HistoryGuesser Daily · September 16, 2026 · 1786 – 1990
Spanning three centuries of history, these moments reveal an unyielding drive to conquer natural obstacles and shift unimaginable weight through extraordinary endurance, engineering mastery, and devastating subterranean power.
The scenes are shown below — tap a card to reveal its place and year.
Round 1 · 1786
First Ascent of Mont Blanc
Chamonix, France
Chamonix doctor Michel Paccard and crystal hunter Jacques Balmat made the first successful ascent of Western Europe's highest peak, sparking the modern sport of mountaineering and alpine exploration.
Round 2 · 1832
Hoisting the Alexander Column
St. Petersburg, Russia
Commemorating the Russian victory over Napoleon, this 600-ton monolithic red granite column was raised into place in under two hours by 3,000 soldiers using a complex pulley system.
Round 3 · 1990
Breakthrough of the Channel Tunnel
Strait of Dover
Connecting Britain to the European mainland for the first time since the Ice Age, British and French tunnelers finally broke through the wall of chalk marl to shake hands.
Round 4 · 1924
Salvaging the Scuttled Fleet at Scapa Flow
Orkney, Scotland
Following the mass scuttling of the interned German High Seas Fleet in 1919, entrepreneur Ernest Cox undertook the largest maritime salvage in history, raising 26 sunken destroyers and battleships.
Round 5 · 1916
Detonation of the Lochnagar Mine
La Boisselle, France
To kick off the Battle of the Somme, British tunnelers detonated 60,000 pounds of ammonal explosives beneath the German lines, creating a crater 300 feet across.
