Miscellaneous 2024, November

In the late 70s - early 80s of the twentieth century, this song was so popular that many considered it folk, and Lieutenant Golitsyn became one of the symbols of the White movement. But, nevertheless, this song has an author, and the lieutenant and the cornet had very real prototypes

At present, ivory carving and trade in such products are almost not practiced all over the world. Unfortunately, elephants, these beautiful animals, are on the verge of extinction, and hunting for them is prohibited almost everywhere. Let us admire the same unique masterpieces that were once created by the hands of Chinese masters. Incredible, painstaking work

It is known that wood is considered ideal for those trees that have smooth, flawless trunks. Karelian birch does not fit into the existing canons at all, but, nevertheless, it is one of the most valuable tree species. It is in the flaws that its true beauty lies - an unusual marble texture, over the solution of which scientists have been struggling for almost a hundred years

The focus on these holidays is, of course, the Gospel story about the Nativity of Christ: about the Star of Bethlehem over the cave, about the journey of the Magi and their worship of the baby Jesus Christ … Today is the time to remember the warm and touching Christmas stories, one of which belongs to the pen of the beloved many of the writer O. Henry

Do you want to surprise your guests for the New Year? Prepare this forgotten drink of our ancestors, which was previously brewed in every home. Hot, fragrant, warming, aromatic … Moreover, it is not at all difficult to prepare it

"Fridunskiy" is a tandem of two talented writers, who wrote only one story and an autobiographical book "58 ½: notes of a camp idiot", written after the death of one of them. And they gained fame thanks to their scripts, according to which excellent films were shot - "Two Comrades Served", "Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson", "Old, Old Tale", "Tale of Wanderings", "Burn, Burn, My Star", " Crew "and many others

There are many ancient structures in the world, and scientists are still struggling to unravel the construction of which. But it turns out that in the state of Florida there is a complex of structures called "Coral Castle", built in the XX century, which also keeps unsolved secrets. It was built by mason Edward Leedskalnin without the use of any construction equipment. It is completely incomprehensible how he managed to cope with multi-ton boulders alone, he did not share this secret with anyone

In the summer of 1912, while dismantling the ruins of one of the dilapidated houses on Cheapside Street, hastily erected after a terrible fire, two workers accidentally stumbled upon a half-rotted wooden box in the basement, inside which lay a lump of old, caked mud. But, looking more closely, the diggers noticed luminous sparks emanating from him. This is how the legendary treasure was found, numbering about five hundred jewelry. It made a lot of noise in the 20th century, and its importance can hardly be overestimated

After the overthrow of the Empire, the fate of the tiaras and diadems of Russian empresses and grand duchesses turned out to be unenviable - many of them were dismantled and lost without a trace. Only a few of them were lucky - almost intact they fell into private hands, some even to the queens. In Russia, there is only one tiara left, which you can admire at the Diamond Fund

The love story of the heir to the throne of the Romanovs and the famous English queen made a lot of noise both in the imperial court of Russia and in the English kingdom. How did it end?

For a long time, China was a rather closed country for the Western world. And the wives of the first persons of the state were also in the shadows, rarely appeared in public. And if they did appear, they did not give any interviews, they dressed very modestly, therefore they did not arouse much interest in anyone. But all this was easily changed by Peng Liyuan, the wife of comrade Xi Jinping - a popular favorite who has become a "visiting card of China"

In recent years, America has seen quite a few presidential couples walk out onto the lawn in front of the White House, hand in hand, smiling and happy. And we will start, perhaps, with John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline

Now it is surprising for many that for several centuries Russia, along with India, was the main supplier of pearls to European countries. Foreigners were speechless, seeing the abundance of pearls on Russian women. In Russia, they decorated everything in a row. Today, you can only admire the magnificent Russian pearls in museums. What happened to our pearls? Why is he missing?

