Historical facts from history. Fun historical facts

1. in Napoleon's army, soldiers could address the generals as "you".

2. In Rus', grasshoppers were called dragonflies.

3. punishment with rods was abolished in Russia only in 1903.

4. "Hundred Years' War"lasted 116 years.

5. what we call Caribbean crisis, Americans call the Cuban crisis, and the Cubans themselves call it the October crisis.

6. The shortest war in history was the war between Great Britain and Zanzibar on August 27, 1896. It lasted exactly 38 minutes.

7. first atomic bomb, dropped on Japan, was on an aircraft called Enola Gay. The second is on the Bock's Car plane.

8. Under Peter I in Russia, a special department was created to receive petitions and complaints, which was called ... racketeering.

9. On June 4, 1888, the New York State Congress passed a bill to abolish hanging execution. The reason for this “Humanitarian” act was the introduction of a new method death penalty - electric chair. 10. According to an agreement concluded between the engineer Gustave Eiffel and the city authorities of Paris, in 1909 the Eiffel Tower was to be dismantled and sold for scrap.

11. The Spanish Inquisition persecuted many groups of the population, but most of all the Cathars, Marranos and Moriscos. The Cathars are followers of the Albigensian heresy, the Marranos are baptized Jews, and the Moriscos are baptized Muslims.

12. The first Japanese to come to Russia was Denbei, the son of a merchant from Osaka. His ship washed up on the shores of Kamchatka in 1695. In 1701 he reached Moscow. Peter I appointed him to teach Japanese several teenagers. 13. Only in 1947 in England was the position of the person who was supposed to fire a cannon upon entering England abolished. 14. Guy de Maupassant, Alexandre Dumas, Charles Gounod, Lecomte de Lisle and many other cultural figures signed the famous protest against ... “The deformation of Paris by the Eiffel Tower.”

15. when the famous German physicist Albert Einstein died, he last words left with him. The nurse next to him did not understand a word of German. 16. In the Middle Ages, students were forbidden to carry knives, swords and pistols and to appear on the street after 21 o’clock, because ... this posed a great danger to the townspeople.

17. On the gravestone of the monument to Suvorov it is simply written: “Here Lies Suvorov.” 18. Between the two world wars, France underwent more than 40 different governments. 19. For the last 13 centuries, the imperial throne in Japan has been occupied by the same dynasty.

20. One of the American planes in Vietnam hit itself with a missile fired. 21. The mad Roman emperor Caligula once decided to declare war on the god of the seas - Poseidon, after which he ordered his soldiers to randomly throw their spears into the water. By the way, from the Roman "Caligula" means "little shoe." 22. Abdul Kassim Ismail - the great vizier of Persia (10th century) was always near his library. Only if he went somewhere did the library “Follow” him. 117 thousand book volumes were transported by four hundred camels. Moreover, the books (i.e. camels) were arranged in alphabetical order.

23. Now nothing is impossible. If you want to buy a car in Guryevsk, please, if you want, in another city. But the fact remains that it needs to be registered and license plates obtained. So, the very first license plate was attached to his car by the Berlin merchant Rudolf Duke. This happened in 1901. There were only three characters on his license plate - IA1 (IA are the initials of his young wife Johanna Anker, and the one means that she is his first and only.

24. at the end of the evening prayer on the ships of the Russian imperial fleet, the watch commander commanded “cover yourself!”, which meant putting on hats, and at the same time the all-clear signal for prayer was given. This prayer usually lasted 15 minutes. 25. In 1914, the German colonies were inhabited by 12 million people, and the British colonies - almost 400 million. 26. In the entire history of temperature registration in Russia, the most cold winter It was the winter of 1740.

27. In the modern army, the rank of cornet corresponds to an ensign, and the rank of lieutenant corresponds to a lieutenant.

28. The Thai national anthem was written in 1902 by Russian composer Pyotr Shurovsky.

29. before 1703 clean ponds in Moscow they were called... filthy ponds.

30. The first book published in England was dedicated to... chess. 31. World population in 5000 BC. e. was 5 million people.

32. in ancient China people have committed suicide by eating a pound of salt. 33. A list of gifts to Stalin in honor of his seventieth birthday was published in Soviet newspapers from December 1949 to March 1953.

34. Nicholas I gave his officers a choice between the guardhouse and listening to Glinka's operas as punishment. 35. Above the entrance to Aristotle’s Lyceum there was an inscription: “Entrance Here Is Open To Anyone Who Wants To Dispel Plato’s Misconceptions.”

36. The third decree after the “Decree on Peace” and the “Decree on Land” issued by the Bolsheviks was the “decree on spelling”. 37. During the eruption of Mount Vesuvius on August 24, 79, in addition to everything famous city Pompeii also destroyed the cities of Herculaneum and Stabia.

