You may remember history as being that incredibly boring subject at school when you used to fall asleep. Here are some fascinating historical facts to help prove that it doesn’t always have to be so dull.
The Longest War
There have been some long wars throughout the history of mankind but none dragged on as long as the conveniently named Three Hundred and Thirty Five Years’ War between the Isles of Scilly (to the south of the UK) and the Netherlands. This dispute kicked off during the Second English Civil War in the mid 17th century and a peace treaty was agreed in 1986. No shots were ever fired and no one was ever killed or injured in this strange war.
The Shortest War
On the other hand, 500 people were killed or wounded during the world’s shortest war. This was the Anglo-Zanzibar War fought on 27 August 1896. It lasted for around 40 minutes and then, frankly, it ended.
The Dance Fever
Maybe you have heard of the phrase St Vitus Dance at some point but not the historical facts that go with it. This was an incredible phenomenon that happened at various times in Europe in the middle ages. Groups of thousands of people would dance uncontrollably without stopping for days until they dropped to the ground exhausted. It is believed to have come from a desire to escape from the grinding poverty and problems of real life, leading to a state of mass hysteria.
The Last Guillotine Execution
When you picture someone being executed by the guillotine method in France you probably imagine a medieval scene with pompously dressed royalty and suchlike. Actually, the last guillotine execution in the country happened in 1977. That’s the same year that Star Wars was released, Fleetwood Mac brought out Rumours and the Space Shuttle Enterprise made its first test flight.
The Pope’s Bestselling Erotic Book
The man who would become Pope Pius II wrote one of the bestselling books of the 15th century, called The Tale of Two Lovers. It is a love story filled with erotic imagery.
The Interesting Roman Mouthwash
The Romans used to keep their teeth clean and healthy by swilling some urine in their mouth. The emperor eventually put a tax on bottled Portuguese urine because it was so popular. Tortoise blood is another weird type of mouthwash that was used in the past.
Oxford University and the Aztec Empire
Incredibly, Oxford University is believed to be older than the Aztec Empire. The founding of Tenochtitlan in 1325 is looked on as the start of the Aztec civilisation. By then, the centre of learning in Oxford had been on the go for over two centuries and had been officially founded over 75 years previously.
Saddam Hussein and the Key to Detroit
Throughout the history of Detroit only 10 very special people have been given the key to the city. These include popular personalities such as Sammy Davis Jr, Santa Claus, Elmo from Sesame Street and Saddam Hussein. Whoa, hold on there partner, what was that? The good people of Detroit gave the key to their city to Elmo from Sesame freaking Street? What about Big Bird? The Iraqi dictator was given it in 1980 after making a big donation to a local church.
