New Article: The Tale Of Breeches-Aud

The story of Breeches-Aud is one of the more memorable tales in the Icelandic Laxdæla saga, a 13th-century book filled with strong female characters that were loosely inspired by women said to have lived in the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries. Although the exploits of many people described in the sagas were embellished or even invented, the core details (genealogy, settlement locations, poetic evidence etc.) were deemed to have enough truth that later Medieval Icelanders, such as the chieftain Snorri Sturluson (c. 1179-1241), proudly and confidently traced their ancestry back to characters in the sagas. Whether or not the sagas were histories with creative license, historical fictions or pure folklore, they were feats of impressive storytelling and, as Icelandic stories go, the tale of Breeches-Aud was one of the more unique narratives.

Read this outrageously intertaining story of a tough Icelandic woman, HERE.

New Biography: Liu Pengli—The Serial Killer King Of The Han Dynasty

(painting from the wall of Xu Xianxiu's Tomb of Northern Qi Dynasty, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

History has long hinted that absolute power can tempt even virtuous leaders into corruption. Yet, what happens when the one who gains power was never virtuous in the first place, but instead had murderous fantasies and psychopathic tendencies. This horrific second option reportedly became reality in China during the 2nd century BCE, when Liu Pengli became the king of Jidong. The Grand Historian, Sima Qian (c. 145-90 BCE), was a contemporary of the infamous king and wrote a short description of the dark events that supposedly occurred in Jidong during Pengli’s reign. The killer king was seemingly a figure that the Han Dynasty wanted to forget about, and consequently Sima Qian only devoted one measly paragraph to describing Pengli’s life. Nevertheless, the brief information that the Grand Historian packed into those few sentences was terrifying.

Read about this man's allegedly monstrous life, HERE.

New Biography: The Daring Life of The Ancient Chinese Vigilante, Guo Xie

(Man sharpening a sword, hanging scroll (14th-17th century), color on silk, 170.7 x 111 cm. Located at the Palace Museum. [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Guo Xie was a contemporary of Grand Historian Sima Qian (c. 145-90 BCE), and they both lived during the reign of Emperor Wu (r. 141-87 BCE). Although Guo Xie was not from a noble or wealthy background, he became one of the most famous men of his day. Sima Qian met the man in person and (unlike many other officials of the Han Dynasty) thought very highly of Guo Xie. With brutal honesty, Sima Qian described him as a short and ugly man, whose speech was not at all charismatic. Yet, through daring and vigilante justice, Guo Xie became a folk hero of the Chinese masses.

Continue reading about Guo Xie's remarkable life, HERE.

New Biography: King Agis IV—The Post-Alexander King Of Sparta Who Wanted To Bring Sparta Back To Its Glory Days

(Lycurgus of Sparta, painted by Jacques-Louis David  (1748–1825), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

When a civilization begins to decline, those witnessing the fall start to question what went wrong. Was it abandoning traditional government, apostatizing from the ancestral religion, or was it a general degradation of morality that brought about the end? And when once-great powers find themselves without strength, they look to the past in search of the specialness that they had lost by the time of their present.

King Agis IV felt these emotions strongly. He took power in 244 or 243 BCE, allegedly at the young age of nineteen. Agis was a member of the Eurypontid line of Spartan kings, one of two co-ruling monarchies in Sparta. His co-king from the Agiad line was Leonidas II, who had been in power since 251 BCE. The two kings had vastly different visions for Sparta and their personalities were bound to clash. It was a classic sociopolitical conflict—the ongoing struggle between the revolutionary and the defender of the status quo.

Continue reading about the dramatic struggle between Agis IV and Leonidas II, HERE.

New Article: Emperor Nero Had His Own Mother Killed

(1st-century bust said to be of Agrippina the Younger, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, the future Emperor Nero, was the son of Agrippina the Younger and Cnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus. As the great-nephew of the reigning emperor, Claudius (r. 41-54), the young man was royalty, but not very high on the list of imperial succession. This was especially true since Claudius had a son named Britannicus. Yet, Britannicus’ mother, Messalina, was executed after having an affair. At the time when Claudius became single, Agrippina the younger was a widow and, despite being the emperor’s niece, she caught Claudius’ eye. The two married in the year 49 and Claudius adopted her son, giving him the named Nero.

Continue reading about the fate of Nero's mother, Agrippina, HERE. 

