Ashoka Vardhana, the third Mauryan emperor (the first great unified empire of India), has gone down in history for converting to Buddhism after witnessing the massacres resulting from the campaign he initiated to conquer the neighboring kingdom of Kalinga. His story is told in thirty-three edicts that he himself promulgated, ordering them to be spread […]
Jorge Álvarez
Degree in History and Diploma in Archival and Library Science. Founder and director of Apuntes magazine (2002-2005). Creator of the blog El Viajero Incidental. Travel and tourism blogger since 2009 in Viajeros. Editor of LBV Magazine.
Posted inAge of Exploration
Amakusa Shiro, the Teenage Messiah who Led the Rebellion Against the Persecution of Christians in 17th Century Japan
When we talk about persecution of Christianity, usually the image that comes to mind is that of the Roman Empire, with Roman Christians identifying themselves incognito through drawings of the Chi-Rho or a schematic fish. However, in late 16th century Japan, a similar situation was also experienced. In 1587, the daimyo Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the unifier […]
Posted inAncient Greece
The Expedition of the Ten Thousand, the Greeks who Ventured into the Heart of the Persian Empire One Hundred Years before Alexander
Thalassa! Thalassa!, the legendary cry of excitement uttered by Greek mercenaries when they saw the sea, which could put an end to their painful retreat by Persian land and return them safely to their homeland, is now a classic phrase that metaphorizes that Hellenic world so closely linked to the great blue and could very […]
Posted inScience
Berserker Hypothesis, the Possible Destruction of All Universal Intelligent Life by Self-Replicating Robotic Probes
Are we alone in the universe or is there intelligent life on other worlds? And if there was, but it’s no longer there, perhaps destroyed, which is why we haven’t made contact with anyone? And if that’s the case, how many civilizations were there and why did they all disappear? The subsequent questions would be […]
Posted inAncient Rome
Julius Civilis, the Batavian Prefect who Rebelled Against Rome to Create an Independent Kingdom Uniting Gaul and Germania
During the Roman Empire era, what is now known as the Netherlands was referred to as Batavia. The name referred to its inhabitants, the Batavians, who lived on an island at the mouth of the Rhine, hence its etymology (batawjō = good island). They were a Germanic people separated from the Chatti who were allies […]
Posted inAntiquity
Mesrob Mashtots, the Armenian Monk of the 5th Century AD who Invented Alphabets
Čanačʿel zimastutʿiwn ew zxrat, imanal zbans hančaroy (To seek wisdom and discipline, to understand insightful words…) This quote is from the Book of Proverbs (1:2), one of the books of the Old Testament traditionally attributed to Solomon. It is also said to be the phrase chosen by the monk Mesrob Mashtots to translate the Bible […]
Posted inModern Era
The Shield-Lantern, a Renaissance Gadget to Fight at Night Blinding the Adversary
The Kunsthistorisches Museum or Museum of Art History in Vienna is one of the most important of its kind in the world. It houses significant collections of art, archaeology, numismatics, and applied arts, including the imperial treasury and the most outstanding collection of works by Rubens, Velázquez, Dürer, Caravaggio, Brueghel, and many others. It also […]
Posted inModern Era
The Colossal Explosion of the Cadiz Navy Powder Magazine in 1947, which Shook the Earth as Far Away as Portugal
It was getting dark on August 18, 1947, and the steamship Plus Ultra was sailing offshore after having set sail from Cádiz shortly before. It was already a mile and a half from the coast when the crew heard a colossal explosion, followed by a shake of the ship and rain on the stern deck […]
Posted inAncient Egypt
The First Known Strike in History Was Held in Ancient Egypt Because Ramesses III Delayed With Wages
Year 29, second month of the Inundation, day 10. Today the work squad crossed the walls of the necropolis [the checkpoint] shouting, “We are hungry!” Eighteen days have passed in this month [since the men] sat behind the funerary temple of Thutmose III. This paragraph corresponds to what is known as the Strike Papyrus, preserved […]
Posted inModern Era
Larrey, the French Surgeon who Created the First Ambulance Service, Treating Allies and Foes at Waterloo
June 18, 1815. Napoleon’s attempt to rebuild his empire, after escaping exile on the island of Elba and regaining control of France, came to an abrupt and disastrous end near a place called Mont Saint-Jean, which has gone down in history as the Battle of Waterloo. During the retreat, Prussian soldiers captured him while trying […]