Introduction
For all of the somber and mundane events that have occurred throughout human history, others are absurd enough to make you laugh out loud. The history website historyfacts.com has published some of them. We start this series below:
Napoleon Was Attacked (and Defeated) by a Horde of Rabbits.
In one of history’s most shocking upsets, the emperor of the French was attacked by a horde of fluffy bunnies. The coup took place in July 1807 as Napoleon and his coterie celebrated a victory with a traditional rabbit hunt. Rather than run away, however, the bunnies began swarming Napoleon and his men. Though amusing at first, the situation quickly overwhelmed some of Europe’s foremost military strategists.
Andrew Jackson’s Parrot Was Kicked Out of Jackson’s Funeral for Swearing.
It’s odd enough that President Andrew Jackson had an African grey parrot named Poll, and stranger still that the bird was kicked out of Jackson’s funeral for foul language. As one attendee observed, “Before the sermon and while the crowd was gathering, a wicked parrot that was a household pet got excited and commenced swearing so loud and long as to disturb the people and had to be carried from the house.”
The First Woman in Space Forgot Her Toothbrush
The first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova, went without a toothbrush during her three days aboard the Vostok-6 spacecraft in 1963. To be fair, it wasn’t her fault: Mission control was actually in charge of packing the essentials, as the pioneering cosmonaut had other, presumably more scientific, things to focus on.
French Waiters Once Went on Strike for the Right to Grow Mustaches
In 1907, one of the more unusual strikes in France’s history unfolded. Better wages and working conditions were at stake, but so was something unexpected: the right to grow a mustache. The facial hair was at its peak popularity, but servers were forced to be clean-shaven. After 16 days, the waiters returned to work. They did not get their desired one day off per week, but a fairer pay structure was in place—as were their mustaches.
To be continued . . .
Source: history facts.com
Contributed by Jane Hart