New Article: Edgar Allan Poe Wrote A Short Story Based On An Actual Murder

(Illustration from Edgar Allan Poe's "Mystery of Marie Roget," Printed and published by Henry Vizetelly, 1852. [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

The poet and author, Edgar Allan Poe, worked several jobs in or around New York City during his life. While he was there, Poe, along with other writers and reporters, frequented a tobacco shop owned by a Mr. John Anderson. Surprisingly, many of John Anderson’s customers were not venturing into his shop for the fine selection of cigars. Instead, most of the men were lining up to talk to Anderson’s star employee, the twenty-year-old Mary Cecelia Rogers. Young Mary was a woman of legendary beauty, and the promise of catching a glimpse of her was more than enough enticement to lure in an eager crowd. Edgar Allan Poe was not the only famous writer who was lured by her beauty into the tobacco store; James Fenimore Cooper and Washington Irving also took the bait and went to see Miss Rogers.

During the time she was working at John Anderson’s tobacco store, Mary Rogers lived in a New York City boarding house located on Nassau Street, which was run by her mother. On a fateful day, Mary voiced her desire to travel from New York to New Jersey. The reason that she gave to her family and to her fiancé, a certain Daniel Payne, was that she wanted to meet up with relatives. Therefore, on Sunday, July 25, 1841, Mary Cecilia Rogers set off from her home to undertake what would become a one-way journey.

Continue reading about the murder of Mary Rogers, and how it inspired Edgar Allan Poe's short story, "The Mystery of Marie Roget," HERE. 

New Article: During WWII, A United States Serviceman Became A Serial Strangler In Australia

(Photograph of Edward Leonsky taken prior to 1942, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Private Edward Joseph Leonski, also known as Eddie, was one of around 15,000 U. S. military personnel stationed in Melbourne, Australia in 1942 during the midst of World War II. Yet, unlike the other thousands of U.S. troops, the twenty-four-year-old Edward Leonski was a serial killer who would go on a murder spree, ending the lives of three innocent women.

Continue reading about the strange soldier who murdered women for their voices, HERE.

New Article: Ripper May Have Been One Of The First Self-Named Serial Killers

(Jack the Ripper image titled "A Suspicious Character" from Illustrated London News for October 13,1888, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Mass murderers and predator killers have plagued mankind since before recorded history, but the idea of the “serial killer”—with its quasi celebrity status—is more of a recent development. Many think the first recognizable serial killer of the modern variety was Jack the Ripper. Jack’s multiple killings in the fall of 1888 not only caused widespread terror, but also sparked a remarkable media sensation.

One of the side effects of the media’s attention was hundreds of anonymous letters that claimed to be sent by the killer. All of the letters are viewed with extreme skepticism, but two of them (the so-called “Dear Boss” and “Saucy Jacky” letters) are thought to be the most legitimate. After assessing the writing style and tone of the letters, they are both thought to have been written by the same person. They both seem to have information that should have only been known by the police and the murderer. Furthermore, the two letters were sent directly to the Central News Agency to ensure media coverage. The letters, both signed with the name “Jack the Ripper,” are thought to have been the original source of the serial killer’s now globally-known name.

Read more about the Jack the Ripper killings, and the possibility that the murderer coined his own infamous name, HERE.

New Article: The Battles of Boudica

Camulodunum, Londinium, Verulamium And The Battle Of Watling Street

 (Boudica and her rebels, by Joseph Martin Kronheim (1810–1896), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Before reading about Boudica's sieges and battles against the forces of Rome in ancient Britain, take some time to look at Irina Yakubin's biographical article about Queen Boudica, her motivations for fighting, and her legacy, HERE. The article below will reference why Boudica began her rebellion, but the military struggle between Boudica and Governor Suetonius is the primary focus of this piece.

Gathering the Angry

When Roman occupiers publicly flogged the Iceni queen Boudica, and raped her two daughters, they unknowingly provided a horde of angry and vengeful Britons with a leader who would become legendary. Though the Iceni (before the floggings and rapes) had been willing to work with Rome, many other tribes had been hostile to Rome, in both thought and action, ever since Emperor Claudius invaded and occupied the British Isles in 43 CE. When Boudica called out for vengeance after her and her daughters’ terrible ordeal, multiple tribes (Trinovantes, Dumnonii and stragglers from the Caturvellauni) joined the Iceni in rebellion.

Continue reading about the sieges and battles of Boudica, HERE.

New 'Did You Know?' : In The 5th And 4th Centuries BCE, Dionysius I Made Syracuse One Of The Strongest Powers Of Sicily And Italy

(“Dion Presents Plato to Dionysius,” an colored engraving print from Hermann Göll, Die Weisen und Gelehrten des Alterthums, Leipzig (Otto Spamer) 1876, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

For Hellenistic history, Dionysius I (or Dionysius the Elder) is a bittersweet figure. On the one hand, he led Syracuse, a Sicilian city-state of Greek descent, to be a regional power that could defeat the empire of Carthage in multiple wars. On the other iron-fisted hand, however, Dionysius’ authoritarianism and inhospitable expansion throughout Sicily and lower Italy gained him the label of ‘tyrant.’

