Introduction

Treaties have played a significant role in shaping world history. They have ended wars, established peace, redrawn national boundaries, created alliances, settled territorial disputes, and influenced international relations. From the Treaty of Westphalia to the Treaty of Versailles, these historic agreements have changed the political map of the world.

This collection of 120 General Knowledge (GK) questions covers famous treaties, their historical background, important signatories, dates, and consequences. The answer key is provided at the end for self-assessment.

Section 1: Famous Treaties in World History

1. Which treaty ended the Thirty Years’ War in Europe in 1648?
2. Which treaty formally ended World War I between Germany and the Allied Powers?
3. In which year was the Treaty of Versailles signed?
4. Which treaty ended the American Revolutionary War?
5. Which treaty was signed in 1783 between Great Britain and the United States?
6. Which treaty established the independence of the Netherlands from Spain in 1648?
7. Which treaty ended the War of the Spanish Succession in 1713?
8. Which treaty was signed in 1815 after the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte?
9. Which treaty ended the Napoleonic Wars and reshaped the political map of Europe?
10. Which treaty divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal in 1494?

Section 2: Treaties of Europe

11. Which treaty established the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951?
12. Which treaty established the European Economic Community in 1957?
13. What is the other name of the Treaty of Rome?
14. Which treaty formally established the European Union in 1992?
15. Which treaty introduced the euro as a common European currency?
16. Which treaty significantly expanded the powers of the European Parliament in 1997?
17. Which treaty reformed the institutions of the European Union and came into force in 2009?
18. Which treaty ended the Crimean War in 1856?
19. Which treaty recognized the independence of Greece from the Ottoman Empire in 1832?
20. Which treaty ended the Austro-Prussian War in 1866?

Section 3: Treaties of World War I and World War II

21. Which treaty imposed severe penalties and reparations on Germany after World War I?
22. Which treaty was signed between Germany and the Allied Powers in 1919?
23. Which treaty was signed between Austria and the Allied Powers in 1919?
24. Which treaty was signed with Bulgaria after World War I?
25. Which treaty was signed with Hungary after World War I?
26. Which treaty was signed with the Ottoman Empire after World War I in 1920?
27. Which treaty replaced the Treaty of Sèvres in 1923?
28. Which treaty was signed between Germany and the Soviet Union in August 1939?
29. What was the secret protocol of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact mainly concerned with?
30. Which treaty formally ended the state of war between Japan and the Allied Powers in 1951?

Section 4: Treaties of Asia

31. Which treaty ended the First Opium War between Britain and China in 1842?
32. Which treaty ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain in 1842?
33. Which treaty ended the Second Opium War in 1860?
34. Which treaty ended the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895?
35. Which treaty transferred Taiwan from China to Japan?
36. Which treaty ended the Russo-Japanese War in 1905?
37. Which treaty recognized Korean independence from China in 1895?
38. Which treaty established peace between Japan and the Allied Powers after World War II?
39. Which treaty established the modern relationship between Japan and South Korea in 1965?
40. Which treaty established the boundaries between British India and Tibet in 1914?

Section 5: Treaties of India and South Asia

41. Which treaty was signed in 1765 after the Battle of Buxar, granting the East India Company revenue-collection rights in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa?
42. Which treaty was signed between the British East India Company and Tipu Sultan in 1792?
43. Which treaty ended the Third Anglo-Mysore War?
44. Which treaty was signed between the British and the Marathas in 1802?
45. Which treaty ended the First Anglo-Maratha War in 1782?
46. Which treaty ended the Second Anglo-Maratha War in 1805?
47. Which treaty ended the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1846?
48. Which treaty resulted in the transfer of Kashmir to Maharaja Gulab Singh in 1846?
49. Which treaty was signed between India and Pakistan in 1960 concerning the sharing of river waters?
50. Which agreement was signed between India and Pakistan in 1972 following the Bangladesh Liberation War?
51. Which treaty established peace between India and China in 1954 and included the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence?
52. Which agreement was signed between India and China in 1993 concerning the maintenance of peace along the Line of Actual Control?
53. Which treaty ended the Indo-Sri Lankan conflict-related negotiations in 1987?
54. Which agreement was signed between India and Bangladesh in 1974 concerning the exchange of enclaves?
55. Which treaty established the boundary between India and Nepal in 1816?

Section 6: Treaties of Peace and International Relations

56. Which treaty established the League of Nations after World War I?
57. Which treaty renounced war as an instrument of national policy in 1928?
58. What is another name for the Kellogg–Briand Pact?
59. Which treaty established the United Nations framework after World War II?
60. Which treaty established the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949?
61. Which treaty established the Warsaw Pact in 1955?
62. Which treaty prohibited the placement of nuclear weapons on the seabed and ocean floor?
63. Which treaty aimed to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and was opened for signature in 1968?
64. Which treaty banned nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere, outer space and underwater in 1963?
65. Which treaty declared Antarctica a region dedicated to peaceful purposes and scientific cooperation?

