4 Medieval Torture Techniques That Will Make You Glad You Live In The Modern Age

March 31, 2022

17th-century thumbscrew, Märkisches Museum Berlin. (Anagoria/Wikimedia Commons) ThumbscrewIt's not known exactly when the thumbscrew was...

The Bumbulum, A Medieval Musical Instrument That Made Fart Sounds

January 24, 2022

Saint Jerome Writing, by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 1607, at St John's Co-Cathedral, Valletta, Malta. (Heritage Malta/Wikimedia Commons) People...

Madoc, The Welsh Prince Who (Maybe) Beat Columbus To The New World

January 12, 2022

Mobile Bay, where Madoc was said to have landed. (H.H. Lloyd & Co./Wikimedia Commons) The legend of Christopher Columbus as the first European explore...

The First Female Monarch Crowned King

October 16, 2021

King Jadwiga holding her scepter, 1391. (Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty images) Jadwiga, the youngest daughter of Louis I the Great, became the ruler of Poland on October...

History Of The Goth

August 7, 2021

The third-century Great Ludovisi sarcophagus depicts a battle between Goths and Romans. (Jastrow/Wikimedia Commons) When you hear the word "Goth," you may think of black clothing, macabre imagery, ...

The Story Of Margaretha Von Waldeck, The Real Snow White

June 27, 2021

Priscilla Presley portrayed the evil stepmother, complete with magic mirror and poisoned apple, in 'Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs' at The Savoy Hotel London in ...

The Black Death Massacres And Persecutions Against Jews

March 21, 2021

Burning of Jews during the Black Death epidemic, 1349. (Unknown author/Wikimedia Commons) The 14th century was a dangerous time to be Jewish in Europe. Well, it ...

A History Of Tavern Names And Their Clever Wordplay

March 18, 2021

The White Hart, the Pig N' Whistle, Ye Old Fighting Cocks: Whether it's the liquid courage or the desire to stand out from the crowd, it seems that pub owners have ...

The Crimes Of Christopher Columbus: Why He Was Brought Back To Spain In Chains

January 3, 2021

Posthumous portrait of Christopher Columbus by Sebastiano del Piombo, 1519. (Metropolitan Museum of Art/Wikimedia Commons) He's considered...

The Gregorian Calendar: Why Are The Months And Days The Way They Are?

December 27, 2020

(Biblioteca del Vaticano/Wikimedia Commons) January 1 marks the start of a new year, at least according to the Gregorian calendar. We've been using...

Christmas Trees: History And Origins Of Why We Cut Down Trees For A Christian Holiday

December 22, 2020

(Nagel Auktionen/Wikimedia Commons) While evergreens have long played a part in pagan solstice celebrations, it seems strange that ...

The Jesuit Order: How Catholicism Took Over The World

October 17, 2020

Monochrome version of the IHS emblem of the Jesuits. (Moranski/Wikimedia Commons) Formed in 1540, the Jesuit Order began as a sect of militaristic monks ordained b...

The Codex Gigas: The Devil’s Bible And Everything We Know About It

October 7, 2020

The Codex Gigas (the Devil's Bible) was written in the early 13th century in the Benedictine monastery of Podlazice in Bohemia and, during the Middle ...

Sir Francis Drake: Pirate, Slave Trader, Discoverer Of The World

September 26, 2020

Portrait of Sir Francis Drake (Tavistock, 1540-Panama, 1596), English privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician, 1583, painting from an engraving by Jo...

The Great Fire Of London: 80% Of London Burned Down In 1666

September 3, 2020

Fifteenth-century London was a crowded, dirty, polluted place with wooden buildings topped by tar-covered roofs, built close together along narrow streets. ...

Wine Windows Used During The Black Plague Have Reopened In Italy

August 17, 2020

As the novel coronavirus continues to ravage the globe, people are finding new ways to connect and, more importantly, new ways to drink. In Florence, I...

1439: Kissing Is Banned In England In Response To The Black Plague

July 16, 2020

(National Gallery/Wikimedia Commons) Here ye, here ye: No more smoochies! That's what Henry VI proclaimed on July 16, 1439, not because he was a roman...