Australia Day Australian History Quiz 2014

Australia Day Australian History Quiz 2014

With Australia Day is almost here, so now's the perfect time to test your knowledge about this great country. There are fifty-nine questions; you need 30 or more correct to pass.

published on January 25, 2014
1/59

What is the most commonly accepted date for the arrival of humans to Australia?

15,000 - 30,000 years ago
40,000 - 80,000 years ago
85,000 - 100,000 years ago
Over 100,000 years ago
2/59

When was the dingo introduced to Australia?

About 50,000 years ago; it was brought over by Indigenous Australians.
About 6,000 years ago; it came to Australia as the result of trading between Indigenous Australians and South East Asians
About 240 years ago; it was introduced by Europeans
It wasn't; it's a native animal
3/59

What year was the first documented European landing in Australia?

1606
1642
1755
1770
4/59

Captain James Cook sailed into Botany Bay aboard which ship?

HMS Sirius
HMS Beagle
HMS Enterprise
HMS Endeavour
5/59

What was the Flagship of the First Fleet?

HMS Sirius
HMS Beagle
HMS Enterprise
HMS Endeavour
6/59

How many ships made up the First Fleet?

9
10
11
12
7/59

What event is celebrated on the 26th January?

The First Fleet arrived in Botany Bay; the colony takes its first steps on Australian soil
The First Fleet arrived in Port Jackson; Captain Phillip raises the British Flag
The Colony is formally proclaimed by Governor Phillip
Federation; The Commonwealth of Australia comes into being
8/59

Which convict transport ship was dubbed 'The Floating Brothel'?

Lady Penhryn
Lady Juliana
Surprize
Guardian
9/59

Who led the first circumnavigation of Australia?

James Cook
Matthew Flinders
Abel Tasman
Willem Janszoon
10/59

Who was Bungaree?

An Aboriginal explorer, entertainer, and community leader from Broken Bay.
First Indigenous Australian to travel to England.
The last Full-blooded Tasmanian Aboriginal.
Interlocutor between British Colonists and Indigenous Australians.
11/59

Which of these was the first convict uprising?

The Rum Rebellion
The Eureka Rebellion
The Riel Rebellion
The Castle Hill Rebellion
12/59

Which NSW Governor was overthrown during the Rum Rebellion of 1808?

Arthur Phillip
John Macarthur
William Bligh
Lachlan Macquarie
13/59

What was Tasmania originally named by Europeans?

New Holland
Van Diemen's Land
Norfolk
It was always Tasmania
14/59

Which Bushranger became known as the Wild Colonial Boy?

Jack Donahue
Dan Morgan
Frederick Ward
Ned Kelly
15/59

Which was the first colony in Australia to be based on free settlement rather than convict transportation?

Western Australia
Queensland
Tasmania
South Australia
16/59

Who were the first European explorers to cross the Blue Mountains?

Matthew Flinders and George Bass
Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Wentworth
Hamilton Hume and William Hovell
Paul Edmund Strzelecki and Tadeusz Kosciuszko
17/59

In 1860, where were Burke and Wills going?

Torres Strait Islands
Uluru
Gulf of Carpentaria
Great Australia Bight
18/59

Which of the following took place during the gold rushes?

Australia's population tripled
Australia became a multicultural society
Diggers on the Goldfield developed mateship bonds that would become an important part of Australia's national identity
All of the above
19/59

What is depicted on the Eureka Flag?

The Union Jack
Star of Federation
Southern Cross
Miner's Pickaxe
20/59

Who was the longest known roaming Bushranger in Australian history?

Captain Firestorm
Captain Thunderbolt
Captain Lightning
Captain Firestrike
21/59

Where was Ned Kelly's last stand?

Uralla
Beveridge
Wangaratta
Glenrowan
22/59

Which state was the first to give women the right to vote and stand for parliament?

New South Wales
South Australia
Western Australia
Queensland
23/59

Who wrote 'Waltzing Matilda'?

Henry Lawson
C.J Dennis
Banjo Paterson
Steele Rudd
24/59

Who is the Father of Federation?

Sir Edmund Barton
William Lane
Samuel Griffith
Sir Henry Parkes
25/59

What day did the Commonwealth of Australia come into being?

1st January 1901
18th January 1901
26th January 1901
7th February 1901
26/59

Who was Australia's first Prime Minister?

Sir Henry Parkes
Sir Edmund Barton
Alfred Deakin
Chris Watson
27/59

What was the first war that the Commonwealth of Australia fought in?

First Boer War
Second Boer War
First World War
Second World War
28/59

What was the primary objective of the Gallipoli Campaign?

To win a decisive victory against the Ottoman Empire
To defend British colonies in the Middle East
To secure a sea route through the Dardanelles to Russia
To isolate the Ottoman Empire from their European allies.
29/59

During the Gallipoli Campaign, who carried wounded Allied soldiers to the beach on a Donkey?

Billy Sing
Ian Hamilton
Leslie Morshead
John Simpson
30/59

During the Gallipoli Campaign, which Australian sniper became famed for his courage and marksmanship, with an estimated kill count between 201 and 300?

