TODAY IN HISTORY | May 19th

TODAY’S TOPICS

• 1506 - Columbus Appoints Son As Heir

• 1962 - Marilyn Monroe Sings To JFK

  Extras

  Horse For Consul🐎

  Glass For Brain🧠
  A Deadly Sneeze🤧
  A Boiling Punishment💦

1506 Christopher Columbus’s Heir

On May 19, 1506, just a day before he died, Christopher Columbus — worn down, sick, and out of favor with the Spanish crown — made sure his legacy stayed in the family. He formally named his son Diego Columbus as his heir, passing down what titles, claims, and rewards he still held onto. At the time, Columbus was living quietly in Valladolid, Spain, far from the glory he’d once known as the man who “discovered” the New World for Europe.

Years earlier, Columbus had been promised riches, governorships, and noble titles by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in exchange for his voyages across the Atlantic. But after mismanaging colonies in the Americas and sparking revolts, he’d lost most of those privileges. Still, Columbus never gave up on the idea that he and his family were owed everything he’d been promised. In his final days, he pushed to make sure Diego would inherit all claims to titles like Admiral of the Ocean Sea and Viceroy of the Indies.

That decision kicked off a long legal fight known as the Pleitos Colombinos, where Diego spent years battling the Spanish crown to get what his father believed was rightfully theirs. Some titles and lands were restored, but the Columbus family never quite regained the full power Christopher thought he had earned. Still, Diego Columbus did go on to serve as Governor of the Indies, continuing his father’s legacy — for better or worse.

So while May 19, 1506, might’ve seemed like the quiet closing of a life, it was actually the passing of a torch — one filled with ambition, controversy, and unfinished business. Columbus’s voyages had changed the world, but his death didn’t end the story. It just handed the next chapter to his son, along with all the weight and wonder that came with the Columbus name.

🤖 Ai Depiction of Event

1962 Marilyn Monroe Sings To JFK

On May 19, 1962, in front of a packed crowd at Madison Square Garden, Marilyn Monroe stepped onto the stage in a skin-tight, sparkling gown and made pop culture history. The occasion was a birthday celebration for President John F. Kennedy, though his actual birthday was on May 29. What folks remember, though, was Monroe’s breathy version of “Happy Birthday, Mr. President,” which instantly became one of the most legendary — and scandalous — performances of all time.

She wore a custom-made nude-colored dress covered in over 2,500 hand-sewn rhinestones, so tight she had to be sewn into it. When she took the mic, the room went quiet, and she sang like she was the only one in the room — soft, slow, and flirtatious. The crowd went wild. Afterward, JFK took the stage and joked, “I can now retire from politics after having had ‘Happy Birthday’ sung to me in such a sweet, wholesome way.”

But behind the glitz and glamour was real tension. Rumors had swirled about an affair between Monroe and Kennedy, and this performance only added fuel to the fire. Then less than three months later, Marilyn would be found dead in her home. Witnesses even claim to have saw JFK’s brother, Robert F. Kennedy, leaving Monroe’s home the night before she was found.

That night in 1962 became a defining moment not just in Monroe’s life, but in American pop culture. It blurred the lines between politics, celebrity, and gossip, giving the world a front-row seat to power and desire colliding under stage lights. And though many have sung “Happy Birthday” since, nobody’s ever done it quite like Marilyn did for Mr. President.

Watch the real performance here!
https://youtu.be/DJ7E1fzQzd8

🤖 Ai Depiction of Event

Horse For Consul🐎
The Roman Emperor Caligula (r. 37–41 CE) was famous for excess, chaos, and a flair for the dramatic — and nothing sums that up quite like the tale of him appointing his horse, Incitatus, as a senator. According to ancient sources (with a grain of salt), Caligula loved his horse so much he gave him: A marble stall, a golden feeding trough, jewelry and servants, and supposedly, plans to make him a consul, one of Rome’s highest political offices. Was it serious? Maybe. But many historians believe it was satire in action — Caligula’s way of mocking the Senate, saying, “Even a horse could do your job.”🐎🏛️

Glass Brain🧠
When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE, it didn’t just bury Pompeii and Herculaneum in ash — it unleashed heat so intense, it actually vitrified the brains of some victims. That’s right: the human brain, flash-fried into glass. In Herculaneum, archaeologists discovered a victim lying facedown in a wooden bed, his skull shattered — and inside, tiny shards of black, glassy material. Scientists later confirmed: it was brain matter, flash-heated to over 500°C (932°F), turning soft tissue into volcanic glass in a matter of seconds. This level of heat was enough to vaporize flesh, boil bodily fluids, and apparently, crystallize gray matter like a cursed science experiment. So while Vesuvius is infamous for burying cities in ash, it also delivered one of the most horrifying “fun facts” in archaeological history.🧠🪞🌋

Deadly Sneeze🤧
Back in the early days of Christianity (and even before), a sneeze wasn’t just a random bodily function — it was spiritually suspicious. Some early Christians believed that sneezing might be caused by demons trying to sneak into — or out of — your body. The logic went something like this: Sudden sneeze? That’s your soul trying to escape. Or worse — a demon trying to jump in. Either way: better say “bless you” quick. The phrase became a kind of spiritual shield to protect the sneezer’s soul. Pope Gregory I even encouraged people to say it during a plague outbreak, just in case the sneeze was a sign of something worse. So while today it’s polite, back then it was demon insurance😇🤧🛡️

A Boiling Punishment💦
In 13th-century England, justice could be as brutal as it was bubbling. One of the harshest punishments on record? A man was boiled alive — literally — for poisoning food at a monastery. The case happened under King Henry III, who passed a special law stating that poisoners should be boiled to death, not just hanged or beheaded. The man in question had laced a meal served to monks, resulting in multiple deaths — a crime considered both murder and sacrilege. So, in full medieval fashion, he was lowered into a cauldron of boiling water or oil, piece by piece — a deliberately slow and excruciating execution meant to send a very clear (and very hot) message: don’t mess with the monks’ dinner. When it came to food crimes in medieval England, things got heated — fast. 🔥🍲✝️

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