History Ancient India - MCQs – Set 1

1. At which of the following Indus Valley Sites, the remains of camel bones have been found?

(a) Surkotada

(b) Kalibangan

(c) Lothal

(d) Kot Diji

2. Which one of the following was not cultivated in the Indus Valley civilization?

a) Wheat

b) Barley.

c) Sugarcane

d) Sesamum

3. Which of the following birds was worshiped by the people of Harappan civilization?

(a) Pigeon

(b) Eagle

(c) Crow

(d) Peacock

4. What does the name Kalibangan mean?

(a) Black Bangles

(b) Clay Bangles

(c) Glass Bangles

(d) Yellow Bangles

 5. Which of the following events in Buddha's life did not take place on a full moon day (Purnima)?

(a) Birth

(b) Death (Mahaparinirvana)

(c) Enlightenment

(d) Renunciation (Mahabhinishkramana) 

6. To whom is the sacred text of Jainism, Kalpasutra, ascribed to ?

(a) Bhadrabahu

(b) Sthulabhadra

(c) Hemachandra

(d) Nayachandra

7. Who among the following rulers was not a patron of Jainism?

(a) Kharavela 

(b) Amoghavarsha

(c) Gaud Shashank

(d) Chandragupta Maurya

8. To whom is Sariputra-prakarana ascribed to?

(a) Asvaghosha

(b) Mahendravikramavarman

(c) Nagasena

(d) Meander

9. Which God is the famous Gayatri mantra addressed to?

(a) Savitr

(b) Indra

(c) Varuna

(d) Soma

10. Which among the rulers was called Vindhya Adhipati? 

(a) Harshvardhan 

(b) Gautamiputra Satkarni 

(c) Samudragupta 

(d) Chandragupta Maurya 

Answers

1-b

2-c

3-a

4-a

5-d

6-a

7-c: In the latter half of the first century B.C. King Kharavela of Orissa professed Jainism and became its great patron. 

8-a: Asvaghosha was a great Buddhist scholar who was a contemporary of the great Kushan ruler Knishka. He is the author of the famous Buddhist tract, Vajrasuchi (Diamond needle). Buddhacharita, the earliest surviving classical Sanskrit work written in verse, is also ascribed to him.

9-a: Gayatri mantra is contained in the Rig Veda and is dedicated to the old solar god Savitr.

10-b: The greatest ruler of the Satavahana dynasty was Gautamiputra Satkarni. 

History MCQs – Set 1 - Modern India

1.Who among the following was elected permanent president of Muslim League in 1908?

(a) Muhammad Ali Jinnah

(b) Nawab Moshin-ul-Mulk

(c) Nawab Salimullah

(d) Aga Khan

2.Who among the following had accompanied Gandhi to the Second Round Table Conference in 1931?

(a) Jawaharlal Nehru

(b) Sarojini Naidu

(c) Madan Mohan Malviya

(d) Sarojini Naidu and Madan Mohan Malviya

3.Who among the following was responsible for killing Curzon Wyllie in London?

(a) V. D. Savarkar

(b) Bhagat Singh

(c) Shyamaji Krishnavarma

(d) Madan Lal Dhingra  

4.Who among the following as not associated with Swaraj Party? 

(a) Motilal Nehru

(b) Chakravarti Rajagopalachari 

(c) Chittaranjan Das

(d) N C Kelkar

5.Who among the following had founded the Asiatic Society?

(a) David Hare 

(b) William Jones

(c) William Carey

(d) Ram Mohan Roy 

6.Who was the founder of Naujawan Bharat Sabha?

(a) Bhagat Singh 

(b) Jayaprakash Narayan 

(c) Gopal Krishna Gokhale

(d) Rukmani Lakshmipth.

7.Which among of the following was popularly known as Black Act?

(a) Rowlatt Act

(b) Ilbert Bill

(c) Indian Councils Act 1909

(d) None

8.On August 8, 1942, Mahatma Gandhi delivered his famous "do or die" speech at Gawalia Tank Maidan.  Gawalia Tank Maidan is situated in which city?

(a) Bombay

(b) Amritsar

(c) Surat

(d) Delhi

9.During the course of which movement is Mahatma Gandhi said to have exclaimed: "On bended knees I asked for bread and I have received stone instead." 

(a) Khilafat movement

(b) Non cooperation movement

(c) Dandi March

(d) Quit India Movement

10.Who among the following had convinced Gandhi to take meat in order to be muscular and strong?

(a) Sheikh Mahtab

(b) Muhammad Ali Jinnah

(c) Karsandas

(d) Laxmidas

Answers: 

1-d: 

2-d: 

3-d: 

4-b: The Swaraj Party or the Congress-Khilafat Swarajya Party was formed on 1 January 1923 by C R Das and Motilal Nehru. 

5-b: 

• Asiatic Society was founded on 1st January, 1784. William Jones was the first president of the Asiatic Society. The journal called Asiatic Researches was published by the society. 
• William Jones (1746-94) came to Calcutta as a judge of the Supreme Court under the governor generalship of Waren Hastings. 

