The movie star, Hedy Lamarr, once called the most beautiful woman in the world and the composer- the self-titled Bad Boy of Music, George Antheil, did indeed come up with the foundational idea, encoded frequency hopping, now called spread spectrum, from which innovations such as WIFI, Bluetooth and GPS were developed.

Believe it or not, the coding and methods similar to encryption were developed by the pair using piano player paper rolls.

A player piano is one in which, using the coded rolls, plays itself.

Sounds implausible, sounds like a myth, but it is all true

Beaumarchais- his efforts sending badly needed supplies to the colonies in the early days of the American War of Independence were vital in helping the Americans continue against the British.

It is even possible that there could have been a different outcome without the help of Beaumarchais

He was also a spy, a speculator, a libertine, a writer of famous plays- The Barber of Seville; The Marriage of Figaro; - He was an inventor who made pocket watches actually tell time with reliability.

He was even instrumental in the creation of copyright laws, which brought him fame but also nearly ruined him.

His life was a rollercoaster and his motto should have been- get obsessed, stay obsessed- as once he put his efforts into something, he was all in

Without a doubt, one of the most fascinating, interesting and yet unknown stories, in particular his efforts for the American colonies.

You have to hear this to believe it

What was the impact of a very rich noble from France that believed so much in the American War of Independence that he left the easy life behind and risked life and limb to make a difference? What was the impact he really made?

Well he made a very large impact and his story is fascinating and daring

Tune in and find out

Consanguinity is in this episode just as with the previous episode (royals marrying their cousins, roughly speaking)

Eleanor's sons revolt against their father, King Henry 2nd of England. Did she lead the revolt? Is she a dark arts kind of person or more golden halo?

Does she ever get a moment of peace?

Tune in and find out on History Pondered-

Eleanor of Aquitaine: Queen of France and later Queen of England.

Let's see: consanguinity (marrying your cousin), yup, that comes up a lot. Excommunication (getting thrown out of the church), that too is pretty common in this story.

Is Eleanor a sorceress, messing around with the dark arts and causing all sorts of trouble? Or is she the Golden Legend, who is all powerful despite all the kings and archbishops who try to stand in her way?

Or is her story something else entirely? Well, tune in and find out

#history, #middleages #france #england #aquitane #myths #legends

After the Battle of Leipzig and Napoleon's defeat, he is exiled. He comes back of course but he meets the Duke of Wellington at Waterloo. This is really the end for Napoleon. Wellington joins the British pantheon of national heroes

The battle itself...the five phases of the battle primarily all go Wellington's way although there are definitely some dicey moments. There is also a French general that marches his troops back and forth and back again....never meeting his opponent....quite hilarious actually

There were real world consequences to this plot, but likely not what you would expect. It reminds one how cultural hysteria, and the reasons for it, can lead to disastrous consequences.

The plot twist is one for the ages!

Unfortunate and absurd, although still understandable given the relatively recent Gunpowder Plot in England, this story is a fascinating look at the culture of England during the reign of Charles 2nd of England

If his sobriquet does not give it away, this episode sure will! Charles the Bad is the very opposite of chivalry and while he is bad and does bad things, he is the comic book super villain of the 100 years war.

. He is the kind whose schemes and shenanigans never work out! Worst still, a King of England and a King of France fall for his same scheme... more than once!

In a strange and comical way, he is one of my favorites of the 100 Years War epic. He stands out precisely because he is not chivalric at the height of chivalry. He is the type that does not have loads of books written about him...because he is bad. Check it out

Two women, in Littlehampton UK in the 1920s, have a battle. One of the women starts to send anonymous, obscene libelous letters, which are unintentionally hilarious. for some.

Yet serious consequences occur, and Scotland Yard is called in to investigate.

One of the women is Edith Swan. She is said to "have a good reputation." The other woman, Rose Gooding, well she is not thought about in the same way.

This is a small story that ended up being national news in the UK, and one that gives us a small glimpse into the lives of people....that are not Kings, Queens or generals and all that. All the same, there is more than one battle taking place and this story remains relevant today

Mists of Time, the romance of Camelot, the kingdoms of Mercia, Wessex, Northumbria and so on. Well, that is a clue regarding the question - English Kings? Warlords or kings or warlord kings....does sound not quite Camelot does it? Fear not however. Do to the Mists of Time...and the lack of much in the way of contemporary sources for a portion of the Anglo-Saxon kings, leaves us with mystery, with intrigue and a puzzle.

I had a lot of fun with this one and I hope you do too