October 25, 1415 –As it has been often said, times were hard – the only way to tell who the king was in England was looking for the person with the least amount of crap on him. The wastrel son of a usurping King led a ragtag army into another sovereign nation on this date.Continue reading “These wounds I had on Crispin’s day”
Tag Archives: history
Sometimes, you need to trust your gut
October 9, 1934 —While the Boomtown Rats don’t like Mondays, King Alexander I of Yugoslavia didn’t like Tuesdays. (Alexander is one of the rare European royals not related to Queen Victoria in any measurable way.) Because three members of his family had died on a Tuesday, Alexander refused to undertake any public functions on thatContinue reading “Sometimes, you need to trust your gut”
Bunkies, celebrate this while we can
On this day in 1789, Congress proposed twelve amendments to the Constitution of the United States. Habeas Corpus Luteum and Freedom from Unreasonably Surging Seashores were ultimately rejected, but the other ten passed and became known as the Bill of Rights. In honor of this grand occasion, I’ve chosen to celebrate my favorite amendment, inContinue reading “Bunkies, celebrate this while we can”
Today’s lesson: Anarchists hate tourists
September 16, 1920 –A horse-drawn carriage loaded with dynamite exploded in front of the J.P. Morgan and Company headquarters at 23 Wall Street in New York’s financial district on this date. Thirty people were killed in the blast, and more than 400 were injured. Although the crime was never solved, it was believed to beContinue reading “Today’s lesson: Anarchists hate tourists”
They may kill you after reading this
September 4, 1886 –Geronimo was a prominent Native American leader of the Chiricahua Apache who warred against the encroachment of the United States on his tribal lands and people for over 25 years. While outnumbered, Geronimo fought against both Mexican and United States troops and became famous for his daring exploits and numerous escapes fromContinue reading “They may kill you after reading this”
Force Majeure
August 2, 1100 – (Those of you with delicate sensibilities may wish to skip this story.)You may have wondered when the phrase Act of God first came into use. You’ve seen it on legal forms and may have unfortunately encountered it when trying to collect on your home insurance policy. As with many things, theContinue reading “Force Majeure”
Eureka
August 1, 1769 –Spain sent an exploratory expedition from San Diego to Monterey on this date, to survey the area and identify locations worthy of settling and converting the locals to Catholicism. The expedition was led by Gaspar de Portolá, nephew of the celebrated Spanish comedian Uncle Porky, and included a number of religious missionariesContinue reading “Eureka”
June and July were just practice
The festival of Lammas marks the beginning of the harvest, when people go to church to give thanks for the first grain to be cut. This is the long way of saying that it’s August again. How did a single month become so important? Like almost everything else that’s difficult to understand, the history ofContinue reading “June and July were just practice”
It’s not always fun and games being a queen
July 24, 1567 –Mary of Guise, the French wife of Scotland’s King James V, gave birth to a daughter named Mary in 1542. A week later King James died and the very young Mary became the Queen of Scotland. Prince Edward of England proposed marriage to the Scottish Queen immediately, and his proposal is thereforeContinue reading “It’s not always fun and games being a queen”
My failures have been errors in judgment, not of intent.
July 23, 1885 –One of the most famous residents of West 122nd Street and Riverside Drive made a most fateful decision on this date. He decided to give up the ghost. In 1881, Ulysses S. Grant – American general, the eighteenth President of the United States, and a famous horseback-riding drunk – purchased a houseContinue reading “My failures have been errors in judgment, not of intent.”
The Haus of Dcaligari 