India Quiz: From the Indus Valley to Independence, What Do You Know About Indian History?
Written by Jessica Holom
Last updated · 7 min play time
One of the most ancient civilizations on Earth, India has a storied history. Do you know it all? See what you've got by taking our India History Quiz!
"India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grandmother of tradition. Our most valuable and most artistic materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only!" - Mark Twain
Mark Twain did not hold back on his impression of India – and for good reason. As one of the most ancient civilizations in history, India has evolved from the indigenous population setting up camp in Indus Valley to the nation we know today, which freed itself from British colonization. Its storied history is a thing worthy of exploration.
Are you ready to explore this history? Take our India History Quiz and be as enraptured about the country as Mark Twain was.
Test your History Knowledge
"In India, I found a race of mortals living upon the Earth, but not adhering to it, inhabiting cities, but not being fixed to them, possessing everything, but possessed by nothing." – Apollonius Tyanaeus
Have you found all this and more about India? Then take our India History Quiz to show us whether you're a mere mortal.
What was the first civilization established in India called? What religion was founded by the Indo-Aryans? Who was the first European explorer to reach India by sea? Who led the Salt March and why? Think you have all the answers? Then, take our India History Quiz to show us how much you know about world history!
Possess everything or nothing by acing this India History Quiz! You might just find you're a mortal living upon Earth but not adhering to it.
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Quiz written by
Jessica HolomJessica Holom is a freelance writer and digital nomad with a background in literature, art, and writing. She believes curiosity never killed a single cat and enjoys learning, world-exploring, and writing about both.
India History Quiz Questions
25 Questions · 110 Plays · No comments
Question 1
"The important thing is not what they think of me, but what I think of them." What foreign monarch claimed the title, "Empress of India"?
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AKing Edward VII
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BKing William IV
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CQueen Victoria
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DQueen Elizabeth I
Queen Victoria
The East India Company was taken over by Great Britain in 1858, establishing the British Empire. Queen Victoria declared herself "Empress of India" twenty years later.
Question 2
"An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind." What famous leader was assassinated in 1948?
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ALalit Maken
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BIndira Gandhi
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CJohn F. Kennedy
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DMahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
"In a gentle way, you can shake the world." Mahatma shook the world and, for it, he was assassinated in 1948. His killer, Nathuram Godse, was a Hindu extremist who did not like Gandhi's tolerance of Muslims.
Question 3
All the way from Macedonia, who invaded India and captured Porus in the 3rd century BC?
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AAlexander the Great
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BAttila the Hun
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CTamerlane
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DGenghis Khan
Alexander the Great
Alexander the Great was kicking butt and taking names clear across the continent and into India. He targeted Taxila, challenging King Porus, and of course, won. After taking control of the region, he left Porus in place to govern his newfound territory.
Question 4
With China on the sidelines, what borderland did India and Pakistan go to war over?
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AKashmir
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BDetroit
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CIndo Gangetic Plain
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DWest Bengal
Kashmir
After being split, Pakistan and India each had dibs on Kashmir, and China also had its nose in it. The territorial conflict began in 1947 and, today, it's split amongst the three countries with India taking the lion's share.
Question 5
A leader in the Indian National Congress and independence movement, who was India's first prime minister?
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AWinston Churchill
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BCharan Singh
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CJawaharlal Nehru
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DIndira Gandhi
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru was sworn into office on Independence Day, August 15, 1947. During his tenure, he led the way forward with Indian industrialization and implemented social-economic reforms. He remains the longest-serving prime minister in the country's history, serving nearly 17 years until his death.
Question 6
This army took most of the continent. Who stomped on in, invading India in the 13th and 14th centuries?
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ABritish
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BVikings
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CRomans
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DMongols
Mongols
Genghis Khan took China and even that wasn't enough. In 1221, Khan invaded India, and later, in 1398, the Mongol Timur invaded Northern India.
Question 7
Happy India Day! When did India become an independent nation?
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AJuly 4, 1776
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BJune 12, 1887
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CJanuary 10, 1976
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DAugust 15, 1947
August 15, 1947
India put an end to Britain's nearly 100-year rule on August 15, 1947. This is when Independence Day is celebrated in India.
Question 8
Another war between India and Pakistan created which country from East Pakistan?
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AIran
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BChina
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CNepal
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DBangladesh
Bangladesh
The Indian Army joined the army of East Pakistan which went to war with West Pakistan in 1971. With the latter's defeat, the new country of Bangladesh was formed.
Question 9
Let's go back to the beginning. What civilization was first established in India in 3000 BC?
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ASumer Civilization
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BIndus Valley Civilization
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CEgyptian Civilization
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DOlmec Civilization
Indus Valley Civilization
Also known as the Harappan civilization, the Indus Valley civilization is one of the oldest in the world. Established across Northern India and Pakistan, the Indus invented the first system of standardized weights and measurements and created jewelry, sculpture, pottery, and more.
Question 10
What company was granted a charter to trade exclusively with India?
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ADutch East India Company
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BDutch West India Company
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CRoyal African Company
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DBritish East India Company
British East India Company
In the 17th century, Queen Elizabeth I granted the British East India Company a charter for exclusive trade rights with India. Over a century later, the company would butt heads with Nawab of Bengal in the Battle of Plassey. After defeating Bengal, the British were able to establish colonies all over India.
Question 11
"Goodbye, see ya later..." What country split off from India during the Partition of India?
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AMyanmar
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BNepal
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CPakistan
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DBangladesh
Pakistan
Pakistan and India became two independent dominion states in the Partition of India – when British India was divided. Later, the Indian dominion would become the Republic of India.
