The culture and lifestyle of the people in the past were probably very different from ours, but badassery has always been there in every culture. Yes, historical people were pretty savage too!
This Reddit thread shares some of the biggest ‘go to hell’ moments in history that are quite interesting to know. Scroll below to read them and enjoy learning history!
More info: Reddit
#1
Image source: ComBlockWither, Samuel Sianipar
Symphony No. 7 (Shostakovich) was played in besieged Leningrad. And it was broadcasted on the radio, so nazi soldiers could hear it.
Imagine hearing “F**K YOU” from a city that you thought was already dead.
#2
Image source: akiba305, Jason Leung
In the late 1980s Nintendo and Sony developed a CD add-on for the Super Nintendo. Nintendo then pulled out of the partnership and opted to work with Phillips instead and released the CD-i.
This move was highly frowned upon because Nintendo had decided to ditch a fellow Japanese company over a foreign one. So Sony picked up the pieces of the project and tried to partner with Sega. The board of directors turned the idea down saying “that’s a stupid idea, Sony doesn’t know how to make hardware. They don’t know how to make software either. Why would we want to do this?”
At the end Sony released a game system by the name of Playstation in 1994 to compete with the Nintendo 64 and outsold their former partners nearly 3:1 plus it marked the first time that Nintendo wasn’t top dog since they released the NES.
#3
Image source: CircusMasterKlaus, wikipedia
The story of Khutulun, who was Genghis Khan’s great-great-granddaughter. She said she would marry whomever could beat her in a wrestling contest. If she won though, they had to give her 100 horses.
She died unmarried, with 10,000 horses.
#4
Image source: ShivasKratom3, Chris Curry
British prisoner of war in Nazi germany stitches a quilt. The Nazis put it out for show. Hidden in Morse code stitched in were the words “f**k hitler” and “god save the Queen”
#5
Image source: -Solarsoul-, Nastya Dulhiier
The first cell phone. The first call ever made from a cell phone was to a competitor’s landline. Big d**k energy
#6
Image source: JitteryBug, wikipedia
This is more petty, but when Taft bragged to his friends via telegram about scaling a mountain on horseback, that it was a few thousand feet, clear weather, all in all not too difficult, his friend replied, “HOW IS HORSE?”
#7
Image source: Amenra7, wikipedia
How about the moment slaves in Haiti realized they outnumbered their captors almost 10 to 1, revolted, and ultimately won their independence.
#8
Image source: NuggetBiscuits69
In the 1970s the small town of Vulcan, West Virginia asked for state funding to replace a bridge into town. The state legislature refused to grant Vulcan the funding they needed. Instead the town appealed to the Soviet Union for aid. After hearing about the request, the state legislature immediately granted over $1 million for the town to build a new bridge.
If a small town in WV asking for soviet funding in the middle of the Cold War isn’t a big middle finger to the state government, then I don’t know what is.
#9
Image source: -Inaros
Galvarino: Chilean warrior who had both his hands cut off by the conquistadors for raising arms against the Spanish. Instead of letting himself serve as a message of helplessness in the face of the invaders the crazy bastard strapped swords to his stumps and went on the warpath.
#10
“Stop sending people to kill me! We’ve already captured five of them, one of them with a bomb and another with a rifle… If you don’t stop sending killers, I’ll send a very fast working one to Moscow and I certainly won’t have to send another.”
Tito to Joseph Stalin
Image source: nb150207
#11
Image source: Mr_Henslee, wikimedia
So when France exiles Napoleon Bonaparte (the first time), they didn’t think to change out military personnel. So he basically rolls up to the first French outpost he gets to, says “‘sup” and begins reassembling an army. By the time he gets to Paris, he’s got enough forces that France is like “well. Welcome back.”
#12
Image source: Corteran, wikipedia
When Robert E. Lee decided to side with the South in the Civil War, to spite him the North used his property as a graveyard.
It is now Arlington National Cemetary.
#13
Image source: BridlingMage117, wikipedia
Sparta to Phillip II
Phillip wrote to Sparta that if he marches into Sparta he will raise the land, burn the crops, rape the women, and just destroy the city. Sparta replies back with a single word.
“If”
#14
Image source: TeAforempires, Nikolay Bruni
Olga of Kiev. When her husband died, the country that killed him assumed they’d just take over and force her into marriage.
She straight up killed the dignitaries that were sent to tell her she had to marry – multiple times, in the most intense way possible.
She then travelled to where her husband had been killed and basically burnt the place to the ground – again, in the most hardcore, amazing way.
They made her a freaking saint. Worth the read on Wikipedia!
#15
Image source: Billyjeter, wikipedia
Ferruccio Lamborghini was a rich man owning his company that built tractors, he talked to Ferrari about the imperfections of his car and how to improve them and they basically laughed at a young tractor mechanic trying to tell them about sport cars, so he decided to start making luxury sport cars to compete with Ferrari and thus, the rivalry was born. So i’d say the middle finger of this guy to Ferrari was pretty noticeable.
#16
A pirate known as jean lefitte had a bounty of $500 put on him by a governor. So he put a $5000 bounty on the governor
Image source: The-big-ouch
#17
Image source: JazzPhobic, wikipedia
The Achaemenid Empire had trouble conquering Egypt in the early part of their War so they decided to use the very embodiment of their holy figure against them. They literally had soldiers carry cats with them and painted cat heads on their shields so the Egyptians couldn’t fight back due to their beliefs and surrendered.
They literally pulled a “your god is our frontline”.
This is known as the Battle of Pelusium.
#18
Image source: BrittleBandit, wikimedia
When Otto von Bismarck was about 50, he was walking down a street when a man ran up to him and shot him five times. Otto then turned around and began to beat the absolute s**t out of him until some armed guards come to help him. When they inspected Otto for wounds, they found that all 5 hit, but they all either just grazed him or bounced off his ribs. Literally the iron chancellor.
#19
“I’d rather go to hell, with my noble ancestors, than to go to heaven and join the likes of you…”
Norse King tried to be converted to Christianity on threat of burning in hell for paganism
Image source: ShivasKratom3
#20
Image source: a_saddler, wikipedia
Caesar in his youth, before he became famous, was captured by pirates off the coast of Italy and held hostage.
He promptly befriended the pirates, getting drunk and shared stories while they waited for the ransom to be paid.
Later, after he was released, he went back to find and capture the same pirates, and ordered their deaths because they requested an insultingly low ransom for a man of his stature.
