Cracked Archive - History
The Military Engineered A Special Chocolate That Tasted Horrible
No, not for the enemy. For their own soldiers.
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- By Ryan Menezes
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5
5 5 Morons Who Made Disasters Worse
Lifejackets should NOT be stuffed with iron.
- Authors
- By Ryan Menezes
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- 52
The Strange, Dark Tale Of The Oxford English Dictionary's Creation
By day, the formerly respected surgeon would comb through sentences and curate quotations for the OED. By night, he would “Home Alone” his room with booby-traps.
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- By Zanandi Botes
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- 7
The Wildest Holiday In History: Gwyl Mabsant
The Welsh festival of Gwyl Mabsant was a weeklong party complete with gambling and lots of booze.
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- By Ethan Tyrrell
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- Comments
- 7
Bread Stamps Helped Prevent Fraud in Ancient Rome
A simple technology of the time, Roman bakers used special stamps to mark their loaves.
- Authors
- By Ethan Tyrrell
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- 1
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How 200,000 Beavers Took Over Part Of Argentina
In 1946, beavers were brought in to help the Argentinian fur trade. Instead, Argentina ended up with more beavers than they ever expected.
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- By Ethan Tyrrell
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- 10
The 'Limping Lady' Was World War II Most Underrated Hero
Virginia Hall was one of the most successful spies in WWII, but she remains largely unknown today. And that is just how she would like it to be.
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- By Ethan Tyrrell
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- 4
Popes On Dope: Pontiffs Rate 6 Popular Drugs
The Pope smokes dope, but does he take shrooms?
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- By Dana Larsen
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- 22
4 Surprising Awful Sides Of Life As A Medieval King
Being a medieval king straight up sucked.
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- By Cezary Jan Strusiewicz
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- 38
The Bonkers (Dumb) Theory: The Middle Ages Never Occurred
The Phantom time hypothesis is a stupid theory put forward by German historian Heribert Illig.
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- By Tiago Svn
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- 21
In The Middle Ages, Reading Was More Complicated Than We Think
Estimates vary on literacy rates in the Middle Ages, but text was everywhere.
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- By Ethan Tyrrell
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- 11
4 Miserable Moments In The Daily Life Of A Medieval Peasant
The smells. Good lord, the smells.
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- By Cezary Jan Strusiewicz
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- 34
The Trial By Combat, Between A Man And His Victim's Dog
"God would not let a criminal defeat a dog," said the King.
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- By Ryan Menezes
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- Comments
- 11
Knights Had An Embarrassing (And Dangerous) Risk From Horseback Riding
In addition to the expected risks knights dealt with, they also had to worry about fatal butt problems.
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- By Ethan Tyrrell
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- 3
Diluting Spices Was Once A Crime Punishable By Death
They'd shove that spice down your throat.
- Authors
- By Ryan Menezes
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- Comments
- 4
