Mexican patriot or vicious desperado? It depends on who you ask, but one thing is certain, Joaquin Murrieta was a dashing, romanticized figure from history who became a Hispanic folk hero for many. Just like a Mexican Robin Hood, Murrieta spent his days using criminal methods as a way to avenge the misdeeds of corrupt…
Sex With A King Demanded An Accomplished Mistress
“Every woman was born with the ambition to become the King’s favorite,” wrote Primi Visconti, an Italian fortune-teller who lived at Louis XIV’s French court in the mid 17th century. And in this world of glittering ambition and mercurial passions, it seemed he was right. While princesses were bred to be proper and abiding, the…
How The Dunoon Massacre Took a Scottish Family Feud Too Far
Inherited folklore is alive and well in Scotland. Fed by the glorious splendor of its jagged slopes and misty hillsides, many have heard the tales of roving clans out to even the score of ancient feuds and regain their honor in any way necessary. In fact, during the 17th and 18th centuries, Scotland never seemed…
These Baffling Artifacts Prove How Little We Know About History
An oopart, otherwise known as an “out-of-place artifact,” is an archeological discovery that does not fit into our established understanding of history. Given the artifact’s advanced level of technology or general sophistication, its existence seems impossible within the physical, chemical, and/or geological constraints of its time. Then, how can they exist? Science measures them as…
The Life Of “Black Bart” Roberts Defined The Golden Age Of Piracy
››”Roberts himself made a gallant figure, at the time of the engagement, being dressed in a rich crimson damask waistcoat and breeches, a red feather in his hat, a gold chain round his neck, with a diamond cross hanging to it, a sword in his hand, and two pairs of pistols slung over his shoulders…
The Tulsa Race Riot Traded Progress For Terror
In our quest for racial peace, society sometimes conveniently forgets the stunning events of the past which have contributed to the ongoing American narrative. Remembering such phyletic stories is not only key to our survival as a species, but it also illustrates the need for tolerance and healing on the heels of an incredibly dark…
The Black Widow of Rome Brought Poisonous Death To The Powerful
At the height of the Roman Empire when riches were plentiful and the Emperors of the land were drunk with power and privilege, there lived a woman named Locusta who used her uncommon knowledge of botany and science to bring about the death of many prestigious men, elevating her status as a killer in one…
How This Ancient Mexican City Exposed an Archeologist’s Dream
A magnificent pre-Hispanic metropolis once sat in central Mexico, spread out over 13 miles of fertile land and providing an impressive urban center for up to 200,000 people. Archeologists have called it Teotihuacan only because they don’t know its real name. In fact, there a lot of things they don’t know about the ancient city…
In The Name of Christ: Is The Shroud of Turin Real?
The Shroud of Turin is an ancient linen cloth that bears the clear image of a crucified man—a man millions of people believe to be the image of Jesus Christ. The artifact’s authenticity, however, has never been completely established, and the mystery of whether this ancient material actually wrapped the crucified body of the Christian…
The Surprising Ways Voodoo Remains Misunderstood
“Despite rigid prohibitions, voodoo was indeed one of the few areas of totally autonomous activity for the African slaves. As a religion and a vital spiritual force, it was a source of psychological liberation in that it enabled them to express and reaffirm that self-existence they objectively recognized through their own labor . . ….
The Confessions Of This Refined Pedophile Shocked France
Hidden behind the facade of a refined French nobleman from the 15th century lived one of the most infamous sexual criminals in all of history, Gilles de Rais. His story is that of a squandered life par excellence, of a life devoted to extreme violence and guile. As a wealthy and influential man of his time,…
The Tragic World of The Castrati Left Europe Breathless
A castrato was that half man, that less than man that aroused the contempt of every whole man who looked upon it. He was that thing which women could not leave alone and men found infinitely disturbing, frightening, pathetic, the butt of jokes and endless bullying, the necessary evil of the church choirs and the…
The True Story of An American Slave in Africa
In the early 19th century, tales of slavery throughout the world were common. Not only was the transatlantic slave trade in full swing, but countries like Cuba, Spain, and Sweden were also grappling with the horrific cycle of human ownership. It was a pervasively one-sided relationship, typically demonstrated by the classic white master/dark slave dynamic….
These Victorian Killers Inspired Modern Day Crime
Today’s world is brimming with stories of true crime, forensics, and serial killers, but there was a time when such things simply did not exist, nor did they occupy the public’s attention. Just a mere 150 years ago, the emergence of a new breed of killers began in Victorian England, the type that would begin…
Did The Curse Of An Ancient Warlord Help The Nazis?
