Category: Odd Facts
Eureka Moments – Seven Innovations From WW1 That Changed Our Daily Lives
“Few appreciate the sheer volume of non-military breakthroughs that emerged between 1914 and 1918.” By Doran Cart & Jonathan Casey HOW MANY INNOVATIONS came directly out of World War One? Tanks, flame throwers and sonar…
Ike’s D-Day Failure Letter — Read the Speech Eisenhower Was Set to Deliver If the Invasion Failed
“Despite the seeming inevitability of an Allied triumph, the success of the cross-channel invasion in 1944 seemed like anything but a foregone conclusion.” “SOLDIERS, SAILORS AND AIRMEN of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to…
Doughboys and Doughnut Girls – How the Salvation Army’s WW1 Women Volunteers Made History, One Tasty Treat at a Time
“Doughnuts would not be popular in America today if not for the efforts of the Salvation Army and the nation’s entry into the First World War.” By George Yagi Jr. IN THE SUMMER of 1917,…
‘The World Turned Upside Down’ – Did the British Really Play the Sardonic Melody During the Yorktown Surrender?
“Legend holds that the British fifes and drums played The World Turned Upside Down as the Redcoats marched out from behind their ramparts to stack their arms at Washington’s feet. But did it actually happen?”…
Combat High – How Armies Throughout History Used Drugs to Make Soldiers Fight
“Drugs and warfare have always gone hand in hand – from Homeric warriors drinking wine and taking opium to Wehrmacht troops popping methamphetamines.” By Lukasz Kamienski THE PHILOSOPHER Friedrich Nietzsche once wrote that the history…
Meet John C.H. Lee — The Forgotten Logistical Mastermind Behind the Allied Invasion of Europe
“Throughout the brutal summer and fall of 1944, Lee kept the Allied troops fed, their guns loaded and their tanks gassed up” No invasion in history can match the mind-boggling scale of D-Day. The Allies’…
