Despite being seriously ill at the siege of Acre in the Third Crusade, Richard I, better known as Richard the Lionheart, had his men carry him on a stretcher on the front lines so he could shoot enemies on the walls of the city with his crossbow.
history of England
The oldest door in Britain
The oldest door in Britain i s located in Westminster Abbey. Made from timber from the original Anglo-Saxon abbey, it is just under a thousand years old. Made from mature oak, that means the trees that produced these planks could have been saplings when the Romans evacuated Britain.
In 1651 the Penderel brothers escorted…
In 1651 the Penderel brothers escorted young Prince Charles II from safe house to safe house after his defeat in the Battle of Worcester. Their descendants still receive £100 per year as a reward.
A study about class differences…
A study about class differences in 18th & 19th century England, showed that on average, a wealthy 16-year old boy was 8.5 inches taller than a poor 16-year old boy, as a result of malnourishment and living standards.
In 1889 a lion escaped from a traveling show…
In 1889 a lion escaped from a traveling show in Birmingham and ran into the sewers. When an angry mob formed, Frank Bostock, the owner secretly snuck another lion out the back. He then returned with the lion clearly visible and was hailed a hero. The escaped lion was still in the sewers.
On 2 May 1845, a bridge in Great Yarmouth, England, collapsed…
On 2 May 1845, a bridge in Great Yarmouth, England, collapsed because too many people had gathered on it to watch a clown in a barrel being towed by four geese.
Bedlam, Bethlem Royal Hospital, may surely be one of the most famous psychiatric…
Bedlam, Bethlem Royal Hospital, may surely be one of the most famous psychiatric institutions in the world. Its been around since 1247 and is infamous as a lunatic asylum. In the 18th century people used to go to Bedlam to stare at the lunatics. For a penny one could peer into their cells, view the freaks of the “show of Bethlehem” and laugh at their antics, generally of a sexual nature or violent fights. Entry was free on the first Tuesday of the month. Visitors were permitted to bring long sticks with which to poke and enrage the inmates. In 1814 alone, there were 96,000 such visits.
Pineapples were such a status symbol in …
Pineapples were such a status symbol in 18th century England that you could rent one for the evening to take to a party. Some people in Scotland took it to extremes.
The body of Richard III, infamous king o …
The body of Richard III, infamous king of England, was lost for over 500 years before being found beneath a parking lot in 2012.
After the collapse of the South Sea comp …
After the collapse of the South Sea company in 1720, which bankrupted many and severely affected the economy of England, a proposal was made in parliament to place bankers in sacks filled with snakes and throw them into the River Thames.