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Remember, remember, the 5th of November – Guy Fawkes’ Gunpowder Plot

Remember, remember, the 5th of November – Guy Fawkes’ Gunpowder Plot

On November 5, 1605, the famous Gunpowder Plot planning the assassination of King James I of England was uncovered and Guy Fawkes as one of its leaders was arrested, convicted and sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered. “Remember, remember,The Fifth of November,Gunpowder treason and plot;For I see no reasonWhy Gunpowder TreasonShould ever be forgot.” — Nursery Rhyme Historical Background The plan of the conspirators was to blow up the House of Lords during…
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Karl Baedeker, the Father of Modern Tourism

Karl Baedeker, the Father of Modern Tourism

On November 3, 1801, German publisher Karl Baedeker was born, whose guidebooks set the authoritative standard for any tourist. The name Baedeker one day became a synonym for travel guides and the Verlag Karl Baedeker still exists continuing to bear his name and became one of the premier and most successful travel guide publishing houses in the world. “Oxford is on the whole more attractive than Cambridge to the ordinary visitor; and the…
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Johann Philipp Reis Demonstrates the first Telephone

Johann Philipp Reis Demonstrates the first Telephone

On October 26, 1861, German teacher and inventor Johann Philipp Reis, presented his telephone system at the ‘Physikalischen Verein zu Frankfurt am Main‘. Although it did not convince his contemporaries, his invention marks a milestone in telecommunications. Early Life and First Projects Philipp Reis was born on January 7, 1834 in Gelnhausen, Germany in a Jewish family as son of a baker. Reis’s mother died while he was an infant, and he…
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Antonie van Leeuwenhoek – The Father of Microbiology

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek – The Father of Microbiology

On October 24, 1632, the Dutch tradesman and scientist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, the inventor of the microscope, was born. He is commonly known as “the Father of Microbiology“, and considered to be the first microbiologist. “Please bear in mind that my observations and thoughts are the outcome of my own unaided impulse and curiosity alone; for, besides myself, in our town there be no philosophers who practice this art, so pray, take…
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Wilhelm Schickard and his Calculating Clock

Wilhelm Schickard and his Calculating Clock

On October 23, 1635, German astronomer and mathematician Wilhelm Schickard, who constructed the very first mechanical calculator, passed away. His famous calculator was able to perform additions and subtractions. For more complicated operations, it provided so-called Napier bones, named after the Scottish mathematician John Napier,[1] who came up with the idea of logarithms. Although it is widely believed that the first mechanical calculating device was created by the French mathematician Blaise Pascal in…
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Finally, Goethe Got Married – The Story of Christiane Vulpius

Finally, Goethe Got Married – The Story of Christiane Vulpius

On October 19, 1806, the famous German writer, artist, and politician, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,[1] finally got married with his mistress Christiane Vulpius after having lived together quasi-maritally since 1788, to the scandal of the ladies of Weimar and the vexation of Bettine von Arnim.[2] Christiane Vulpius’ Family Background Christiane Vulpius came from a poor family. Her father Johann Friedrich Vulpius, official archivist in Weimar, i.e. file copyist, had studied law for several…
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The Knights Templar and their Most Inglorious End

The Knights Templar and their Most Inglorious End

On Friday, October 13, 1307, King Philip IV of France ordered the Knights Templar grandmaster Jacques de Molay and scores of other French Templars to be simultaneously arrested under the accusation of various heredities. It is said that this very date sometimes spuriously is linked with the origin of the Friday the 13th superstition, because it was the beginning of the end of the powerful Knights Templar. The Origins of the Knights…
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Black Thursday – The Wall Street Crash of 1929

Black Thursday – The Wall Street Crash of 1929

The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, began in late October 1929 and was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States. The crash signaled the beginning of the 10-year Great Depression that affected all Western industrialized countries, in Germany also referred to as the “Weltwirtschaftskrise“. Black Thursday The optimism and financial gains of the…
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In Xanadu did Kublai Khan a Stately Pleasure-Dome Decree

In Xanadu did Kublai Khan a Stately Pleasure-Dome Decree

On September 23, 1215 AD Kublai Khan, the second son of Tolui and Sorghaghtani Beki, and a grandson of Genghis Khan, was born. Considering the Mongol Empire at that time as a whole, his realm reached from the Pacific to the Black Sea, from Siberia to modern day Afghanistan – one fifth of the world‘s inhabited land area. Kublai’s Way to Power Although the prince had Chinese educators and advisors, he still lived…
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Hoist the Sails! The Mayflower and its Journey to the new World…

Hoist the Sails! The Mayflower and its Journey to the new World…

On September 16, 1620, the famous transport ship Mayflower started its first voyage to the new world with English and Dutch separatists on board and arriving Plymouth, Massachusetts in the same year. The ship has become a cultural icon in the history of the United States. Rough Seas and First Winter On board of the 170 ton Dutch cargo ship were a total of 102 passengers and an additional number of 30 crew…
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