Jennie Cohen Archives ‑ History.com

What Is Flag Day?

When the American Revolution broke out in 1775, the colonists weren’t fighting united under a single flag. Instead, most regiments participating in the war for independence against the British fought under their own flags. In June of 1775, the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia to create the Continental Army—a unified colonial fighting force—with the […]

Heat Waves Throughout History

London’s Great Stink of 1858 This summer heat wave has lived in infamy not only for its soaring temperatures but also for the malodorous stench it unleashed on England’s capital. Many Londoners had recently traded in their chamber pots for water closets, which flushed an unprecedented amount of water and waste into the city’s 200,000 […]

6 Things You May Not Know About the Dead Sea Scrolls

1. Teenage shepherds accidentally stumbled upon the first set of Dead Sea Scrolls. In late 1946 or early 1947, Bedouin teenagers were tending their goats and sheep near the ancient settlement of Qumran, located on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea in what is now known as the West Bank. One of the young […]

10 Things You May Not Know About Paul Revere

Paul Revere is best known as the Boston silversmith immortalized in the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem describing the Patriot’s midnight ride to warn about a British attack. But that 1775 ride (which wasn’t exactly as Longfellow described) is only one chapter in Revere’s role in the American Revolution—and in his long life. Here are 10 facts […]

9 Zany April Fools’ Day Hoaxes

From spaghetti trees to a Nixon comeback, check out some of history’s most elaborate April Fools’ Day pranks.

10 Things You May Not Know About William the Conqueror

1. He was of Viking extraction. Though he spoke a dialect of French and grew up in Normandy, a fiefdom loyal to the French kingdom, William and other Normans descended from Scandinavian invaders. William’s great‑great‑great‑grandfather, Rollo, pillaged northern France with fellow Viking raiders in the late ninth and early 10th centuries, eventually accepting his own […]

6 of the Biggest International Jewel Heists

In most cases, millions of dollars worth of diamonds, gems and watches remain largely unrecovered.

10 Things You May Not Know About the Vikings

1. Vikings didn’t wear horned helmets. Forget almost every Viking warrior costume you’ve ever seen. Sure, the pugnacious Norsemen probably sported headgear, but that whole horn‑festooned helmet look? Depictions dating from the Viking age don’t show it, and the only authentic Viking helmet ever discovered is decidedly horn‑free. Painters seem to have fabricated the trend […]

5 Romances That Changed History

1. Cleopatra and Mark Antony Cleopatra VII of Egypt is often remembered for her legendary powers of seduction and mastery at building shrewd alliances. Still, her final political and romantic partnership—with the Roman general Mark Antony—brought about the deaths of both lovers and toppled the centuries‑old Ptolemaic dynasty to which she belonged. In 41 B.C., […]

7 Surprising Facts About Joan of Arc

1. Joan’s real name was Jehanne d’Arc, Jehanne Tarc, Jehanne Romée or possibly Jehanne de Vouthon—but she didn’t go by any of these. Joan didn’t hail from a place called Arc, as the typical Anglicization of her father’s surname, d’Arc (sometimes rendered as Darc or Tarc), might imply. Instead, Jehanne—or Jehanette, as she was known—grew […]

7 Things You May Not Know About the Sistine Chapel

1. Michelangelo wanted nothing to do with the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling In 1508, 33‑year‑old Michelangelo was hard at work on Pope Julius II’s marble tomb, a relatively obscure piece now located in Rome’s San Pietro in Vincoli church. When Julius asked the esteemed artist to switch gears and decorate the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling, Michelangelo balked. […]

7 Things You May Not Know About Caligula

Find out whether the much‑maligned emperor was as crazy as they say.