Top Ten Fascinating Facts About Castles-- Part 2

5. CASTLES GALORE-- There are about 1500 castle sites in England. //// 4. UNCOMFORTABLE-- Castles were always damp, poorly lit and tended to smell like horse manure. (Something that Disney didn't talk much about.) //// 3. EATING-- Was the primary means of entertainment. //// 2. PERSONAL SERVANTS-- received some of the luxury. //// 1. The WELL-- was the weak spot. //// --DaCoot

Top Ten Fascinating Facts About Castles-- Part 1

From the May 12, 2012, Listverse. //// 10. TOILETS-- called "garderobes"-- Ultinately ended up in the moat. //// 9. CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS-- First ones built of wood. //// 8. OLDEST INHABITABLE CASTLE-- Windsor Castle about 900 years old. //// 7. DEFENSE-- Built to keep enemies out (No Duh!) //// 6. STAIRWELLS-- Built turning clockwise so that attackers ascending them had problems swinging swords if right handed. Righthanded defenders did not. (A real method to their madness.) //// Five More. --Cooter

Ten Terrible Acts of Mother Nature

From May 25, 2011, Listverse.

10.  HUMANITY OBLITERATED, almost.  75,000 years ago at Lake Toba, Indonesia
9.  ANCIENT FLOODS--Lake Agassiz, Canada.  Also, 5600, the Mediterranean floods the Black Sea (Noah's Great Flood?)
8.  BRITAIN BECOMES AN ISLAND- Until 6100 BC, Britain connected to the mainland.

7.  THE GREAT FLOOD--  3100 BC Euphrates River.  Also the Black Sea Great Flood in #9.
6.  THE THERA-BANG--  eruption of Thera volcano around 1600 BC.
5.  MIDDLE AGES COOLING--  A severe cooling of the earth's climate
4.THE YEAR WITHOUT SUMMER--  1811

3.  KRAKATOA-- 1883
2.  TOKYO CALAMITY--  earthquake in 1923
1.  THE FUTURE--  What does it hold.  Will the Yellowstone Calderon erupt, earthquakes, asteroids, global warming?  What about the ancient Mayan warning on the 21st?

Top Ten Rebels Throughout History

From the May 16, 2011, Listverse.

10.  Guillaume Cale--  c1320-1358, France
9.  Walter Tyler c1341-1381, England
8.  Jacob Rohrback c1490-1525, Germany
7.  Yemelyan Pugachev 1742-1775, Russia
6.  Stepan Razin, 1630-1671

5.  Giuseppe Garibaldi 1807-1882, Italy
4.  Pancho Villa 1878-1823, Mexico
3.  Zhu Yuanzhang 1328-1398, China
2.  William Wallace 1273-1305, Scotland
1.  Spartacus c109 BC- 71 BC, Rome

HONORABLE MENTION:  George Washington 1732-1799, United States

Arise and Overthrow the Tyrants.  --Cooter

As We Approach Halloween: Top Ten Ghost Ships

From the Jan. 1, 2011, Listverse.

10.  Carol Deering
9.  Baychimo
8.  Eliza Battle

7.  MV Joyita
6.  Flying Dutchman
5.  Young Teazer
4.  Octavius

3.  Lady Lovibond
2.  Mary Celeste
1.  Ourang Medan

Like...BOOO!!!  --Cooter

Survivors From Notable Ship Sinkings

From the May 10, 2010, Listverse "55 Survivors from 10 Notable Ship Sinkings."

The number of survivors are ranked from ten to zero in order.  Of course, for photos and more information, go to the site.

10.  USS Juneau, sunk 1942 with ten survivors.  Light cruiser carrying the five Sullivan brothers who all perished.
9.  Girona, sank 1588.  1300 on board, 9 survivors.
8.  Armenia, sank 1941.  7000 aboard, 8 survivors.  A Soviet Union hospital ship sunk by the Germans.

7.  Auguste, sunk 1761.  Of 121, just 7 survivors.  French ship sank in a  storm.
6.  HMS Invincible, 1916.  1021 aboard, 6 survivors.
5.  Atocha, sunk 1622.  Of 265 aboard, 5 survivors.
4.  Lexington, sunk 1843.  Of 143 aboard, 4 survivors.  Steamship.

