History is filled with fascinating events, people, and mysteries. Riddles allow us to take a playful approach in thinking about the past. Here are 55 riddles that cover a range of historical topics and time periods, along with the answers.
Riddles about Ancient History
The ancient world has left us with many mysteries and wonders to ponder. These riddles take us back to the early civilizations of Egypt, Greece, and Rome.
1. What belongs to you but others use it more than you do?
Answer: Your name
2. The more you take, the more you leave behind. What am I?
Answer: Footsteps
3. I am not alive but I grow; I don’t have lungs but I need air; I don’t have a mouth but water kills me. What am I?
Answer: Fire
4. I have cities but no houses, forests but no trees, water but no fish. What am I?
Answer: A map
5. I have a head and a tail but no body. What am I?
Answer: A coin
6. I can run but not walk. Wherever I go, thought follows close behind. What am I?
Answer: A nose
7. I am weightless but you can see me. Put me in a bucket and I’ll make it lighter. What am I?
Answer: A hole
8. The man who invented it doesn’t want it. The man who bought it doesn’t need it. The man who needs it doesn’t know it. What is it?
Answer: A coffin
9. What flies without wings?
Answer: Time
10. I never was but always will be. No one ever saw me nor ever will, yet I’m the confidence of all who live and breathe. What am I?
Answer: Tomorrow
Riddles about the Middle Ages
The Middle Ages span over a thousand years of history in Europe and left behind many remnants for us to ponder. These riddles focus on medieval themes.
11. What gets wetter the more it dries?
Answer: A towel
12. I have a neck but no head, two arms but no hands. What am I?
Answer: A shirt
13. What belongs to you but is used more by others?
Answer: Your name
14. Poor people have it. Rich people need it. If you eat it you die. What is it?
Answer: Nothing
15. What can travel around the world while staying in a corner?
Answer: A stamp
16. What has a head, a tail, is brown, and has no legs?
Answer: A penny
17. What gets broken without being held?
Answer: A promise
18. What goes up and down but does not move?
Answer: Stairs
19. You see me once in June, twice in November and not at all in May. What am I?
Answer: The letter “e”
20. I have branches but no fruit, trunk but no bark, leaves but no buds. What am I?
Answer: A bank
Riddles about Important Historical Figures
Many significant people have shaped the course of history. These riddles focus on some of the most influential figures from different eras.
21. I led men to victory, small in stature but brave at heart. Who am I?
Answer: Napoleon Bonaparte
22. I inspired revolutions with my ideas of equality and wrote famous pamphlets. History knows me by three names. Who am I?
Answer: Thomas Paine
23. My forbidden love caused conflict between nations. I was queen but now am legend. Who am I?
Answer: Cleopatra
24. My voyage west seeking Asia led me instead to the Americas. Who am I?
Answer: Christopher Columbus
25. I freed my people from bondage through nonviolent protest. Who am I?
Answer: Mohandas Gandhi
26. I was a slave who became an abolitionist and spoke eloquently for equality. Who am I?
Answer: Frederick Douglass
27. I revolutionized modern art through my abstract paintings. Who am I?
Answer: Pablo Picasso
28. My theory of relativity reshaped science and how we view the cosmos. Who am I?
Answer: Albert Einstein
29. I broke barriers as the first woman to hold high political office. Who am I?
Answer: Margaret Thatcher
30. My name is synonymous with evil for my role in the Holocaust. Who am I?
Answer: Adolf Hitler
Riddles about Important Historical Events
Moments in history have defined eras and left lasting impacts. These riddles focus on some of the most notable events throughout time.
31. I sparked a revolution against rule without representation. What event am I?
Answer: The Boston Tea Party
32. I was a peaceful protest that turned violent in China. What event am I?
Answer: Tiananmen Square
33. I was a surprise attack that drew America into World War II. What event am I?
Answer: Pearl Harbor
34. I was a momentous achievement as the first human walked on the moon. What event am I?
Answer: Apollo 11 Moon Landing
35. I revealed scandal at the highest level of U.S. politics. What event am I?
Answer: Watergate
36. I was an ill-fated ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank. What event am I?
Answer: The sinking of the Titanic
37. I marked the day the stock market crashed, signaling the Great Depression. What event am I?
Answer: Black Tuesday
38. I marked the end of World War II in Europe. What event am I?
Answer: V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day)
39. I was a peaceful demonstration attended by over 250,000 people advocating for civil rights. What event am I?
Answer: 1963 March on Washington
40. I was an explosion that led to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. What event am I?
Answer: Chernobyl meltdown
Riddles about Historical Achievements and Inventions
Advancements in technology and innovation have defined the progress of civilization. These riddles focus on some of history’s most important achievements.
41. I opened up new frontiers by allowing man to take flight. What am I?
Answer: The airplane/first airplane flight
42. I revolutionized communication and made the world feel a little smaller. What am I?
Answer: The telephone
43. I let people listen to music wherever they go. What am I?
Answer: The Walkman/MP3 player/iPod
44. I made the computing power of room-sized machines available in compact devices. What am I?
Answer: The microchip/integrated circuit
45. I unleashed incredible destructive power when first tested in the 1940s. What am I?
Answer: The atomic bomb
46. I allow people to have light with the flick of a switch. What am I?
Answer: The light bulb
47. I revolutionized personal transportation and manufacturing methods. Who am I?
Answer: Henry Ford/the assembly line/the Model T
48. I introduced a new writing material that was cheaper and more convenient than papyrus. What am I?
Answer: Paper/the printing press
49. I allowed sailors to determine their latitude while at sea. What am I?
Answer: The sextant
50. I was the first vaccine ever developed and helped prevent deadly smallpox. What am I?
Answer: The smallpox vaccine
Riddles about Historical Eras
Each period of history has its own culture, art, and atmosphere. These riddles attempt to encapsulate the spirit of different eras.
51. With steam and iron I began, sparks flew while bridges spanned. What era am I?
Answer: The Industrial Revolution
52. Knights and lords and ladies fair, of castles and kingdoms I sing and dare. What era am I?
Answer: The Middle Ages
53. Rogues and rascals may I breed, with rum and scallywags across the seas. What era am I?
Answer: The Golden Age of Piracy
54. Let them eat cake I did say, amidst revolution’s drumming sway. What era am I?
Answer: Pre-French Revolutionary France (time of Marie Antoinette)
55. With speakeasies and jazz tuning low, through the roaring twenties I did go. What era am I?
Answer: The Roaring Twenties in America
Conclusion
History gives us almost endless fodder for riddles. There are so many fascinating people, places, events, and mysteries from the past to draw upon. Riddles help put history in a playful perspective and let us ponder the past in an imaginative way. How many were you able to correctly guess? Let us know in the comments if you have any other fun historical riddles!