38. Nazi Germany - “Third Reich”, Hohenzoller Empire (1870-1918) - “Second Reich”, Holy Roman Empire - “First Reich”.

39. In the Roman army, soldiers lived in tents of 10 people. At the head of each tent was a senior person, who was called... the dean. 40. A tightly tightened corset and a large number of Bracelets on hands in England during the Tudor period were considered a sign of virginity.

41. FBI agents received the right to carry weapons only in 1934, 26 years after the founding of the FBI.

42. Until the Second World War in Japan, any touch of the emperor was considered blasphemy.

43. On February 16, 1568, the Spanish Inquisition imposed a death sentence on all residents of the Netherlands. 44. In 1911, in China, braids were recognized as a sign of feudalism and therefore wearing them was prohibited.

45. The first party card of the CPSU belonged to Lenin, the second to Brezhnev (the third to Suslov, and the fourth to Kosygin.

46. ​​American League physical culture, the first nudist organization in the United States, was founded on December 4, 1929. 47. In 213 BC. e. Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang gave the order to burn all the books in the country.

48. In Madagascar in 1610, King Ralambo created the state of Imerin, which means “As far as the eye can see.”

49. The first Russian saints were Boris and Gleb, canonized in 1072.

50. one of the punishments for criminals in ancient India was... mutilation of the ears.

51. Of the 266 people who occupied the papal throne, 33 died a violent death.

52. In Rus', a stick was used to beat a witness in order to achieve the truth. 53. In normal weather, the Romans wore a tunic, and when cold weather set in, they wore several tunics.

54. in ancient Rome a group of slaves belonging to one person was called ... surname. 55. The Roman Emperor Nero married a man - one of his slaves named Scorus.

56. Until 1361 in England, legal proceedings were carried out exclusively on French. 57. Having accepted surrender, Soviet Union did not sign peace with Germany, that is, he remained at war with Germany. The war with Germany ended on January 21, 1955 with the adoption of a corresponding decision by the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR. However, May 9 is considered victory day - the day the act of unconditional surrender of Germany was signed.

58. The eruption of the Mexican volcano Paricutin lasted 9 years (from 1943 to 1952. During this time, the volcano’s cone rose 2774 meters. 59. To date, archaeologists have discovered in the territory associated with ancient Troy, traces of nine fortresses - settlements that existed in different times era.

1. Albert Einstein could have become president. In 1952, he was offered the post of second president of Israel, but he refused.

2. Kim Jong Il was a good composer and the Korean leader composed 6 operas throughout his life.

3. The Leaning Tower of Pisa has always been inclined. In 1173, the team building the Leaning Tower of Pisa noticed that the base was curved. Construction stopped for almost 100 years, but the structure was never straight.

4. Arabic numerals were invented not by Arabs, but by Indian mathematicians.

5. Before alarm clocks were invented, there was a profession that involved waking up other people in the morning. For example, a person would shoot dried peas at other people's windows to wake them up for work.

Read also: The most big mistakes in history

6. Grigory Rasputin survived many assassination attempts in one day. They tried to poison him, shoot him and stab him, but he managed to survive. In the end, Rasputin died in the cold river.

7. The shortest war in history lasted less than an hour. The Anglo-Zanzibar War lasted 38 minutes.

8. The most long war in history occurred between the Netherlands and the Scilly Archipelago. The war lasted 335 years from 1651 to 1989, and both sides suffered no casualties.

By the 20th century, humanity had reached unprecedented heights: we discovered electricity, conquered the skies and the depths of the sea, learned to heal many diseases, quickly transmit messages over vast distances, we even conquered space and nuclear power. However, along with these achievements, the 20th century can be called the peak of madness human race, when with their reckless behavior people practically brought themselves to the brink of destruction in two world wars...
Almost 80% of Soviet men born in 1923 died in the Great Patriotic War Patriotic War.

Ivan Burylov, who wrote the word “comedy” on the ballot, received 8 years in the camps, 1949.

The husband is a Protestant, the wife is a Catholic. The community did not allow them to be buried in the same cemetery. Holland, 1888.

The creator of the popular cartoon "Shrek" William Steig based his character on professional wrestler Maurice Tillet

In 1859, 24 rabbits were released into the wild in Australia. Over 6 years, their number increased to 6,000,000 individuals...

A note from Yuri Gagarin, written after his flight around the Earth.

King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland George V and his brother - Emperor of All Russia Nicholas II.
The first photograph on Earth.

