Stay ConnectedIn each episode of History Fix, I discuss lesser known stories from history that you won’t be able to stop thinking about. Need your history fix? You’ve come to the right place.
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When I think of rum, I think of pirates. Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum, right? And when I think of pirates, I think of treasure chests full of gold, silver, precious gems, buried treasure. The rum seems recreational, dastardly, debaucherous, trivial. The treasure, now that’s serious. That’s the job. There’s no messing around with the treasure. But, did know, for many in the business of maritime trade and, yes even piracy, the rum was the treasure? Did you know that rum, while likely started by enslaved Africans, later became the currency with which they were bought and sold? And did you know that rum was such a valuable commodity in colonial America, it helped open the door to the American Revolution, changing the world forever? Let’s fix that.
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I remember the pilgrim hats, the buckles on the shoes, the feather headdresses and beads, the fun, cutesy crafts we did in school. The smell of construction paper and tempera paint as we stamped out handprint turkeys, glued on brightly colored feathers. You dress like a pilgrim. You be an Indian. We’ll all sit down and have a feast together. I remember learning about the first Thanksgiving in school. I remember teachers talking about a day of peace. A day that colonists and natives came together to give thanks, to share a meal. A day they put aside their differences and got along, loved one another. How inspiring. But what they failed to tell us in school is that that peace didn’t last. Within a generation, indigenous populations, already decimated by more than 90% thanks to disease, were subjected to oppression, conquest, and all out extermination by European invaders. What they don’t tell you in school is that, soon after that fateful feast, descendants of those present at the first Thanksgiving went to war - a war that, in terms of population, became the bloodiest conflict in American history. They don’t tell you that in school. Let’s fix that.
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Agnes Sorel was beyond beautiful. When the King of France, Charles VII first laid eyes on her in 1444, he was struck dumb by her stunning good looks. With golden hair, large blue eyes, and a striking figure, Charles absolutely had to have her. He was already married, of course, to the queen, Marie of Anjou, with whom he had 14 children. But, depressed and melancholy, beat down by the sorry state of his floundering country, most agreed that Agnes was good for Charles. She soon claimed the title of first officially recognized royal mistress. Though often scandalous and scantily clad, Agnes was also incredibly intelligent and kind. With Agnes by his side, Charles VII changed the course of the kingdom, reclaiming territory lost to England, and ending the hundred years war with a French victory. Some historians place Agnes in the same realm of influence as Joan of Arc, savior of France. But not everyone was a fan. When Agnes Sorel died in 1450 at the age of 28, the official cause of death was dysentery. The symptoms fit well enough anyway. But, did you know, forensic testing after her body was exhumed in 2005 actually suggests murder? Let’s fix that.
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“A diamond is forever,” has gone down in history as one of the greatest advertising slogans of all time. It has appeared in every single De Beers diamond ad since 1948 and was ranked the number one slogan of the century by AdAge marketing journal in 1999. But, did you know, the company that hired Frances’ ad agency to come up with this slogan, De Beers, used it to trick the entire world into thinking diamonds are worth way more than they actually are? And that this made up illusion of value - this complete scam - has been used to fuel violence, tyranny, and oppression in developing countries? Let’s fix that.
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In 1949, 13 year old Pamela Smedley boarded a ship with 27 other girls from a Catholic orphanage in Britain. The nuns told them they were going on a day trip. The girls were excited, happy to be out in the world, on an adventure. According to Pamela, quote “We thought it would be like going to Scarborough for the day because we were so innocent and naive.” But they weren’t going to Scarborough. They were going to Australia, for good. Four extremely difficult decades would pass before Pamela would return home to Britain and finally reunite with her family, her mother who had been waiting for her all those years, wondering. The girls on that ship were part of Britain’s child migrant program which sent an estimated 150,000 children to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Rhodesia during the 19th and 20th centuries. The press at the time reported that these children were being sent to loving families, taken into homes, and raised in caring environments. But did you know, that was all a lie? Let’s fix that.
