Muhammad died in the summer of the year 632, perhaps poisoned, perhaps by a fatal disease. The Muslim leaders chose his mother-in-law, Abu Bakr, as his successor, but it was not easy for him to maintain the legacy, since the numerous prophets who had arisen at the risk of Muhammads success refused t
On October 2, 1187, Saladin caused the collapse of the Kingdom of Jerusalem after subjecting its capital to a two-week siege and finally conquering it. That victory provoked the Third Crusade, which would not be able to recover the city. However, although it is common to read that Jerusalem was defi
The novel is considered the latest genre of literature, since poetry appeared almost parallel to civilizations (around the 25th century BC, in Mesopotamia) and the theater, something similar (if it is understood as the dramatization of a scene; as a genre it could be placed in India in the fifteenth
Deaths are always unfortunate and even more so if they occur as a result of an accident. But, sometimes, there are deaths that have especially humiliating characteristics and probably among the worst recorded in history is the incident that occurred in Erfurt in the Middle Ages, when dozens of membe
Alfred the Great, King of Wessex from 871 and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 to 899, is widely regarded as the founder of Englands first royal fleet, but recent research has found evidence that the first recorded naval victory of the Anglo-Saxons occurred 20 years before Alfred was crowned King o
For most readers, A.E.I.O.U. It will be nothing more than the vowels of the alphabet or, if it ends with ípsilon, the title of a popular Brazilian song. But you have to look at the detail of the dots between them, which turn those letters into a monogram. Of what exactly? Well, nothing less than a l
Although the classic image of the crusaders is that of heavy knights, with their chain mail, strong chargers, closed helmets and lances at the ready, in reality the image was more varied, with infantry and light cavalry. In the latter, some special warriors were framed who used less protection than
Melrose is a town in the southeast of Scotland, very close to the border with England, which was born in the year 1136 from the foundation of a Cistercian abbey by King David I. The monastery, damaged by the independence wars, was abandoned after the Reformation but its ruins still present an imposi
Destiny is destiny and no matter how much you try to avoid death, it always arrives faithful to its appointment. There is a famous Persian tale of the man who, to avoid meeting Death, fled from Baghdad to another city and found her there, surprised that she was not in the city from which she came be
Throughout history there have been men who have assumed the responsibility of leading their peoples in the fight for freedom and here we have seen some, such as Eunoo, Skanderberg, Andreas Hofer, Tiradentes or Louis Delgrés, for example. Well, Bulgaria also had its own:it was called Ivailo and in th
At the end of the 14th century, an unexpected palatial accident during a brazen masquerade ball, when the costumes that some participants were wearing caught fire, ended with the death of four of them and was about to kill King Charles VI of France as well. The quick intervention of his aunt saved h
The most common form of succession of a king is from father to son, but historically there have been others. The Spartans, for example, had an elective monarchy which, moreover, was a diarchy. The Romans also elected their sovereigns, at least up to the fifth, as happened with the Visigoths, the Azt
Some time ago we published here an article dedicated to the confusing translation of the beginning of the famous Beowulf poem. This medieval epic work that collects an old Anglo-Saxon legend is in one of the two books that make up the so-called Cotton MS Vitellius A XV C; specifically in the second
Seeing the pyramids of Giza in person is an exciting experience that also allows you to see some fascinating details. One of them is the vertical crack that has the north face of the smaller one, Mycerinus, just above the entrance. Its origin is really curious:it is the scar left by the attempt to d
Who more who less, almost everyone has heard of the end of the Templars, the process to which the order was subjected and the execution at the stake of Grand Master Jacques de Molay, with his famous -and legendary- curse while the fire burned his meat. We know that this persecution was initiated by
When the Ottomans led by Sultan Mehmed II took Constantinople on May 29, 1453, putting an end to the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantine Empire, they practically controlled all the territories that had formerly been part of it. But a Byzantine Greek state remained independent on the northeast coast of
It is difficult to imagine a more turbulent and bizarre life than that of Andronicus Comnenus, Byzantine emperor and last of his dynasty. Charismatic, contradictory, lover of worldly pleasures, military expert, his strong character and lack of scruples led him to experience extreme situations, among
Previously we told here the story of the Prinkipo orphanage, the largest wooden building in Europe, which, however, remains small compared to the Daibutsu-den o Great Hall of the Buddha, considered the largest wooden building in the world. And that maintains the record despite the fact that, after s
Lets go back to the popular TV series Vikings in which, once his protagonist, Ragnar Lodbrok, died, the last seasons focus on the life of his children. Ivar the Boneless he is perhaps the one who captures the attention due to his peculiar personality, which reminds a bit of the classic -and topical-
In a time before any idea of dignified treatment of the vanquished enemy, in times when being defeated on the battlefield was an open door to the most bloodthirsty atrocities, in short, there was an episode in the Middle Ages that even surpassed what was customary and passed down to posterity as t
Sustaining the MAB PA8 (8 round magazine), this semi -automatic single action was developed in the late 1960s with the aim of replacing the MAC model 1950 of the French army. Most of this market was won in the 1980s by the PAMAS G1. Description Operating according to an original rotating barrel mec
In the canonical Gospels, Pilate proposes to the Jews to free either Jesus or Barabbas, an imprisoned activist. The name of bar-abbas , the Son of the Father, tends to make him appear as the double of Jesus Christ, proclaimed Son of God, and as a counter-model, which led the Fathers of the Church to
Not long ago we talked here about the Witches of the Night , the Soviet female aviator regiment of World War II. Today we are going to see the story of another unit made up of women but in the United States, similar but with the difference that its activity was in the civilian sphere and its members
Once again, the surprise paid off. It was very hot, and the enemy units werent guarding. The Companies. local and provincial fled, and only the depot guard detachment put up any resistance until air support was brought in. During the battle for the depots, the Viet Minh lost 5 prisoners and 21 confi