Continue reading about the great, but tyrannical, Dionysius I of Syracuse, HERE.

New Article: Boudica- The Avenging Queen

(Illustration of Boudica, courtesy of Irina Yakubin)

Boudica (also spelled Boudicca and Boadicea) was a tall, fierce woman, with long reddish hair, who ruled the Iceni tribe of East Anglia along with her husband, Prasutagus, during the Roman occupation of England. In what he must have considered an astute political gesture, Prasutagus named the Roman Emperor Nero co-heir to his lands, along with his two teenage daughters. Unfortunately, the Romans were not known for sharing, nor were they particularly advanced on the matter of gender equality.

 

Continue reading about the vengeful Boudica, HERE.

The Adventures of Emperor Theophilus:

The Joust, A Prized Warhorse And The Horse Thief:

Theophilus (also spelled Theophilos) was an emperor of Roman Constantinople who was at his best during peace-time rule. He was excellent at administration and seeing to the various needs of his empire. He was known as a just emperor (except by those who disagreed with his iconoclast policies), and found decent governors to see to the different provinces of his empire. 

Unfortunately for Theophilus, his time on the throne was in no way a peaceful reign. He constantly fought against the Abbasid Dynasty. He had some early successes, but the situation eventually got out of hand, and both lives and land were lost as a result. Even though Theophilus did not gain glory on the battlefield, he did leave behind an interesting legacy--his people recorded some really dramatic stories about their emperor.

Read our article about the intriguing adventures of Theophilus, here (or click the above picture). 

The Misadventures of Publius Clodius Pulcher

The Odd, but Awesome, Story of Julius Caesar’s Popular Hooligan of the People:

In 62 BCE, a hilarious event brought Publius Clodius Pulcher into the service of one of the greatest leaders of Rome. Clodius was a patrician of populist political standing, and his notorious antics gained him great popularity among the masses. This is the story of Clodius’ unpredictable participation in the transformation of Rome from a republic to an authoritarian state.

Read more about the strange life of Publius Clodius Pulcher, here (or click the above picture).

New Article: Military Coups and Massacres in Indonesia

The Rise of the Suharto Regime and the Unimaginable Mass Murder in Indonesia:

On September 30th, 1965, in the midst of the Cold War, events in Indonesia were set in motion that led to the rise of a military regime led by General Suharto. The regime, and its supporters, would execute approximately one million Indonesians for supposed communist affiliation.

Read more about the massacres during the Suharto Regime in our article, here.

New Article: The Artist That Painted Britain Orange and Red - Jack the Painter

A criminal known as Jack terrorized the streets of Britain. This was not Jack the Ripper. No, this was Jack the Painter: an arsonist inspired by the American Revolution, who set fire to docks, ports and warehouses throughout lower England.

Read more about Jack the Painter on our official website, here (or click on the picture above).

Fire, Fairies and Folklore—The Murder of Bridget Cleary

A witch? A fairy? Who was the murdered wife of Michael Cleary?

Read more about the strange and bizarre murder of the Bridget Cleary, a woman killed after being accused of being a fairy changeling, in our article here.

The Story of Margaretha Minderlin

If you have never heard of Margaretha Minderlin, do not be concerned, for most do not know this woman's tragic story. Minderlin was a woman who was tried and convicted of witchcraft in 16th century Nordlingen (in modern day Germany). While many other women have been tried, convicted and executed for witchcraft, Minderlin's account is fascinating.

Read how torture sessions turned a common grave robber into a diabolical witch here at historybuff.com.

There is a lot of history behind British-Irish tensions.

Have you ever sensed tension between the Irish and the British? It is not surprising if you have; there are a long list of historical events that explain the tensions. War, politics, displacement, massacres, rebellion, and terrorism are among many of the touchy issues concerning Irish-British relations.

Read about the strained British and Irish relations here at historybuff.com.

Kakuei Tanaka: A Japanese politician whose rise to power was similar to that of Donald Trump.

 
Do you think Donald Trump's rise to prominence in the 2016 presidential race was one of a kind? If you thought yes, then you may be in for a surprise. Kakuei Tanaka was one of the wealthiest men in post-WWII Japan. His construction company made outrageous profits by rebuilding the heavily bombed Japanese homeland. Tanaka succeeded in gaining office on a platform of being a man-of-the-people. His political rallies were unlike any of his competitors and his oration was fiery and full of criticism of his competition. If a potential Trump presidency will be anything like his Japanese counterpart, the United States is in for a tough four years.

Read about Kakuei Tanaka's scandalous political career here at historybuff.com.