Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Dec 23, 2020 12:54:18 GMT
20DEC
In 69CE Priscus enters Rome to claim the title of Emperor for Nero's former general Vespasian. Thus is the infamous Year of the Four Emperors is brought to an ens, stable government restored and the Flavian dynasty begun. I'm not going to go into detail about Vespasian's life and reign; he's a towering figure in Roman history, though his only Whovian connection is a reference in the novelisation of The Romans. I've speculated in this thread about scenerios involving Vespasian and the Year of the Four Emperors but there is one interesting aspect to his reign that might be inspirational; the early period of Vespasian's time as emperor, loosely between 71 and 79CE, there is very little surviving information, much of the period is a mystery. Historians report that Vespasian ordered the construction of several buildings in Rome, he survived several conspiracies against him and weathered the grain panic of 70CE.
- Rome was a massive importer of food, and hence extremely vulnerable to disruptions in trade (this would eventually cause the abandonment of the city during the decline of the empire). On average about 8,000 tonnes of wheat were imported weekly. In 70E adverse winds delayed grain shipments from Africa and Egypt, producing a bread shortage and panic among the populace.
There was also the Siege of Jerusalem in which Vespasian's heir Titus was involved (am I the only one intrigued by the use of a thunderbolt on the standard of the Legio XII?)
In 1192 Richard I of England is captured and imprisoned by Leopold V of Austria on his way home to England after the Third Crusade. There had long been bad blood between the two men; during the crusade Richard had quarrelled with Leopold over the deposition of Isaac Komnenos and also objected to Leopold's banner being raised alongside the English and French standards (Leopold was a vassal of the Holy Roman Emperor) which led to Leopold leaving the crusade at Acre immediately. On his return bad weather forced Richard's ship to put in at Corfu, which was part of the lands of the Byzantine Emperor Isaac II Angelos, whom Richard had annoyed by annexing Cyprus (formerly Byzantine territory). Richard and four attendants, disguised as Knights Templar, sailed from Corfu but their ship was wrecked near Aquileia. Richard and his party were forced into a dangerous land route through central Europe. Richard hoped to make his way to the safe territory of his brother-in-law Henry the Lion, but was captured near Vienna by Leopold of Austria, who accused Richard of arranging the murder of his cousin Conrad of Montferrat (which is quite possibly true). Then there were the personal insults during the taking of Acre....
Leopold imprisoned Richard at Dürnstein Castle, but the detention of a crusader was illegal so Pope Celestine III excommunicated Duke Leopold. In 1193 (28MAY) Richard was brought to Speyer and handed over to Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI, who imprisoned him in Trifels Castle. Henry VI also didn't like Richard and objected to the support the Plantagenets had given to the family of Henry the Lion and by Richard's recognition of Tancred in Sicily.
- Plus there was the money; Richard was a valuable captive....
The Emperor demanded 150,000 marks (100,000 Troy pounds of silver, about 37.3 tonnes) for Richard. This was an immense sum, easily twice the annual income for the English Crown and led to a raft of new taxes and impositions in England. The money to purchase the King was transferred to Germany by the Emperor's ambassadors, but "at the king's peril" (had it been lost along the way, Richard would have been held responsible); Richard was released. on 04FEB1194.
In 1334 Cistercian Jacques Fournier is accidentally elected Pope Benedict XII. It may seem odd to have a pope elected 'accidentally' but the circumstances were unusual. At the time the papacy was located in Avignon, and heavily influenced by the French kings. The conclave opened on 13DEC1334 with a majority (well over two thirds of the 24 cardinal-electors) favouring the Bishop of Porto, Cardinal Jean-Raymond de Comminges, to become pope. However the majority also didn't want to return the papacy, and themselves to Rome, which they viewed (probably correctly) as violent, unfriendly and plague ridden. As the cardinal refused to give an undertaking not to try an return the papacy to Rome he was not elected. Then the electors discussed the alternatives and several votes were taken to 'sound out' the support for various candidates; one of these votes, to the immense surprise of those present, gave Fournier (considered something of a non-entity) the necessary two-thirds vote and he was elected.
- Anyone for a spot of church politics?
In 1803 a flag-raising ceremony in the Plaza de Armas (now Jackson Square) in New Orleans sees the Louisiana Purchase formally completed.
In 1808 during the Peninsular War, the Siege of Zaragoza begins. The siege would last until late February and noted for its brutality. On 20DEC the French forces arrived and encircles the city.A gradual reduction of the outer fortifications began almost immediately. When the city surrendered on 20FEB it lay in ruins, and around 54,000 people were dead. The city considered the Florence of Spain was completely destroyed, losing many emblematic buildings like Abbey of Santa Engracia or the houses of the kingdom, the government headquarters of the medieval era.
In 1832 HMS Clio, under the command of Captain Onslow, arrives at Port Egmont under orders to take possession of the Falkland Islands.
- What interesting experiences might await them
In 1917 the All-Russian Extraordinary Committee to Combat Counter-Revolution and Sabotage, better known as the Cheka, the first Soviet secret police force, is founded under the leadership of Felix Dzerzhinsky.