3.  HMS Hood, sunk 1941.  Of 1415 aboard, 3 survived.  Sunk by German battleship Bismarck.
2.  HMS Vanguard, sunk 1917.  Of 845 aboard, 2 survived. Accidental ammunition explosion.
1.  Dunbar, sunk 1857.  Of 122 aboard, just 1 survived
0.  HMAS Sydney, sunk 1941.  No survivors.

A Really Sad Countdown. 

Top Ten Greatest U.S. Presidential Acts

From September 1, 2010, Listverse.  Go to site for photos and more information.

10.  Washington refusing to be king.
9.  Jefferson doubling the country in the Louisiana Purchase.
8.  Nixon opening relations with China (Well, maybe not so good.)

7.  Lincoln freeing the slaves  (Well, sort of.)
6.  John QuincyAdams raising taxes to improve roads.  Also forming a national bank, national currency, founding universities and creating waterways.  (Well, taxes? really?)
5.  Theodore Roosevelt's Square Deal, consumer protection, control of big business and conservation of natural resources, especially national parks.

4.  Reagan and Pax Americana and defeat of Communism.  (Well, sort of Pax Americana.)
3.  Monroe Doctrine
2.  FDR and the Last "Good" war.

1.  Kennedy's Nukes (You'll have to check this one.)

An Interesting Way to Get Discussion/Arguments Started.  --Cooter

Top Ten Most Evil Humans

From the Dec. 31, 2010, List Universe

10.  Delphine LaLaurie--  US
9.  Ilse Koch--  Germany
8.  Shiro Ischii-- Japan
7.  Ivan the Terrible--  Russia
6.  Oliver Cromwell--  England

5.  Jiang Qing--  China
4.  Pol Pot--  Cambodia
3.  Heinrich Himmler--  Germany
2.  Adolf Hitler--  Germany
1.  Josef Stalin--  Russia

As usual, the article has photos and plenty of information.  Never heard of #10, #9, #8 and #5,

Real Bad Boys and Girls.  --DaCoot

Ten Explanations for the Bermuda Triangle

From the August 12th Listverse.  as always, I'm just listing them, if you want pictures and much more detail, check the site out.  Mighty interesting stiff.

10.  Plain old human error
9.  The Gulf Stream
8.  Rogue Waves (And, we get them in certain parts of the Chain of Lakes, but they're no threat to sink the boat, just very annoying when you're trying to nap or read.)

7.  Methane Hydrates  (Hunh?)
6.  Hurricanes
5.  An Electromagnetic Aberration
4.  Positive Gravitational Maseon (Hunh?)

3.  Aliens
2.  Rip in the Space Time Continuum
1.  Submerged Island of Atlantis

Oh Well.  --DaCoot

Ten Watershed Moments in History-- Part 2

5.  VACCINE FOR SMALL POX--  Mid-18th centuryby Edward Jenner.  Killed about 400,000 a year before discovery.

4.  INVENTION OF THE PRINTING PRESS--  Johannes Guttenberg in 1436.

3.  PUBLICATION OF THE 95 THESES--  Martin Luther (why do I always think King) Start of the Protestant Reformation.

2.  BERLIN CONFERENCE --  Started the scramble for colonies in Africa.  By 1895, the only independent African countries were Liberia and Ethiopia.

1.  BIRTH OF JESUS OF NAZARETH--

BONUS MOMENTS:

Germany's Invasion of Poland
The Declaration of Independence
End of Apartheid
Invention of the Internet
Assassination of Caesar
Battle of Waterloo
Invention of Calculus

An interesting list, definitely open to discussion, but a starting point nonetheless.

Find It On Listverse.  --Cooter

Ten Watershed Moments in History-- Part 1

From the Aug. 27, 2010, Listverse.  As always, I list them and maybe write something about it, but the site has pictures and much more information.

10.  OCTOBER REVOLUTION (1917)--  The second-phase of the Russian Revolution that led to the overthrow of the Russian Provisional and the Bolsheviks  (Communists) took over.

