Marcus Lucinius Crassus was the richest man in Rome and yet he still craved power to go along with it. He had helped Sulla become dictator by defeating the forces of Marius outside Rome and later ended the slave rebellion by defeating Spartacus. He imagined himself to be a Read more…
Dogs have been used in war since ancient times, but only recently by the US. In WWII, the Army recruited dogs that were donated by families. It was in Vietnam that the war dogs played a significant role. In 1965, Project Top Dog sent 40 teams to South Vietnam. Read more…
The most infamous war crime committed by United States soldiers in the Vietnam War was the My Lai Massacre. Here are some facts about it. (Most of the information comes from two US Army sources.) Company C, 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 23rd Infantry Division had suffered 28 dead or Read more…
Ruben Rivers was born in Oklahoma in 1921. He was half Cherokee, half African American. He graduated from high school and then went to work with a railroad. When America entered WWII, he and his two brothers enlisted in the Army. After facing discrimination in training, he joined the Read more…
Aeschylus is known as the “Father of Greek Tragedy”. He gave us some of the most brilliant plays of the Ancient World. According to legend, he was killed in a unique way. He was sitting outside when he was around 70 years old. He was possibly pondering his next Read more…
The most famous sinking on the Great Lakes was that of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald on Nov. 10, 1975. The freighter made its maiden voyage on June 7, 1958 as the largest ship ever on the Great Lakes up until then. It was 729 feet long. It is still Read more…
When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union, Stalin freed his Polish prisoners hoping some would join the Red Army. If not, they were free to leave through Iran. One group took this option and along the way met a little boy with a baby bear in a burlap sack. They Read more…
Did you know that American presidents were cursed by a Native American medicine man? After the 13 Colonies got their independence, the British handed over all their land south of Canada and east of the Mississippi. Part of that, the area north of the Ohio River, was called the Read more…
*** This anecdote is probably apocryphal, but it could be true. Both Livy and Appian included it in their histories. Two of the greatest generals met in the Battle of Zama in 202 B.C. The battle ended the Second Punic War and made Rome the dominant power in Read more…
Dogs have been used in war since ancient history. The earliest mention was in a history of King Alyattes, King of Lydia, around 600 B.C. He used the war dogs against the invading Cimmerians. In 525 B.C., at the battle of Pelusiam, Persian Emperor Cambyses put dogs, cats, and Read more…