The diameter of Soviet cigarettes is 7.62 mm, the same as the caliber of the cartridge. There is a widespread myth that the entire production was set up so that in 2 hours it would be ready to produce cartridges.

Afghanistan 1973 and 2016.
"Give me 5 years and you won't recognize Germany." - A. Hitler

John Rockefeller dreamed of earning $100 thousand and living to be 100 years old. And he earned $192 billion and died at 97. Not all dreams come true.
Terry Savchuk - the face of a hockey goalie when a mask was not yet a mandatory attribute, 1966.
Mortgage - definition in the Soviet dictionary.
Women's Minister Angela Merkel and Chancellor Kohl. 1991 And then 10 years later she fired him.

Stalin's son Yakov Dzhugashvili in German captivity, 1941. Later he was killed in a prison camp - his father refused to exchange him for captured German generals.

Public execution by guillotine, France, 1939.

Australia in the mid-20th century. Very soon the USSR will send Gagarin into space.
A hotel manager pours acid into a pool full of blacks, 1964. USA.
Auschwitz concentration camp is the same oven in which people were burned.

In 1938, Stalin invited the pilot Valery Chkalov to head the NKVD. However, Chkalov refused.

In the 5th century BC. The Spartan commander Pausanias betrayed his homeland to the Persians. The betrayal was discovered, and the court decided to execute the traitor. Pausanias hid in the temple of the goddess Athena, knowing that murder on the temple grounds was considered sacrilege. However, the Spartans still found a way out: they walled up Pausanias in the temple.

The entire theater is in pre-Aeschylus Ancient Greece was a “one-man theater”: one person played all the roles. Aeschylus introduced a second actor, and Sophocles a third.

Alexander the Great was very handsome, but two things spoiled the matter: his short height - only one and a half meters and the habit of tilting his head to the right and looking as if into the distance.

Modern ophthalmologists are inclined to believe that the king suffered from a rare vision pathology called “Brown syndrome.” In Pompeii, where there were barely 20 thousand inhabitants, seven brothels were discovered during excavations, some of them also served as taverns, others as barbers.

In the Middle Ages, beds in noble houses were necessarily equipped with a canopy on four posts. The fact is that the windows of that time did not have glass, and therefore there were severe drafts in the bedrooms.

Railroad tracks in Europe were laid on cart tracks left over from the times of the ancient Romans. The distance between the wheels of Roman carts was standard: two horse rears.

The Danish king Niels, who reigned in the 12th century (1104-1134), had the smallest army ever to exist in the world. It consisted of... 7 people - his personal assistants. With this army, Nils ruled Denmark for 30 years, during which time Denmark also included parts of Sweden and Norway, as well as some parts of Northern Germany.

Nicholas II only had military rank Colonel. Napoleon slept through the Battle of Waterloo. He was tormented by hemorrhoids, which were treated with enemas with an anesthetic that caused severe drowsiness. Bonaparte fell asleep before the battle, and no one dared to wake him up until the very critical moment.

The place and role of historical facts in the process of cognition is determined by the fact that only on the basis of these “building blocks” can hypotheses be put forward and theories built. Does not exist uniform definition historical fact. The most common interpretations of the term “historical fact” are:

• it is an objective event or phenomenon of the past;
• these are traces of the past, i.e. images that are captured in historical documents.

Many scientists (A.P. Pronshtein, I.N. Danilevsky, M.A. Varshavchik) identified three categories of historical facts: objectively existing facts of reality, located within a certain spatio-temporal framework and possessing materiality (historical events, phenomena and processes as such); facts reflected in sources, information about the event; " scientific facts", obtained and described by the historian.

In the interpretation of M.A. Barga, the concept of “historical fact” has several meanings. Firstly, a historical fact as a fragment of historical reality, which has “chronological completeness and ontological inexhaustibility.” Secondly, “source message”; thirdly, a “scientific and historical fact” - in its “cognitive incompleteness, in content variability, cumulativeness, ability for endless enrichment and development” together with the development of “ historical science» .

A scientific-historical fact is a historical fact that has become the object of activity of a scientist historian; the result of inference based on traces left by the past. These facts are always subjective and reflect the position of the scientist, his level of qualifications and education. IN academic subject Most often, scientific and historical facts are presented, which are described, systematized and explained. Any historical fact can contain the general, the universal, the individual. Taking into account this specificity, in the methodology of teaching history, three groups of facts are conventionally distinguished: fact - event - characterizing the unique, inimitable; fact - phenomenon - reflecting the typical, general; fact - processes - determining the universal. These facts have undergone logical processing and are presented in logical forms: representations (images) contain characteristics outside in the form of a description; concepts, ideas, theories that characterize the essence and provide an explanation of the historical past. Facts-processes are presented by description, explanation, assessment.

