Quiz May 2025: Test your general knowledge of France with these 20 questions
Can you name the six women buried in the Panthéon, which flowers were Monet’s inspiration, or what is kept in a ship's cambuse? Take the quiz and see how many you get right!
1. Which city is the farthest from Paris: Marseille, Zurich or Amsterdam?
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1 A – Paris to Marseille is 660km as the crow flies and 776km by road; Paris to Zurich is 488 km/594km and Amsterdam 430/508km.
2. In which port was Jean Cousteau’s ship Le Calypso normally anchored during his lifetime? A. Nantes, B. Marseille, C. Toulon
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2 C The ship has had a chequered history since Cousteau’s death in 1997 being sunk and beset by fire, and since partially restored.
3. Next to which Parisian bridge is there a replica of the Statue of Liberty? A. Pont de Grenelle, B. Pont de l’Alma, C. Pont Neuf
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3 A. The bridge connects the 15th and 16th arrondissements via the Ile-de-Cygnes.
4. ‘Le temps des cerises’ is a love song associated with which event? A. The wine harvest of 1985, B. The Liberation of Paris in 1940, C. The Paris Commune of 1871
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4 C – Although it predates the Paris Commune of 1871, this song is strongly associated with it, the author himself being a Communard who fought during Bloody Week.
5. The L’OM football team belongs to which of these cities: A. Metz, B. Marseille,
C. Montpellier
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5 B.
6. La Bougie de Sapeur is a humorous French newspaper launched in 1980. There have only ever been 12 issues but it is still going strong. There will not be an issue this year. Why not?
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The Sapper’s Candle is only published on 29 February, ie. only in leap years.
7. What sport is played by a “pongiste”?
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7 Table tennis: ping-pong.
8. What was the name of the public urinals installed in Paris in the 19th Century?
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8 Les vespasiennes, named after the Roman emperor Vespasian, who was (wrongly) credited with establishing public urinals in Rome.
9. The first nuclear American submarine was named in homage to the work of Jules Verne. What was it called?
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9 Nautilus: Captain Nemo’s submarine in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
10. Who are the six women buried in the Pantheon?
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10 Marie Curie, Geneviève de Gaulle-Anthonioz, Germaine Tillion, Simone Veil, Josephine Baker and Sophie Berthelot.
11. One school of thought – not proven – says that “bistro” is not French at all but derives from another language? Which one?
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11 The word was not recorded until the late 19th Century. The story goes that it dates back to 1814 when Paris was occupied by Russian soldiers who used to shout "быстро, быстро" (bistro, bistro: “quickly”, “quickly”) in Parisian bars when they wanted a drink. You can believe what you want to believe.
12. Jean de Florette, Manon des sources and Ugolin make up a famous trilogy of novels set in Provence and their corresponding films. Who wrote the novels?
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12 Marcel Pagnol.
13. What is kept in the cambuse of a ship?
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13 Food: it’s the ship’s store.
14. Where did Charles Martel stop the Arab invasion of France in 732?
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14. Somewhere between Poitiers and Tours. It’s called the Battle of Tours and the Battle of Poitiers because no one knows exactly where it took place.
15. What’s the name of the girl who said she saw repeated apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Lourdes?
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15. Bernadette Soubirous.
16. Sunflowers inspired Van Gogh. Which flowers were Monet’s inspiration for many of his paintings?
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16 Water lilies
17. Which fruit do you use to make a tarte tatin?
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17 Apples
18. What is the name of the magical forest in the Arthurian legends?
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18 Brocéliande. The legendary forest is commonly identified as the present-day Forêt de Paimpont in Brittany.
19. Leaving aside the practicalities and the animal rights issues, if you could stack giraffes hoof to head next to the Eiffel Tower, how many would you need to reach the top? (Let’s say, to the nearest 10?).
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19 66. The tower is 330m and an average male giraffe is 5m tall – although we will never be able to check this calculation!
20. Whose birthplace can be visited in Domrémy-la-Pucelle in Lorraine?
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20 Joan of Arc, born there around 1412 when the village was in the Duchy of Bar.