- These will prove awkward for the Doctor and Zoe in Uzbekistan.
In 1924 Adolf Hitler is released from Landsberg Prison.
In 1946 the popular Christmas film It's a Wonderful Life is premiered at the Globe Theatre in New York City. The film gains mixed reviews and is a commercial flop.
In 1948 during the Indonesian National Revolution, the Dutch military captures Yogyakarta, the temporary capital of the newly formed Republic of Indonesia, during Operation Kraai. By 1949 the situation, international pressure on the Netherlands and the military stalemate, becomes such that the Dutch recognised Indonesian independence.
In 1951 The Experimental Breeder Reactor I in Arco, Idaho becomes the first nuclear power plant to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs, producing less than a kilowatt. In fact EBR-I was a test of the concept of fuel 'breeding', producing fissionables through nuclear reactions. EBR-I subsequently generated sufficient electricity to power its building, and continued to be used for experimental purposes until it was decommissioned in 1964.
In 1952 a United States Air Force C-124, operating as part of "Operation: Sleigh Ride", the return of US personnel from the Korean War home for Christmas, crashes and burns in Moses Lake in Washington state. 87 people are killed but there were 27 survivors. The aircraft's wing clipped the ground during the take-off.
In 1968 high school students Betty Lou Jenson and David Faraday are murdered on Lake Herman Road, just inside Benicia city limits, in Vallejo, California. At about 10:15PM, Faraday parked his mother's Rambler in a gravel turnout, which was a well-known lovers' lane. Shortly after 11PM their bodies were found by Stella Borges, who lived nearby. The killings are the first attributed to the so-called Zodiac Killer.
In 1971 the international aid organization Doctors Without Borders is founded by Bernard Kouchner and a group of journalists in Paris, France.
- An interesting group, members of which could appear in a scenario, having uncovered something nasty, found a new pathogen or alien influence or have called for help.
In 1973 the Prime Minister of Spain, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, is assassinated by a car bomb attack in Madrid, near the San Francisco de Borja Church on Calle de Serrano while he returned from daily mass
In 1984 at 5:50AM a train pulling thirteen tanker cars, holding over a million litres of petrol, entered the northern (Yorkshire) end of the 2.6km Summit Tunnel, travelling at about 65km/h). One-third of the way through the tunnel, a defective axle bearing derailed the fourth tanker, which caused the derailment of those behind. Only the locomotive and the first three tankers remained on the rails. One of the derailed tankers fell on its side and began to leak petrol into the tunnel. Vapor from the leaking petrol was probably ignited by the damaged axle box. The Summit Tunnel fire burned for days; initially the fire caused the release of fuel from the undamaged tankers and intensified sufficiently to melt steel and vitrify brickwork, with eruptions of flame and expanding vapour explosions as well. Eventually the tunnel was sealed and the fire allowed to burn out. The tunnel was closed for repairs for eight months.
- An interesting incident; was the fire an accident? Or an attempt to defeat something that escaped from the ground under Stephenson's tunnel?
In 1987 probably the world's worst peacetime maritime disaster occurs in the Tablas Strait of the Philippines when the overloaded the passenger ferry Doña Paz sinks after colliding with the oil tanker MT Vector. The death toll was officially 1,749 but it is known that thousands of people were not recorded on the ferry and around four thousand dead is the accepted figure. There were 25 survivors of the sinking, oil and sharks. The MV Doña Paz was a Japanese built and Philippine refurbished passenger ferry travelling from Leyte island to the Philippine capital of Manila; the vessel was seriously overcrowded, with at least 2,000 passengers not listed on the manifest. Her equipment (radio and life-jacket provision) were also defective. The MT Vector was unseaworthy, operating without a license and lacked lookout or qualified master.
In 1995 American Airlines Flight 965, a Boeing 757, crashes into a mountain 50 km north of Cali in Colombia, killing 159. Five passengers, all seated within two rows of each other, survived the initial impact, but one died two days later of his injuries; a dog, who had been in a carrier in the cargo hold at the time of the crash, survived the accident.
In 2007 the Portrait of Suzanne Bloch, by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, and O Lavrador de Café by Brazilian modernist painter Cândido Portinari, are stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art.
In 2019 the United States Space Force becomes the first new branch of the United States Armed Forces since 1947.[10]
Ideas? Suggestions? Comments?
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Dec 23, 2020 23:14:40 GMT
Luis Carrero Blanco,Cândido Portinari,Bernard Kouchner,Betty Lou Jenson,David Faraday, Pope Benedict XII,Jacques Fournier,Felix Dzerzhinsky,Pope Celestine III,Pablo Picasso,Vespasian,Lucius Neratius Priscus, Helvidius Priscus,Jean-Raymond de Comminges,Emperor Isaac II Angelos,Stella Borges,Titus, and Henry the Lion are good people to meet. And the Louisiana Purchase could be averted in a alternate history.
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Dec 24, 2020 21:15:30 GMT
Ah f***, another post eaten by the forum software. And a "Bad Request" on recovery.
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Dec 24, 2020 21:37:03 GMT
well hopefully a Christmas miracle will happen.