On June 20, 1941, the infamous tomb of the 14th-century Persian conqueror, Tamerlane, was opened, and the sharp odor of resin, camphor, rose, and frankincense filled the air. The tombstone had been carefully protected for hundreds of years, and fierce warnings against disturbing the warlord were clearly inscribed. But despite the protests of the locals…
The Angel of Auschwitz Found Mercy in Death
Although usually seen as winged seraphs of the heavens, ancient biblical stories tell us angels can appear in both light and dark forms, some seeking to inflict pain as others offer salvation. Such opposing symbols were not only represented in celestial dramas but sometimes took shape in the real events of history, manifesting the classic…
This Former Slave Stole A Confederate Ship And Literally Sailed To Freedom
Even though Robert Smalls was born in 1839, poor, black, and a slave in the Antebellum South, his existence was anything but predictable. His incredible fight to freedom and subsequent life merit the accomplishments of three lifetimes. During a harrowing historical period of intense fear and racism in America, Smalls managed to dramatically turn his…
The Cave of The Kabayan Fire Mummies Is A Perfectly Preserved Piece of History
Mummification of the dead is a well-known practice from ancient times, particularly as it relates to the Egyptians and their heavily bandaged and embalmed corpses. However, the discovery of some carefully preserved remains in the Philippines has brought a different type of mummy to light—the fire mummy. These ancient bodies have recently given researchers new…
Ancient Egyptian Women Enjoyed A Life Of Equality And Pleasure Rarely Seen In History
The women of ancient Egypt were in a class by themselves, often living a life of opportunity, independence, and sexual freedom unlike that of any other major civilization. While most common women were still expected to embrace the role of mother and wife, mostly out of a state of pragmatism, women of noble birth were…
Cudjo Lewis: The Heartbreaking Story of The Last American Slave
On March 2, 1807, Congress banned the importation of slaves from Africa, and the law finally took effect on January 1, 1808. Cudjo Lewis was the last known survivor to arrive on the final slave ship to the United States. Through his life, he watched his world change in unimaginable ways, taking him from the…
This Mass Grave May Prove The Ancient Romans Were Baby Killers
In modern day Israel, along the shores of the Mediterranean coast, there was once an ancient seaport called Ashkelon. It was there while exploring one of the city’s sewers that archaeologist Ross Voss made a gruesome discovery. He stumbled upon a large number of small bones initially believed to be those of a chicken, but a considerable amount…
The Hells Angels Brought Death To Rock And Roll’s Worst Day
Coined by Rolling Stone magazine as “rock and roll’s all-time worst day—a day when everything went perfectly wrong,” the 1969 festival at Altamont Speedway in Northern California was a concert unlike any other. While the free event provided a chance to jam out with The Rolling Stones and some of their famous counterparts, it also gave the…
This German King Paid For His Luxuries With His Life
Often called “The Fairy Tale King,” Ludwig II of Bavaria, who ruled from 1864 until his death in 1886, was the favorite cousin of the famous Empress Elizabeth and became known by the impressive castles he built during his short lifetime. When he was alive, his world was one of opulence and privilege, allowing him the…
Hannah Duston: The Puritan Axe Murderer Who Found Revenge
Back in the 17th-century territory of what is now Massachusetts, many Puritans families struggled to survive in the wild, unpredictable conditions of the new world. One of their greatest fears, aside from starvation, was the threat of Native Americans who were known to wreak havoc on colonial homesteads and slaughter or abduct anyone who fell…
How The Slave Ship Zong Traded Sanity For Profit
The stinking, corrupt vessel known as the slave ship Zong carried hundreds or poor souls across the Middle Passage during the Atlantic Slave Trade and is regarded as one of the vilest and most barbarous trips to ever set sail. It departed from São Tomé, an island off the coast of west Africa, in 1781…
Mary Shelley: How The Queen of Goth Lived a Dark Fairy Tale
In the summer of 1816, 19-year-old Mary Godwin—soon to be Mary Shelley—conceived the tale that would become the biggest Gothic masterpiece of all time, Frankenstein.The wildly dark book shocked and titillated the literary world when it was first published in 1818, but the most surprising element was how Mary’s life itself played out like a…
How The Conquistadors Became The Meal in Mexico
During one of the worst defeats of Spanish explorers in 1520, the native people of what is now Mexico City, known then as the Acolhuas, captured some 550 conquistadors, including women and children, who had been continually invading their land. The natives, angry and exhausted from the ongoing threat of attack, eventually became more than…
The Marquis de Sade Was a Fornicator Beyond Compare
Anyone who thinks “Fifty Shades of Grey” was racy has clearly never heard of Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade. Born in 1740, de Sade is considered one of the most sexually deviant and rebellious characters in history. In fact, the word sadism is derived from his very name. The Marquis lived a life of…
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