Let’s take on the challenge! A multiple-choice history quiz for elementary school students. Review your history lessons.

Shinsengumi

The Shinsengumi was an organization that operated mainly in Kyoto at the end of the Edo period to maintain public order. It is known for its trademark flag bearing the character for “sincerity” (makoto) and its light blue haori coats with zigzag patterns. Under leaders such as Commander Kondō Isami and Vice-Commander Hijikata Toshizō, they established strict rules and rigorously cracked down on movements aiming to overthrow the shogunate. Their unwavering loyalty to the shogunate until the very end left a strong impression, and they continue to be depicted in many stories today.

Sei Shōnagon

Sei Shōnagon was a woman active in the mid-Heian period who served Teishi, the empress consort of Emperor Ichijō. The Pillow Book is said to be the oldest essay collection in Japan, and it records, with her keen sensibility, the beauty of the seasons in nature, scenes of life at court, and things that captivate the heart.

Netherlands

During the Edo period, Japan practiced national isolation, but trade with the Netherlands was specially permitted at Dejima in Nagasaki Prefecture. From the Dutch came not only goods such as glassware and textiles, but also advanced Western knowledge in fields like medicine and astronomy. These studies were called Rangaku (Dutch learning) and played an important role in the development of Japanese scholarship, exemplified by Sugita Genpaku and others producing the “Kaitai Shinsho” (New Book of Anatomy).

GHQ

GHQ was the General Headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, an organization established after the war ended in 1945 to occupy and administer Japan. Under the direction of MacArthur, who served as the supreme commander, it implemented a variety of sweeping reforms—such as drafting a new constitution and carrying out land reforms—to transform Japan’s social systems so that the country would become a democratic nation that would never wage war again.

Monkey

The story that Oda Nobunaga called Toyotomi Hideyoshi “monkey” is very famous. It’s also known that in a letter Nobunaga sent to Hideyoshi’s wife, he referred to Hideyoshi as a “bald rat.” It’s said he gave him these nicknames because his appearance and movements resembled those animals, but it may also suggest that to Nobunaga, Hideyoshi was a familiar and dependable retainer.