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Halloween is weird y’all. I mean, I love it, don’t get me wrong, but it is weird. The costumes, carving faces into pumpkins and putting candles in them, trick or treating - walking around to stranger’s houses at night, costumed stranger’s houses asking for candy, putting the candy into a bucket shaped like a pumpkin with a face. It’s bizarre, really. What a bizarre holiday. And it’s spooky too, right? It’s scary. I feel like it’s scarier than ever - monsters and demons and evil clowns, murderers with chainsaws. My neighbor posted something on Facebook recently that said quote “I don’t celebrate Halloween for the same reason Satanists don’t celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. Light has no fellowship with darkness.” end quote. And I get it because they’re literally selling animatronic demons as Halloween yard decorations but I read this and I was like “ohhh, nooo.” Everyone totally misunderstands Halloween. It might seem evil if you don’t understand its origins, but did you know Halloween is really a blend of several historical holy days, spiritual, religious, dare I say… hallowed? Let’s fix that.
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Hello dear listeners, this is Shea LaFountaine, popping in on a Wednesday with a mini fix for you. I recently had the pleasure of sitting down for a chat with Sara Swann-Barnard who is a prolific historical fiction author. She has written so many books, several of them set in the worlds that I have delved into in recent episodes. She’s really just a delightful person and a fellow history fan and I had so much fun chatting with her about historical fiction, Henry VIII, Vlad Dracula, cowboys and torture and ancient STDs, it was a lot of fun so I wanted to give you a chance to sit in on our conversation. I hope you enjoy it.
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Burial has always been a sacred thing, undertaken with utmost reverence and respect for the dead. Graveyards and cemeteries, while yes often creepy, are peaceful, quiet places. The wind rustles the leaves of a tree, a dove coos mournfully, a tearful widow silently places flowers on her late husband’s grave. We typically think of graves as final resting places for the dead - the end of their stories here on Earth. But did you know, that wasn’t always the case? 200 years ago, many newly buried bodies wouldn’t rest for long. Did you know that as our collective medical knowledge and respect for science blossomed, so too did our need for human corpses. And that many of these cadavers were stolen from their graves by “body snatchers” who made a profitable business out of selling our dearly departed? Let’s fix that.
Dr. Jeff Sankoff:
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“Skeleton of a Giant Found,” “Reported Discovery of a Huge Skeleton,” “Monstrous Skulls and Bones,” “A Race of Indian Giants,” “Giant Skeleton Unearthed at Buzzards Bay,” “Skeleton Found of a Man Over 9 Feet High With An Enormous Skull,” “New Mexico Discovery: 12 Foot Giant Found,” These are newspaper headlines and they’re not from the National Enquirer or any other disreputable tabloid like that, they’re all from the New York Times. These are just a few examples of hundreds of similar newspaper articles about giant skeletons that were published throughout the 19th century and into the early 20th century. These articles were published in newspapers and magazines all over the United States, many of them quite credible, written by all different authors, and reported by unrelated people, mostly workmen - well-diggers, miners, quarrymen. But did you know, despite all this press, there are no actual giant skeletons on display anywhere and no follow up stories to explain what happened to these amazing discoveries? Let’s fix that.
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Picture a vampire. Yeah, you’re picturing Dracula. That’s Dracula. I mean unless you’re a Twilight fan, then maybe you’re picturing Robert Pattinson’s fine self. But no, chances are you’re picturing the title character from Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel “Dracula” about a vampire named Count Dracula who moves from Transylvania to England in search of new victims of his undead curse. This character, who basically invented the genre of vampires in fiction, was loosely based on, at least named after, a 15th century Romanian prince named Vlad III AKA Vlad the Impaler AKA Vlad Dracula. But did you know, besides the name and the fact that they were both savage, blood-thirsty killers, Vlad Dracula and Count Dracula don’t really have all that much in common? Let’s fix that.
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