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Dec 31, 2020 17:04:07 GMT
well can this be restarted?
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Dec 31, 2020 18:28:28 GMT
I have stuff happening atm, perhaps next week.
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Dec 31, 2020 22:15:48 GMT
ah just wondering happy new year!
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Jan 4, 2021 12:34:45 GMT
21DEC
In 1124 Lamberto Scannabecchi is consecrated as Pope Honorius II, having been elected after the controversial dethroning of Pope Celestine II. This was a more-than-usual episode of murky Roman politics, and the culmination (more-or-less) of a long period of stresses building within the Curia and within the Roman nobility. Events came to a head after the death of Callixtus II on 13DEC1124. Previous popes, Urban II and Paschal II, had seen an expansion in the College of Cardinals of members of Italian origin, who were connected into the secular politics of Rome and strengthening the local Roman influence. Callixtus II had appointed cardinals who were mainly French or Burgundian and this factionalised the college; the mainly older Italian cardinals considered their newer brethren to be dangerous innovators. The Italian faction were reluctant to meet with the newer cardinals (the Northern faction) and were determined to resist their increasing influence within the Curia. The Northern cardinals were led by Cardinal Aymeric de Bourgogne (who as Papal Chancellor exercised substantial power) and were equally determined to ensure that the elected pope would be one of their favoured candidates. The Italian faction was led by Jonathas, the Cardinal-Deacon of Santi Cosma e Damiano. Both groups looked towards the great Roman families for support. These families had consolidated around factions who dominated local politics in Rome; the Frangipani family controlled the region around the fortified Colosseum and supported the Northern cardinals the Pierleoni family controlled the Tiber Island and the fortress of the Theatre of Marcellus and supported the Italian cardinals. After the death of Callixtus it was agreed that the election of the next pope should occur three days later, on 16DEC, in accordance with church law.
The preferred candidates were; Supported by the Frangipani (led by their patriarch, Leo Frangipani) and the Northern faction was Lamberto Scannabecchi. Supported by the Italians and the Pierleoni family was Saxo de Anagni, the Cardinal-Priest of San Stefano in Celiomonte.
On 16DEC the Cardinals assembled in the chapel of the monastery of St. Pancratius (attached to the south of the Lateran basilica) to discuss and vote; the Cardinals unanimously elected Theobaldo Boccapecci as Pope, who took the name Celestine II. During the ceremony, with Boccapecci still putting on the red mantle, an party of armed Frangipani supporters burst in, attacked the newly enthroned Celestine, who was wounded, and acclaimed Lamberto as Pope (a pre-planned attack, organised with Cardinal Aymeric). Legally Celestine had not been consecrated pope and, seeing the situation around him, the wounded man declared himself willing to resign. Meanwhile Scannabecchi had been proclaimed Pope and taken the name Honorius II in the confusion. The Pierleoni and their supporters refused to accept Scannabecchi and Rome descended into factional infighting, with skirmishes in the streets.
Cardinal Aymeric and Leo Frangipani then engaged in a campaign of bribery, threats, intimidation and promised to win over the people of Rome, the City Prefect, Urban and elements of the Pierleoni family. After a few fraught days Celestine's supporters abandoned him, leaving Honorius the only contender for the papal throne. Honorius was not willing to accept the throne in such a manner, resigned his position before all of the assembled Cardinals and was immediately and unanimously re-elected and consecrated on 21DEC.
Honorius had come from a humble background but was an intelligent and able cleric and administrator, which had seen him promoted up through the ecclesiastical hierarchy. His pontificate was concerned with ensuring that the privileges the Roman Catholic Church had obtained through the Concordat of Worms were preserved and, if possible, extended. He was the first pope to confirm the election of the Holy Roman Emperor and also approved the new military order of the Knights Templar in 1128.
In 1140 Conrad III of Germany besieges Weinsberg, in the modern state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany (though then part of the Holy Roman Empire). The siege was a decisive battle between two dynasties, the Welfs and the Hohenstaufen, for control of the HRE On the death of the Holy Roman Emperor, Lothair II, in 1137, Henry the Proud (who'd married Lothair's only child, Gertrude) was the Welf heir to his deceased father-in-law (and also possessed the crown jewels). However in the election for emperor (held in Frankfurt in February), he was opposed by many of the local princes, so Conrad III, a Hohenstaufen was elected emperor on 02FEB. Conrad's actions, specifically granting the Duchy of Saxony to Count Albert the Bear, aroused anger among the Saxons and started a rebellion. The siege would be one among many such events in a rather bloody period of history but is noted for an odd event, known as the Women of Weinsberg or the Loyal Wives. Conrad had endured a long siege and was annoyed by the degree and tenacity of the city's resistance, so he had resolved to destroy Weinsberg utterly and imprison or kill its defenders. After a surrender was negotiated (Conrad had defeated the relief force), he paused and allowed the women of the to leave with whatever they could carry on their shoulders. Those women left behind their possessions and carried their husbands/brothers/sons on their shoulders and slowly made their way out of the town. When Conrad saw what was happening he laughed and accepted the women's clever trick, saying that a king should always stand by his word.