Have you ever noticed that a funny face is "looking" at you from the washing machine? Or, looking at an ordinary soap dish, could you see a little man in it? This strange impression is called pareidolia - a type of visual illusion based on the details of a real object

On January 3, 1959, Alaska became the 49th US state, although these lands were sold to America by Russia back in 1867. However, there is a version that Alaska was never sold. Russia leased it for 90 years, and after the lease expired, in 1957, Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev actually donated these lands to the United States. Many historians argue that the agreement on the transfer of Alaska to the United States was not signed by either the Russian Empire or the USSR, and the peninsula was borrowed from Russia free of charge. Whatever it was

On December 31, 1863, a very significant event took place in Russia - drinking rentals were abolished, which meant the introduction of a state monopoly on the alcohol trade. This reform, according to historians, had several goals. First, fiscal, since the state wanted to increase treasury revenues, secondly, it was necessary to improve the quality of spirits, and thirdly, to increase the culture of their consumption. However, all this is still relevant today, and vodka itself, in its Russian history, does not

On December 27, 1927, Joseph Stalin, speaking at the All-Union Conference of Agrarian Marxists, made his famous speech, which actually meant the end of the NEP and the transition to the accelerated construction of socialism. It was in this speech that the leader of the peoples sounded: "Eliminate the kulaks as a class!"

“All weddings are alike, and each divorce is interesting in its own way,” wrote Will Rogers, an American actor and publicist, at one time. On January 10, 1810, the marriage of Emperor Napoleon I and Josephine was annulled. After the divorce, the couple managed to maintain friendly relations, and Josephine - the title of Empress. It is worth noting that this is far from the only broken up royal marriage, however, not all ended so civilized. Today are the ten most high-profile divorces in history

On December 26, 1825, an uprising of Russian noble revolutionaries against the autocracy took place, which went down in history as the uprising of the Decembrists. This uprising, on the one hand, caused an even more serious demarcation between the noble intelligentsia and the government, and on the other hand, it was not understood by the peasantry. Many facts of those events remain controversial for historians today

Historians called this empress an intelligent and kind, but at the same time disorderly and wayward Russian lady, who combined new European trends with pious patriotic antiquity. She opened the first university in Moscow and virtually abolished the death penalty in Russia. Today interesting facts about Elizabeth I Petrovna

On January 7, 1887, Thomas Stevens of San Francisco completed the first bicycle tour around the world. In three years, the traveler managed to overcome 13,500 miles and open a new page in the history of travel around the world. Today about the most unusual around the world

On January 8, 1783, the Russian envoy extraordinary Yakov Bulgak received a written consent from the Turkish Sultan Abdul-Hamid on the recognition of Russia's authority over the Crimea, Kuban and Taman. This was a significant step towards the final annexation of the Crimean Peninsula to Russia. Today about the main milestones in the intricacies of the history of Russia and Crimea

On January 9, 1920, in Voronezh, on the day of the mass execution of clergy, Archbishop Tikhon of Voronezh was killed. It is worth clarifying that the persecution of the ROC began even before the Bolsheviks came to power. The liberals from the Provisional Government anticipated the Bolsheviks in their attitude to religion and the Church, showing themselves to be enemies of Russian Orthodoxy. If in 1914 there were 54,174 Orthodox churches and 1,025 monasteries in the Russian Empire, then in 1987 only 6,893 churches and 15 monasteries remained in the USSR

On December 30, 1922, at the First All-Union Congress of Soviets, the heads of the delegations signed the Treaty on the formation of the USSR. Initially, only 4 union republics were part of the USSR: the RSFSR, the Ukrainian SSR, the Byelorussian SSR, the Transcaucasian SFSR, and at the time of the collapse of the Union in 1991 there were 15 union republics. Today, to many, the truth of this country's achievements seems controversial, given the cost of these achievements had to pay, but it is impossible to deny the fact that the era of the USSR became the time of global

On December 25, 1977, Charlie Chaplin died - a truly legendary personality. Silent cinema has become history today, but even children will recognize the images created by this brilliant actor. Neither world fame, nor two "Oscars" could protect this great director and comedian actor from the disgrace of the authorities, who off-screen was an active political personality and sought to achieve the notorious "world peace"

On December 20, 1924, the future Fuhrer Adolf Hitler leaves the prison where he ended up after the failure of the "beer putsch". He used the time spent in prison to write his book "Mein Kampf", in which he outlined the ideas of National Socialism. However, it is worth noting that other great dictators also wrote books

On December 19, 1997, the world premiere of the film "Titanic", directed by James Cameron, took place. This film became the highest-grossing in the history of cinema and held this title for 12 years, until the release of another Cameron's film, Avatar. Today is a selection of interesting facts about the highest grossing films in world cinema

Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov - a skinny man with a nondescript appearance, but a far-sighted and subtle mind, who allowed himself antics that could be considered insanity - the only commander in the world who did not lose a single battle, and a holder of all Russian orders of his time, awarded to men … He was the sword of Russia, the scourge of the Turks and the storm of the Poles. Today - a story about little-known facts from the life of the great Russian commander

Imposture is a mysterious phenomenon that, according to the whim of history, most often arose in Russia. In no other country in the world was this phenomenon so frequent and did not play such a significant role. According to the most conservative estimates of historians, only in the 17th century there were about 20 impostors in Russia, in the 18th - already 2 times more. Today about the most famous Russian impostors

On December 6, 1492, Columbus' expedition discovered a new island in the Caribbean. The island was named Hispaniola, and colonialists began to develop it. Today, Haiti is a romantic place with beautiful beaches, a unique combination of African, European and Caribbean traditions, where voodoo is believed and used today

In December 1812, Napoleon abandoned his retreating army from Russia and fled to Paris, guarded by two hundred elite guards. December 14, 1812 is considered the day of the end of the Patriotic War. It was during these days that Napoleon uttered one of his legendary aphorisms "from great to ridiculous - just one step, and let posterity judge him …" Today about interesting facts of the Russian-French war

Taking an oath to each other to be together in sorrow and in joy, rarely anyone can pass the test first. After all, staying close, knowing that a loved one is hopelessly sick, is not given to everyone. And why dissemble, many are simply afraid of difficulties. But these famous actors were able to prove that if you love, you will be with your soul mate to the end, even if there is no chance of a miracle

These experienced sailors and tough warriors kept the whole of Europe at bay for nearly four centuries. Their ships docked on the shores of North America and Africa, the Byzantine emperors willingly took them into service, and Arab scholars described them in their writings. It was the Vikings who gave the name to the famous route "from the Varangians to the Greeks" and the region of Normandy. Vikings, they are Normans - "people of the north", left their traces not only on the maps. They also founded several ruling dynasties that played far from

It would seem that these celebrities had everything for happiness: the love of loved ones and fans, success and demand in the profession, wealth and fame. But it is not for nothing that they say that the outward appearance of well-being does not mean that something does not gnaw a person from the inside. Sometimes despair can push you to a fatal step. What made Soviet celebrities take their own lives, read below

In December 1979, Soviet troops entered Afghanistan in order to support the friendly regime, and were intending to leave in a year at most. But the good intentions of the Soviet Union turned into a long war. Today, some are trying to present this war as villainy or the result of a conspiracy. Let's look at those events as a tragedy, and try to dispel the myths that are appearing today

Today, world classical music is simply unthinkable without the works of Russian composers, although the domestic composer school appeared only in the 19th century. You can talk endlessly about each of the famous people. Prokofiev, for example, played chess brilliantly, Borodin was a professor of chemistry, and Rachmaninov was so scrupulous about his hands that his wife wore his shoes. Today - the most interesting facts from the life and work of Russian composers

Viktor Tsoi became a unique phenomenon in Soviet culture in the 1980s. And what to tell, and now the songs of the leader of the group "Kino" do not lose their relevance, and the image of the musician himself has become cult. Being an informal person, the artist did not differ in his usual approach in his personal life and, for example, did not see anything bad in introducing his wives - the former, with whom he had not even filed a divorce, and the new one. True, each of them understood such frankness in their own way

Initially, few believed in the marriage of these celebrities. And the point is not even that they did not love each other or did not look together. The situation in this case was interesting: these eminent Soviet actors simply adored their wives, but those around them refused to accept the latter to the last, believing that they were not worthy of such men. In some cases, the marriages of the stars really turned out to be short, in others - love overcame all obstacles

It would seem that for people of the acting profession nothing is impossible: fiercely hating actors can portray great love on the screen, and vice versa. But sometimes the hostility is so strong that not only in the cinema, but in ordinary life, the contradictions between these creative people were so strong that they could not hide it. What did these talented Soviet actresses not share among themselves?

Most films end with happy ends: lovers, having passed all the tests, get married and live happily ever after. But, unfortunately, everything in life is much more prosaic, and even celebrities with their money and influence are sometimes powerless in the face of the blows of fate. These couples loved each other and planned to get married, but instead of a wedding, alas, a funeral took place