In 1958, China tried to kill all the sparrows because they ate grain. It was called the Four Pests Campaign. Millions of sparrows were killed…which led to a locust explosion.…which caused a massive famine.Result: 30 million people died.All because they messed with the birds.
Building inflatable tanks and wooden airplanes to fool German reconnaissance aircraft into thinking the Allies were going to invade at Calais instead of Normandy
In 1883, Henry Ziegland broke up with his girlfriend, who then tragically took her own life. Her brother, seeking revenge, tried to shoot Henry but missed; the bullet instead lodged itself into a nearby tree. Twenty years later, while clearing the land, Henry used dynamite to remove the same tree. The explosion dislodged the old bullet, which struck Henry and killed him, fulfilling the fate delayed by two decades.
In WWII, the OSS developed a plan to have French Resistance fighters spray German officers with basically military grade fart spray in the hopes that smelling like shit would make German troops lose confidence in their commanders.
If that immediately sounds fucking stupid, congratulations, you reached that conclusion 2 weeks sooner than the OSS.
the banana republics. Three banana companies (now dole fruit and chiquita banana) bankrolled in large part by the US government, overthrew the democratically elected leaders of Guatemala and Honduras, and instituted a banana company oligarchy. it’s much more complected than that but that’s the gist.
During World War II, the US developed an experimental weapon: the “bat bomb.”
This project, officially known as Project X-Ray, aimed to drop a container containing 1000 bats with incendiary devices attached to Japanese cities, including Tokyo, to start widespread fires in their predominantly wooden urban areas.
The last confirmed surrender of a Japanese WW2 soldier was in December 1974, more than 29 years after the war ended. The Japanese government initially only gave him one month’s back pay, plus the cost of repatriating him to Taiwan (where he had been born).
The Erfurt latrine disaster occurred on 26 July 1184, when Henry VI, King of Germany (later Holy Roman Emperor), held a Hoftag (informal assembly) in the Petersberg Citadel in Erfurt. On the morning of 26 July, the combined weight of the assembled nobles caused the wooden second story floor of the building to collapse and most of them fell through into the latrine cesspit below the ground floor, where about 60 of them drowned in liquid excrement.
Antonio de Oliviera Salazar was the dictator of Portugal for 30 years when he suffered a stroke and went into a coma. Expecting him to die, his successor took over. Salazar actually recovered but they never told him that his successor was in charge and let him think he was still the dictator until he died.
The Burke and Wills Expedition was meant to be a country-crossing trek of discovery from southern Melbourne to the northern sea of Australia. It was well-funded, with huge publicity. It famously used camels for some of the transport.
It ended in disaster on the return leg.
The government investigators rode the complete route twice, in a small group, on ponies, at no great expense.
Two fathers of Polish independence post-WW1 were in a love triangle, and the third was tasked with making sure they don’t kill each other before independence is achieved. He was also a popular pianist and helped fund the movement through his concerts.
There are a lot of good ones but I like the story of Vasily Arkhipov being second in command on a Russian sub during the Cuban Missile Crisis and singlehandedly convincing the other two commanding officers not to launch a nuke at the US based on faulty intel.
Ol’ dude put his nuts on the line and prevented WW3.
I also like the one about Frano Selak almost dying like 10 times and then winning the lottery, but apparently most of that is unsubstantiated.
Cargo cults. Psuedo-religious movements that popped up mainly in Melanesia after indigenous groups witnessed Westerners arriving with ships and planes full of goods (“cargo”) during WWII. Believing these goods were divinely sent, they mimicked the behaviors and symbols of the soldiers, building fake runways, radios, and control towers out of sticks hoping to attract planes.
Hong Xiuquan failed the imperial exam so badly he had a mental breakdown, had a vision that he was the son of God and brother of Jesus Christ, went to lead a cult and started a rebellion costing the death of millions.
The SMS Cap Trafalgar was a German ocean liner that was converted into a cruiser in World War I and was disguised as the British ocean liner, RMS Carmania. It was soon spotted by the real Carmania, which was also converted into a cruiser, and in the ensuing battle, the real Carmania sunk the impostor.
