winston Churchill
His five-year voyage on HMS Beagle established him as an eminent geologist
Charles Darwin
a² + b² = c²
Pythagoras
His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid
Nelson Mandela
His travels are recorded in Livre des merveilles du monde, a book that described to
Europeans the then mysterious culture and inner workings of the Eastern world
Marco Polo
He founded some twenty cities that bore his name
Alexander the Great
Plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage in the pursuit of
favourable social standing and economic security
Jane Austen
The uncrowned King Charles VII sent her to the Siege of Orléans
Joan of Arc
A Hindu nationalist assassinated him on 30 January 1948
Mahatma Gandhi
The Terror ended with his arrest on 9 Thermidor and his execution on the day after
Maximilien Robespierre
He and Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers confirmed to have reached
the summit of Mount Everest
Edmund Hillary
He returned to Russia to play a leading role in the October Revolution
Vladimir Lenin
The Gold Rush, City Lights, Modern Times, and The Great Dictator often ranked
on lists of the greatest films of all time
Charlie Chaplin
+2
Level 76
Sep 23, 2019
I tried John Springfield first.
+3
Level 89
Sep 24, 2019
Always try Springfield as an answer.
+4
Level 64
Sep 25, 2019
Spent too much time trying Trotski
+3
Level 72
Sep 25, 2019
I tried Hitler for Mussolini. Not that far off. Trains, cars...
+6
Level 69
Sep 29, 2019
I was a little thrown by “The Terror”. Isn’t that period much more commonly known as the Reign of Terror?
+2
Level 37
Oct 7, 2019
^ Thought so as well.
+4
Level 83
Jun 25, 2020
I know in French it's usually 'La Terreur', so it's possible Wikipedia uses a more direct translation
+4
Level 82
Nov 10, 2019
Fine quiz, Wolfcam. Nice assortment and variety of historical figures, well done.
+2
Level 49
Nov 10, 2019
Octavian really should work if his epithet of Augustus does.
+1
Level 75
Nov 11, 2019
I really needed more time for this one - I had to immediately know the answer or move on and had no time to go back and think about those I skipped.
+4
Level 75
Nov 11, 2019
Why, on all Jetpunk quizzes, do we have to include "of Arc" for Joan? Is that her actual surname?
+3
Level 77
Oct 28, 2020
because if you typed just Joan people might think you are talking about the character from Romancing the Stone. :-)
+1
Level 57
Aug 24, 2022
You mean you didn't try "Miss Of Arc"?
+1
Level 60
Dec 11, 2023
That's so heinous
+5
Level 67
Nov 11, 2019
why aaron burr? I did google him and he doesn't seem to have anywhere the same historic resonance as the other names
+6
Level 66
Nov 11, 2019
He was the third U.S Vice President, but is mostly known for killing Alexander Hamilton. Not the MOST important person, but important nonetheless.
+3
Level 80
Nov 13, 2019
Plus, he was the main theme of a great Got Milk? commercial in the 90s. That's how I always remember his name.
+2
Level 70
Nov 28, 2021
Beyond the apocryphal David and Goliath, I struggle to think of a more famous duel.
+3
Level 82
Nov 28, 2021
Hector and Achilles? Darth Vader v Obi Wan? About as likely to have happened as David v Goliath. As far as real-life duels... yeah... short list... outside of the US maybe Pushkin vs that guy who fancied his wife? Musashi vs 50 or 100 guys whose name nobody recalls? can't think of any others off the top of my head, either.
+3
Level 89
Apr 3, 2020
Churchill may have offered all that stuff, but he sat behind a nice, safe desk while others gave it.
+1
Level 47
Dec 1, 2021
While sodden drunk no doubt.
+5
Level 57
Aug 24, 2022
What rubbish. He served at the battle of Omdurman and was nearly killed during a cavalry charge. He was an escaped prisoner of war with a price on his head in the Boer War. When he lost his cabinet post in WW1 he served in the trenches. Even in WW2 itself he had to be forcefully dissuaded from taking personal part in the Normandy landings. Later he insisted on crossing the Rhine into enemy held territory and came under artillery fire. There are any number of things you can legitimately criticise him for but unwillingness to put himself in danger is laughably wide of the mark.
+1
Level 83
Aug 25, 2020
Kept seeing Russia after Communist party instead of China , tried every Russian leader I knew. missed four ,would have known 3 including Mao. oops.
+1
Level 51
Jan 18, 2021
Cool blog
+3
Level 57
Apr 14, 2021
Strange starting with "plots.."
+4
Level 71
Nov 27, 2021
The book by Marco Polo is called "The Million". Certainly using a French name for an Italian book written in Italian is infuriating.

I almost missed it thanks for the misleading clue.

But that's a Wikipedia problem, I guess.

+3
Level 66
Nov 29, 2021
I was at first confused because it was written in French and I tought it can't be Marco Polo since he is Italian but because I could not find a Frenchman who fitted the clue I tried it and shook my head. English wikipedia is dumb.
+2
Level 58
Nov 27, 2021
From a non-American viewpoint, I'd say Aaron Burr is the least famous name on the list by a long way. And I'm not just saying that because it's the only one I couldn't guess!
+1
Level 82
Nov 28, 2021
Probably true, though not sure about the length of the way.
+1
Level 84
Nov 30, 2021
I tried Scarlet Pimpernel for Robespierre to no avail.
+1
Level 66
Aug 26, 2022
Would not have got Lincoln if it wasn't for the picture. You need "in the US" after every point there for it to make sense to be honest.
+4
Level 78
Oct 2, 2022
Isn't a geologist someone who studies rocks? Darwin was a biologist I'm pretty sure
+1
Level 61
Oct 4, 2022
You should accept "Gaius Octavius Thurinus" for Augustus. Thurinus was his birth name.