Section 7: Treaties and Territorial Changes

66. Which treaty divided the New World between Spain and Portugal in 1494?
67. Which treaty transferred Louisiana from France to the United States in 1803?
68. Which treaty ended the American Revolutionary War and recognized American independence?
69. Which treaty transferred Florida from Spain to the United States in 1819?
70. Which treaty established the modern boundaries of much of the United States and Canada in 1846?
71. Which treaty settled the Oregon boundary dispute between Britain and the United States?
72. Which treaty ended the Mexican-American War in 1848?
73. Which treaty transferred California and other territories from Mexico to the United States?
74. Which treaty transferred Alaska from Russia to the United States in 1867?
75. Which treaty settled the boundary between the United States and Canada in the Great Lakes region in 1817?

Section 8: Treaties of the Middle East and Africa

76. Which agreement secretly divided parts of the Ottoman Empire into British and French spheres of influence during World War I?
77. Who were the two principal diplomats associated with the Sykes–Picot Agreement?
78. Which treaty formally ended the Ottoman Empire’s involvement in World War I but was later replaced?
79. Which treaty recognized the modern Republic of Turkey in 1923?
80. Which agreement provided for the creation of a Jewish national home in Palestine in 1917?
81. Which treaty established the independence of Egypt from Britain in 1936?
82. Which treaty ended the Second Boer War in 1902?
83. Which treaty established the independence of Morocco from France in 1956?
84. Which treaty ended the Italian-Ethiopian conflict in 1896?
85. Which treaty established the boundaries of modern Ethiopia and Eritrea following Eritrea’s independence?

Section 9: Important Modern Treaties

86. Which treaty created the European Union in 1992?
87. Which treaty established the framework for international climate action in 1992?
88. Which international agreement was adopted in 1997 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
89. Which international climate agreement was adopted in Paris in 2015?
90. Which treaty established the World Trade Organization in 1994?
91. Which agreement established the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1947?
92. Which treaty established the International Criminal Court in 1998?
93. Which treaty regulates international trade in endangered species of wild animals and plants?
94. Which international agreement regulates the use of the world’s oceans?
95. Which treaty protects the ozone layer by phasing out ozone-depleting substances?

Section 10: Famous Treaties and Their Historical Significance

96. Which treaty ended the War of the Austrian Succession in 1748?
97. Which treaty ended the War of the Polish Succession in 1738?
98. Which treaty ended the Great Northern War in 1721?
99. Which treaty ended the War of the Quadruple Alliance in 1720?
100. Which treaty was signed between France and Spain in 1761, forming an alliance known as the Family Compact?
101. Which treaty ended the War of the Bavarian Succession in 1779?
102. Which treaty was signed between Russia and the Ottoman Empire in 1774?
103. Which treaty ended the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829?
104. Which treaty ended the Franco-Prussian War in 1871?
105. Which treaty established the independence of Belgium in 1839?
106. Which treaty ended the War of the Pacific between Chile and Peru in 1883?
107. Which treaty ended the Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay in 1938?
108. Which treaty ended the war between Finland and the Soviet Union in 1940?
109. Which treaty established Austria as a sovereign and independent state after World War II in 1955?
110. Which treaty formally ended the occupation of West Germany and restored much of its sovereignty in 1955?

Section 11: Additional GK Questions

111. Which treaty was signed between France and Britain in 1904, improving relations between the two countries?
112. What was the name of the 1907 agreement that helped complete the Triple Entente?
113. Which treaty established the independence of Norway from Sweden in 1905?
114. Which treaty ended the War of the Spanish Succession and recognized Philip V as King of Spain?
115. Which treaty was signed in 1778 between France and the United States during the American Revolutionary War?
116. Which treaty ended the conflict between France and the United States known as the Quasi-War?
117. Which treaty established the demilitarized status of the Åland Islands in 1921?
118. Which treaty established the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone in 1985?
119. Which treaty was signed in 1967 to ensure the peaceful use of outer space?
120. Which treaty was signed in 1972 between the United States and the Soviet Union to limit strategic nuclear weapons?

