Weird History

Welcome to Weird History! You've heard the story: Pope Gregory IX declared war on cats, linking them to satanic heresy in a 1233 papal bull that triggered widespread feline extermination. But here's the twist - historians now believe this dramatic tale is mostly medieval urban legend. While anti-cat sentiment existed in medieval Europe, there's little evidence of an official papal campaign against...

In 1859, Joshua Abraham Norton declared himself Emperor Norton I of the United States - and somehow, an entire city decided to play along. Broke and desperate after losing his fortune, Norton began issuing imperial decrees, printing his own currency, and walking San Francisco's streets in a makeshift military uniform. Incredibly, local businesses honored his fake money, theaters reserved him free...

In this episode of 'Weird History,' we explore the fascinating and somewhat disturbing history of phrenology, a 19th-century pseudoscience that claimed to determine a person's character and intelligence based on the shape and size of their skull. We delve into the origins of this bizarre theory, its impact on society, and the ethical implications of such pseudoscientific beliefs. Support the show...

In 1847, skilled surgeon Robert Liston attempted to perform the fastest amputation in medical history - and succeeded in the worst possible way. Armed with his lucky knife and legendary speed, Liston completed the surgery in under 30 seconds... but accidentally slashed his assistant's fingers, sliced through a spectator's coat, and watched in horror as both men and his patient died from different...

In 1945, German soldier Georg Gärtner slipped away from a POW camp in New Mexico, beginning one of the longest successful disappearing acts in American history. For four decades, he built a new life as "Dennis Whiles" - becoming a tennis instructor, marrying an American woman, and even appearing on TV's "To Tell The Truth." No one, not even his wife, knew his true identity until 1985, when he fina...

When the French king betrayed and executed her husband in 1343, noblewoman Jeanne de Clisson transformed from a wealthy aristocrat into one of history's most ruthless pirates. Selling her lands to fund a fleet of black ships with blood-red sails, she terrorized the English Channel for 13 years, hunting down French nobles and leaving only a few survivors to tell the king about her vengeance. Known...

In 1844, thousands of Americans gave away their homes, abandoned their crops in the fields, and quit their jobs to prepare for Jesus's return on October 22nd. After a Baptist preacher decoded "hidden" biblical mathematics, his followers made white robes and climbed hilltops to await the Second Coming. What happened next created one of the most dramatic mass disappointments in American religious hi...

Step into the realm of the mysterious with this captivating episode of "Weird History," where we delve into the enigmatic tale of The Green Children of Woolpit. In this episode, we investigate the strange yet compelling story of two children with green-hued skin who appeared in a medieval English village. We'll uncover: The historical backdrop of 12th-century Woolpit and the social context that se...

Dive into the Sticky Truth: Uncovering the Great Molasses Flood of 1919 Ever heard of a tsunami of molasses ? It sounds unbelievable, but in 1919, it was a terrifying reality in Boston's North End12. A massive storage tank, holding 2.3 million gallons of molasses , ruptured, unleashing a wave of sticky destruction that killed 21 people and injured 150. This isn't just a bizarre historical footnote...

The time Napoleon was almost defeated by.. a pack of bunnies? We'll examine whether this is true or false on today's episode. Support the show here via PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?business=DWSYBNBMAY9AL&no_recurring=0&item_name=Thanks+for+your+help%21&currency_code=USD

Imagine a pope exhuming the lifeless body of his predecessor and putting it on trial. Picture the decaying corpse dressed in papal robes, propped on a throne in the grand Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome, and accused of heinous crimes. This macabre spectacle unfolded amidst intense political intrigue, power struggles, and dramatic courtroom scenes that was dramatic even for medieval times. Sup...

Meet Timothy Dexter: The "Lord" of Luck and Absurdity Ever heard of a man so spectacularly lucky, he turned utter foolishness into a fortune? A man who could sell warmth to the Caribbean? Then prepare to be amazed by the story of Timothy Dexter, an 18th-century American businessman who defied all logic and expectations. Support the show here via PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?business=DWSY...