Page 120 - History Facts

During WWI the 1st Australian Tunneling Company Placed 450,000 kg of explosives behind enemy lines and detonated them, killing 10,000 German Soldiers.

Hill 60 was a strategically significant place of high ground. It was created as a result of digging for a nearby railway. The Germans captured the hill from the French in 1914. Both sides fought for it and coveted it for the remainder of World War I.

Something unique about Hill 60 was that a number of battles were fought underground by engineers and tunnellers on both sides. 

The First Australian Tunneling Company took over the mining of Hill 60 in 1916. On June 7, 1917, at the beginning of the Battle of Messines, 19 mines were filled with 450,000 kilograms of explosives. They were detonated under the German lines. 

It blew a large portion of the hill to smithereens and killed 10,000 German soldiers. Even though only 19 of the 21 mines exploded, it was one of the loudest explosions in history. 

They said it could be heard in London and Dublin. A memorial to the Australian troops killed there during the war was put at the site. 

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Scientists considered bombing Japanese volcanoes in World War II to trigger eruptions.

In the January 1944 issue of Popular Science, the piece titled “Can We Blast Japan From Below?” presents the argument. The author, Professor Harold O. Whitnall of Colgate University, said that “[the Japanese] have made gods of [volcanoes],” and “fear of volcanoes is thoroughly ingrained in the minds of the Japanese.” 

He went on to say that fear of volcanoes is so great that the act of bombing them would cause “cataclysmic terror.” The point was to not only use psychological warfare, but to turn the volcanoes into weapons of war by inducing eruptions. 

Whitnall said that after Pearl Harbor, an all out attack on the Japanese homeland should have been accompanied by bombing raids on Japan’s volcanoes to hasten surrender. Obviously, it never materialized. But was it possible? Theoretically, yes. 

In short, if a volcano is near its time to erupt, a bomb can be enough force to set it off. The proposal reached President Roosevelt, but was never seriously considered. Perhaps it was a good thing, because had such measures been taken, the tragic events at Hiroshima and Nagasaki might not have been the only ones. 

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The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper!

Hemp is useful in a variety of ways. Today, however, Hemp is highly controversial because it looks a lot like the Marijuana plant. United States policy doesn't consistently distinguish between Hemp and the drug plant. This means that the US for the most part, misses out on growing one of the most productive and versatile plants in the world.

In fact, over 25,000 products can be made out of hemp. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson both grew hemp and Ben Franklin actually owned a mill that made hemp paper. It was on hemp paper that Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. 

It used to be widely grown in the U.S., because the canvas and rope for ships was made out of hemp. Hemp is even able to be applied to cars. Rudolph Diesel designed his engine to run on hemp oil. 

Henry Ford experimented with hemp to build his car bodies, because he wanted to build and fuel cars from farm products. Hemp oil used to grease machines and paints, shellacs, resins, and varnishes used to be made of hemp oil. 

Hemp has long fibers which make its products stronger than if they were made of wood. Construction products like fiber board, oriented strand board, beams, studs, and posts can all be made from hemp. 

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A Roman couple have been holding hands for 1500 years!

Not only that, but they were probably buried looking into each others’ eyes. The couple were from the town of Mutina, now known as Modena, and were buried around the year 500 AD. 

The bodies were found positioned next to each other with the male on the left and the female on the right. They are holding hand and the female’s skull faces towards where the male’s would be, however his skull is badly damaged. 

Not much is known about the couple, except that they were married and, due to where and how the bodies were buried, were probably not very wealthy. The remains will go on display in a local museum later this year. 

The eternal lovebirds weren’t the only ones found at the site. 3 mutilated skeletons were also excavated. One was a teen.

Some of the archaeologists say they were slaves executed by their master, however others believe they were murder victims due to the slash wounds they were found to have. 

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In the Ottoman Empire, condemned high government officials had the right to have a foot race for their lives.

The Ottoman Empire was one of the longest lasting empires in history. It spanned the years between 1299 to 1922 and through its duration covered much of south eastern Europe and parts of northern Africa.

If the official was high up enough in the government, he could challenge the head gardener (his executioner) to a foot race for his life. To this date, its exact origins remain unknown. When the death sentence was passed, the condemned man would be legally allowed to run as fast possible from the palace, through the gardens, and down to the Fish Market Gate on the southern side of the palace complex (the place of execution). The run was about 300 yards. If he had reached the Fish Market Gate before the gardener, he would be banished instead of executed. Interestingly, this custom lasted well into the 19th century.

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