Every year in May, Mother's Day is celebrated all over the world. On this day, mothers and pregnant women are congratulated and given gifts. Motherhood is an amazing condition, but even women themselves do not know some facts about it:

• The word “mother” sounds approximately the same in all languages: Russian, Chinese and Spanish children call their mother “mama”, English and German children call their mother “mom”. And the secret is simple: the children themselves came up with this word. One of the first syllables that a child pronounces is “ma”, and it determined the name of the most important person in the life of each of us.
• A woman carries a child for nine months, he is born, the umbilical cord is cut, but his connection with his mother does not end there. During pregnancy, mother and baby exchange cells through the placenta, and these cells sometimes remain in the woman’s body for a very long time.
• Pregnancy causes changes in a woman's brain.
• A child’s successful personal life depends on how close his relationship with his mother was. Scientists believe that it is the mother who instills in the child the ability to love and feel, which helps him build happy relationships with the opposite sex.
• Mothers feel if something happened to the child, even if the latter is already an adult, accomplished person.
• Children know their mother's voice even before they are born. Scientists have conducted a number of studies, which have revealed that the child in the womb reacts to the mother’s voice and does not react at all to outside voices.

History is an interesting science; it tells about distant eras and various events, forces us to analyze facts and baffles scientists. Historical finds are still not uncommon, and some refute generally accepted versions of the development of human civilization and force new hypotheses to be put forward. More than once history was rewritten, adjusted to fit templates, interpreted in a way convenient for ruling class form. It seems that the modern level of technology and knowledge allows us to explain the most incredible and strange events. But there is still room in the world for the unknown and inexplicable.

Ancient archaeological finds

The work of archaeologists has repeatedly presented the world with surprises: the artifacts and household items found have baffled historians. Their antiquity did not correspond to the official version of human development. How to explain the presence of iron weapons among wild tribes unfamiliar with metallurgy? Why were certain objects built? How could they be built, even if modern technologies are not able to reproduce similar ones or simply transport building materials of the same weight? Get acquainted with some architectural objects around which controversy still does not subside, despite the presence of many articles and scientific theories.

Pyramids

The pyramids of the Egyptian pharaohs, well known throughout the world, existed already 2600 thousand years BC. (this time is determined approximately, the exact age has not yet been established). Much is known about the life of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs, but many questions still remain unanswered. Why is the angle of inclination along a line that can connect all the pyramids exactly the same as the angle of inclination of Orion's Belt in 10,500 BC? Are they completely the same?

Another inexplicable fact: Construction technologies during the reign of the pharaohs do not explain the appearance of such large and majestic buildings. Amazing stories the curse of the pharaohs raises many questions, but even now it is impossible to fully explain why punishment overtakes everyone who disturbed the peace of the ancient rulers of Egypt.

And one more important and unusual point: found on different continents the pyramids are surprisingly similar to each other. In addition to Egypt, the following can be proud of their huge monuments:

• Latin America (Mayan and Aztec pyramids);
• Andes (religious buildings of Norte Chico);
• China (tombs of the rulers of the Zhou and Zhao, Ming, Tang, Qin, Han, Sui dynasties);
• Rome (Pyramid of Cestius);
• Nubia (city of Meroe);
• Spain (Gumar pyramids);
• Russia (pyramids of the Kola Peninsula, Aryan Temple in Rostov-on-Don).

All religious buildings date back to different centuries, but have a number of similar features. Interesting fact: the artificially created pyramids of the Kola Peninsula were built approximately 10 thousand years ago, which allows us to speak of them as the oldest in the world. And it makes you remember the mysterious Hyperborea, which is considered either a myth or the cradle of all humanity.

It is also worth mentioning underwater finds. It is possible that in Bermuda Triangle pyramidal structures have been found, which have already been called the legendary Atlantis that went under the water. True, there is very little information about the find and it is contradictory. But Japanese underwater pyramidal structures are being studied carefully.

Disputes about their age are still ongoing: some scientists talk about 5 thousand years, others - about 10. Apparently, there is a lot of truth in ancient myths; the history of human development can be changed by new data.

Mysterious finds

Historical places of worship, unusual monuments, strange ancient monuments, and interesting archaeological finds have more than once baffled scientists. Sometimes it is very difficult to understand and explain how and why some objects and buildings appeared. A number of objects can be added to the list of the most inexplicable.

Easter Island idols. They are over 1000 years old, but who created them from pressed volcanic ash?

Stonehenge. There are many legends associated with this place: mentions of Druids, the wizard Merlin, and the legendary Holy Grail. But the question is that Stonehenge was created much earlier. This has been precisely established by scientists. Radiocarbon dating suggests an age of 3,500 BC. But this does not stop one from putting forward the most incredible theories about the origin of this mysterious structure. There are already about 200 of them.