- Now, there is no real proof that this happened (it seems to have originated in the Royal Chronicle of Cologne decades later), and similar stories are linked to other sieges in the Middle Ages but it's an interesting story and the kind of idea that would strike a certain Time Lord.....
A century later, in 1237, the siege of the city of Ryazan ends with less magnanimity; the city is sacked by the Mongol army of Batu Khan. Ryazan was the first Russian city to be besieged by the Mongol invaders under Batu Khan who'd invaded the Rus' principality of Ryazan that autumn. The Prince of Ryazan, Yuriy Igorevich, asked for help but no aid was forthcoming; the vanguard of the Ryazan army was defeated by the Mongols at the Voronezh River and on 16DEC the city came under siege. While the first Mongol attacks were repelled, the Mongols used catapults to destroy the city's fortifications. On 21DEC the city was stormed with most of the inhabitants killed in a days long orgy of rape, torture, murder, looting and arson.
In 1361 during the the Spanish Reconquista the Battle of Linuesa is fought in the municipality of Huesa by the forces of the Emirate of Granada and the combined army of the Kingdom of Castile and of Jaén. The battle ended in a Castilian victory. The Muslim troops of the Emirate of Granada had invaded Jaén towards the end of 1361, pillaging and burning as they went, taking many slaves and amassing much loot. They arrived at a river crossing and attempted to dislodge the Castialian forces to force a crossing. The Castilian-Leonese forces advanced on the Muslim troops in return and routed them completely; they were slaughtered almost to a man. Afterwards a disagreement erupted between the commanders of the troops and king Peter I over the distribution of the loot recovered.
In 1598 the revolting Mapuche, led by cacique Pelentaru, inflict a major defeat on Spanish troops in southern Chile at the Battle of Curalaba. The battle saw the where Mapuche people, led by Pelantaru, ambush and decisively defeat Spanish conquerors led by Martín García Óñez de Loyola at Curalaba in southern Chile. The battle marks the end of the Conquest of Chile and unleashed a general Mapuche uprising that resulted in the Destruction of the Seven Cities.
In 1620 William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims land on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth (in what is now Massachusetts, then the Plymouth Colony)
- In fact, while a much storied part of American history, there are a multitude of inaccuracies in the legend of the 'Mother Rock'. Firstly most of the settlers had actually disembarked the previous month at Providence (and were busy surveying the bay area) and secondly the chunk of rock almost certainly wasn't the disembarkation point at Plymouth (it's not mentioned in contemporaneous sources and the legends only started 120 years later) and would have been an awkward landing spot.
- Though the chunk of rock (it's technically Granodiorite, a geological relative of granite, and is not native to the bay area) has a fascinating history. When it entered the record, in 1741 as an obstacle to the building of a wharf, it weighed perhaps nine tonnes; today barely three tonnes remains with the rest having been chipped or broken off as souvenirs or lost in the stone's peregrinations. In 1774 an attempt was made to move the rock to a new home in the town square, this split the rock in two, horizontally. This was believed to portend an irreversible rupture between England and the American colonies (and may have been deliberate). The upper half was transported to the town square (Liberty Pole Square) where it was used as a political focus, to stir up feelings for independence in the run-up to the American Revolution. That piece later travelled to the Plymouth meeting house and later to the Pilgrim Hall. In 1825 this half was broken in two (and much small rubble which was souvenired by many) and mortared back together In 1880 the two pieces, rather diminished, were reunited (with the aid of cement), though in 1920 the whole lump was moved (temporarily) to allow for reconstruction of the wharves. Further reconstruction work was needed in the 1980s to prevent the rock disintegrating.
- The actual origin of the rock is controversial; in the early twentieth century there were geological investigations to seek it's true origin, which led to the shocking conclusion that it might be Canadian.... This led to disputes between the Governor of Massachusetts and the University of Rochester and it was decided that Cape Ann was a more acceptable origin.
- But what if the Rock is not mere rock? Might it have strange, mystical properties? A psionically active crystal structure that leads to it causing psychic amplification or resonance? Which might have interesting implication given that there are hundreds of chunks of it around the United States....
- Or might the rock be a living organism (a relative of the Ogri perhaps?) based around silicon or strange crystal structure. Might there be a hidden history of blood sacrifices to the Rock, that those appeasing it do not remember?
In 1826 American settlers in Nacogdoches then in Mexican Texas, declare their independence, starting the Fredonian Rebellion. As mentioned previously the rebellion, the first attempt by Anglo settlers in Texas to secede from Mexico, is ended within a month.
In 1832 Egyptian forces decisively defeat Ottoman troops at the Battle of Konya (in modern Turkey) during the Egyptian–Ottoman War. The battle brought the war to an end, with the Egyptians having been almost totally victorious throughout the Levant. The battle took place on the Konya-Constantinople road, just north of the ancient walled town of Konya, on a three kilometres wide flat plateau between hills on the west and swampland on the east. The Egyptian army had its back to the town (facing north) and the day was cold, damp and extremely foggy even at noon when the clash began. The overwhelming Egyptian victory forced the Ottomans to accept a humiliating peace settlement.
