There were at least four major snow ball fights (“snow balling”) between Confederate units in the Civil War. The biggest occurred on Jan. 29, 1863 after two feet of snow blanketed the Rappahannock Valley in Virginia. It started when the 1st and 4th Texas Regiments took on the 5th. When Read more
King George II of England liked to go out at night in disguise to sample the ladies of the realm. One night, in disguise, he visited a house of prostitution. During his visit his pocket was picked and when it came time to pay his bill he was in a Read more
The picture is of a famous incident in Daniel Boone’s life. His daughter Jemima and two other teenage girls had been captured by a Shawnee war party. Boone and others tracked the Indians for two days and ambushed them, rescuing the girls. In another famous story, it was Boone himself Read more
Agrippina was the wife of Emperor Claudius. She had a son named Nero from her first marriage. She was determined that her son would be the next emperor. When Claudius began to have second thoughts of his step-son succeeding him, she poisoned her husband. Before she put her plan into Read more
The parole system originated in Europe and was used in America for the first and only time in the Civil War. It basically involved the exchange of prisoners. Until an exchange could be arranged, the prisoner was paroled meaning they could not participate in any military activities that would benefit Read more
On his return from India, Alexander and his army had to traverse the very dry Gedrosian Desert. At one point, the army was down to its last canteen of water. It was brought to Alexander. He asked if there was enough for everyone and when he was told no, he Read more
Taverns were the multi-purpose establishments of colonial and early America. The name comes from the Roman word taberna. An American tavern could be defined as a place for alcoholic beverages, food, and lodging. But that was just the basics. Taverns were the hubs of villages and towns. They were like Read more
Alexander’s last great battle was in India at the River Hydaspes. He faced his most worthy opponent in this battle. King Porus fought from elephant-back and very nearly defeated Alexander. Porus was wounded by a spear in the battle and his elephant supposedly pulled the spear out. After the battle, Read more
Interesting Facts about the Battle of Chancellorsville Gen. Joseph Hooker had replaced the incompetent Ambrose Burnside after his frontal lunacy at Fredericksburg. Hooker quickly whipped the Army of the Potomac into shape and stole a march on Lee by crossing the Rappahannock River and descending on Lee’s left. Lee’s Army Read more
After Alexander had defeated the Persians in the Battles of Granicus and Issus, he went on to conquer Egypt. Everyone knew the job of conquering the whole Persian Empire was not finished, but Alexander had half and Darius still had a huge army. Darius sent a message to Alexander offering Read more