Interestingly, in addition to the famous English Stonehenge, there are similar buildings:

• Little Henge in England;
• Karahunj in Armenia;
• ancient stones found in the city of Gela (Italy);
• basalt boulders in Australia (near Melbourne);
• prehistoric earthen henge of Ireland;
• cromlech in Rostov region(Russia);
• cromlech of Khortitsa island (Ukraine);
• stone blocks of Salem (USA);
• stone forest in Bulgaria.

They are all unique. They are often called ancient observatories, sundial, religious buildings, but the true purpose remains a mystery.

Nazco drawings in Peru. The Nazca Plateau is painted: there are images of birds, animals, geometric figures. What's unusual about this? Only the scale is amazing; you can see them entirely from a bird's eye view. But they were created about 900 years ago, at that time they only dreamed of flying...

Stainless steel column in Delhi. For 1,600 years it has stood in an Indian city under open air. The height of the column is 7 meters; it is not clear how it was smelted. But the most amazing fact is as follows: rust does not form on the iron, not even a speck.

Kailasanatha Temple. According to legend, seven thousand craftsmen carved a majestic Indian temple over a hundred years using a simple pick and a chisel, moving from top to bottom along a huge rock. How they managed to reproduce such precise forms and maintain all proportions is unclear.

These and other interesting historical finds baffle scientists. Will people ever be able to accurately determine their purpose or method of creation? There is no such confidence. For now we have to be content with more or less plausible theories.

Science is interesting

The history of the development of various sciences is filled with interesting facts. It is no secret that many discoveries were accidental, and sometimes unrelated scientists who lived in different countries, came to the same conclusions almost simultaneously. Or they went down in history as inventors, although they only improved and disseminated other people’s ideas.

Some myths are still stubbornly perceived as real historical events:

• Edison light bulb. He is still considered its inventor, although he only improved an already finished invention, and with the help of his employees after numerous experiments. But at the origins of the creation were the Russian inventors Yablochkov and Lodygin, the Englishman Joseph Swan, the British Frederick de Moleynes and the American John Starr.

Little-known, sometimes deliberately “forgotten” facts from the history of various sciences can significantly change the usual ideas about their development and formation.

Some historical events are associated with animals. Remember the legendary story of how geese saved Rome. It happens that our smaller brothers become the cause of global upheavals and can change the fate of nations.

Check out the most interesting moments:

• The mass extermination of sparrows in China caused the death of about 30 million people. Disappeared from the fields natural enemies locusts and caterpillars led to their massive reproduction. As a result of the destruction of crops, famine began. And bugs have also multiplied, which also caused a lot of inconvenience and problems for the inhabitants of the Middle Kingdom.

These are negative examples, but there are also positive ones. Pets have saved their owners more than once during earthquakes. They sensed the approaching catastrophe and warned by their behavior of the impending disaster. Seismobiologists have learned to correctly interpret the signals of snakes, birds, fish and mammals.

Unusual medicine

Historical facts what was sometimes used as medicine is amazing.

Here are some of the most unusual ways treatment:

• Soothing syrup for children. Nurses and young mothers in England and America in the 19th century used a syrup based on ammonia and morphine. The medicine was considered universal.
• Children were previously treated for cough with heroin, which was used as a morphine substitute.
• Tobacco enema has been used in Western Europe V medicinal purposes. By the way, back in the middle of the last century, cigarettes were advertised as a healthy product.
• In the Middle Ages, an iron stake heated over a fire was used to treat hemorrhoids.
• Ancient doctors performed trepanation with a hammer to treat mental disorders; it is not surprising that patients often died right on the operating table.
• It was believed that venereal diseases could be cured with mercury or lead. After such rubbing, people died more often than from the disease itself.

Reincarnation: myth or truth

There are many references in history to the reincarnation of dead people. Should this be considered a myth or does reincarnation exist?

You will seriously think about this if you learn some facts from the lives of great people:

• Napoleon and Hitler. Having studied their biography, it is not difficult to believe in reincarnation; many significant events in the lives of both dictators occurred with an interval of 129 years. 1760 and 1889 are the years of birth of Napoleon and Hitler. Further dates go accordingly: coming to power - 1804 and 1933, conquest of Vienna and attack on Russia - 1812 and 1841, defeat in the war - 1816 and 1945.
• Lincoln and Kennedy. These American presidents are exactly 100 years apart: Lincoln was born in 1818, Kennedy in 1918. And further coincidences: they became presidents in 1860 and 1960, respectively. Both were killed on Friday, Lincoln at the Kennedy Theater, Kennedy in a Lincoln car. Their killers were also born 100 years apart. As were their successors as president: both Johnson Andrew and Lyndon assumed the presidency after the assassination, one born in 1808, the other in 1908.

