Tag Archives: history

USA Today reports: France’s Notre Dame Cathedral, which failed to host Christmas services Wednesday for the first time in more than 200 years, may never recover from the devastating fire that collapsed the roof and an iconic spire, its rector said. Monsignor Patrick Chauvet said the church, which dates back more than 800 years, has been left so fragile that …

(Tipped by JMG reader Ray)

“Beginning around 1377, medieval England was shaken by a power struggle between two noble families, which spanned generations and involved a massive cast of characters, complex motives and shifting loyalties. Sound familiar? Alex Gendler illustrates how the historical conflict known as the Wars of the Roses served as the basis for much of the drama in Game of Thrones.” Some …

I actually do remember JFK’s assassination rather vividly and I was only four years old. Source.

John Blake writes for CNN: Those who argue against Jesus’ existence make some of these points: 1) The uncanny parallels between pagan stories in the ancient world and the stories of Jesus. 2) No credible sources outside the Bible say Jesus existed. 3) The Apostle Paul never referred to a historical Jesus. Price, author of “Deconstructing Jesus,” says the first-century …

It’s the oldest art yet found in this hemisphere: A stick figure man with a giant phallus dubbed “the little horny man” by its discoverers is the oldest rock carving found yet in the Americas, researchers say. These findings might shed new light on when the New World was first settled, scientists added. “The figure is probably linked to some …

“Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our …

“The idea that the Crusades and the fight of Christendom against Islam is somehow an aggression on our part is absolutely anti-historical. And that is what the perception is by the American left who hates Christendom. They hate Western civilization at the core. That’s the problem.” – Former Sen. Rick “Frothy Mix” Santorum, who says that Christians have never persecuted …

(Tipped by Rex Wockner)

From 6pm to 9pm today, all the museums along the Upper East Side’s vaunted Museum Mile are offering free admission as part of the 31st Annual Museum Mile Festival. One day a year, for the past 31 years, nine of the country’s finest museums, all ones that call Fifth Avenue home, collectively open their doors from 6pm – 9pm for …

It looks like he didn’t cut it off himself after all. Gauguin did it. What is not disputed is that Van Gogh lost his ear when the two artists were living in the South of France in December 1888. The Dutch painter, who traveled to France after teaching himself to draw, was attempting to set up an artists’ retreat. The …

The 40th anniversary of the first moon landing is coming up and just released is President Richard Nixon’s prepared statement had things ended in disaster. It reads in part: Fate has ordained that the men who went to the Moon to explore in peace will stay on the Moon to rest in peace. These brave men know there is no …

I couldn’t find a single local paper today to read over lunch. Every newsstand is completely wiped out and now I see that Towleroad is reporting that people are lined up around the block at the NY Times headquarters to get today’s issue. I should have realized that today’s papers would be collectors items. Even worse, I had to read …

I was cruising around Strange Maps and found this February post about Thomas Jefferson’s rejected plan on dividing the Northwest Territory into ten states. Jefferson’s names were rejected as “too silly.” Some factoids about the never-were states: • Sylvania would have covered much of present-day Minnesota, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and some of northern Wisconsin.• Michigania would have incorporated most of …

Mike Jones has placed his infamous “Ted Haggard Massage Table” up for auction on eBay, to benefit Denver’s Project Angel Heart, which delivers meals to people with HIV/AIDS. Anybody want to own a piece of American political history? That massage table belongs in the Smithsonian. I love that Mike’s eBay seller name is “escortmjones”..

Happy President’s Day, y’all. We all know who your most-disliked President is, but who’s your favorite? I’m partial to Grover Cleveland, about whom I wrote term papers in two non-consecutive semesters. Cleveland famously hired a man to take his place in the Civil War, an action I defended in a middle-school civics class, as the Vietnam draft was taking the …