You Can't Make This Up
In 897, this former pope's corpse was exhumed and put on trial by his successor
Who was Pope Formosus?
In 1518, residents of this European city reportedly began dancing uncontrollably for days or weeks, baffling local authorities
What is Strasbourg?
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What is Taiwan?
In 1995, this Indian port city officially adopted the name by which it is known today
What is Mumbai?
This document, exposed as a forgery in the 15th century, supposedly granted the pope authority over Rome and the western Roman Empire
What is the Donation of Constantine?
In medieval Europe, these animals could be tried and sentenced for killing people
What are pigs?
In 1919, a huge storage tank burst in this American city, unleashing a wave of molasses that flooded streets, damaged buildings, and killed 21 people
What is Boston?
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What is Argentina?
In 1976, this Vietnamese city was officially renamed in honour of the revolutionary leader who died in 1969
What is Ho Chi Minh City?
This Praetorian Guard prefect auctioned the imperial throne to Didius Julianus after the emperor Pertinax was murdered in 193 CE
Who was Titus Flavius Claudius Sulpicianus?
In this medieval trial by ordeal, an accused person would have to carry something, after which their bandaged hand was inspected three days later to determine if they were guilty
What is the ordeal by hot iron?
In 1184, a gathering of German nobles in this city ended when the building's floor collapsed, sending attendees into a latrine pit; causing as many as sixty deaths to human waste
What is Erfurt?
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What is Colombia?
Until 1982, the capital of Zimbabwe was known by this name, inherited from the British colonial era
What is Salisbury?
In the 1325 conflict between Bologna and Modena, this common object is often mistaken for starting a war
What is a Bucket?
In 1233, this pope issued Vox in Rama, a decree describing alleged heretical rituals involving a mysterious black cat
Who was Pope Gregory IX?
In 1618, protestant nobles threw two catholic royal governors and their secretary out of a castle window in this city sparking a war lasting thirty years
What is Prague?
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What is North Macedonia?
In 1984, the West African country formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta adopted this name meaning "Land of Incorruptible People"
What is Burkina Faso?
This French art thief turned author, often known as the most successful art thief of all time, stole up to $2bn of famous art works all while unmasked and unarmed
Who is Stephane Breitwieser?
According to accounts of a 1474 trial in Basel, this creature faced execution because it had done something, which people feared could hatch a monster
What is a rooster?
This European country remained at war with the Isles of Scilly for 335 years
What is the Netherlands?
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What is Eswatini?
In 1868, when the Meiji Restoration transformed Japan's political order, this city; then the seat of the Tokugawa shogunate, received the name it still uses today
What is Tokyo? (Formerly Edo)
This illustrated manuscript, written in an undeciphered script and filled with drawings of unfamiliar plants, astronomical diagrams, and bathing women, was acquired by rare book dealer Wilfrid Voynich in 1912
What is the Voynich Manuscript?