Random History Facts = Happiness

Attila the Hun, one of the most fearsome rulers, died on his wedding night from a chronic nosebleed. Because he was so drunk, he choked to death on his own blood.

Why do women carry flowers when they get married? To cover the smell, that's why!
In the 1500s, most people would marry in June. The reason for this is that May was the month to bathe. By the time June came around, they were still relatively "clean". There was a still a problem with stench so flowers were carried to mask the odor.

The first state to allow women to vote was Wyoming.

The origin of the hand shake between strangers was to let both people know that they were unarmed.

Mona Lisa doesn't have eyebrows due to the fact that shaving them off was a trend in that time.

During the Reign of Peter the Great, any nobleman that wanted to grow a beard had to pay a beard tax.


Attila the Hun

In the beginning.

Well, hello fellow history junkies. This is my first entry yet! I am so excited to get this started. This is the first blog I've ever created, so if it sucks ass, let me know and I'll try to spruce it up to the best of my abilities. ANWAY, onto what this blog is all about. Everyday I plan to post interesting facts, events, stories, odysseys, folklore, myths, legends, blah, blah, blah (you get the picture) that I believe every history lover should enjoy to read about. I'll try not to make it boring or drawn out. There will be tales of war, sex, greed, depravity, the unusual, and all the goodies that make history so interesting! I hope you will enjoy it! What better time to start then now?

Random fact of the day: The shortest war ever documented was between England and Zanzibar in 1896. Zanzibar surrendered after only thirty-eight minutes.

I am currently reading Eleanor Herman's book Sex with the Queen: 900 Years of Vile Kings, Virile Lovers, and Passionate Politics, and I must say it is an amazing book. It is filled with so many interesting stories!




The most interesting part of the book I have read yet, was about homosexual kings and princes. Since producing an heir to take over the throne was such a crucial part of a rulers life, gay kings and princes would have to be arranged with a very unlucky woman to marry and procreate with(talk about awkward sex). Many of them went off and had several children with their wives including the English king Edward II in 1308 who had four children with his French queen. But of course, there were the princes and kings who could not stand the thought of lying with another woman. Gustavas III of Sweden was such a king. He married Princess Sophia Magdalena of Denmark in 1766. Eleven years went by and his wife still remained a virgin. This was a very dangerous thing for a king, for if he did not produce an heir to his throne, he was vulnerable to rebellion and he could be stripped of his throne and kingly duties. Gustavas noticed his wife eying Count Adolph Frederick Munck, a sophisticated man of his court. He came up with an idea of arranging an affair between them in hopes that she would get pregnant and he could claim Munck's bastard as his own child. About a year later, Sophia Magdalena gave birth to Gustavus IV, therefore creating an (illegitimate) heir to the throne. Sophia Magdalena was very fortunate to have such a husband to actually allow her to feed her lustful cravings. Most women didn't get so lucky....