History: 10 Amazing Historical facts, Weird and Random history.

HISTORY FACTS

As the old saying goes, "Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it." (Or something like that). 

Yes, it's important to know your history—not just the big names and key dates, but the little details that help us better understand a historic figure or era in which they lived.

Maybe it's a surprising fact that makes you rethink conventional wisdom. Maybe it's a wild anecdote that seems too crazy to be true. 

Whatever the case, it's the little, surprising bits of history are perhaps the most fun bits of history, the type of info that's so wacky and out there it could never be repeated even if someone wanted to. 

10 Amazing Historical Facts

#1. One Time, 100 Imposters Claimed to Be Marie Antoinette's Dead Son:

After the French Revolution, eight-year-old Louis XVII was imprisoned and then never seen in public ever again. His parents were executed in 1793 and, afterward, he was horrifically abused, neglected, and left isolated in a prison cell in the Paris Temple. 

In 1795, he died of Tuberculous at 10-years-old. His body was buried in secret in a mass grave. Years later, dozens of men came forward claiming to be him because a Bourbon restoration was a possibility and a successful claimant could then potentially find himself on the throne of France.

#2. Napoleon Was Once Attacked By a Horde of Bunnies:

Once upon a time, the famous conqueror Napoleon Bonaparte was attacked by…bunnies. The emperor had requested that a rabbit hunt be arranged for himself and his men. His chief of staff set it up and had men round up reportedly 3,000 rabbits for the occasion. 

When the rabbits were released from their cages, the hunt was ready to go. At least that was the plan! But the bunnies charged toward Bonaparte and his men in a viscous and unstoppable onslaught. And we were taught that Waterloo was the conqueror's greatest defeat.

#3. The Titanic's Owners Never Said the Ship Was "Unsinkable" :

Despite what James Cameron's iconic 1997 film may have you believe, the owners never said that it could never sink. 

Historian Richard Howells said that "the population as a whole were unlikely to have thought of the Titanic as a unique, unsinkable ship before its maiden voyage."

#4. There Were More Than 600 Plots to Kill Fidel Castro:

Yeah, 600. The Cuban dictator was targeted to be killed by a large range of foes, including political opponents, criminals, and even the United States, among many others. 

Tactics included everything from an exploding cigar to a poisoned diving suit.

#5. President Abraham Lincoln is in the Wrestling Hall of Fame:

Before the 16th president took office, Abraham Lincoln was declared a wrestling champion. The 6'4" president had only one loss among his around 300 contests. 

He earned a reputation for this in New Salem, Illinois, as an elite fighter. Eventually, he earned his county's wrestling championship.

#6. Thomas Edison Didn't Invent the Light Bulb:

While Edison did have an astonishing 1093 patents, the majority of these were not of his own invention. 

He stole most of them. While he did land the patent for the light bulb in 1880, the real inventor was actually Warren de la Rue, a British astronomer and chemist, who actually created the very first light bulb forty years before Edison.

#7. Cars Weren't Invented in the United States:

No, it wasn't Henry Ford's Model T in 1908. The first car actually was created in the 19th Century when European engineers Karl Benz and Emile Levassor were working on automobile inventions. Benz patented the first automobile in 1886.

#8. George Washington Opened a Whiskey Distillery After His Presidency:

Apparently, being the first president of the United States wasn't enough for George Washington in his lifetime. After his term, Washington opened a whiskey distillery. By 1799, Washington's distillery was the largest in the country, producing 11,000 gallons of un-aged whiskey. After the president's death, the business was no more, however.

#9. George Washington Never Had Wooden Teeth:

Many myths about Washington exist, but one of the most prevalent stories has to be about his teeth. 

It's widely believed that Washington wore wooden dentures. This is not the case at all. While Washington did have numerous dental problems and did use dentures, wood, as a material, was never used.

#10. Columbus Didn't Actually Discover America:

No, this European explorer did not discover America. 

Columbus was 500 years too late. In fact, it was the Norse explorer Leif Erikson who landed on American shores during the 10th century. Erikson could be considered the first European to discover America.

Funny History Facts

#1. During World War II, a Great Dane named Juliana was awarded the Blue Cross Medal. She extinguished an incendiary bomb by peeing on it!

#2. Alexander the Great was accidentally buried alive. Scientists believe Alexander suffered from a neurological disorder called Guillain-Barré Syndrome. They believe that when he died he was actually just paralyzed and mentally aware!

#3. There were female Gladiators in Ancient Rome! A female gladiator was called a Gladiatrix, or Gladiatrices. They were extremely rare, unlike their male counterparts.

#4. The world’s most successful pirate in history was a lady named Ching Shih. She was a prostitute in China until the Commander of the Red Flag Fleet bought and married her. But, her husband considered her his equal and she became an active pirate commander in the fleet.

#5. Cleopatra wasn’t actually Egyptian! As far as historians can tell, Egypt’s famous femme fatal was actually Greek!. She was a descendant of Alexander the Great’s Macedonian general Ptolemy.

#6. Ketchup was sold in the 1830s as medicine. In 1834, it was sold as a cure for an upset stomach by an Ohio physician named John Cook. It wasn’t popularized as a condiment until the late 19th century!

#7. Did you know Abraham Lincoln is in the wrestling hall of fame? The 6’4″ president had only one loss among his around 300 contests. He earned a reputation for this in New Salem, Illinois, as an elite fighter.