Historical Files

12/09/2025

A 93 million brick statement of absolute power and faith.

12/08/2025

In a move that caught the Roman world by surprise, Emperor Septimius Severus banned all female gladiators in the year 200 AD. These women fighters were rare and often considered exotic spectacles in the arena. The ban marked a significant turning point for the role of women in Roman public life.

12/08/2025

One of the strangest naval missions of World War I was led by a tattoo-covered commander known for wearing a skirt. His audacious plan involved dragging two motorboats over 150 miles of rugged African terrain to challenge the German fleet on a landlocked lake.

12/08/2025

The French military said the bombed-out abbey was too dangerous for a hospital. So Dr. Frances Ivens and her team of women surgeons turned it into a battlefield surgery hub anyway, performing over 10,000 successful operations. Their skill and courage earned them France's highest honors.

12/08/2025

This rediscovered Roman arena held 20,000 fans; which spectacle was the most thrilling to watch?

12/08/2025

The legendary Viking hero Ragnar Lothbrok is said to have met his end in a pit of venomous snakes. While the man himself is shrouded in myth, the story of his death inspired his sons to seek a terrible revenge.

12/08/2025

The man whose inventions both strengthened an evil institution and built American industry.

12/08/2025

Did a novella from 1898 really predict the sinking of the Titanic?

12/08/2025

Before the green beer and parades, the real story of March 17th was about a former slave who returned to the land of his captivity to save his captors. The man we know as St. Patrick wasn't even Irish, but his faith reshaped a nation.

12/08/2025

12/08/2025

The Eye of Horus symbolized healing, but did you know its parts also represented mathematical fractions?