Answer Key

Section 1: Famous Treaties in World History

1. Peace of Westphalia
2. Treaty of Versailles
3. 1919
4. Treaty of Paris
5. Treaty of Paris (1783)
6. Peace of Westphalia
7. Treaty of Utrecht
8. Second Treaty of Paris
9. Congress of Vienna settlement (1814–1815)
10. Treaty of Tordesillas

Section 2: Treaties of Europe

11. Treaty of Paris (1951)
12. Treaty of Rome (1957)
13. Treaty establishing the European Economic Community
14. Maastricht Treaty
15. Maastricht Treaty
16. Treaty of Amsterdam
17. Treaty of Lisbon
18. Treaty of Paris (1856)
19. Treaty of Constantinople (1832)
20. Treaty of Prague (1866)

Section 3: World War I and World War II

21. Treaty of Versailles
22. Treaty of Versailles
23. Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye
24. Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine
25. Treaty of Trianon
26. Treaty of Sèvres
27. Treaty of Lausanne
28. Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact
29. The division of Eastern Europe into German and Soviet spheres of influence
30. Treaty of San Francisco

Section 4: Treaties of Asia

31. Treaty of Nanking (Nanjing)
32. Treaty of Nanking (Nanjing)
33. Convention of Peking (Beijing)
34. Treaty of Shimonoseki
35. Treaty of Shimonoseki
36. Treaty of Portsmouth
37. Treaty of Shimonoseki
38. Treaty of San Francisco
39. Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea
40. Simla Convention

Section 5: India and South Asia

41. Treaty of Allahabad
42. Treaty of Seringapatam
43. Treaty of Seringapatam
44. Treaty of Bassein
45. Treaty of Salbai
46. Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon (with the Scindia) and Treaty of Rajghat (with the Holkar)
47. Treaty of Lahore
48. Treaty of Amritsar (1846)
49. Indus Waters Treaty
50. Simla Agreement
51. Panchsheel Agreement
52. Agreement on the Maintenance of Peace and Tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control
53. Indo-Sri Lanka Accord
54. India-Bangladesh Land Boundary Agreement
55. Treaty of Sugauli

Section 6: Peace and International Relations

56. Treaty of Versailles
57. Kellogg–Briand Pact
58. Pact of Paris
59. Charter of the United Nations
60. North Atlantic Treaty
61. Warsaw Treaty
62. Seabed Arms Control Treaty
63. Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)
64. Partial Test Ban Treaty
65. Antarctic Treaty

Section 7: Territorial Changes

66. Treaty of Tordesillas
67. Louisiana Purchase Treaty
68. Treaty of Paris (1783)
69. Adams–Onís Treaty
70. Oregon Treaty
71. Oregon Treaty
72. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
73. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
74. Alaska Purchase Treaty
75. Rush–Bagot Agreement

Section 8: Middle East and Africa

76. Sykes–Picot Agreement
77. Mark Sykes and François Georges-Picot
78. Treaty of Sèvres
79. Treaty of Lausanne
80. Balfour Declaration
81. Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936
82. Treaty of Vereeniging
83. Treaty of Fes (1912) ended Moroccan sovereignty; Morocco’s independence was recognized in 1956 through the Franco-Moroccan Declaration of La Celle-Saint-Cloud.
84. Treaty of Addis Ababa (1896)
85. Algiers Agreement (2000) established the framework for settling the Ethiopia-Eritrea border dispute.

Section 9: Modern Treaties

86. Maastricht Treaty
87. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
88. Kyoto Protocol
89. Paris Agreement
90. Marrakesh Agreement
91. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
92. Rome Statute
93. CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora)
94. United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
95. Montreal Protocol

Section 10: Famous Treaties and Historical Significance

96. Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle
97. Treaty of Vienna (1738)
98. Treaty of Nystad
99. Treaty of The Hague (1720)
100. Third Family Compact (Treaty of Paris, 1761)
101. Treaty of Teschen
102. Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca
103. Treaty of Adrianople (Edirne)
104. Treaty of Frankfurt
105. Treaty of London (1839)
106. Treaty of Ancón
107. Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Boundaries (1938)
108. Moscow Peace Treaty
109. Austrian State Treaty
110. Paris Agreements (1954)

Section 11: Additional GK Questions

111. Entente Cordiale
112. Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907
113. Karlstad Agreement
114. Treaty of Utrecht
115. Treaty of Alliance (1778)
116. Convention of 1800 (Treaty of Mortefontaine)
117. Convention Relating to the Non-Fortification and Neutralisation of the Åland Islands
118. Treaty of Rarotonga
119. Outer Space Treaty
120. SALT I Interim Agreement

Concluding Note

Treaties are important historical documents because they reveal how nations negotiated peace, resolved conflicts, established international cooperation, and shaped the modern world. Studying these agreements helps us understand the causes and consequences of wars, the evolution of diplomacy, and the development of international law.

Note for the Public: A treaty is more than a written agreement between countries. It can influence generations by changing borders, protecting human rights, regulating international relations, and maintaining peace. Learning about famous treaties helps us appreciate the importance of dialogue, diplomacy, and peaceful cooperation among nations.