Studying historical legends, myths and theories, you can learn many interesting facts about humanity, the lives of great people, their discoveries and inventions.

History is a rather vast subject and it is impossible to study it completely, especially in the smallest details. Sometimes these seemingly insignificant details can become the most interesting part of it. Here are some interesting facts from history that won't be taught in class.

1. Albert Einstein could have become president. In 1952, he was offered the post of second president of Israel, but he refused.

2. Kim Jong Il was a good composer and the Korean leader composed 6 operas throughout his life.

3. The Leaning Tower of Pisa has always been leaning. In 1173, the team building the Leaning Tower of Pisa noticed that the base was curved. Construction stopped for almost 100 years, but the structure was never straight.

4. Arabic numerals were not invented by Arabs, but by Indian mathematicians.

5. Before alarm clocks were invented, there was a profession that involved waking up other people in the morning. For example, a person would shoot dried peas at other people's windows to wake them up for work.

6. Grigory Rasputin survived many assassination attempts in one day. They tried to poison him, shoot him and stab him, but he managed to survive. In the end, Rasputin died in the cold river.

7. The shortest war in history lasted less than an hour. The Anglo-Zanzibar War lasted 38 minutes.

8. The longest war in history took place between the Netherlands and the Scilly Archipelago. The war lasted 335 years from 1651 to 1989 and suffered no casualties.

9. This amazing view, known as the "Majestic Argentine Bird", whose wingspan reached 7 meters, is the largest flying bird in history. It lived about 6 million years ago in the open plains of Argentina and the Andes. The bird is a relative of modern vultures and storks, and its feathers reached the size of a samurai sword.

10. Using sonar, researchers discovered two strange pyramids at a depth of 1.8 km. Scientists have determined that they are made of a kind of thick glass and reach enormous sizes (larger than the Cheops pyramids in Egypt).

11. These two men with the same name were sentenced to the same prison and look very similar. However, they have never met, are not related, and are the reason why fingerprints began to be used in the judicial system.

12. Foot binding is an ancient Chinese tradition where girls' toes were tied to their feet. The idea was that the smaller the foot, the more beautiful and feminine the girl was considered.

13. The Guanajuato mummies are considered the strangest and most frightening mummies. Their distorted faces make you believe that they were buried alive.

14. Heroin was once used as a substitute for morphine and was used to relieve coughs in children.

15. Joseph Stalin may have been the inventor of Photoshop. After the death or disappearance of some people, photographs of him were edited.

16. Recent DNA tests have confirmed that the parents of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun were brother and sister. This explains many of his illnesses and defects.

17. The Icelandic Parliament is considered to be the oldest functioning parliament in the world. It was founded in 930.

18. For years, miners in South Africa have been unearthing mysterious balls about 2.5cm in diameter with three parallel grooves. The stone from which they are made belongs to the Precambrian period, that is, they are about 2.8 billion years old.

19. It is believed that Catholic saints do not decay. The oldest of the “undecayed” is Caecilia of Rome, who was martyred in 177 AD. Her body remains virtually the same as it was 1,700 years ago when it was discovered.

20. The Shaboro encryption in the UK is one of the still unsolved mysteries. If you look closely, you can see an inscription in the form of letters on the monument: DOUOSVAVVM. No one knows who carved this inscription, but many believe it is the key to finding the Holy Grail.

Good day, dear friends!

Recently died down last calls in schools - and the graduates took a little breath: they were distracted from preparing for the unified state exam. And this is great, since periodic rest is a necessary component of any preparation. By the way, I wrote about this in more detail in a post.

Today I also invite you to take a break from preparation and spend time on intellectual entertainment - getting to know fun historical facts. These facts will help you look at history not as a boring series of facts and events, but as entertaining stories that can motivate you to study more thoroughly this or that period of Russian history before the Unified State Exam.

If history has already bored you, then I also highly recommend that you read my post on how to learn history to make this teaching more interesting and exciting.

Well, now let's move on to the most interesting part: fun facts from history. I'll focus on a few of these entertaining stories and facts, but I will draw parallels with national history. By the end of the article you will understand why I did this :).

We will move chronologically and start from the 13th century.

FIRST FUNNY STORY. KAMIKAZE

As you remember very well, in the 13th century, Rus' was not going through the best of times; it fought off both the Mongol-Tatars and the crusaders... At the same time, Japan was also experiencing aggression from the Mongol-Tatars. Japan, like Rus', was fragmented into different principalities, and therefore it could not withstand the onslaught of the Mongols. Meanwhile, her enslavement did not happen. That's why?