6-a:Naujawan Bharat Sabha was founded by Bhagat Singh in 1926

7-a:

8-a:

• On August 8, 1942, Mahatma Gandhi delivered his famous "do or die" speech at Mumbai's Gawalia Tank Maidan, This famous speech marked the beginning of Quit India Movement.
• Gawalia Tank Maidan is also called August Kranti Maidan.

9-c:

10-a:

Indian History Questions: Mughal Empire 1

1. Babur–namah or Tuzuk –i-Baburi is the Wakai or Memoirs (autobiography) of the first Mughal emperor Babur. In which language was it written?
(a) Arabic
(b) Persian
(c) Turkish or Turki
(d) Pushto

2. Who among the following foreigners was not impressed with the state of public security in Mughal Empire during the reign of Shah Jahan?
(a) Nicholas Withington
(b) Peter Mundy
(c) William Hawkins
(d) William Finch

3. Who among the following foreign traveler was eyewitness to the Dara Sikhoh’s public humiliation in Delhi by his brother Aurangzeb after war of succession?
(a) Travernier
(b) Munucci
(c) Francois Bernier
(d) Dr. Gemelli-Carreri

4. Sir Thomas Roe was sent as accredited ambassador of the King of England, James I to the Mughal court of
(a) Akbar
(b) Jahangir
(c) Shah Jahan
(d) Aurangzeb

5. In the war of succession Dara Shikoh was finally defeated by Aurangzeb in the battle of
(a) Deorai
(b) Samugarh
(c) Dharmat
(d) Khajwah

6. Which of the following is not a historical work of the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar?
(a) Akbarnamaha of Abul Fazal
(b) Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh of Badauni
(c) Padshahnama of Amin Kazwini
(d) Tabaqat-i-Akbari of Nizam-ud-din Ahmad

7. Which of the following has been described as Aurangzeb’s height of political unwisdom?
(a) Imprisonment of Shivaji at Agra
(b) Waging unnecessary and ruinous wars in the North-west frontier
(c) Execution of the ninth Sikh Guru Teg Bahadur in 1675
(d) Attempt to annex Marwar

8. Which of the following historical works was not written during the reign of Mughal emperor Auranzeb?
(a) Alamgirnamah of Mirza Muhammad Kazim
(b) Khulasat-ut-Tawarikh by Sujan Rai Khatri
(c) Nushka-i-Dilkusha by Bhimsen
(d) Amal-i-Salih by Muhammad Salih

9. Who among the following was the last great royal patron of Mughal school of painting?
(a) Akbar
(b) Jahangir
(c) Shah Jahan
(d) Aurangzeb

10. Who amog the following Mughal emperors was an accomplished veena player?
(a) Humayun
(b) Akbar
(c) Shah Jahan
(d) Aurangzeb

Answers: 
1-C; Turkish or Turki was Babur’s mother tongue.

2-b; While Flinch came to India during Akbar’s reign, Nicholas Withington and William Hawkins visited India during his son Jahangir’s reign. Peter Mundy, an English merchant-traveller, has also left a detailed account of the horrors of famine that took place in Gujarat and Deccan from 1630-1632 during Shah Jahan’s reign.

3-C; Bernier writes about the disgrace faced by Dara: "The crowd assembled was immense; and everywhere I observed the people weeping, and lamenting the fate of Dara in the most touching language. . . . From every quarter I heard piercing and distressing shrieks . . . men, women and children wailing as if some mighty calamity had happened to themselves.”

4-b: Sir Thomas Roe stayed at Jahangir's court from the end of 1615 till the end of 1618.

5-a; Battle of Dharmat took place on the 15th April, 1658. Dharmat is fourteen miles from Ujjain. Battle of Samugarh took place on 29th May, 1658. Muran, another brother of Aurangzeb aiming for the Mughal throne was defeated by his in the battle of Khajwah, near Allahabad, on the 5th January, 1659. The battle of Deorai was fought for three days( 12th-]4th April, 1659) resulting in the defeat of Dara. Deorai is four miles south of Ajmer.

6-c; Padshahnama of Amin Kazwini was written during the reign of Shah Jahan. Other important works during the reign of Akbar are Tarikh-i-Alfi of Mulla Daud, Akbarnamah of Faizi Sarhindi and Maasir-i-Rahimi of Abdul Baqi.

7-d;

8-d; Other historical works of Aurangzeb’s period are Muntakhab-ul-Lubab of Khafi Khan, Maasir-i-Alamgiri of Muhammad Saqi and Fatuhat-i-Alamgiri of Ishwar Das. Since Aurangzeb was opposed to the idea of writing of histories of his reign, Muntakhab-ul-Lubab was written by Khafi Khan in secrecy.

