History Enthusiasts Share 25 Intriguing Facts They Recently Discovered

We’ve come to realise that classrooms taught us very little about the true breadth of world history. These days, much of the surprising information we learn about the past seems to come from random internet threads. People online are constantly blown away by the new facts they’re discovering—and by what those facts might mean for our understanding of both the past and the future. There’s certainly a huge amount of historical detail that has flown under the radar. We’re still learning about things as unexpected as Julia Roberts’ birth being paid for by Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, or the fact that Albert Einstein was once offered the presidency of Israel in 1952. Scroll down to explore more fascinating details about these and other wild historical anecdotes people mentioned on a Reddit thread about historical trivia that they had only recently discovered.

#1

Image source: Call-a-Crackhead, Aibek Skakov Salvador Dali designed the logo for Chupa Chups lollipops.

#2

Image source: Karla_Darktiger, Annie Spratt That English people and black American soldiers fought white American soldiers over segregation during WW2 (while they were in England, where segregation wasn't a law). Also, the white soldiers demanded segregation and some pub owners responded to this by banning the white soldiers, but allowing the black ones in (though I'm not sure if this is true). editor's note: yes, it's true, there was a movement of “Black Troops Only”

#3

Image source: thealeatorist, w:en:Hughs The official bird of Redondo Beach CA is the Goodyear Blimp.

#4

Image source: DanTheAdequate, Collab Media Albert Einstein was offered the Presidency of Israel in 1952 after Chaim Weizmann was gone, but declined stating that he mostly deals in objective matters and just doesn't have the aptitude for people and politics.

#5

Image source: WereStillInBosniaWhy, Bundesarchiv, Bild I found out less than an hour ago that Gunter Schabowski is responsible for the fall of the Berlin Wall because he botched a press conference, telling East Germans that they could “immediately” leave the country. …so they did. En masse. Overpowering the guards in the process.

#6

Image source: G0ld_Ru5h, Rafael Garcin That French residents of eastern coastal Canada (Acadia) were forcefully expelled in an event called “Le Grande Derangement” between 1755 and 1764. Great Britain attempted an ethnic cleansing to give their land to settlers from New England and Scotland who were loyal to Britain. A significant number of the 11k or so who were expelled resettled in Spanish Louisiana, where the catholic spanish rule was more consistent with the French ethos. The word “Acadian” became the root of the “Cajun” identity.

#7

Image source: mw2lmaa, Zinah Insignia The existence of the Canary Islands and their inhabitants was forgotten by the world for more than 1000 years. - The islands were originally settled by Carthaginians/Romans with Berber people from Morocco - Roman ships regularly visited the islands to do trade - with the decline of the Roman Empire, trading ties were cut and the Romans forgot about the islands. So far, so crazy, but not unique. But: - The people brought to the islands by the colonizers were inland mountain folks without any knowledge of shipbuilding or navigation. - so after the Romans stopped visiting, the islanders had no way to sail to the mainland *or even between the different islands* - being isolated from all of humanity - and each other - for a millenium, every single island developed a unique culture, language and religion. ??? Spanish sailors accidentally rediscovered the islands around 1400 in an early attempt to find India.

#8

Image source: DisastrousNet9121, National Cancer Institute The first doctor to cure a cancer patient with chemotherapy, Min Chiu Li, was fired for “experimenting” with patients before anyone realized the patient was cured.

#9

Image source: mundotaku, Thiago de Andrade You rarely hear much about the president or prime minister of Switzerland because the role is largely ceremonial. Instead, the country is led by a 7-member council.

#10

Image source: Stu_Thom4s, Julia Roberts Martin Luther King Jr and his wife paid the hospital bill for Julia Roberts' birth.

#11

Image source: Regolis1344, Jpatokal Belgium has a habit of spending years with no governament after the elections. Last time starting in 2018 it took them 652 days to form a governament while theoretically being run by a political caregiver whose only purpose was to avoid the country from collapsing. It sounds weird, but afterall the national dish in Belgium is mussels served with fries, so nothing normal can really come from there.