Operation cottage was a Canadian-American plan to recapture an island from the Japanese.
After the battle 500 soldiers were killed or injured.
The Japanese left the island sometime earlier.Operation Cottage
witch hunts started in Europe because monks were grappling with the idea of nocturnal emissions as sinful… and given that no women were allowed in the monastery dormitories, it was naturally concluded that witches were haunting the dormitories at night trying to steal their seed to impregnate themselves with demon babies. this gave rise to the world’s first “demonologists” and their findings were incorporated into law. thousands were executed.
Comments
Your father had sex with your mom.
The Defenestrations of Prague
The maple syrup flood in Maryland killed thirty plus people and you can still sometimes smell maple syrup when it rains
Landing on the moon in 1969.
The Great Emu War of 1932 in Western Australia.
That time George Bush puked on the Japanese Prime Minister
In 1958, China tried to kill all the sparrows because they ate grain. It was called the Four Pests Campaign. Millions of sparrows were killed…which led to a locust explosion.…which caused a massive famine.Result: 30 million people died.All because they messed with the birds.
Building inflatable tanks and wooden airplanes to fool German reconnaissance aircraft into thinking the Allies were going to invade at Calais instead of Normandy
america elected a guy with 32 felonies
In 1883, Henry Ziegland broke up with his girlfriend, who then tragically took her own life. Her brother, seeking revenge, tried to shoot Henry but missed; the bullet instead lodged itself into a nearby tree. Twenty years later, while clearing the land, Henry used dynamite to remove the same tree. The explosion dislodged the old bullet, which struck Henry and killed him, fulfilling the fate delayed by two decades.
The Cleveland balloon disaster of 1986 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0CT8zrw6lw
When Ohio and Michigan went to war over Toledo in 1835.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toledo_War
Wisconsin Butter Fire. There was a fire in a dairy storage facility, and it melted all the butter and the streets were flooded with butter and cheese.
Glass delusion. It was more widespread than just Charles VI (France).
Before alarm clocks there were people called knocker-uppers who would shoot dried peas at peoples windows to wake them up in time for work.
The Great Butter Flood of 1991
COVID
In WWII, the OSS developed a plan to have French Resistance fighters spray German officers with basically military grade fart spray in the hopes that smelling like shit would make German troops lose confidence in their commanders.
If that immediately sounds fucking stupid, congratulations, you reached that conclusion 2 weeks sooner than the OSS.
the banana republics. Three banana companies (now dole fruit and chiquita banana) bankrolled in large part by the US government, overthrew the democratically elected leaders of Guatemala and Honduras, and instituted a banana company oligarchy. it’s much more complected than that but that’s the gist.
The KY meat shower.
It rained meat.
The election of a convicted felon.
The last Confederate military unit to surrender was a commerce raider whose crew sailed to England and surrendered to the Royal Navy.
During WW2 Britain and Canada came up with a plan to make aircraft carriers out of wood and ice. That’s the short of Project Habakkuk.
Napoleon’s first major lost battle was to a pack of rabbits
Canada burnt down the Whitehouse
The Tokyo Bat Bomb Project:
During World War II, the US developed an experimental weapon: the “bat bomb.”
This project, officially known as Project X-Ray, aimed to drop a container containing 1000 bats with incendiary devices attached to Japanese cities, including Tokyo, to start widespread fires in their predominantly wooden urban areas.
The last confirmed surrender of a Japanese WW2 soldier was in December 1974, more than 29 years after the war ended. The Japanese government initially only gave him one month’s back pay, plus the cost of repatriating him to Taiwan (where he had been born).
Emu war
A small town in Minnesota elected a dog as their mayor. The surprise??!
he was re-elected twice after that.
The Erfurt Latrine Disaster.
The Erfurt latrine disaster occurred on 26 July 1184, when Henry VI, King of Germany (later Holy Roman Emperor), held a Hoftag (informal assembly) in the Petersberg Citadel in Erfurt. On the morning of 26 July, the combined weight of the assembled nobles caused the wooden second story floor of the building to collapse and most of them fell through into the latrine cesspit below the ground floor, where about 60 of them drowned in liquid excrement.