The western principalities of Japan would be the first to suffer in the event of Mongol-Tatar aggression. The princes of these principalities ordered services in a Shinto temple (Shinto is Japanese paganism). And when mongol khan gathered a huge fleet and sent it to enslave Japan, a storm broke out that scattered the khan's fleet! This storm was nicknamed kami kaze (kami - deity, kaze - wind). That is why in the Second world war Japanese pilots called themselves that because they, like divine wind(kamikaze), attacked the enemy fleet...:

SECOND FUN FACT. LIFE AND CORNERS OF MEDIEVAL Rus'.

There is every reason to believe that domestic violence and alcoholism are almost a tradition in Russia. Here, for example, is a quote from Sylvester’s Domostroi:

“Discipline your son in his youth, and he will give you peace in your old age, and give beauty to your soul. Loving your son, increase his wounds - and then you will not boast about him. Punish your son from his youth and you will rejoice for him in his maturity, and among your ill-wishers you will be able to boast about him, and your enemies will envy you. Raise your children in prohibitions and you will find peace and blessing in them.”

And here is the testimony of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich’s doctor, Samuel Collins:

“At Maslenitsa, before Lent, Russians indulge in all kinds of amusements with unbridledness, and in the last week of Lent there is so much, as if they were destined to drink in last time in his lifetime. Some drink vodka, distilled four times, until the mouth flares up and flames come out of the throat, as if from the mouth of hell (Bocca di inferno); and if they are then not given milk to drink, they die on the spot. .

Some, returning home drunk, fall sleepy into the snow, if there is no sober friend with them, and freeze on this cold bed. If one of his acquaintances happens to walk past and see a drunken friend on the verge of death, then he does not give him help, fearing that he will die in his arms and fearing to be subjected to the anxiety of investigations, because the Zemsky Prikaz knows how to collect a tax from any dead body , coming under his department. It’s a pity to see twelve frozen people being carried on a sleigh; Some have their hands eaten away by dogs, some have their faces, and others have only bare bones left. Two or three hundred people were transported in this way during the fast. From this you can see the harmful consequences of drunkenness, a disease (Epidemick), characteristic not only of Russia, but also of England.”

“The most surprising thing is that her death was not avenged by anyone, because in Russia there is no criminal law that would prosecute the murder of a wife or a slave if the murder is committed as punishment for an offense; but murder is a strange punishment: the purpose of punishment was never to end life, but always to correct it. Some husbands tie their wives by the hair and whip them completely naked. Such cruelties, however, are rare, and the only causes are infidelity or drunkenness. Now, it seems, husbands do not treat their wives so cruelly; at least parents try to warn them and, when giving their daughters in marriage, they enter into a condition. They demand from the son-in-law that he provide his wife with decent dresses, feed her good and healthy food, did not beat, treated kindly and offer many other conditions, somewhat similar to those rules that prescribe customs in England that have received the force of law.”

Something needs to be done about this! Or what do you think? Subscribe in the comments! I am waiting!

THIRD HISTORICAL FACT: Emperor Peter the Third had two great people in his pedigree: Peter the Great and Charles 12. Irony of fate?

FOUR FUN FACT: Hitler and Lenin played chess with each other:

THE FIFTH FUNNY STORY ABOUT HOW EMPRESS ANNA IOANNOVNA BECAME SINGLE.

You all know very well that Peter the Great had a weak-minded brother, Ivan. By the way, you don’t have to laugh at this, because in the old days you would have been considered weak-minded, all you had to do was not believe in God.

So, Peter’s weak-minded brother Ivan had a daughter, who was named Anna, who then became the Russian Empress during palace coups. She was married to the Duke of Courland. Well, we had a wedding there, everything was as it should be. On the way to Courland, the Duke died. The official version claims that he was old and died of heart... A more truth-like version says that his dear was distant, his wife was young..., well, the Duke could not stand it, he overdid it, so to speak... :)

This is how Anna Ioannovna became a widow... which did not stop her from becoming the Russian Empress.

SIXTH FUNNY STORY. VERA ZASULICH

Vera Zasulich is known for shooting the mayor of St. Petersburg, General Trepov. I shot twice, but didn’t hit, or I hit where I was aiming. As a result, Eral remained alive, and Vora was put on trial, which, as you remember, became the most advanced: with the bar, the prosecutor's office and the jury. So, at the trial, the lawyer presented the case in such a way that Vera Zasulich became a victim of terrorists and she was actually not to blame, he came himself :)

And what do you think? The jury acquitted the terrorist, who safely fled abroad after the trial. The authorities realized it, but it was already too late...