9-c;

10-d;

Indian History Questions: Sangam Age

Q. 1 Which of the following Sangam rulers is known as ‘Red Chera’?

(a) Senguttuvan

(b) Karikala

(c) Nedunjeral

(d) Elara

Answer (a)

Q. 2 Which of the following kings of the Sangam Age is credited with the foundation of Puhar or Kaveripattinam?

(a) Karikala

(b) Elara

(c) Vijayalaya

(d) Ilandiraiyan

Answer (a)

Q. 3 Karikala, the famous king of this period, belonged to which of the following dynasties did?

(a) Chola

(b) Chera

(c) Pandya

(d) Pallava

Answer (a)

Q. 4 Which of the following was not one of the royal dynasties of the Tamil country during the Sangam Age?

(a) Pandya

(b) Chera

(c) Pallava

(d) Chola

Answer (c)

Q. 5 The spies during the Sangam period were known as?

(a) Dutas

(b) Spasas

(c) Orrars

(d) Sanjayans

Answer (c)

Indian History Questions: Sangam Age

Q. 1 Which of the following Sangam rulers is known as ‘Red Chera’?

(a) Senguttuvan

(b) Karikala

(c) Nedunjeral

(d) Elara

Answer (a)

Q. 2 Which of the following kings of the Sangam Age is credited with the foundation of Puhar or Kaveripattinam?

(a) Karikala

(b) Elara

(c) Vijayalaya

(d) Ilandiraiyan

Answer (c)

History Questions: Bengal Nawabs and the English

Q.1 The Battle of Plassey was fought in

(a) 1782

(b) 1757

(c) 1748

(d) 1764

Answer (b) 1757

Q. 2 Plassey is situated in which state of India?

(a) Bihar

(b) West Bengal

(c) Odisha

(d) Andhra Pradesh

Answer (b) West Bengal

Q. 3 Battle of Plassey was fought between

(a) Siraj-ud-Doula and British East India Company

(b) Mirzafar and British East India Company

(c) Mir Kasim and British East India Company

(d) Shuja-ud-daulah and British East India Company

Answer (a) Siraj-ud-Doula and British East India Company

Q. 4 Battle of Buxar was fought in

(a) 1764

(b) 1757

(c) 1748

(d) 1764

Answer (a) 1764

Q. 5 Buxar is situated in which state of India?

(a) Bihar

(b) West Bengal

(c) Odisha

(d) Andhra Pradesh

Answer (a) Bihar

History Questions: Slave Dynasty

1. Which of the following Slave Sultans of Delhi Sultanate did not belong to Ilabari Tribe of Turks?

(a)   Qutbuddin Aibak

(b)   Iltutmish

(c)   Ghiyasuddin Balban

(d)   Nasiruddin Mahmud

Answer: Qutbuddin Aibak

2. Which Slave ruler called himself Naib-i-Khudai or Deputy of the God?

(a)   Iltutmish

(b)   Qutbuddin Aibak

(c)   Ghiyasuddin Balban

(d)   Kaiqubad

Answer: Ghiyasuddin Balban

3. Amir-i-Chahalgan or The Group of Forty was eliminated by?

(a)   ltutmish

(b)   Ghiyasuddin Balban

(c)   Razia

(d)   Qutbuddin Aibak

Answer: Ghiyasuddin Balban

4. Who among the following Slave Sultan was the first to issue regular currency?

(a)   Iltutmish

(b)   Ghiyasuddin Balban

(c)   Aram Shah

(d)   Razia

Answer: Iltutmish

5. Who was the first sovereign ruler of Delhi Sultanate?

(a)   Qutbuddin Aibak

(b)   Iltutmish

(c)   Razia

(d)   Kaiqubad

Answer: Iltutmish

History Questions: India's Freedom Struggle

        1.     Who defended Aurobindo Ghosh in the Alipur Bomb Conspiracy case?

               (a)   Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee

               (b)   Chittaranjan Das

               (c)   Motilal Nehru

               (d)   Tej Bahadur Sapru

   Answer: Chittaranjan Das

               2.     Dadabhai Naoroji entered the British House of Commons as a member of the …….. Party?

               (a)   Liberal

               (b)   Conservative

               (c)   Labour

(              (d)   Labour-Liberal combine

   Answer: Liberal

               3.     Who gave the title of Rani to the Naga woman leader Gaidinliu?

               (a)   Jawaharlal Nehru

               (b)   Subhash Chandra Bose

               (c)   Mahatma Gandhi

               (d)   Vallabh Bhai Patel

   Answer: Jawaharlal Nehru

               4.     Who was the founder President of Harijan Sevak Sangh, founded by Mahatma Gandhi?

               (a)   Amrit Lal Thakkar (Thakkar Bapa)

               (b)   B R Ambedkar

               (c)   Ghanshyam Das Birla

               (d)   K Satyamurti

  Answer: Ghanshyam Das Birla

              5.     In which city was Hindustan Socialist Republican Association founded in 1928?

              (a)   Allahabad

              (b)   Kanpur

              (c)   Lahore

              (d)   Delhi

  Answer: Kanpur