In 1844 the Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers commences business at its cooperative in Rochdale in England, starting the Cooperative movement.
In 1872 the Challenger expedition begins when HMS Challenger, commanded by Captain George Nares, sails from Portsmouth in England. The three-and-a-half year voyage of exploration would see hundreds of measurements (water depth, temperature, salinity et cetera) taken and thousands of geological and biological samples were obtained over the course of a voyage of around 130,000km. More than four thousand previously unknown species were catalogued, the Marianas Trench and Mid-Atlantic Ridge discovered and oceanogrphy established as a science. The Challenger initially travelled south from England into the South Atlantic, around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa into the rough seas of the southern Indian Ocean, across the Antarctic Circle to Australia and New Zealand. Then Challenger headed north to the Hawaiian Islands, south again around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America into the Atlantic, to return to England in May of 1876.
- Who knows what oddities the ship's trawls might have brought up? Species from the dawn of time, alien or Earth Reptile artefacts, crashed things from outer space and more
In 1879 Henrik Ibsen's play A Doll's House at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen. The play was sensational and quite controversial for the period, dealing with the fate of a married woman (lacking opportunities for self-fulfillment in a male-dominated world) and spawning a storm of outrage that spread around the world, via newspapers and became a topic of general society.
In 1907 the Santa María School massacre sees the Chilean Army massacre more than two thousand striking saltpetre miners, and their families, in Iquique. At the time the Chilean nitrate mining ('Chile saltpetre' of calcium nitrate) era was at its height, and immensely profitable.
- I've mentioned previously the importance of natural sources of nitrates, for explosives and fertiliser, in the period before the Haber-Bosch process was developed. This included war fought over guano.
The massacre ended the strike and destroyed the workers' movement for over a decade.
In 1910 an underground explosion at the Hulton Bank Colliery in Over Hulton, Westhoughton kills 344 miners. The Pretoria Pit disaster occurred at about 7:50AM in No. 3 pit (known as the Pretoria Pit), probably due to the detonation of an accumulation of flammable gas and coal dust from a roof collapse the previous day. Aout nine hundred men and boys were starting work on the day shift with 349 workers descending the No 3 shaft. Only four survived to be brought to the surface, and two of these died later.
In 1912 the first full-colour film, The Miracle, premieres at the Royal Opera House in London. Produced by Joseph Menchen and directed by Michel-Antoine Carré, each film panel was hand-painted to achieve the full-colour effect. The film became a major hit and was showcased around Europe in 1913 (perhaps to be seen in Ostend or Brussels that year?)
In 1913 Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World as part of the page of puzzles for the "Fun" section of the Sunday edition of the newspaper. The "Word-Cross Puzzle" had a diamond shape and a hollow centre, and involved filling in words in answer to clues provided. A few weeks after the first "Word-Cross" appeared, the name of the puzzle was changed to "Cross-Word" as a result of a typesetting error.
That day an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 struck Yunnan, China, killing at least 942 people. Another 112 were injured, and scores of homes were destroyed.
In 1919 American anarchist Emma Goldman is deported to Russia after completing a two year fail sentence for conspiring to "induce persons not to register" [for conscription]. Goldman was initially supportive of the October Revolution that brought the Bolsheviks to power, Goldman changed her opinion in the wake of the Kronstadt rebellion and denounced the Soviet Union for its violent repression of independent voices. She left the Soviet Union and in 1923 published a book about her experiences, My Disillusionment in Russia. While living in England, Canada, and France, she wrote an autobiography called Living My Life. Later Goldman travelled to Spain after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, to support the anarchist revolution there.
In 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the world's first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theatre.
In 1946 a powerful, magnitude 8.1, earthquake and subsequent tsunami strike Nankaidō in Japan, killing over 1,300 people and destroying forty thousand homes.
- While somewhat geologically unusual the 1946 Nankaido earthquake was probably not the result of the operation of a piece of recovered alien, or reverse-engineered Mad Science, technology based on the Tesla Oscillator.
In 1948 the Republic of Ireland comes into existence with the passage of the eponymous act.
In 1963 "Bloody Christmas" begins in Cyprus, when an argument between a small party of Turkish revellers and a taxi driver clash with Greek Cypriot police. It ultimately results in the displacement of around thirty thousand Turkish Cypriots, the destruction of more than one hundred villages and around five hundred deaths. The intercommunal violence between the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots amounted to a small civil war. The incident that sparked the events of Bloody Christmas occurred during the early hours of 21DEC1963 when Greek Cypriot police in Nicosia demanded to see the identification papers of some Turkish Cypriots who were returning home in a taxi from an evening out. When the police officers attempted to search the women in the car, the driver objected and an argument ensued. Soon a crowd gathered and shots were fired. By the following dawn two people were dead and eight others seriously injured.
Earlier that evening the BBC begin transmission of the second serial of the science-fiction drama series Professor X. The story, named 'The Mutants' introduced the Ladek cyborgs, the most famous of all the nemeses in the programme's history. Though of course the first episode ('The Dead Planet') the Ladek does not appear on-screen.