Billy Sing
Ian Hamilton
Leslie Morshead
John Simpson
31/59

What Sydney Landmark was opened on the 20th March 1932?

The Sydney Opera House
Sydney Tower
The Sydney Harbour Bridge
Parliament House, Sydney
32/59

In which year did Phar Lap win the Melbourne Cup?

1928
1929
1930
All of the above
33/59

Who was Prime Minister from 1941 to 1945; a period when Australia came under direct attack for the first time?

Robert Menzies
John Curtain
Arthur Fadden
Frank Forde
34/59

Where is the Kokoda Track?

Australia
Indonesia
Papua New Guinea
Japan
35/59

Which Australian city was attacked by Japanese midget submarines?

Darwin
Brisbane
Newcastle
Sydney
36/59

Which Political Party did the Liberal Menzies government unsuccessfully attempt to ban in 1951?

Australian Labor Party
Australian Communist Party
Australian Marijuana Party
Protectionist Party
37/59

Who was the first Australian rock ’n’ roll act to hit the national charts?

Col Joye
Johnny O’Keefe
The Easybeats
The Beegees
38/59

Apart from counting Indigenous Australians as part of the population, what was the other outcome of the 1967 referendum?

Indigenous Australians were given the right to vote and stand for parliament
Governments could no longer manage Indigenous affairs under the Flora and Fauna portfolio
The Federal Government could make laws for the benefit of Indigenous Australians
The Constitution formally recognised Indigenous Australians as the original inhabitants of Australia
39/59

Which Prime Minister disappeared whilst swimming in 1967?

Robert Menzies
Ben Chifley
Harold Holt
John Gorton
40/59

How long did the Australian military presence in Vietnam last?

Five years
Ten years
Fifteen years
Eighteen years (the entire duration)
41/59

What year did the White Australia Policy legally end?

1960
1967
1970
1973
42/59

In 1973 Bothers Malcolm and Angus Young formed which iconic Australian band?

AC/DC
Midnight Oil
The Angels
Yothu Yindi
43/59

Who was the first Australian to win a Nobel Prize for Literature?

Thomas Keneally
Patrick White
Colleen McCullough
David Unaipon
44/59

Where is the show 'Skippy the Bush Kangaroo' set?

Brookvale
Curl Curl
Duffy’s Forest
Wheeler Heights
45/59

In 1989 who became the first woman to become head of government in an Australian state or territory?

Edith Cowan
Enid Lyons
Catherine Helen Spence
Rosemary Follett
46/59

Which government was dismissed by Governor-General John Kerr in 1975?

The Whitlam Government
The Fraser Government
The Hawke Government
The Keating Government
47/59

Which Australian Prime Minister drank 1.4 litres of beer in 11 seconds?

Bob Hawke
Paul Keating
John Howard
Kevin Rudd
48/59

What iconic Australian building was opened on the 9th May 1988?

Sydney Opera House
Sydney Tower
Parliament House, Canberra
Australian War Memorial
49/59

Who was Eddie Mabo?

First Indigenous Australian to be elected to Federal Parliament
Land rights activist who was instrumental in overturning the legal doctrine of Terra Nullius
Indigenous rights activist who campaigned to end the Stolen Generation
Designer of the Torres Strait Islands Flag
50/59

Who was responsible for the mass shooting at Port Arthur?

Malcolm George Baker
Ivan Milat
Jason Moran
Martin Bryant
51/59

Victims of the infamous Backpacker Murders were found where?

Cumberland State Forest
Belanglo State Forest
Wingello State Forest
The bodies were never found
52/59

According to the hit Australian movie, who is the Queen of the Desert?

Mitzi
Priscilla
Felicia
Bernadette
53/59

Who lit the Olympic torch at the Sydney 2000 Olympics?

Dawn Fraser
Cathy Freeman
Ian Thorpe
Grant Hackett
54/59

Which Australian swimmer became the most successful athlete (medal wise) at the Sydney Olympics?

Susie O’Neill
Michael Klim
Grant Hackett
Ian Thorpe
55/59

Which of these was an unofficial mascot of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games?

Fatso the Fat-Arsed Wombat
Gary the Giant-Arsed Grey Kangaroo
Lizzy the Lazy-Arsed Koala
Kirk the Nearly-Nationalized Kiwi
56/59

In 2002, 88 Australians were killed in a terrorist attack in which country?

Malaysia
Indonesia
Singapore
Australia
57/59

At the 2007 APEC Leader’s Summit, who dressed up as Osama Bin Laden and went to United States' President Bush’s hotel?

Julian Morrow
Andrew Hanson
Chas Licciardello
Craig Raucassel
58/59

On the 13th February 2008, what did Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologise for?

British Colonisation of Australia
The White Australia Policy
The Stolen Generations
The Hairdryer Incident
59/59

Which of these qualities was Julia Gillard the first Australian Prime Minister to have?

First female Prime Minister
First Atheist/Agnostic Prime Minister
First Prime Minister not born in Australia
All of the above