Nicholas II, last Tzar of Russia, had a Japanese tattoo of a “dragon with a black body, yellow horns, a red belly and green paws.” He got it on a trip to Japan. Later he was attacked by “Sanzo, a former samurai who fought in the Satsuma Rebellion.” All this before the Russo-Japanese War.
Russia
The Russian Orthodox Church regularly…
The Russian Orthodox Church regularly blesses Russian Military Hardware, but has decided that it is inappropriate to bless weapons of mass destruction.
“Down with handshakes!”
Soviet Russia had an anti-handshake campaign in the 1920s to fight infectious diseases. “Down with handshakes!” antique pins released by a Russian anti-handshake society can still be found.
In his youth, the Russian Tsar Peter…
In his youth, the Russian Tsar Peter the Great traveled around Western Europe. He worked incognito as a shipbuilder in the Dutch Republic; went binge drinking in England (trashed the house he was renting) and kept an English mistress. His journey ended when the English king asked him to leave.
Abram Petrovich Gannibal was an African child kidnapped…
Abram Petrovich Gannibal was an African child kidnapped to Russia as a gift for Peter the Great. The tsar freed him and raised him as his godson. Gannibal became a Major-General and the Governor of Reval. He is the great-grandfather of Alexander Pushkin, considered the greatest Russian poet.
Nadezhda Durova (1783-1866)…
Nadezhda Durova (1783-1866), daughter of a Russian Army Officer, disguised herself as a man, serving in a Cavalry Regiment during the Napoleonic Wars. She was the first recorded Female Officer in the Russian army, and was awarded the Cross of St George for bravery under fire.
In 2007, Russia used a mini-submarine…
In 2007, Russia used a mini-submarine to plant the country’s flag on the floor of the Arctic Ocean in an attempt to claim the region and its natural resources, a move that was rejected by the U.N.
Russia removed Saturday and Sunday…
Russia removed Saturday and Sunday from the calendar for 11 years to create a “continuous working week” from 1929 to 1940.
So instead of everyone having Saturday off, some people had Mondays off, others had Tuesdays off, others Wednesday, etc.
So your “Weekend” came at different points of the week so the factories didn’t stop. In theory, from a purely output perspective, it’s brilliant. But then you have to remember the radical notion that people are humans and these humans have lives and loved ones, so if you didn’t get the rest day on the same day as your partner you might not ever really get to spend time with them.
The three rulers of Great Britain…
The three rulers of Great Britain, Russia, and Germany, respectively, were first cousins. Additionally, Czar Nicholas II of Russia, King George V of Britain were friends since childhood and were mistaken for each other because they looked so alike.
Sweden has “gay sailor” defense…
Sweden has “gay sailor” defense system in the Baltic Sea. Underwater dancing gay sailor neon sign sends a Morse code saying “Come here if you’re gay”, targeted to Russian submarines detected regularly in the area.