Also that day TIROS-8 was launched into orbit; it would become the first weather satellite to relay digital images back to Earth in real time, using the then-new technology of automatic picture transmission. The first photos were sent to Earth at 11:30AM (US Eastern time) as it passed over the east coast of the United States on its fourth orbit, and showed the cloud cover along the Atlantic seaboard.
- What else might it have seen?
In 1967 Louis Washkansky, the first man to undergo a human-to-human heart transplant, dies in Cape Town in South Africa, having lived for 18 days after the transplant.
In 1968 Apollo 8 is launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.
- An excellent opportunity for them to witness something strange.
In 1988 a bomb explodes on board Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie in Scotland, killing 270 people. The details of the bombing, especially where the device was loaded onto the aircraft, are still disputed.
Also that day the enormous Antonov An-225 Mriya, the largest aircraft in the world, has its first flight The An-225 is truly huge, a six-engined monster that was developed to move the Soviet space shuttle orbiter Buran but later became a super-heavy lift cargo plane, able to carry single payloads (generally locomotives) of around 190 tonnes or cargoes of 250 tonnes.
- Historically only one An-225 was completed (and the Buran programme terminated) with a second airframe awaiting completion, but in the Whoniverse there might well be a small fleet of the aircraft; they'd make an excellent large transport (perhaps for retrieving small crashed spacecraft) or command centre. Especially if modified with Bracewell technology (as in the Black Archive sourcebook).
In 1989 the Romanian Revolution hots up when a propaganda speech by long time Communist Party General Secretary (and national dictator) Nicolae Ceaușescu goes badly wrong. The revolution had started in the city of Timișoara and was spreading throughout the country; on the morning of 21DEC Ceaușescu addressed an assembly of approximately 100,000 people to condemn the uprising in Timișoara. Communist Party officials took great pains to make it appear that Ceaușescu was still immensely popular and had bused in thousands of workers (whose attendance was not voluntary) and rounded up bystanders on Calea Victoriei. While Ceaușescu was addressing the crowd from the balcony of the Central Committee building something happened; for an unknown reason the outskirts of the crowd surged suddenly and loud noises (variously described as fireworks, bombs or gunfire) were heard. The assembly rapidly broke into chaos and the frightened crowd tried to disperse; someone began using loud speakers to spread the news that the Securitate (Romanian secret police) were firing on the crowd and that a "revolution" was beginning. This soon became reality and started a huge protest demonstration with rioting. Around this time the live television and radio broadcast was ended, but parts of the protest had already been broadcast and most of the Romanian people realised that something was happening. Ceaușescu, his wife Elena and other officials and party members panicked; Ceaușescu's bodyguard hustled him back inside the building. The protests continued, spread and grew that afternoon, with many people taking to the streets. Ceaușescu refused suggestions that he negotiate and decided to use force. Soon the protesters were confronted by troops and armed Securitate officers; the crowd was being shot at from various buildings, side streets and tanks. On the morning of 22DEC the Ceaușescus accepted that they had lost; around 6:40AM they received the news that large columns of workers were heading towards the city centre of Bucharest to join the protests. By 09:30 University Square was jammed with protesters and the security forces began to defect. Also that morning Vasile Milea, Ceaușescu's minister of defence, died under suspicious circumstances, probably killed by Ceaușescu's henchmen. This intensified the defections of the military to the revolution. The Ceaușescus were tried for genocide and other crimes on Christmas Day and elected later that day.
- Another of those odd events, this one surprisingly recent. What happened during the protest? Had someone planned events? Was the address being stage-managed by someone?
In 1992 A Dutch DC-10, flight Martinair MP 495, crashes at Faro Airport In Portugal during severe weather, killing 56. Most of the 340 people on plane survived, though over one hundred were badly injured. The cause of crash has been disputed (windshear versus pilot error) and has spawned a number of conspiracy theories (not least because Dutch records were sealed for eighty years)
In 2012 the Earth (probably) failed to end despite the widespread '2012 phenomenon'. This was a range of eschatological beliefs that cataclysmic or transformative events would occur on or around 21DEC2012, which was regarded as the end-date of a 5,126-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar.
- In fact festivities took place on 21DEC to commemorate this event in the countries that were once part of the Maya civilization, such as Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. The main events (at Chichén Itzá in Mexico and Tikal in Guatemala) were apparently free of supernatural interventions.
21DEC was proposed as the result of various astronomical alignments and numerological formulae; these ranged from the start of a period during which Earth and its inhabitants would undergo a positive physical or spiritual transformation (New Agers) to various pseudo-scientific theories of the arrival of the next solar maximum, a cataclysmic pole shift, an interaction between Earth and the supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy, or Earth's collision with the mythical planet Nibiru.
- An idea that just brims with scenario (or campaign) possibilities. Was the 2012 cataclysm, like the millennium crisis, actually averted by a lot of hard work, fighting off resurgent Martians, Cybermen invasions, extra-dimensional incursions, various temporal oddities and more?
- And how are the US elections, the throne of England, a bunker in Utah, the London Olympics and a fleeing athlete, a bunch of odd cubes, the death of Ryan Sinclair's mother and the new graphic novel connected?