Question 12
Although it had been an independent nation for a few years already, what year did India become a republic?
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A1950
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B2000
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C1960
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D1970
1950
In 1950, India became a republic, adopting a constitution and declaring itself a sovereign, democratic and republic state. Indian citizens were given the vote, and Dr. Rajendra Prasad became the first president of India.
Question 13
With the god known as Brahman, what religion was founded by the Indo-Aryans in 1500 BC?
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AHinduism
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BChristianity
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CSikhism
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DBuddhism
Hinduism
Christianity has Jesus, Buddhism has Buddha, Islam has Mohammad. But Hinduism has no founder. Rather, it was created by a blending of the cultural and religious beliefs of the indigenous population.
Question 14
As of 2021, who is this head of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the current prime minister of India?
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ANarendra Modi
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BManmohan Singh
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CChandra Shekhar
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DShinzo Abe
Narendra Modi
The current prime minister of India is Narendra Damodardas Modi. He's been kicking it since 2014, and before that, he was the chief minister of Gujarat. Accused of moving India toward right-wing politics and away from democracy, Modi is viewed as a controversial figure on the international stage and his policies have inspired domestic protests.
Question 15
Characterizing the event as a "peaceful nuclear explosion," in what operation did India detonate its first successful nuclear weapon?
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AOperation Fishbowl
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BOperation Argus
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COperation Smiling Buddha
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DOperation Crossroads
Operation Smiling Buddha
The 1974 nuclear bomb test ran under the incongruent name, "Operation Smiling Buddha". The first successful nuclear test by India was detonated at the army base Pokhran Test Range.
Question 16
"Ours is not a drive for power, but purely a non-violent fight for India's independence." The Indian National Congress drove what movement in an attempt to gain independence from Britain?
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AChipko Movement
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BNamantar Andolan
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CSave Silent Valley Movement
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DQuit India Movement
Quit India Movement
Also known as the August Movement, the Quit India Movement was launched by Gandhi in 1942 during the All-India Congress Committee. He said in his speech, "Truth alone will endure, all the rest will be swept always in the tide of Time."
Question 17
While Buddhism originated in Nepal, it is a big part of Indian culture. Who founded it?
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ASiddhartha Gautama
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BLao Tzu
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CProphet Muhammad
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DDalai Lama
Siddhartha Gautama
Founded more than 2,500 years ago, Siddhartha Gautama is the original "Buddha". Some of the philosophies and ideas of Buddhism are shared with other religions, and it has attracted more than 500 million followers worldwide.
Question 18
Gandhi led a march against a British monopoly on what product?
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ACoffee
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BTea
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CSalt
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DSugar
Salt
The British monopoly on salt inspired Gandhi to lead the Salt March in 1930. The march stretched some 240 miles, with Gandhi guiding thousands in the act of civil disobedience over British rule.
Question 19
Expanding the empire across much of the Indian subcontinent, who is this Mughal leader and lover of the arts?
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AAkbar the Great
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BIrrfan Khan
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CChandragupta Maurya
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DEmperor Krishnadevaraya
Akbar the Great
Akbar the Great made the Mughal Empire a great one by expanding it and centralizing its government. He included Hindu Rajputs in the running of the country, though he himself was Muslim, making religious tolerance cool again.
Question 20
After converting to Buddhism, who implemented major Buddhist reforms and expanded the Mauryan Empire?
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AAshoka the Great
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BShah Rukh Khan
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CShatadhanvan
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DChandra-Gupta I
Ashoka the Great
Ashoka the Great was one of the greatest leaders of the Mauryan Empire. His Buddhist reforms involved tolerance and peace in the form of a centralized policy of dharma. He advocated for public works and social welfare, spreading Buddhism and patronizing art.
Question 21
Rounding Africa's Cape of Good Hope, who was the first European to reach India by sea?
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AFerdinand Magellan
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BHernando Cortes
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CVasco da Gama
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DSir Francis Drake
Vasco da Gama
Vasco da Gama set foot in India in 1498, the first to travel there by sea. The Portuguese explorer established trade between India and Europe over the course of two voyages at the turn of the 16th century.
Question 22
Apart from yoga and the USB, India is responsible for a number of early inventions. Which of the following is NOT one of them?
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ACompass
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BChess
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CShampoo
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DDecimal numeral system
Compass
The compass was invented in China, but all other things listed were invented in India. This includes shampoo, chess, and the decimal numeral system.
Question 23
Lasting for three centuries, what Islamic empire stretched across India?
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AGhurid Sultanate
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BMumbai Sultanate
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CDelhi Sultanate
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DOttoman Empire
Delhi Sultanate
For over three centuries, the Islamic empire of the Delhi Sultanate controlled Dehli and a large swath of the Indian subcontinent. The Mughals overthrew the last dynasty in the 16th century.
Question 24
Due to surpass China in population size by 2027, when did India exceed a billion people?
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A2000
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B2005
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C2010
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D1995
2000
Just as the millennium turned, India broke the billion-person threshold. A baby girl, Astha Arora, was chosen to be named as India's billionth born. Today, India is the world's second most populated country, trailing only China...but not for long.
Question 25
Battling it out east of the Indus, what caliphate brought Islam to India?
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AUmar I Caliphate
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BAli Caliphate
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CRashidun Caliphate
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DUmayyad Caliphate
Umayyad Caliphate
The Umayyad Caliphate arrived in India with their major import: Islam. Battles took place to the east of the Indus River, and the Caliphate was successful in its aim in spreading Islam and Arabic to the region.
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