SEVENTH FUNNY STORY

What actually started the Russo-Japanese War. Otsu Incident=>>

EIGHTH FUNNY STORY: HIROO ONODA

Hiroo Onoda officer Japanese army, who fought in World War II in the Philippines until 1974. Officially, the authorities declared him dead, but he did not die, but fought. He did not believe all the rumors that the war had ended back in 1945, and only when his immediate general, who gave him the task, came to the Philippines and gave the order to surrender his weapons - Onoda obeyed. Subsequently, Onoda left Japan for Brazil, hiding from unnecessary attention. After all, he simply followed the order and stood until the end. Since 1984, Hiroo Onoda has been writing his memoirs. As soon as I read it, I’ll definitely write about them.

And now you ask why he didn’t commit seppuku (harahiri) for himself. In August 1945, the order was given not to commit seppuku, but to stand until the last.

I think we'll focus on these eight fun facts and stories. I hope they at least somehow entertained you. I'm planning a few more posts on this topic, so don't miss it! See you in touch!

The story in our head is sometimes at different levels. We know individual historical facts, but we never try to compare them with each other and present the course of history as a single whole. Teachers have laid everything out but forgot to connect the dots, and when we think about past events, we can experience healthy cognitive dissonance. Don't believe me?

The fax was invented before the telephone

It would seem that a fax is a more technologically advanced device, because it can transmit not only text, but also still images, which in the 19th century was considered something unimaginable. Early developments of a fax device appeared in the early 1800s, but they were brought into reality in 1865, when the first electromechanical fax was put into circulation on the Paris-Lyon line.

The first telephone appeared only 10 years later, when Alexander Bell, together with Thomas Wattson, showed the general public a real membrane telephone.

From the first plane to the flight to the moon - one step

The 20th century is associated with an incredible leap forward in science. Much of what surrounds us was invented then. Interesting fact: the Wright brothers' first flight in their homemade glider occurred in 1903. Just 66 years later, humanity landed on the moon. Unfortunately, the development of science is currently slowing down due to imperfect technology, but in the future we can expect another similar leap forward, and who knows where it will lead us.

Harvard University predates Newton's laws

In the Middle Age scientific research, mainly occupied by the clergy. Then the church did not deny scientific development if it did not contradict the divine principle. However, in 1636 the famous Harvard University was founded, from which the greatest minds of mankind emerged. At the same time, Isaac Newton's famous work on the laws universal gravity and the movement of bodies "Principia Mathemitica" appeared only in 1687.

Cleopatra's rules were closer to flying to the moon than to building the pyramids

Modern analysis of the age of the pyramids has shown that the same famous pyramid of Cheops in Egypt was built around 2540 BC. The famous Queen Cleopatra ruled the state closer to zero point countdown - 69-30 BC. Man landed on the moon, as we already mentioned, in 1969.

Enemies in the same city

Fun fact: some of the most important figures of the 20th century lived in the same city in 1913, namely Vienna. Stalin, Hitler, Trotsky, Freud, Joseph Franz - the apartments and residences of all these people were located not far from each other.

For example, Trotsky and Hitler often visited the same cafe in the center of Vienna; it is likely that they crossed paths there more than once, but did not yet know each other. Literally a couple of steps from here there was another cafe that Freud frequented. It is also known that between the apartments of Stalin and Hitler there was only an hour of leisurely walking; perhaps they met during evening walks.

Italy is just a little older than Coca-Cola

The Kingdom of Italy came into existence in 1861, when several independent states united into a single country. Famous drink Coca-Cola appeared just 31 years later, in 1892.

Steam locomotives were invented before bicycles

It would seem that such a simple invention as a bicycle has existed for a long time, but in reality everything turned out to be more complicated. Huge and complex steam engines appeared after the patent for the steam carriage in 1797. At the same time, the first bicycle was shown only in 1818.

Nintendo was born earlier than you think

Famous manufacturer of video games and consoles in modern market Nintendo has a rich past. In fact, it appeared at the end of the 19th century, in 1889. Then worldwide famous brand engaged in the manufacture of playing cards, as well as accessories for board games. Just at the time of the founding of this company, the construction of the majestic Eiffel Tower was still being completed in Paris, and in London the noise had not yet subsided due to the high-profile murders of that same Jack the Ripper.

The oldest tree on earth actually witnessed the death of mammoths

Some of the oldest trees on earth are Bristlecone pines, growing in a nature reserve in California. Some of them are already 5 thousand years old, and they have survived a lot of great historical events on the planet. Including the death of the last mammoth, which scientists date back to about 4 thousand years ago.