9.  INVENTION OF JAMES WATT'S STEAM ENGINE

8.  ASSASSINATION OF ARCHDUKE FERDINAND--  Started World War I

7.  BLACK PLAGUE--  Europe 1348-1350-- led to a shortage of labor.

6.  STORMING OF THE BASTILLE- -  July 14, 1789--  Flashpoint of the French Revolution against royal tyranny.

More to Come.  --DaCoot

Ten Great Moments in U.S. History

Nov. 24, 2009, Listverse. Listuniverse.

10.. Barack Obama elected president in 2008.

9. Armstrong walks on the Moon in 1969.

8. The Civil Rights Act in 1964.

7. The Marshall Plan in 1947.

6. Womens' Suffrage in 1920.

5. Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.

4. Lewis and Clark arrive at the Pacific Ocean in 1805.

3. Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

2. Ratification of the Constitution in 1789.

1. The Declaration of Independence in 1776.

Can't Argue Much With These. --Cooter

Yet Another List: Ten Alleged Wrongly Attributed Inventions

And who actually invented them. From the April 1, 2009 Listverse.

Wrongly credited first----actually invented it second.

1. COMPUTER DESKTOP AND GUI-- Microsoft (with Windows)---- Xerox PARC

2. AUTOMOBILE-- Henry Ford---- Karl Benz

3. X-RAY PHOTOGRAPHY-- Thomas Edison---- William Rontgen

4. MOVING PICTURES-- Thomas Edison---- Louis LePrince

5. TELESCOPE-- Gallileo---- Hans Lippershov

6. RECORDED AUDIO-- Thomas Edison---- Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville

7. LIGHTBULB-- Thomas Edison---- Sir Humphry Davy

8. RADIO-- Guglielmo Marconi---- Nikola Tesla

9. POWERED FLIGHT-- Wright Brothers---- Richard Pearse

10. INTERNET-- Al Gore----creators of ARPANET

Definitely interesting reading. What's with old Thomas?

Messing Our Minds. --Cooter

Ten Fascinating Meetings in History

From Listverse January 21, 2009 by Blogball.

10. CHARLES ROLLS and FREDERICK ROYCE-- 1904-- Rolls was later killed when his Wright (as in Wright Brothers) biplane crashed.

9. DEXTER KING and JAMES EARL RAY-- 1997-- The son of Martin Luther King and his father's convicted killer.

8. EDGAR ALLAN POE and CHARLES DICKENS-- 1842 in Philadelphia.

7. THOMAS STAFFORD and ALEXEI LEONOV-- July 15, 1975 in Outer Space aboard the SU Soyuz.

6. POPE JOHN PAUL II and MEHMET ALI AGCA-- 1983. Aca shot the Pope.

5. RICHARD NIXON and ELVIS PRESLEY-- 1970

4. HENRY STANLEY and DAVID LIVINGSTON-- Nov. 10, 1871. "Dr. Livingston, I presume."

3. DOUGLAS MaCARTHUR and EMPEROR HIROHITO-- September 27, 1945

2. ULYSSES GRANT and ROBERT E. LEE-- April 9, 1865 at the surrender.

1. NEILS BOHR and WERNER HEISENBERG-- 1922. Nuclear fission.

As always, go to the site for pictures and much more information.

The Pres. and the King. --DaCoot

Ten Great Atlantic Liners

From the Dec. 30, 2008 Listverse. Of course, photos and more information at the excellent site.

10. RMS QUEEN MARY II-- 2003

9. SS REX-- 1932-- Italy-- Sunk 1944 to prevent Germans from blocking Trieste Harbor.

8. SS FRANCE/SS NORWAY-- 1961. Scrapped 2008.

7. RMS QUEEN MARY-- 1934-- Today in Long Beach, Ca.

6. SS BREMER-- 1929, German. Scrapped 1945.

5. RMS MAURETANIA-- 1906-- Sister of Lusitania. Scrapped 1935.

4. SS NORMANDIE-- 1932. French. Laid up at New York Harbor after French fleet captured. US seized her. Renamed USS Lafayette. Caught fire while being refitted as troop transport. Capsized. Scrapped 1946.

3. SS UNITED STATES-- 1952. Fastest liner. Top speed a state secret. Rusting away in Philadelphia.

2. RMS OLYMPIC-- 1911-- Outlasted sisters Titanic and Britannic. Sank U-103. Scrapped 1937.

1. RMS QUEEN ELIZABETH II-- 1969. Retired 2008. Will be floating hotel in Dubai. (Wonder where they get all that money to build those huge buildings and do stuff like this.)

