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Ching Shih
Ching Shih’s early life is shrouded in mystery. Even her name isn’t really her own, as “Ching Shih” translates to “widow of Ching”. She first appears in the historical record in 1801. However, she left her mark on history as one of the most successful pirates. It is theorized Ching Shih was born around 1775 in the Guangdong province of China. One source records her birth name as Shil Xiang Gu. Nothing is known of her childhood, but I imagine it wasn’t one of ease. At the age of 26, she was a prostitute on a floating brothel in Canton. In 1801, she caught the eye of Ching Yi, who…
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Princess Olga of Kiev
When you think of a saint, most people think of a gentle, Godly person with great patience and faith. Princess Olga of Kiev proves that a saint can be a woman of God, but not take any crap either. No one is exactly sure of when Olga was born. Sources put it any where between 879 and 890. According to the Primary Chronicle, she was born in Pskov, a city northwest of Russia, to a family of Varyag origin. Varyag was the name given to Vikings or Norsemen who came to the area in the 8th and 9th centuries. Other sources say Olga was the daughter of Oleg Vershchy, the founder…
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Wang Cong’er
18th century China was not an easy place for those born into poverty, especially women. This was the world Wang Cong’er was born into. She was born around 1777 in the Hubei province to a peasant family. There was no money for rents, and the families were forced to borrow at high rates of interest. When they could not pay, the families were thrown off their land. Beggars were everywhere. Her father died when Wang Cong’er was young, leaving her mother to try to make money any way she could. Her mother took in laundry and sewing and hired herself out as a domestic servant, but still could not feed…
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The White Rose Movement
Like the Edelweiss Pirates, not all of the youth of Germany was on board with the Nazi agenda. Several students at the University of Munich were appalled by the stories that they were hearing and were determined to do something about it. (Please see this post for more on the Edelweiss Pirates: http://www.historynaked.com/edelweiss-pirates-kids-alright/) In June 1942, a group of students at the University of Munich founded the “White Rose” movement. The name came from a Spanish novel “Rosa Blanca”. One member, Hans Scholl, had been a soldier on the eastern front and saw first hand the mistreatment of Jews as well as other Poles, and the forced internment in concentration…
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The Edelweiss Pirates- The Kids are Alright
When the Nazi’s came to power, one of the things they did was begin to indoctrinate the youth. In 1936, children of both sexes under the age of fourteen were required to be in the Hitler Youth movement. The Hitler Youth emphasized Nazi ideals and clean living through sports, hiking and approved artistic pursuits. Then military service would follow at fourteen. As the war geared up, recruitment and military activities increased. Sports and nature walks were replaced with marching, drilling on the proper use of bayonets, grenades, and pistols, and maneuvering through dugouts, trenches and barbed wire. Members were also taught and encouraged to steal, vandalize, fight and bully. Any…