#12

Image source: ModenaR, Eirik Newth The mayor of Rome and the mayor of Carthage met in 1985 to sign a peace treaty to end the Punic Wars, 2131 years after Carthage was destroyed. editor's note: the treaty was signed, but it was only symbolic

#13

Image source: HariSeldonsIntern, prepmatters Henry David Thoreau invented the No. 2 pencil. editor's note: he didn't invent it, but rather improved it by perfecting the graphite-and-clay mixture for consistent hardness

#14

Image source: Otherwise-Strain8148, Getty Images 3 weird instances from balkan royal families: I cant get over the fact that greek king alexander (not the great, the recent one) was bit by a monkey and was gone because of it. Happened in 1920. Another balkan thing was the heir apparent exiled prince of albania, leka lived in rhodesia for a while. He had a small chad moment during his flight: "When his plane arrived at Gabon for refueling, he found that it was being surrounded by local troops, who were said to have been hired to capture him by the Albanian government. The soldiers backed down when Leka appeared at the plane's door with a bazooka in his hand." And finally bulgaria... couple of weeks ago i learned that simeon 2 the last czar of bulgaria came back decades after the abolishment of monarchy, only to found a political party and to win the elections. Correct me if i am wrong but that is the first time i've heard such a comeback.

#15

Image source: cheeburgbastard78, Unknown author Masabumi Hosono, sole Japanese survivor of RMS Titanic was publicly shamed for surviving.

#16

Image source: altbrian, Michael Hart Mormons (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) possess vast genealogical data, maintaining the world's largest collection of family records, including birth, marriage, census, and land records, largely for religious purposes like performing proxy ordinances (like baptism) for ancestors, with resources available globally and local centers, making them a key resource for genealogists worldwide.

#17

Image source: 3escalator, Evgeniy Smersh I went down a rabbit hole recently learning about Switzerland and I’m blown away by their bunkers everywhere and that they have camouflaged military defences in ordinary-looking barns and explosives under key roads and bridges, it’s absolutely surreal. But I am amazed that they still have them for worst case scenarios. It’s a preppers-paradise of a country.

#18

Image source: evilcarrot507, Kelsey Todd America actually renamed sauerkraut liberty cabbage during WW1. I thought it was a joke by oversimplified.

#19

Image source: Bloop-ofthe-OpenHand, Olena Bohovyk In 1989, PepsiCo made a bizarre deal with the Soviet Union to trade cola syrup for vodka and, due to currency issues, ended up acquiring a fleet of 17 submarines, a cruiser, a frigate, and a destroyer, briefly making it the world's sixth-largest navy by ship count, though they were old, decommissioned vessels sold for scrap to expand Pepsi's market in the USSR.

#20

Image source: Old_Milk_7844, Devin Nelson Soviet union had a shortage of alcohol in less than 24 hours after ww2 ended.

#21

Image source: JustafanIV, JustafanIV This is the roundel of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta's air force in the mid 20th century. The SMOM is the continuation of the Knights of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, or Knights Hospitallers, who fought in the Crusades. We live in a world where the Crusaders had an air force.

#22

Image source: Sensei_of_Philosophy, Black & Case of Boston back mark - Heritage Auctions Abraham Lincoln was a fan of John Wilkes Booth and even once invited him to meet at the White House. Booth didn't respond to the offer.

#23

Image source: Round-Profile-2038, Round-Profile-2038 Soviet supermarkets sold milk in a pyramidal package

#24

Image source: More_Cardiologist777, Frida Kahlo Frida Kahlo and Leo Trotzki had an affair. Edit: Typo.

#25

Winston Churchill left behind a debt of Rs. 13 at the Bangalore Club, India which was written off by the committee on 01.06.1899 as an ‘irrecoverable sum’. Image source: keepscrollinyamuppet