History
Discover facts about history. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
History
Millard Fillmore refused an honorary Oxford degree
Most politicians would commit terrible crimes to receive a completely unearned prestigious degree, but not America's 13th president. When Oxford University…
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Queen Christina of Sweden gave up her crown, converted to Catholicism, and moved to Rome
Being the monarch of a freezing northern kingdom apparently wasn't her vibe. She shocked all of Europe by randomly converting to Catholicism, dropping her…
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Why a pope grew a beard after Rome was sacked
Following the devastating Sack of Rome in 1527, the Pope was so incredibly depressed that he refused to shave. Even though Catholic canon technically forbade…
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When tandem cycling was an Olympic sport
Riding a bicycle built for two wasn't just for romantic park dates; it was intensely competitive. Two grown men would hop onto a single elongated bike and…
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The 1904 Olympic event where athletes floated underwater
Imagine winning a medal just for floating aggressively. In this completely bizarre 1904 event, athletes dove into the pool and then remained perfectly…
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Kite flying was once an Olympic sport
Taking a leisurely day at the beach and turning it into a hyper-competitive nightmare. Competitors rolled out enormous, meticulously crafted kites and were…
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The bizarre Olympic event involving heavy clubs
Before rhythmic gymnastics involved ribbons, burly men furiously spun wooden bowling pins around their heads. Competitors stood perfectly still and twirled…
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Russian government implemented a dedicated tax on matches
Bureaucrats will find a way to squeeze pennies out of literally anything that creates joy or heat. The Russian Empire placed strict excise taxes on simple…
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When rope climbing was an Olympic sport
The nightmare of middle school gym class used to earn you international glory. Competitors had to scramble up a massive vertical rope using only their upper…
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The pope who kept a coffin in his bedroom
Nothing keeps your ego in check quite like a constant reminder of your own impending doom. To avoid becoming too arrogant, this pontiff kept a beautifully…
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Gregorian calendar completely lacks a designated year zero
The architects of modern time literally just skipped a number. Because the concept of zero wasn't fully popularized in Western mathematics when the calendar…
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When Olympic athletes jumped from a standstill
Running starts were apparently for cowards. Early Olympic athletes simply stood perfectly still next to a tall bar and violently hurled their bodies backward…
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Mount Athos bans women—and even female animals
The monastic community of Mount Athos takes isolation to a highly aggressive extreme. For over a thousand years, they have strictly forbidden any women from…
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How San Marino stayed independent for centuries
While massive empires aggressively rose and violently fell all around them, this tiny speck of a nation just stayed out of the way. Founded in the year 301 by…
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The pope who died three days after his election
Talk about a remarkably short honeymoon phase. He was elected to the highest office in the church, and before anyone could even organize his official…
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The pope who sold the papacy
When you're tired of being the holy leader of the Catholic Church, just monetize your exit. After getting bored of his supreme religious duties in 1045,…
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Why France's president is also an Andorran monarch
Due to a convoluted medieval treaty from 1278, this tiny mountain nation is officially a 'co-principality'. The dual monarchs are a local Spanish bishop and…
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Why Vatican statues once got marble fig leaves
Some people can't handle stone anatomy. Deeply offended by the classical art filling the Vatican, the intensely conservative pontiff ordered hundreds of…
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Seven popes moved the papacy to France
For nearly seventy years, the Vatican wasn't actually in the Vatican. Due to extreme political chaos in Rome, the entire papal court packed their bags and…
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The tax that killed Britain's powdered wigs
If you wanted your giant wig to smell passably clean, the government needed its cut. In 1795, an act was passed requiring anyone using hair powder to pay a…
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The pope who threatened smokers with excommunication
Taking a drag of tobacco in the seventeenth century could literally cost you your eternal soul. The Pope was so deeply annoyed by people taking loud,…
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The ancient timer that stopped politicians talking
Long before the invention of the mute button on video calls, you had the clepsydra. To prevent politicians from endlessly rambling in the assembly, they…
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Peter the Great was nearly seven feet tall
Imagine trying to be an incognito leader when you literally tower over everyone on the continent. The massive Tsar loved traveling in disguise across Europe…
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A Spanish town is stranded inside France
A minor drafting error in a seventeenth-century treaty accidentally left the town of Llívia completely isolated. The agreement ceded all 'villages' to the…
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