You might wonder how it would feel to be Henry's chief advisor. "Bad." That's how it would feel. Because you'd know that you weren't living up to your full potential. If you wanted power, acclaim, and political gravitas in the court of King Henry VIII, there was one job for you. And it was gross.
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As reported by the Telegraph back in 2007, there are still surnames in circulation which might point to one's corsair lineage. Are they a sure sign? Heavens no. The last names listed as particularly pirate-y by the British historical preservation organization English Heritage are as follows:
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One of the weirdest parts of U.S. democracy is the remarkably undemocratic Electoral College. As angry voters will tell you, two of the last three American presidents were elected despite losing the popular vote. Now, 53% of voters support ending this bizarre institution. How did this get started?
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The Holy Bible is probably the most discussed, debated, and argued book in the history of humankind. But which books had the rockiest road to travel on the way to acceptance into biblical canon? Here are the most controversial books that were included in the Bible.
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China, the country with the biggest military in the world at 1.6 million troops, according to Army Technology, has just unearthed a special reinforcement unit. We're talking, of course, about the Terracotta Soldiers.
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Bill Gates is not just a one-percenter -- he's the one literally standing on top of the entire world's money mountain. It's easy to be generous and self-assured when you have the kind of wealth that enables you to do anything, but was Gates as confident back when he was still a young up-and-comer?
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Though he had nearly 1,100 patents to his name, Thomas Edison is most often remembered as a bringer of light. So it's only appropriate that some detractors have practically depicted him as Lucifer with a light bulb filament for a pitchfork. Some even say he electrocuted an elephant to death!
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Despite what "Home on the Range" claims, buffalo don't roam in North America -- that's bison; our national mammal. But much like the fate of Native Americans -- bison have been relegated to a shadow of their former numbers. Here's the truth about America's oldest herd of bison.
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There's a reason that Hetty Green is called the “Witch of Wall Street.” A real-life Scrooge, Green got ridiculously rich and infuriated people with her stingy ways. From her ruthless business skills to her crazy personal life, here’s why she’s known as America’s greatest miser.
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Viewed through a contemporary lens, the friendship between Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle falls somewhere between The Odd Couple and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. At one point, they were BFFs, but over the years, their relationship soured. Here's why.
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In the town of Griswold, Connecticut, a trio of kids were hanging out in a sandpit when they discovered human skulls poking out of the recently excavated ground. This would eventually lead to the identity of the 'Connecticut Vampire'.
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From a bear's accidental overdose to the creature's riveting second life as a stuffed collectible, here is the incredible story of Kentucky's Cocaine Bear.
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Inventors have been having bright ideas since at least the dawn of civilization. But with the help of Thomas Edison those bright ideas turned into incandescent light bulbs. Here's Edison's greatest invention you probably didn't know about.
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In America, we've been taught to treat our milk like we treat our reading assignments: we opt for the skim instead of the whole. But according to a new study, that logic needs to be taken out to pasture, because it looks like drinking whole milk is less likely to make you fat.
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Back in the old days, before the railroad came through town, the internet was a wild and untamed place. It wasn't like it is today, all civilized and proper. But where did it all begin? Have a seat on the porch, young buck, and we'll tell you the tale of the first thing ever sold online.
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Despite what you might have learned in history class, Alexander Graham Bell didn't invent the telephone, but he was the mind behind some legitimately impressive inventions -- just not the one he's most famous for. Here's his greatest invention you probably didn't know about.
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In "How a Fart Killed 10,000 People," famed philosopher Pythagoras abstained from eating beans because he worried a person might "fart out" their soul while breaking wind. Back in the days when people took toots seriously, farting could indeed mean you were about to breathe your last breath.
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All told, Erik Weisz had a life that seemed better suited for golden age comic books than the real world. He left his home at a young age and reinvented himself in America, eventually taking on the colorful pseudonym Harry Houdini, as if he were a superhero. So how does a superhero die?
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The Vikings were one of the world's most successful groups of explorers and conquerors, creating an empire that stretched across much of the world. They had a rich mythology, represented in the symbols that would adorn their weapons, boats, jewelry and more. Here are their meanings.
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Donald Trump spends his money in weird ways. He boasted a plane with 24-karat gold-plated seat belts and gold-plated bathroom fixtures. He resided in a penthouse with a gold and diamond-encrusted front door. And more. Here are some of the most bizarre things Donald Trump has ever owned.
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Christopher Columbus believed that Cuba was mainland China and thought Hispaniola was possibly Japan. He also thought that somewhere in the vicinity of Venezuela was the Garden of Eden, which Columbus referred to as "the nipple of the world." He likely believed these things when he died in 1506.
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If you've seen Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, you may have come away thinking that King John wasn't such an awful guy. Well, sometimes the truth hurts. And for all you King John apologists out there, the truth will cut your heart out like a spoon. Here's the messed up truth about this subpar king.
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Queen Victoria wore black for 40 straight years after her first cousin and only husband, Prince Albert, died at the age of 42. They enjoyed "an extraordinarily happy marriage" per Biography. Here's the truth about Prince Albert's death.
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When French emperor turned exile Napoleon Bonaparte turned into a corpse in 1821, his doctor apparently thought it would do no harm to take an anatomical souvenir, in the form of his "Little Napoleon." But bigger questions remain... How did Napoleon die in the first place?
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Vincent Van Gogh, a Dutch gentleman living in France with a lot of feelings, liked a girl very much... enough to cut his ear off like a slice of gushing honeydew. He then had the disembodied ear sent to his lady love in history's first recorded case of a man offering unreciprocated aural.
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In 2018, the AV Club published the scrumptious headline, "The young Pope John XII died as he lived: Fornicating." It simultaneously raises eyebrows and stokes lowbrow thoughts, thoughts that might normally make a pious man feel guilty as sin. Luckily, it's hard to sin as much as Pope John XII.
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Mozart died at just 35 years of age. His physicians blamed a "severe military fever," per the BBC. There was no autopsy. Ever since, theories -- conspiracy and otherwise have swirled. But what really killed him?
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