Trivial Trivia - taking trivia to new levels

[LincolnMan]

Well, okay. It was The Fortune Cookie-from 1966. Matthau won the Oscar for his role in the picture.

[LincolnMan]

By the way- Lincoln was not a lousy lawyer!

[AussieMick]

This is a doozie for Trivia Quiz people.

When did General Grant, Admiral Farragut, Robert E. Lee, and Stonewall Jackson, all last go to war ... together ... on the same side?

(You're thinking its a trick question? Yes, sort of ... so, its time for lateral-thinking )

[Rogerm]

Did they all fight together on the same side with the United States in the war against Mexico, declared by President Polk?

[AussieMick]

No, sorry , Rogerm (well, the people with those names might have ... but I'm talking about much later) ... and since you were first to have a go (and I have to go to bed), some hints ...

Their names were later changed for diplomatic reasons.

I'm Australian and this weekend is very important to us.

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when I say the weekend ... I mean Saturday.

Oh, and those names ? they were all born in Bethlehem.


I realise that this is difficult ... if anybody can come up with something ... well, that's Great. And I wont let it drag on too long.

[Eva Elisabeth]

One side of a river?

[Rogerm]

Were these the names of American battleships that fought in the South Pacific during World War II, manufactured by Bethlehem Steel?

[AussieMick]

Rogerm is close, Eva . Not the Pacific. Ships, yes. Not battleships. Bethlehem Steel manufactured the turrets. .. good get that Rog. But wrong war although Churchill was involved. Can anyone get more details?

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The names were changed to Abercrombie, Havelock, Raglan, and Roberts.

[AussieMick]

Obviously, a Google search is fine by me.

[RJNorton]

Ships involved in World War I ?

[AussieMick]

Yes ! Correct, Roger. I doubt (feel free to prove me wrong ) that you will get more details. Such as where they were used. Maybe a calculated guess ? ( my previous hints may help )

[RJNorton]

The Dardanelles?

[AussieMick]

Yes! You got there, Roger.

Ive been reading Churchill by Roy Jenkins. In 1915 Churchill ordered the British Navy chiefs to make use of those ships (he used the American names in his memo) in the Dardanelles.
Of course, the naval Dardanelles campaign came to grief due (IMO) to the Navy's incompetence. And then they tried landing troops at Gallipoli ... a disaster.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Abercrombie_(1915)
tells the story of the names.

BTW Churchill has been massively criticised for the Gallipoli debacle.
But if the Dardanelles had succeeded, WW1 would have almost certainly have ended in 1915-6. The Russian Csar would probably have survived (well, maybe),

[RJNorton]

During President-elect Lincoln's inaugural train ride crowds sometimes rushed to the train or procession to catch a glimpse of the newly elected gentleman from Illinois. In one city people were thrown down and trampled as Lincoln passed by in a procession. One man, Thomas Winton, got hit so hard that he sustained a broken bone. What bone did poor Thomas Winton break?

[Dennis Urban]

Must have been his humorous, i.e. "funny bone."