The 25 Funniest Historical Events

Photo Credit (Freepik)

1. The Australian military launched “The Great Emu War” following World War I in an attempt to use machine guns to kill emus. 2,500 rounds of gunfire had been fired six days after the first confrontation, but no emu had been killed. In the end, it was deemed an emu triumph. -Reference
2. In 1895, there were only two automobiles on the road in the entire state of Ohio, and the drivers of these two vehicles collided. -Reference
3. A letter protesting that England was being compelled to accept French prisoners who had been deported first surfaced in a major London newspaper in the late 1700s. The British wanted it to end because they were incensed. The clamour suggested that England was too good for French prisoners, which infuriated the French. Before it turned out to be a hoax, both countries got engaged and were on the verge of war. Years later, it was discovered that the original letter had been written by Benjamin Franklin, an ambassador during a six-month stay in England who was plain bored and chose to stir up problems while observing.
4. The earliest known instance of a “Mooning” occurred in 66 AD, when a Roman soldier harassed Jewish pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem. Thousands of people died as a result of the unrest and the Roman military’s overreaction. -Reference
5. The Turks had taken control of Greece in 1821. Greek fighters besieged a Turkish force on the Acropolis during Greece’s war for independence. When the Turks ran out of ammunition, they started breaking down the marble columns so they could utilize the lead inside as ammunition. “Here are bullets, don’t touch the columns,” was the message written on the ammunition the Greeks sent them. -Reference
6. A Nationalist stronghold was besieged early in the Spanish Civil War. With stronger air power locally, the Nationalists chose to drop supplies by air. Their chosen strategy for ensuring the goods reached the ground undamaged is what makes the situation humorous. Instead of using a parachute, each container had a turkey fastened to it. Although it couldn’t support the weight, it could delay the fall somewhat, and unlike a parachute, a turkey may be eaten. -Reference
7. Of the 80 soldiers deployed, 81 returned, including a new Italian “friend,” and none of them suffered injuries during Liechtenstein’s final military action in 1886. -Reference
8. When the Third Estate stormed the Bastille during the French Revolution, they rescued a total of 7 prisoners—that is, the only ones there at the time—one of which was Whyte de Malleville, an insane, inebriated Irishman who was unaware of what was happening.
9. In an effort to stir up trouble during the Opium War, the Chinese lit monkeys on fire and threw them towards British ships. -Reference
10. Russia practically ran out of vodka between the radio broadcast of Germany’s surrender during World War II and Joseph Stalin’s speech to the country 22 hours later. -Reference
11. The assassination of Austria’s Archduke Ferdinand was the direct cause of World War 1. Many people are unaware that Ferdinand’s automobile was blown up by a bomb during the first attempt at assassination. Ferdinand was only killed because a terrorist from the Black Hand, a Serbian group, happened to swing by the store to get a sandwich and noticed Ferdinand there. -Reference
12. In addition, the individual who hurled the grenade that detonated the automobile behind Franz Ferdinand was unaware that it included a 10-second timer. Things improve. After the attempt, he used the cyanide provided by the Black Hand to end his life, but it had run out, so all he could do was throw up a lot. He leaped into a nearby canal that was only two inches deep in an attempt to “seal the deal” of death. For him, it didn’t work out that well.
13. During World War II, the Americans dispatched two bombing squadrons to attack the same target, but one of them unintentionally arrived thousands of feet below the other. They didn’t see each other until after they had begun bombing. Surprisingly, none of the higher planes managed to destroy any of the lower ones, and the Germans believed they had devised a clever way to bomb a target twice as much. The Allies’ level of expertise alarmed the Germans.
14. The New Zealand Maori battalion was holed up in an orchard during the Battle of Crete during World War II, confronting a German regiment. The Germans believed that by having their leaders shout out the order to “fix bayonets” in anticipation of a bayonet charge, they would try to terrify the opponent. The Maori cheered upon hearing this since close quarters battle was highly regarded. Resolving not to charge, the Germans withdrew in silence. The term “Māori” was practically synonymous with British soldiers. They were known as the “Knife Men” for their relentless bayonet attacks and the mayhem they inflicted on the Germans with cold steel.
15. The Roman Emperor Caligula once called a huge assembly just to inform the attendees that he might have them all executed if he so desired. then adjourned the meeting. In addition, he battled Poseidon. He escorted ten thousand men to the water and gave them spear orders. Once, attempting to conquer Britain, he marched his whole army in the direction of the English Channel. After reaching the canal, he made up his mind not to invade Britain and gave his men the task of gathering seashells before returning home. -Reference

Giant Rabbit Jimmy Carter

16. In 1979, a gigantic swimming rabbit threatened US President Jimmy Carter. -Reference
17. Andrew Jackson’s beloved parrot had to be taken out of the burial in 1845 because it was cursing. – Source
18. In order to destroy German tanks during World War 2, Russians attached bombs onto dogs. The dogs would frequently run under Russian tanks and blow them up since the Russians trained them with their own tanks.
19. During a fight in a city in 272 BC, an elderly woman hurled a tile at King Pyrrhus of Epirus, knocking him unconscious and allowing an opposing soldier to slay him. -Reference
20. There is disagreement over whether God Save the Queen, the national hymn of England, has an English origin. The French Duchess of Brinon (Grand Dieu sauve le Roi), according to musician Percy Scholes’s dubious claim analysis, wrote it to commemorate France’s King Louis XIV’s recovery from an*l fistula. The procedure, which at the time involved opening the afflicted area (his royal ass) and thoroughly cleaning it, was quite dangerous. Without using any anesthetic. Unaware of the song’s original inspiration, British composer George Frideric Handel stole the melody after hearing it in France. -Reference

Paul Bunyan Operation

21. In order to clear a tree that was obstructing a view of a certain place within the Korean Demilitarized Zone, the United States launched Operation Paul Bunyan in 1976. To bring down a tree, they dispatched tanks, Special Forces, other vehicles, Tae Kwon Do experts, soldiers brandishing M-16s, grenade launchers, mines, artillery, helicopters, and so forth. -Reference
22. During the American Civil War, General J. Sedgwick said, “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this distance,” just before he was fatally wounded in the left eye. -Reference
23. The Great Schism of the Catholic Church was one of the most humorous events of the fourteenth century. When a group of cardinals entered Rome to choose a new pope, a vengeful mob threatened to kill them all if they did not choose an Italian pope over a French one. After returning to France, they chose a French pope to succeed the chosen Italian pope. Now, two popes were in power at the same time, each of them claiming the other was a fake, dividing Europe into two religious factions eager to use their differences as justification to destroy the other. The answer offered by the Catholic Church was to choose a new pope, but nobody supported him at all. There were now three popes, and each claimed that the other was not legitimate and that their adherents would all burn in hell. In the end, the Catholic Church removed all of the popes and chose a new one, making sure this time that there were no enraged crowds present. -Reference
24. A Protestant hurled a Catholic out of a third-story window in Prague in 1618, settling a theological conflict between the two groups. The protestants said that God was making fun of them because they survived by allowing them to fall into a carriage of horse poop, while the Catholic claimed that “The Hand of God” had saved him. It sparked a protracted battle or dispute. -Reference
25. The Bolognese suffered a great deal of embarrassment when three men from Modena stole a bucket from Bologna (both in Italy) in the 1300s. They lost the fight, which resulted in almost 2,000 deaths on both sides, and they were unable to take back the bucket.