Kitty War Hero

 

Simon was smuggled on board the HMS Amethyst by a 17 year old sailor who found the sick hungry cat in Hong Kong. The cat quickly made himself both useful and lovable presenting rats to beloved sailors and sleeping in the captains hat. The ship changed hands and the new captain loved Simon as well. As the ship took its first mission up the Yangtze river it was attacked by communists, in 1949, during the "Yangtze Incident." A cannon shot through the captains quarters killing the captain and injuring Simon badly. Simon was repaired by the ships doctors, but not expected to live the night. Simon recovered and was handed over to a third captain who was indifferent to his charm. The recovering Simon again made himself useful, killing off the rat infestation and raising morale. Simon is the only cat to have been rewarded the Dickin Medal, an award to honor valorous animals. He also received the blue cross, the Amythest Campaign Medal, and was given the rank "Able Seacat" created especially for him. Entering the U.K., Simon had to go through quarantine like all animals do. He died of a complication that was a result of a virus contractced through his war wounds

War Pigeons in World War I

During WWI,  before two way radios were available, messages were often sent by wired transmitter. However, when going into enemy territory, or covering rough terrain, lines could not be laid and in came the very important carrier pigeon.  Pigeons were transported in backpacks and even in tanks. and they carried their messages in tiny metal tubes tied to their leg or were fitted with cameras to spy on the enemy. War pigeons led very dangerous lives, the enemy often attempted to shoot them down in order to intercept and stop messages. Despite this the birds were highly effective and went on thousands of missions.

"The Mocker" was born in 1917, he took 52 trips before being wounded. On his final trip he lost his left eye and part of his head, but he made it anyway. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Croix de Guere. He died at the ripe old age of 20 (15 is a good age for a captive pigeon), and was the last of the pigeon war heroes to die.

In 1918 American forces were trapped in a small depression surrounded by Germans hiding in a ravine. They sent many pigeons to call for help but the 500 men were quickly falling under German fire, and only 200 men were left by the second day. When the Americans arrived that afternoon they began shelling the area where they thought the Germans were, little did they know they were dropping them right on their own people. The Major sent out their last carrier pigeon, Cher Ami, telling them to stop. As the remaining troops watched Cher Ami climb the Germans tried their hardest to shoot him down. Somehow the little bird escaped and flew 25 miles in 25 minutes and delivered his message. 

    "we are along the road parallel to 276.3" "our artillery is dropping a barrage directly on us" "for Heaven's sake, stop it."

 Cher Ami saved 194 lives and was awarded the Croix de Guere. He had been shot through the chest and through the leg, the mesage capsule was hanging by a few ligaments. He died a year later

In 1918, President Wilson the Pigeon was experienced at sending messages about artillery locations from tanks. When his unit came under attack he flew 25 miles in 25 minutes and where he delivered the call for backup. His left leg was completely shot off and he had a huge wound in his chest.

Kaiser was  born in 1917, a German pigeon captured by American Forces, Kaiser was a pigeon POW. Kaiser was enlisted in the carrier pigeon breeding program, he had more than 100 children who participated in both world wars. He lived to 33, he is the oldest pigeon on record and the only pigeon who participated in both world wars.

The phases of the 30 years war

The thirty years war went through four phases. I have previously discussed the Defenestration of Prague  you can see it here. This happened during the Bohemian Phase. The second is the Danish phase. The third phase was the Swedish phase, many of the mercenaries hired in this phase were Scottish. The last phase was the french phase. The last major battle of the war took place in Lens, France. The French were outnumbered but won the battle due to their superior cavalry.

Into the box

Imagine sleeping in a room the size of your bed, with a much lower ceiling. At one time box beds were one of the best sleeping options in Britain. Sleeping in essentially a large cabinet with holes carved for air the beds conserved body heat in the winter, offered privacy in one roomed homes, and kept unwanted chickens and children out of  your bed. Sometimes these box beds would be in a bunk bed style where the nimbler young people slept upstairs.

Peeing on Plants

Ancient Egyptians in the 1350s were the first to record a pregnancy test that had a basis in science. A papyrus from the time describes how an expectant woman could pee on a barley and wheat seed over a series of days and if it grew then the woman was pregnant. It is possible that higher levels of estrogen in the urine of pregnant women encouraged plant growth. In 1963, a study was done to test this method. the study found that about 70 percent of the time pregnant women's urine caused plants to show growth while men's and non pregnant women's urine did not. If you are interested in the study you can find it here.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1034829/?page=2