Antonio de Oliviera Salazar was the dictator of Portugal for 30 years when he suffered a stroke and went into a coma. Expecting him to die, his successor took over. Salazar actually recovered but they never told him that his successor was in charge and let him think he was still the dictator until he died.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant%C3%B3nio_de_Oliveira_Salazar
The dancing plague in Europe in 1518
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_plague_of_1518
Modiji running away from his wife, leaving her in distress and then claiming be is a bachelor
The Boston tea party, imagine your best revenge plan is chucking tea leaves into water to ruin them. Like… okay?
The Great Boston Molasses Flood
A convicted felon is president of United states. The biggest economy on earth
The Burke and Wills Expedition was meant to be a country-crossing trek of discovery from southern Melbourne to the northern sea of Australia. It was well-funded, with huge publicity. It famously used camels for some of the transport.
It ended in disaster on the return leg.
The government investigators rode the complete route twice, in a small group, on ponies, at no great expense.
Germany built a wooden airbase with wooden aircraft to fool the British…
Once they completed the work, Britain dropped a wooden bomb on the fake airbase.. WWII I think…
Two fathers of Polish independence post-WW1 were in a love triangle, and the third was tasked with making sure they don’t kill each other before independence is achieved. He was also a popular pianist and helped fund the movement through his concerts.
WW I started because the driver took a wrong turn in the car.
The French Army did a cavalry charge on Dutch ships when the water froze.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_the_Dutch_fleet_at_Den_Helder
The US military used bears to test jet ejector seats.
There are a lot of good ones but I like the story of Vasily Arkhipov being second in command on a Russian sub during the Cuban Missile Crisis and singlehandedly convincing the other two commanding officers not to launch a nuke at the US based on faulty intel.
Ol’ dude put his nuts on the line and prevented WW3.
I also like the one about Frano Selak almost dying like 10 times and then winning the lottery, but apparently most of that is unsubstantiated.
Cargo cults. Psuedo-religious movements that popped up mainly in Melanesia after indigenous groups witnessed Westerners arriving with ships and planes full of goods (“cargo”) during WWII. Believing these goods were divinely sent, they mimicked the behaviors and symbols of the soldiers, building fake runways, radios, and control towers out of sticks hoping to attract planes.
Greece and Bulgaria almost went to war because of a stray dog
The War of Jenkins Ear
Emu War
The Boston Molasses Disaster. I did a report on it for an English class and I’m pretty sure people thought I was fucking with them.
the time america and britain almost went to war over a pig
Medieval Kings and Emperors dying in toilettes all the time…
There was a mango cult in China for chairman mao
1994 USAF Gay Bomb proposal
Hong Xiuquan failed the imperial exam so badly he had a mental breakdown, had a vision that he was the son of God and brother of Jesus Christ, went to lead a cult and started a rebellion costing the death of millions.
The Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist in 2011-12.
The SMS Cap Trafalgar was a German ocean liner that was converted into a cruiser in World War I and was disguised as the British ocean liner, RMS Carmania. It was soon spotted by the real Carmania, which was also converted into a cruiser, and in the ensuing battle, the real Carmania sunk the impostor.
The Great Cheese Riot of the 1766 Nottingham Goose Fair
Australia lost a war to Emus
Napoleon being exiled, escaping exile, and the army sent to arrest him instead joining him.
The great molasses flood
Operation Cottage. WW2
Operation cottage was a Canadian-American plan to recapture an island from the Japanese.
After the battle 500 soldiers were killed or injured.
The Japanese left the island sometime earlier.Operation Cottage
The Battle of Schrute Farms
Boston’s Great Molasses Flood of 1915.
witch hunts started in Europe because monks were grappling with the idea of nocturnal emissions as sinful… and given that no women were allowed in the monastery dormitories, it was naturally concluded that witches were haunting the dormitories at night trying to steal their seed to impregnate themselves with demon babies. this gave rise to the world’s first “demonologists” and their findings were incorporated into law. thousands were executed.