Comments? Suggestions? Ideas?
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Jan 4, 2021 14:09:56 GMT
Leo Frangipani, Nicolae Ceaușescu,Louis Washkansky, Emma Goldman,Henrik Ibsen,Vasile Milea,Arthur Wynne,Joseph Menchen,Michel-Antoine Carré,Martín García Óñez de Loyola,Captain George Nares, Batu Khan, William Bradford,Lamberto Scannabecchi, Count Albert the Bear, Theobaldo Boccapecci,Conrad III, and Saxo de Anagni are good people to meet.And the 2012 nibiru collision could be a good end-of-campaign finale.
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Jan 5, 2021 22:21:45 GMT
I will be continuing with this thread (if there is interest) but on a less regular schedule due to other activities. Contributions by others are welcome.
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Jan 5, 2021 23:30:53 GMT
yep maybe we can revert back to the historical tidbit that i originally suggested i thought you might be more active here due to lockdown.
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Jan 6, 2021 14:06:45 GMT
yep maybe we can revert back to the historical tidbit that i originally suggested i thought you might be more active here due to lockdown. I'm in IT, I've been remote/home working for twenty years. And things have gotten rather busy in the last couple of weeks.
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Jan 6, 2021 16:20:32 GMT
ah just checking lets get this on the road!.
|
|
|
Post by missyfan45 on Jun 14, 2022 14:46:36 GMT
maybe we can resume this?
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Jun 15, 2022 20:11:30 GMT
I simply do not have the time necessary for these entries as before, now or in the foreseeable future. If anyone else wants to take over, please feel free.
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Jul 11, 2022 11:56:11 GMT
I'll have to recommend Charles Fort here. Not exactly a major historical figure but certainly an obscure one. He basically popularised and researched paranormal and supernatural events within his books relating to things such as ghosts, UFOS, animals and things falling from the sky etc, even these types of phenomena are named after him aka Fortean phenomena. He would make a great person to introduce into a campaign either in London or New York around the 1910s through to 1920s.
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Jul 11, 2022 13:16:38 GMT
I'll have to recommend Charles Fort here. Not exactly a major historical figure but certainly an obscure one. He basically popularised and researched paranormal and supernatural events within his books relating to things such as ghosts, UFOS, animals and things falling from the sky etc, even these types of phenomena are named after him aka Fortean phenomena. He would make a great person to introduce into a campaign either in London or New York around the 1910s through to 1920s. I’m sure the Fortean Society would also be a great boon to certain groups as the Misfit Mob or PROBE in the future. Just a bit difficult trying to separate the fact from fiction I guess when determining which cases need investigating.
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Jul 11, 2022 13:19:06 GMT
Hardly an obscure historical figure by any means but I’m rather surprised there has not been an adventure focusing on Inspector Abberline. The man who famously failed to catch the Ripper. Think there’s definitely an adventure focusing on your group having to assist him when his investigation is threatened by a group of errant Ripperologists from the future who have travelled back in time to discover just who the elusive killer was.
It’s the sort of adventure you could probably do in any sort of tone ranging from comedic farce to serious drama commenting on how we tend to remember the villains over their victims.
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Jul 11, 2022 14:29:40 GMT
I'll have to recommend Charles Fort here. Not exactly a major historical figure but certainly an obscure one. He basically popularised and researched paranormal and supernatural events within his books relating to things such as ghosts, UFOS, animals and things falling from the sky etc, even these types of phenomena are named after him aka Fortean phenomena. He would make a great person to introduce into a campaign either in London or New York around the 1910s through to 1920s. I’m sure the Fortean Society would also be a great boon to certain groups as the Misfit Mob or PROBE in the future. Just a bit difficult trying to separate the fact from fiction I guess when determining which cases need investigating. The Modern day International Fortean Organisation could also work as well as a boon.
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Mar 25, 2023 13:52:53 GMT
Hmm. Not much of an historical figure but would make for a very interesting character to include in Doctor Who and I am shocked he is not featured in it but I am talking about J Allen Hynek. Hynek studied UFOs over in America and even was part of Project Blue Book (which would make for a cool American version of Torchwood imo) also known as the creator of the "close encounter" classification system of UFOs. He would be amazing as someone your players could contact or meet up with and have many alien encounters with.
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Mar 28, 2023 15:39:45 GMT
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_LiddellI quite like the idea of an adventure set during the elderly Alice Liddell’s (or rather Hargreaves at this point in time) visit to America. You could have the adventure centred on both the elderly and child version. With the senior Liddell’s memories altering thanks to the intervention of the PCs in her past ala Kazran Sardick. With of course, an appearance by Lewis Carroll himself.
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Apr 5, 2023 11:23:58 GMT
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_CollinsThis one would make for an interesting pure historical though. Floyd Collins was a caver who was trapped in a cave for 15 or so days stuck in an uncomfortable and dangerous position with multiple folks trying to get him out before succumbing to his death in the cave. The Mammoth cave system though is also very interesting as well though such as the Mammoth Cave wars.