I guess this ought to be called liners that didn't sink or something like that. You'd have to figure Titanic and Lusitania would be on the list.

Looking at these ocean liners, they sure looked like ships in the past, not big floating hotels like today's liners.

Going on the Boat!!! --Cooter

Ten Significant Events Falling on December 25th

From the Dec. 24th Listverse. Go to site for pictures and more information. I'm just listin'.

10. First Christmas 325
9. England Adopts Modern Calendar
8. Charlemagne Crowned 800
7. William the Conqueror Crowned 1066
6. Christmas Flood Disaster 1717

5. Washington Crossing the Delaware 1776
4. The Christmas Truce 1914
3. Surrender of Hong Kong 1941
2. Longest battery Powered Car Trip Ended 1985
1. Unsolved JonBenet Ramsey Murder 1995

Of Interest. --Cooter

Ten Notable Buildings That People Hated at First

From the Oct. 22, 2010 List Universe. I'm just listing them. Listverse.com has photos and explanations.

10. The Washington Monument-- Washington, DC
9. The Eiffel Tower-- Paris
8. The Flatiron Building-- NYC

7. Philip Johnson's Glass House-- New Canaan, Ct.
6. Frank O. Gehry's Home-- Santa Monica, Ca
5. Neuschwanstein-Hohenschwangau Castle
4. Guggenheim Museum-- NYC

3. Pompidou Center-- Paris
2. Walker Community Library-- Minneapolis, Mn.
1. McDonald's

Well Worth Looking Up. --DaCoot

Eleven Facts About the End of World War I-- Part 3

6. continued. It is believed that the first British soldier killed in the war was Private John Parr, 4th Bn. Middlesex Regt. Killed Aug. 21, 1914, at age 20.

Last British soldier killed: Private George Ellison, 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers. Killed Nov. 11, 1918, age 25.

Also, the last empire soldier: Private George Price, 28th Bn Canadian Infantry, Saskatchewan Regt., Nov. 11, 1918, age 25.


5. NO END FOR WOUNDED-- Many who were wounded on Nov. 11th died after the 11th hour. Many more had horrible wounds to live with the rest of their lives.


4. NEGOTIATOR ASSASSINATED-- Mathias Erzberger, Germany's lead negotiator supported the war up until 1917, then was against it. A member of the new government, he supported the Treaty of Versailles which many Germans regarded as a stab in the back.

he was forced from office in 1920 and murdered in 1921.

Three More to Come. --Cooter

Eleven Facts About the End of World War I-- Part 2

8.. SIX MORE HOURS-- The Armistice was signed at 5 am Paris time with all fighting to end at 11 am. The Germans wanted an immediate cease fire, but Allies insisted on six to get the word out. Some units quit at the appointed time, others continued, especially some American officers who wanted a chance to get some additional glory and promotion.

Several thousand men were wounded or killed in those six hours.


7. FUTURE AMERICAN PRESIDENT-- Captain harry S, Truman kept his artillery battery firing until just minutes before 11 am. Some historians draw a straight line from that to his decision in 1945 to drop the atomic bombs.


6. BEGINNING AND END AT MONS-- The British Army started and ended the war at Mons. Some of the first British deaths occurred here in August 1914 when five divisions of the BEF (British Expeditionary Force). November 11, 1918, found British forces back here and the last Commonwealth soldier was killed here.

It's Not Over Till It's Over. --Cooter

Eleven Facts About the End of the Great War-- Part 1

From the Feb. 14, 2010 List Universe. Photos and more extensive information available at the site.

11. German delegates were given a ten-hour scenic tour to get to the railroad car where the Armistice was to be signed. This was done so that they could see the incredible damage done to the French countryside.

10. Only one photograph of the signing is known to exist and appears too have been shot through a window.

9. The Armistice Rail Carriage and Site became a national monument. In June 1940, Hitler made the French surrender in the same car. In 1944, Hitler ordered the car destroyed to prevent a possible second German surrender in the site.

More to Come. --Cooter