Browsing: The Bizarre

A Brief History On January 1, 2016, we started a new year with the same hopes and expectations we normally start every year.  Despite all the acrimonious politics, the Obama years had actually been slowly improving across the economy, for rich and poor alike.  Job numbers had grown for 81 consecutive months (a record) and Obamacare resulted in more Americans than ever having health insurance.  A Presidential election year had begun, and it was widely thought that this year would see the first ever woman nominated by a major political party (Hillary Clinton by the Democrats) and that she would…

A Brief History On December 12, 884, the King of West Francia, Carloman II, son of Louis the Stammerer (Louis II), died in a hunting accident.  Carloman was only 18 years old at the time, which goes to show you being King is no guarantee of a long happy life. Digging Deeper In the convoluted manner of the time (no convenient DNA tests back then) the succession to the throne was contested in 879 when the Stammering old King died.  Carloman and his brother, Louis III, ended up both being elected King despite disputed paternity, and split the throne of…

A Brief History On December 8, 395, Later Yan was defeated by Earlier Yan. No, we are indeed kidding this time! Actually, Later Yan, a Murong-Xianbei state (during the period of 16 Kingdoms in China), was defeated by one of its previously vassal states, Northern Wei, at the Battle of Canhe Slope. We just wanted to have fun at the expense of the odd sounding Chinese kingdom. Digging Deeper Also on December 8, this time in a guy named Du Fu (sounds like a joke in an Austin Powers movie) returned to Chang’an to serve in the court of Emperor…

A Brief History On November 27, 1835, two Englishmen were hanged for the crime of sodomy (Section 15, Offences Against the Person Act of 1828) and a third man was convicted of being an accessory, receiving a sentence of 14 years “penal transportation.” (Not to be confused with “penile transportation!” Penal transportation means being hauled off to a penal colony.) The law the men were charged under had replaced the Buggery Act of 1533. Digging Deeper James Pratt (age 30) and John Smith (age 40) were allegedly engaged in intimate homosexual acts when the building’s landlord and the landlord’s wife…

A Brief History On November 17, 1894, the murderous career of HH Holmes, one of the first modern documented serial killers, came to an end when he was arrested in Boston, Massachusetts. A thoroughly evil man, Holmes not only was a killer, he was also a bigamist, kidnapper, and con artist. In fact, he actually had a “house of horrors” hotel built specifically so he could murder people and dispose of the bodies covertly!  His actual death toll is unknown, but estimates as high as 200 seem possible. Digging Deeper The World’s Fair Hotel located in Chicago, Illinois, was built…