1. Nelson Mandela Before he became South Africa’s first Black president, Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison for his anti-apartheid activism. He was arrested in 1962 and sentenced to life in prison in 1964 for sabotage and conspiracy against […]

1. The War of Jenkins’ Ear (1739-1748) What’s the most ridiculous reason to start a war? How about a severed ear? In the early ’18th century, British merchant Robert Jenkins had his ear cut off by Spanish coast guards during

1. Ceylon → Sri Lanka Ceylon was the name given to this island nation by European colonizers, but in 1972, the country decided to reclaim its identity by officially becoming Sri Lanka. The name “Sri Lanka” has deep roots in

1. Saffron Saffron has long been the crown jewel of the spice world, with its deep golden hue and delicate floral flavor. Harvesting saffron is no small feat—it takes around 75,000 saffron crocus flowers to produce just one pound of

1. Rat Catcher Back in the day, cities were crawling with rats, and someone had to take care of the problem. Enter the rat catcher, a person who made a living by hunting and trapping these disease-carrying pests. They used

1. Henry VIII’s Church of England (1534) Henry VIII didn’t start out wanting to change Christianity—he just wanted a divorce. The Catholic Church wasn’t budging on his request to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, so Henry took matters

1. Lobster Believe it or not, lobster was once considered a poor man’s meal. Back in the ’17s and ’18s, these crustaceans were so abundant that they washed up onshore in piles, and people treated them like trash. In colonial