Fantastic facts about the past as it is described in written documents, and the study thereof.
Who was Lord Byron? Described as ‘mad, bad and dangerous to know,’ Byron was born in London in 1788, son of Captain John (“Mad Jack”) Byron. Lord Byron was a scoundrel, revolutionary and groundbreaking poet, considered one of the leaders of the romantic movement. He is also known for his many love affairs with both …
Lord Byron had a pet bear, three pet monkeys and a pet crocodile in his house Read More »
The Alexandra Limp In 1863 Alexandra of Denmark married the Princess of Wales. She was very popular and particularly admired for her style among fashion-conscious women of society. Everything the Princess did, the fashionable young women would copy. So when she wore a choker to hide a scar on her neck, all well-to-do women wore …
Discover the Alexandra Limp and other bizarre Victorian fashions Read More »
Icon of the Jazz Age Burlesque dancer, French Resistance agent, human-rights activist and iconic symbol of the Jazz age, Josephine Baker was often called ‘the Black Venus,’ but was much more than just a burlesque dancer. Street urchin Josephine was born into a poor family in St Louis Missouri. Aged 13 she was living on …
Meet the Burlesque dancer who unleashed her pet cheetah on an orchestra Read More »
In 1951 the people in the town of Pont Saint Espirit in Southern France went collectively insane. A mysterious delirious affliction affected hundreds of people and their pets. Twenty percent of the victims had to be incarcerated in mental asylums, and seven people died. On the night of the 24th August people were heard crying …
The mysterious collective madness of an entire French town in 1951, by the CIA? Read More »
Not a fun fact but perhaps surprising. In 1918 an epidemic called ‘Spanish Flu’ killed about 50 million people or 3% of the global population. It claimed more lives than the First World War (8.5 million) or the Black Plague (20 million). Bonus fact: Why was it called Spanish flu? The global pandemic became known …
Spanish flu killed 5 times more than WWI and the Black Plague put together Read More »
The word vaccine comes from “Variolae vaccinae ” which is Latin for ‘smallpox of the cow’. This is because the first vaccine was made with cowpox.
The ancient Romans were famous for their unusual dishes such as ostrich and rats dipped in honey. But did you know that the upper class ate edible dormice as a delicacy? The dormice were kept alive in terracotta pots called gliraria. The dark confined space of the pot prevented the dormouse from doing to much …
For years scientists and historians have been puzzled by mysterious iron artefacts found thousands of years before the Iron Age. Albert Jambon (French Museum of Natural History) discovered that the artefacts were in fact made from meteors. For decades historians have been puzzled by iron beads dating from 5000 years ago were discovered in Gerzeh …
The word quarantine comes from quarantena, the Venetian for ‘forty’. This is because during the times of the Black Death (15th century) ships returning to Venice were ordered to remain on an island for 40 days( which is where we get the word ‘isolation’ coming from the latin ‘insula’ meaning island). Why 40 days? The …
He may have been responsible for the deaths of around 40 million people but in Mongolia Genghis Khan is a national treasure with rock star status. He is considered the greatest hero in Mongolian history and most Mongolians worship him. There are statues of him in every town and many places, buildings and businesses named …
About 250,000 pigeons were employed during the conflict, of which many were parachuted behind enemy lines.
Wait who was Hannibal again? Hannibal was up there with Julius Ceasar and Alexander the Great as one of the great military leaders in history. He fought for the Carthaginian Empire (Carthage is now Tunisia) against the Roman Empire. Born in 247BC, from the age of 9 he went on campaigns with his Dad who …
Hannibal brought ‘War Elephants’ through the Alps Read More »
When Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs died, their court officials, servants, and artisans would often be sacrificed so that they could accompany them in the afterlife. The Ancient Mesopotamians also carried out these ‘retainer sacrifices.’ In the famous tomb of Queen Puabi were found 74 attendants, 6 men and 68 women, all adorned with gold and silver. …
“If I die you’re all coming too!” What were ‘retainer sacrifices’? Read More »
Forget the Victoria Cross or the Medal of Honor, Ancient Egyptians were awarded the Golden Fly for the their military succcesses. The fly represented tenacity, the ability to keep harrying your enemy like a horsefly that just won’t give up. They were also awarded to female soldiers and spies. The pendants were awarded by the …
Forget the Victoria Cross, what about the ‘Order of the Golden Fly’? Read More »
The Ancient Romans called all their daughters the same name and then used numbers to distinguish them. They called their daughters in the feminine form of their father’s first name. For example Julius Ceasar’s daughter was called Julia. If he’d had any more daughters they would have all been called Julia too! This created problems …
Ancient Romans called all their daughters the same name Read More »
