Those who have engaged me in even the most mundane of
debates, know I value intelligence and truth. And wield them like a Big Ugly
Cudgel. That being said, I love learning when I'm wrong...so without further
embroidery, here are some new facts that I was wrong on. And the are
fascinating.
- Napoleon
was actually about 5'6" – taller than the average frenchman of the
1800s. The whole "little emperor" thing was actually just a term
of endearment.
- Columbus,
by the way, thought the Earth was pear-shaped, not round.
- JFK
did not call himself a jelly doughnut in Berlin.
- George
Washington didn't have wooden teeth.
- Chainmail
is actually harder to move around in than plate armor.
- Iron
Maidens were not medieval torture devices.
- Marco
Polo didn't bring pasta to Italy from China. Arabs brought it from Libya
in the seventh century.
- Irregardless
is a word.
- 420 is
not a police code.
- No one
actually said "ye" instead of "the" – it's just that
the character for Th used to look like Y.
- Hair
and fingernails do not keep growing after you die. Your skin shrinks and
makes it look like it.
- If she
said it, Marie Antoinette only said "let them eat cake" when she
was 10 – long before peasants where rioting over starvation.
Very cool indeed. All these and more are available in this
fascinating book. Happy reading!
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