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Apr 5, 2023 13:21:22 GMT
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_CollinsThis one would make for an interesting pure historical though. Floyd Collins was a caver who was trapped in a cave for 15 or so days stuck in an uncomfortable and dangerous position with multiple folks trying to get him out before succumbing to his death in the cave. The Mammoth cave system though is also very interesting as well though such as the Mammoth Cave wars. Hmm. Maybe the Trickster could have appeared to Mr Collins in one of those last days and made a deal with him to save his life? Thus creating a whole new timeline where he never perished but in doing so made him one of the Trickster’s pawns?
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Apr 5, 2023 13:40:10 GMT
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_CollinsThis one would make for an interesting pure historical though. Floyd Collins was a caver who was trapped in a cave for 15 or so days stuck in an uncomfortable and dangerous position with multiple folks trying to get him out before succumbing to his death in the cave. The Mammoth cave system though is also very interesting as well though such as the Mammoth Cave wars. Hmm. Maybe the Trickster could have appeared to Mr Collins in one of those last days and made a deal with him to save his life? Thus creating a whole new timeline where he never perished but in doing so made him one of the Trickster’s pawns? Honestly that could work. It certainly is something cool to consider. Honestly the Mammoth Cave system itself is certainly interesting based on what is really down there, perhaps a long lost Silurian civilisation waiting to be uncovered?
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Apr 5, 2023 14:21:18 GMT
Hmm. Maybe the Trickster could have appeared to Mr Collins in one of those last days and made a deal with him to save his life? Thus creating a whole new timeline where he never perished but in doing so made him one of the Trickster’s pawns? Honestly that could work. It certainly is something cool to consider. Honestly the Mammoth Cave system itself is certainly interesting based on what is really down there, perhaps a long lost Silurian civilisation waiting to be uncovered? Or possibly a Great Lake of Stahlman’s Ooze which is close to the surface? In fact, maybe you could combine the two. What would a Silurian-Primord hybrid look like? Especially one which would still possess a Silurian’s inherent psychic abilities.
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Apr 5, 2023 14:26:40 GMT
Honestly that could work. It certainly is something cool to consider. Honestly the Mammoth Cave system itself is certainly interesting based on what is really down there, perhaps a long lost Silurian civilisation waiting to be uncovered? Or possibly a Great Lake of Stahlman’s Ooze which is close to the surface? In fact, maybe you could combine the two. What would a Silurian-Primord hybrid look like? Especially one which would still possess a Silurian’s inherent psychic abilities. Oh that certainly would very interesting!
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Apr 28, 2023 19:33:56 GMT
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Hamilton_(writer)An extremely prolific writer and probably best known as the creator of the Billy Bunter Stories. He’s one of those figures who you could encounter in a Paternoster Gang campaign or even later on in his life circa the Fifties where Bunter is an established character. Considering how he once held the Guinness World Record for being the most published author I’m almost surprised the Master Brain of the Land of Fiction didn’t choose him to be the land’s new controller. With Hamilton in control would sort of shape would the Land take? A world where schoolboy japes reign supreme?
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Apr 28, 2023 21:41:57 GMT
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Hamilton_(writer)An extremely prolific writer and probably best known as the creator of the Billy Bunter Stories. He’s one of those figures who you could encounter in a Paternoster Gang campaign or even later on in his life circa the Fifties where Bunter is an established character. Considering how he once held the Guinness World Record for being the most published author I’m almost surprised the Master Brain of the Land of Fiction didn’t choose him to be the land’s new controller. With Hamilton in control would sort of shape would the Land take? A world where schoolboy japes reign supreme? A fascinating possible Master of the Land of Fiction; probably a different set of challenges for the PCs to handle when exploring The Land. Really The Writer (be he based on Hamilton or Hemyng) seems to have been a composite/expy of any of the now-forgotten writers of the Victorian/Edwardian period who churned out formulaic, though popular, stories within various genres.
A thought; how about Lester Dent (wiki) or Don Pendleton (wiki) as the Master of the Land. That might change the Land's characteristics rather drastically. Let alone someone like Laurence James (wiki) or some similar writer of post-holocaust adventures......
|
|
|
Post by soultaker666212 on Apr 28, 2023 21:57:06 GMT
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Hamilton_(writer)An extremely prolific writer and probably best known as the creator of the Billy Bunter Stories. He’s one of those figures who you could encounter in a Paternoster Gang campaign or even later on in his life circa the Fifties where Bunter is an established character. Considering how he once held the Guinness World Record for being the most published author I’m almost surprised the Master Brain of the Land of Fiction didn’t choose him to be the land’s new controller. With Hamilton in control would sort of shape would the Land take? A world where schoolboy japes reign supreme? I'd honestly recommend these videos from The Chosen Chimp
|
|
Catsmate
13th Incarnation
It's complicated....
Posts: 3,748
Favourite Doctors: Thirteen, Six, Five, Two, Eight, Eleven, Twelve, One, Nine...
Traits: Eccentric, Insatiable Curiousity.
|
Post by Catsmate on Apr 30, 2023 7:34:23 GMT
Ah, obsessive fandom....!
|
|