Day Tripping: March 29

Siege, Sensation, and total Silliness

Welcome to my daily feature where each day on the calendar marks a part of our shared history.

Under Seige

Viking raiders thought to be under the command of legendary figure Ragnar Lodbrok, sack the city of Paris in 845. Five thousand marauders aboard 120 ships moving up the River Seine have little trouble this time dispatching the defences of Charlemagne, but they are afflicted by the outbreak of plague after the siege.

The warriors still manage to escape back to their Nordic homelands with a ransom of 7,000 French Livre in gold and silver.

Under The Ground

Arguably the most incredible discovery in modern archaeological history occurred when farmers near the city of Xian, China unearth the clay figure of an ancient Chinese warrior while digging a well in 1974. When state authorities move in to continue the dig, they discover approximately 8,000 life-size terracotta figures which include both men and horses.

Row upon row of pits that stretch to 38 square miles underground is believed to be the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, China’s first emperor from the third century, BC. The emperor’s tomb which is about the size of a football field is hermetically sealed and remains intact to this day.

Under Dark Of Night

When the city of Baltimore, Maryland declined to build a new stadium for the Baltimore Colts NFL team, owner Robert Irsay hired moving vans to arrive at the old ballpark in the dead of night in 1984, and cart the team’s entire inventory to Indianapolis, Indiana where a dome stadium had been built.

For a while, Baltimore even hosted a Canadian Football League team until twelve years later, when the city of Baltimore would get a team back as the owners of the Cleveland Browns moved their franchise to Baltimore. The game of football team musical chairs was complete when Cleveland was awarded a new franchise and rights to the original nickname in 1999.

The wild and wacky saga of NFL roulette continues with other franchises like the Rams, Cardinals, Chargers and Raiders hopping around the country.

Musical Milestones

Less than two months after the untimely death of their lead singer Bon Scott, AC/DC releases an album dedicated to the fallen frontman called Black In Black in 1980 featuring new lead screamer, Brian Johnson. Picked out from an unknown band called Geordie, Johnson’s vocals and songwriting contributions make the record one of the best selling in recording history.

Narratives

Songwriter Shel Silverstein who wrote A Boy Named Sue for Johnny Cash writes a Rock ‘N Roll parody called The Cover of “Rolling Stone” which is recorded by Dr. Hook and The Medicine Show. Unable to resist the obvious publicity opportunity, five-year-old publication Rolling Stone magazine puts the band on the cover in 1973.

Remembrance

Thirteen days after he is shot in the back at a masquerade ball, King Gustav III of Sweden dies of his wounds in 1792.

Notable Births

1918 — Entrepreneur and founder of Sam’s Club and Walmart, Sam Walton.

1943 — Brilliant comedian from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, Eric Idle.

K. Barrett Katie Wallace Maria Rattray Maryam Merchant Dr Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, PhD. Terry Trueman Dr Preeti Singh John Gruber Bill Abbate James G Brennan ScienceDuuude Marcus Liam Ireland Claire Kelly Noorain Hassan, BMS Amy Pierovich

The Story Of Day Tripping Through History What’s Past Is Often Present