A Brief History On September 5, 1725, Louis the XV, King of France, married Maria Karolina Zofia Felicja Leszczynska, the daughter of King Stanislaw I of Poland. Known as Queen (consort) Marie of France, she served in that role until her death in 1768 at the age of 65. For a whopping 43 years between Louis XIV (“The Sun King” famous for his namesake furniture style) and Louis XVI (the guy that wed Marie Antoinette and got his head lopped off) there was a Polish lady serving as Queen of France. If you did not know this, perhaps you are…
Browsing: September 5
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A Brief History On September 5, 1798, France instituted the Jourdan Law making military conscription the law of the land. Military drafts have never been popular with the masses that supply the cannon fodder and it is likely this law was no exception. Like the American and other national military drafts, this one discriminated against the poor and lower classes, leaving various exemptions available for the privileged. On September 5 and August 5 of 2014 we published lists of unpopular laws, and this time we are doing it again, with no significance to the order listed. Digging Deeper 10. Right…
A Brief History On September 5, 1960, Cassius Clay, a brash young man known as the “Louisville Lip,” won the Olympic Gold Medal for boxing in the light heavyweight division. Clay would go on to fame and infamy as Muhammad Ali, a professional heavyweight boxing champ and one of sport’s all-time greats. Digging Deeper Of course, if you listen to Ali, he, himself, will tell you over and over again that he is “The Greatest.” Modesty was never one of his virtues… Of course, he did not need to be modest, as he won, in addition to Olympic Gold, the World Heavyweight Boxing Championship…
A Brief History On September 5, 1698, Czar Peter I of Russia (Peter the Great) enacted a tax on beards. This tax primarily targeted the nobility in an effort to “westernize” Russia as part of Peter’s attempts to move Russia away from medieval traditions and into the modern world. Throughout history many laws have been enacted or decreed that did not sit well with the people targeted by the law. On August 5, 2014, we ran a list of “10 Incredibly Unpopular Laws,” and here 10 more such laws are presented (in no particular order). Digging Deeper 10. Russian Beard Tax. As described in the…