1. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the fifth richest man in the history of mankind - donated 5 tons gold to the National Defence Funds of India and was using the Jacob Diamond as a paperweight.

1. During the Zong Massacre, in 1781, a British slave ship threw 130 chained African slaves overboard and claimed compensation under the ship's insurance. They falsely blamed the act on water shortage and lost their case.

1. People from England in the past used to believe that collecting fern seeds would make you invisible. It turns out they don’t have seeds.

1. In the 12th-century, women in Shanxi (a Chinese province) were considered more desirable as a wife if they had already slept with a large number of men.

Fact Republic is where curiosity meets clarity. Discover random, history, and uncommon facts about everyday life. Uncover the unbelievable and unknown

1. During World War 2, the British maintained an entirely fictional army, the “4th Army” that they successfully used to draw German forces away from invasion targets on multiple occasions, including the Normandy landings.

Fact Republic is where curiosity meets clarity. Discover random, history, and uncommon facts about everyday life. Uncover the unbelievable and unknown

Fact Republic is where curiosity meets clarity. Discover random, history, and uncommon facts about everyday life. Uncover the unbelievable and unknown

Fact Republic is where curiosity meets clarity. Discover random, history, and uncommon facts about everyday life. Uncover the unbelievable and unknown

If it ain’t weird, interesting, and enlightening, it ain’t got any place on the Weird History Twitter page. Home to nearly 177k adoring fans, the Weird History project embodies the best aspects of education in the digital age: make it short, make it precise, and make it fun. Throw in some spot-on illustrations and boom! You’ve made yourself popular with fact-lovers all over the globe.