middle ages

How Ivar The Boneless Became One Of History’s Most Feared Vikings

Despite his mythic handicap, Ivar the Boneless was the most fearsome Viking of his time and conquered England with his heathen army.

By Mark Oliver • Aug 19, 2022

How Ivar The Boneless Became One Of History’s Most Feared Vikings

Despite his mythic handicap, Ivar the Boneless was the most fearsome Viking of his time and conquered England with his heathen army.

By Mark Oliver • August 19, 2022

Inside Nine Of The Weirdest Medieval Customs That Range From The Bizarre To The Downright Sadistic

From the church-sanctioned burning of cats for fun to serving up roasted lampreys as a delicacy, these medieval practices are better left in the past.

By Marco Margaritoff • Aug 18, 2022

Inside Nine Of The Weirdest Medieval Customs That Range From The Bizarre To The Downright Sadistic

From the church-sanctioned burning of cats for fun to serving up roasted lampreys as a delicacy, these medieval practices are better left in the past.

By Marco Margaritoff • August 18, 2022

Inside The Terrifying But Necessary Job Of A Medieval Plague Doctor

Tasked with treating victims of the Black Death, plague doctors wore all-leather suits and beak-like masks to avoid catching the fatal disease.

By Daniel Rennie • Aug 16, 2022

Inside The Terrifying But Necessary Job Of A Medieval Plague Doctor

Tasked with treating victims of the Black Death, plague doctors wore all-leather suits and beak-like masks to avoid catching the fatal disease.

By Daniel Rennie • August 16, 2022

This Week In History News, Jul. 31 – Aug. 6

Fashionable Viking accessories found in Denmark, Depression-era cash hoard unearthed in New Jersey, giant-headed prehistoric amphibian discovered in Germany.

By All That's Interesting • Aug 5, 2022

News

This Week In History News, Jul. 31 – Aug. 6

Fashionable Viking accessories found in Denmark, Depression-era cash hoard unearthed in New Jersey, giant-headed prehistoric amphibian discovered in Germany.

By All That's Interesting • August 5, 2022

This Week In History News, Jul. 10 – 16

Iron Age skeletons found alongside animal sacrifices in England, Viking artifacts discovered among costume jewelry in Norway, and a hidden van Gogh uncovered in Scotland.

By All That's Interesting • Jul 15, 2022

News

This Week In History News, Jul. 10 – 16

Iron Age skeletons found alongside animal sacrifices in England, Viking artifacts discovered among costume jewelry in Norway, and a hidden van Gogh uncovered in Scotland.

By All That's Interesting • July 15, 2022

The Brutal History Of The Spanish Donkey, The Medieval Torture Device That Left Victims With Mangled Genitalia

Also known as the wooden horse or the chevalet, variations of the Spanish donkey were used from the Middle Ages all the way up until the American Civil War in the 1860s.

By Marco Margaritoff • Jul 3, 2022

The Brutal History Of The Spanish Donkey, The Medieval Torture Device That Left Victims With Mangled Genitalia

Also known as the wooden horse or the chevalet, variations of the Spanish donkey were used from the Middle Ages all the way up until the American Civil War in the 1860s.

By Marco Margaritoff • July 3, 2022

How The Dunce Cap Went From A Sign Of High Intelligence To A Humiliating Classroom Punishment

When followers of philosopher John Duns Scotus became the laughingstock of Renaissance-era Europe for their outdated beliefs, their once-fashionable "Duns" caps turned into a symbol of stupidity.

By Jessica O'Connor • Jun 28, 2022

How The Dunce Cap Went From A Sign Of High Intelligence To A Humiliating Classroom Punishment

When followers of philosopher John Duns Scotus became the laughingstock of Renaissance-era Europe for their outdated beliefs, their once-fashionable "Duns" caps turned into a symbol of stupidity.

By Jessica O'Connor • June 28, 2022

Inside The Dancing Plague Of 1518, History’s Strangest Epidemic

In the summer of 1518, the dancing plague in the Holy Roman city of Strasbourg saw some 400 people dance uncontrollably for weeks on end — leaving as many as 100 of them dead.

By Natasha Ishak • Jun 11, 2022

Inside The Dancing Plague Of 1518, History’s Strangest Epidemic

In the summer of 1518, the dancing plague in the Holy Roman city of Strasbourg saw some 400 people dance uncontrollably for weeks on end — leaving as many as 100 of them dead.

By Natasha Ishak • June 11, 2022

The Rise And Fall Of The Janissaries, The Ottoman Empire’s Elite Military Force

Beginning in the Late Middle Ages, Ottoman soldiers abducted children from Christian families and forced them into the Janissaries, one of the fiercest armies in history.

By Natasha Ishak • Jun 10, 2022

The Rise And Fall Of The Janissaries, The Ottoman Empire’s Elite Military Force

Beginning in the Late Middle Ages, Ottoman soldiers abducted children from Christian families and forced them into the Janissaries, one of the fiercest armies in history.

By Natasha Ishak • June 10, 2022

The Disturbing History Of Chinese Water Torture — And How It Drove Victims Insane

A centuries-old interrogation method, Chinese water torture was actually invented far from Asia and eventually evolved into far crueler forms of punishment.

By Marco Margaritoff • Jun 8, 2022

The Disturbing History Of Chinese Water Torture — And How It Drove Victims Insane

A centuries-old interrogation method, Chinese water torture was actually invented far from Asia and eventually evolved into far crueler forms of punishment.

By Marco Margaritoff • June 8, 2022