When serfdom was abolished in 1861, 23 million Russians were privately owned by the gentry. The peasants were sold as a living commodity, they were played at cards ... Behind all, in the last and most distant ranks of the Russian nobility was its most numerous part - the petty nobility. The rule
Although neither Jane Austen nor her sister Cassandra never stood in front of the altar, they both knew very well what the fate of a married woman at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries was related to. And maybe it was this knowledge that made Austen prefer to end her novels with the illusory “t
Rough boor and brutal, romantic, warrior, or maybe a politician and advisor? What did it mean to belong to the caste of knights and how did they really stand out from the society? The archetype of a knight evokes very unambiguous associations:a man in armor riding a horse, wielding a sword or a
With the death of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria plunged into the mourning that she endured for the rest of her life. She came to be called the Widow of Windsor, for she was the perfect example of a wife suffering from the loss of her husband. Her pain inspired the mourning practices that spread acro
What do powdered boar testicles have to do with fertilization? How was newborn babys jaundice treated? What did you have to drink to avoid becoming pregnant? Here are some surprising facts about the procreation of our ancestors. The cult of fertility and living in harmony with nature had a great
In the 1930s, the golden years of Hollywood began. At that time, over 400 films were produced annually, and the cinemas attracted 90 million viewers a week. It was then that the most popular film genres took shape:westerns, slapstick comedies, musicals and noir companies. American cinema, however, f
Vodka is undoubtedly the favorite alcohol of Russians and Poles. Apparently, our compatriots created spirits, but the Russians claim that they invented this alcoholic drink. Is it possible to settle this dispute? In 1978, the Peoples Republic of Poland asked international arbitration bodies to g
Moscow. The city was created by the brave Slavic tribe of Wiatycz, who at the beginning of the 12th century chased the Finno-Ugric population out of this area. The excavations in the Kremlin confirmed that the oldest fortifications in this place were built by the Wiatycz family - and they are consid
The cult of the elements was closely related to the cult of fertility in the Slavs. That is why they believed that the wind was the cause of pregnancies, water stimulated women to give birth, and fire was the bridegroom of the ever-moist Mother Earth ... Water Water is one of the main elements
The prohibition of vivisection and experimentation, humane slaughter methods, the protection of endangered species, restrictions for hunters, close relationships with domestic pets and a vegetarian diet - this is how the Nazis cared for animals. Hitler even intended to liquidate slaughterhouses thro
The beginning of the year 1601 was spoiled by the plague that had been plaguing the city for several months and was just slowly dying out, but no one took it as bad for the new century omen, because somehow we had already got used to the recurring pestilence. Anyway, there was no cause for concern,
Auschwitz was a game - said Witold Pilecki about the communist prison. Captain, like thousands of tortured and murdered by the Soviets, learned first-hand the terror and cruelty of the new occupant. Immediately after the war, the independence underground in Poland found itself in a new situation. Th
Electricity and a bathroom in an apartment in the interwar period were synonymous with luxury for many Poles. But it wasnt like that everywhere. One Polish city in particular stood out in terms of modernity. For some people, coming here had the taste of going abroad - to the West. In general - t
On October 21, 1967, about 100,000 people gathered for a peaceful demonstration outside the US Department of Defense headquarters. The protesters had two goals. The first one (for those times) was quite standard - to persuade the authorities to withdraw from the Vietnam War. The second was to get th
Rushing drafts, torture chambers and ... ghosts. Life in medieval strongholds was shadowed by cruelty. It was no different at the Czocha Castle. This monumental castle still hides many secrets within its walls. Todays explorers have an extremely difficult task, because facts are mixed with legends .
In 1912, thanks to the writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the world learned about Tarzan - the son of British aristocrats raised in a herd of monkeys. He moved and jumped among the trees, he was extremely agile and strong. At last he discovered his humanity, found love and returned to England. Tarzan is a
On August 3, 1990, religion returned to school. She was led in hastily through the back door. The way it was done caused even more consternation than the mere fact of returning catechesis to secular, public schools. After the Round Table talks, it became clear that religion would return to schoo
Most of us are raised in societies that grew up on patriarchal principles. However, in the remote areas of southern China, an ethnic group still lives today and its functioning is based on matriarchy. There are no words in her language for murder, war or rape ... Mosuo is an ethnic group living
Beautiful Slavic women and strong Slavic men were the most salable goods of the early Middle Ages. For them, it was profitable to travel thousands of kilometers. Jewish and Arab merchants from the Middle East, Iberian Peninsula and Byzantium came to our part of the world to buy the slaves. Saqal
The Dionne sisters, born in 1934 in the Canadian province of Ontario, are the first quintuplets in history to survive infancy. They became a nationwide sensation, and the authorities treated them as a fantastic source of income. In the 1930s and 1940s, they grossed $ 500 million! “We were shown
The calendar showed January 30, 1969, when the four Beatles, along with Billy Preston, climbed onto the roof of the Apple Corps building at 3 Savile Row in Londons Mayfair and played live for the last time, just months before their final dissolution. Magazine, 53 years later, remembers the 42 minute
During his lifetime, some called him a visionary. From an early age he was an exceptionally aggressive man and easily got into conflicts. Maybe it was this feature that decided that in the 90s, contrary to the opinion of the rest of the generals, he created the first fully professional Polish specia
The end of World War II (WWII) brought celebration all over the world. However, there were those who did not see the end as the end. These Jewish men and women, Nakam, sought to avenge the dead by pursuing not only the Nazis but all Germans. As early as 1943, Alan Turing and his team of cryptolog
An ancient Greek struggling with a pig to eat. The suckling pig was cooked in different ways Although it may seem strange and also rather disgusting, in ancient times, among every people, it was customary to bring to the table, with great satisfaction, dishes that today we would not dream of eatin