Page 2 - History Facts

Portugal stayed neutral in World War II to honor a treaty it made with England in 1386!

In 1386, the Treaty of Windsor was signed between England and Portugal, as a display of the countries mutual friendship, and can now be found on display in the National Museum of Portugal. Fast forward just under 600 years to WWII, the Prime Minister of Portugal, Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, was faced with a crucial decision: Should he break the treaty signed so long ago, and ally with the Axis Powers?

The decision was surprisingly easy for Salazar - he would honor the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance by refusing to sign the Anti-Comintern Pact, which was the document allying Germany, Japan, and Italy.

On June 29, 1940, Spain and Portugal signed an additional protocol known as a Treaty of Friendship and Non-Aggression. This document declared to the world that these two nations were going to stay out of the war, which didn't please Adolf Hitler.

In fact, a plan known as Operation Isabella was going to be executed in 1942, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The plan involved invading Portugal and Spain and using them as air bases to strike Britain. Thankfully for Portugal, the plan was never executed.

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Poor women who drank tea were viewed as or WORSE than irresponsible alcoholics in the early 19th century!

Poor women who drank tea were viewed as irresponsible as whisky drinkers in early 19th-century Ireland! Critics at the time declared that the practice of tea drinking was contributing to the stifling of Ireland’s economic growth, and was clearly presented as reckless and uncontrollable.

Women who drank tea wasted their time and money; it was said, drawing them away from their duty to care for their husbands and home. It was felt this traditionally female responsibility was vital in order to progress with the national economy!

There was also a myth of tea having drug-like qualities, because it was still a mysterious substance from China. People thought that tea became addictive over time. Moreover, tea was not as cheap as it was today, and was considered an irresponsible luxury for poor women to indulge in.

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All the first American in space could think about was that his rocket was built from parts by the lowest bidder!

In January 1961, Shepard was chosen for the first American manned mission into space. Although the flight was originally scheduled for October 1960, delays by unplanned preparatory work meant that this was postponed several times, initially to March 6, 1961 and finally to May 5.

While on the other hand, on April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had become the first person in space and to orbit the Earth. According to Gene Kranz in his book, Failure Is Not an Option, "When reporters asked Shepard what he thought about as he sat atop the Redstone rocket, waiting for liftoff, he had replied, 'The fact that every part of this ship was built by the low bidder.'"

He had a successful career afterward and as he once said: “They say any landing you can walk away from is a good one.”

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When they banned nuclear power, New Zealand refused to let US warships dock in their waters

In 1985, tension developed between New Zealand and the US. The US had been declared a nuclear power while New Zealand was anti-nuclear. New Zealand’s prime minister David Lange banned nuclear-powered and nuclear-armed ships from docking in New Zealand ports and even entering New Zealand waters.

The United States refused to confirm or deny whether their ships contained nuclear weapons so this essentially banned all their ships from New Zealand waters. In response, the US suspended it's treaty obligations to New Zealand until they would allow US Naval ships to enter their waters. The US described New Zealand as “a friend, but not an ally.”

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Fahrenheit 451 got its name after a fire station burned a book and told the author about it!

Some of you might know that “Fahrenheit 451” is a science fiction novel, a disturbing story of a future civilization in which firemen burn books! Sadly no one was allowed to enjoy reading a nice book. Books were meant to be burned, along with the houses they were found in.

Ray Bradbury originally titled Fahrenheit 451 as 'The Fireman', but he and the editors found the name so boring that they decided to call the physics and chemistry departments at several universities, but no one could pinpoint this temperature.

Then, wondering why he hadn’t thought of it first, he called the local fire station, and asked what temperature book paper burnt at. The firemen put Bradbury on hold, burnt a book, and reported that the temp it burnt at was Fahrenheit 451.

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