Showing posts with the label Germany

Enemies Making Deal: The First World War Glass–Rubber Exchange

Oct 24, 2024

In the midst of war, when nations are locked in bitter conflict, cooperation seems unimaginable. Yet, history offers surprising instances wh...

Paris Gun: World War One’s Greatest Weapon

Sep 11, 2024

At quarter past seven on the morning of March 23, 1918, the people of Paris were jolted by a powerful explosion near the Quai de la Seine. F...

Brandtaucher: World’s Oldest Surviving Submarine

May 28, 2024

At the German Armed Forces Museum of Military History in Dresden, there is a big fat iron submarine on display. Built in 1850, this pioneeri...

The Nail Men of World War 1

May 8, 2024

On March 6, 1915, a large crowd gathered at Schwarzenbergplatz in Vienna for the unveiling of a new monument—a wooden depiction of a medieva...

5 Times Weather Played Foul For An Invading Army

Apr 1, 2024

Throughout history, weather has played a significant role in military campaigns, sometimes altering its course and reshaping the destiny of ...

Karl von Drais And The Laufmaschine

Mar 21, 2024

In April 1815, Mount Tambora on the island of Sumbawa in present-day Indonesia, erupted with a violence never seen before in recorded histor...

Watch 1505: The World's First Watch

Mar 19, 2024

In 1987, during a school trip to London, a watchmaker apprentice stumbled upon a rare find at an antique flea market. Concealed within a box...

Glienicke Bridge: The Bridge Of Spies

Dec 19, 2023

In the Wannsee district of Berlin, Germany, there is a brief bridge spanning the Havel River, connecting the German capital to Potsdam. Hist...

Talking Gravestones of Amrum and Föhr

Dec 11, 2023

About 60 km north of Heligoland in the North Sea, off the western coast of Germany, lies the islands of Amrun and Föhr. Part of the North F...

The Potsdam Giants

Nov 20, 2023

During his 27-year-reign, King Frederick William I of Prussia greatly expanded the size of the Prussian Army, turning it into the largest an...

The Sinking of U-boat 864

Nov 9, 2023

During World War II, German U-boats wrought havoc upon Allied supply lines and commercial shipping inflicting heavy losses on merchant convo...

F60 Overburden Conveyor Bridge: The Horizontal Eiffel Tower

Oct 9, 2023

About 60 km north of Dresden, in Lichterfeld-Schacksdorf in Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg, Germany, lies a steel behemoth. It’s a gigantic over...

The Sibling Rivalry That Gave Birth to Adidas and Puma

Sep 25, 2023

Straddling the river of Aurach in the German state of Bavaria lies the small town of Herzogenaurach. It was here in the late 1940s, the Dass...

Optography: Preserving a Dead Person’s Last Sight

Sep 15, 2023

In 1924, Germany was rocked by a sensational case of multiple homicide. Fritz Heinrich Angerstein, a resident of Limberg, Germany, had bruta...

Peter Stumpp: The Werewolf of Bedburg

Sep 6, 2023

In The Knave of Harts , a collection of satirical poems penned by Samuel Rowlands, the English poet makes an allusion to a certain German ca...

The 1,000-Ton Nazi Tank That Was Never Built

Aug 11, 2023

In the midst of the Second World War, the Nazis unveiled prototypes for an array of extraordinary weaponry, spanning colossal aircraft, adva...

The Wolf of Ansbach

Jul 13, 2023

Like most wild animals, wolves predominantly inhabit remote areas, maintaining a natural inclination and capability to steer clear of human ...

Cold Water Geysers

Jun 28, 2023

A typical geyser expels hot water and steam when an underground spring comes in contact with hot rocks heated by magma, causing the water to...

Dresden’s Tobacco Mosque

Jun 22, 2023

The ‘Tobacco Mosque’ in Dresden, Germany, by the city’s main railway line, is a fascinating structure. The impressive building with a 60-fee...

1764 Woldegk Tornado: The Strongest in History

May 18, 2023

On June 29, 1764, almost the entire town of Woldegk was in church attending a day of repentance and prayer. Also known as Buß- und Bettag, i...