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50 free European Union trivia questions with answers — history quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
European Union trivia for politics students, quiz-night regulars, Erasmus alumni and anyone who has ever wondered why the EU flag has twelve stars when it has 27 members. This quiz begins with the origins: Robert Schuman's 1950 declaration, Jean Monnet's Coal and Steel Community, the six founders and the 1957 Treaty of Rome, then follows the project through the Merger Treaty, the Single European Act, Maastricht in 1993 and Lisbon in 2009. It covers the institutions and where they sit (Brussels, Strasbourg, Luxembourg, Frankfurt), the euro's launch and the design of its notes and coins, the Schengen village on the Moselle, the Erasmus programme, the Copenhagen criteria and each wave of enlargement from 1973 to Croatia in 2013. It also handles the exits, Greenland in 1985 and the United Kingdom in 2020, plus the symbols: Ode to Joy, Europe Day and the motto chosen by schoolchildren. Questions range from easy to expert, and every answer was checked against a reference page and carries its source. If you enjoy this quiz, try our European geography, European history and NATO quizzes next.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01How many member states does the European Union have?
27
There were 28 until the United Kingdom left in 2020; ten more countries are aspiring or negotiating to join.
Q 02The treaty that formally established the European Union in 1993 is named after which Dutch city?
Maastricht
It also created EU citizenship and renamed the EEC the European Community.
Q 03The 1957 Treaty of Rome created which body, the direct forerunner of today's EU?
European Economic Community
The same six countries signed a second pact that day creating Euratom for nuclear cooperation.
Q 04Which of these was NOT one of the six founding states of the 1957 Treaty of Rome?
Denmark
Denmark joined in 1973 alongside Ireland and the United Kingdom, in the first enlargement.
Q 05On which date was the Schuman Declaration made, now marked as Europe Day?
9 May 1950
French foreign minister Robert Schuman spoke the day after the fifth anniversary of VE Day.
Q 06The 1952 Treaty of Paris pooled which two industries, judged essential for waging war?
Coal and steel
The founders reasoned that tying these industries together would make war between France and Germany far less likely.
Q 07Which Frenchman from a cognac-merchant family, never elected to office, is called 'the Father of Europe'?
Jean Monnet
His remains were moved to the Pantheon in Paris on the centenary of his birth in 1988.
Q 08The 1967 Merger Treaty combined the institutions of the ECSC, EEC and Euratom under what collective name?
European Communities
Jean Rey presided over the first merged Commission.
Q 09Which three countries joined in the first enlargement of 1973?
Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom
Denmark's membership included Greenland, which later voted its way back out.
Q 10Which country joined in 1981, five years before Spain and Portugal?
Greece
Austria, Finland and Sweden followed in 1995.
Q 11Which territory left the European club in 1985 after a dispute over fishing rights?
Greenland
Some 53% of Greenlanders had voted to withdraw in a 1982 referendum, made possible by home rule in 1979.
Q 12What was the biggest single enlargement in EU history?
Ten countries in 2004
Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia all joined at once.
Q 13Which country became the 28th EU member state when it joined in July 2013?
Croatia
Bulgaria and Romania had joined together in 2007.
Q 21The Danes initially rejected the 1992 treaty creating the EU in a referendum by what margin?
50.7% to 49.3%
Denmark then secured an opt-out from the single currency and voted again.
Q 22In which year did the euro launch as an accounting currency on the financial markets?
1999
It replaced the ECU one-for-one; physical notes and coins arrived three years later.
Q 23On what date did euro banknotes and coins enter circulation?
1 January 2002
Within three months the twelve original members' national currencies had been fully replaced.
Q 14The conditions a country must meet to join the EU are named after which city's 1993 summit?
Copenhagen
They require a stable democracy, the rule of law, a functioning market economy and acceptance of the acquis communautaire.
Q 15Which African country's 1987 application to join was rejected because it was not considered European?
Morocco
Turkey applied the same year and was recognised as a candidate in 1999.
Q 16Which Frenchman led the European Commission from 1985 to 1995, driving the single market?
Jacques Delors
He is credited with the 'four freedoms': free movement of goods, capital, services and workers.
Q 17What percentage of UK voters chose to leave the EU in the June 2016 referendum?
51.9%
Every region of England and Wales except Greater London voted Leave; Scotland, Northern Ireland and Gibraltar voted Remain.
Q 18On what date did the United Kingdom formally leave the European Union?
31 January 2020
A transition period during which most EU law still applied ran until the end of that year.
Q 19Which numbered clause of the Treaty on European Union sets out how a member state may leave?
50
Theresa May's government triggered it on 29 March 2017, starting a two-year clock that was extended several times.
Q 20The EU treaty in force from December 2009 that created a permanent European Council president is named after which city?
Lisbon
It salvaged reforms from the abandoned European Constitution, and only passed after Irish voters said no in 2008 and yes in 2009.
Q 24Who designed the common sides of the euro coins?
Luc Luycx
The Belgian's map on the coins originally showed only the fifteen member states of 2002.
Q 25The euro banknotes, designed by Austrian Robert Kalina, show which two architectural features?
Windows or gateways and bridges
His original bridges were real ones such as the Rialto and had to be made generic.
Q 26The euro sign is a stylised version of which letter, crossed by two lines?
E
The Commission unveiled it on 12 December 1996, chosen from an original field of 30 designs.
Q 27Which banknote was dropped from the second 'Europa' series of the single currency in 2019?
500
Existing 500-euro notes remain legal tender across the euro area.
Q 28Where is the European Central Bank based?
Frankfurt
Its first president was the Dutchman Wim Duisenberg; Christine Lagarde holds the post today.
Q 29Where is the official seat of the European Parliament, where plenary sessions are held four days a month?
Strasbourg
France secured the arrangement at the 1992 Edinburgh summit; committees meet mostly in Brussels.
Q 30In which year was the European Parliament first directly elected by citizens?
1979
Elections have been held every five years since; the 2024 vote returned 720 MEPs.