Ordinary accident can change a lot.
Supporters of the doctrine “techism” sure, that everything in the Universe is determined by chance. Don’t know about the Universe, but what in the world’s history of chance played a crucial and fateful role is undeniable.
The Discovery Of America
From 1492 to 1507, the year America was called the West Indies. For the reason that was discovered by Columbus by accident, and the purpose of his expedition was finding a sea route to India.
If the European discovery of America can be considered a big success, for indigenous populations of this continent, the discovery of Columbus can be called a fatal accident. It launched the so-called demographic catastrophe of the Indians. From 1492 until the end of the XX century as a result of the colonization of the Europeans allegedly killed 100 million native Americans.
The storm and the Invincible Armada
130 ships of the Invincible Armada left from Lisbon to invade England on may 29, 1588, however, the campaign from the beginning has not worked – Armada hit a storm and was forced to stop for repairs in the harbour. Concerned about food shortages and disease among the sailors, the Duke of Medina Sidonia wrote to the king that he doubted the success of the enterprise. But Philip insisted that his Admiral firmly adhered to the plan.
The campaign of the Spanish Armada to the coast of England was full of fatal accidents associated primarily with the adverse weather. And before the decisive battle with the English fleet, and during it and after. Returned home, only about 60 ships; the loss in men was estimated from 1/3 to 3/4 of manning. Thousands of people were drowned, many died from wounds and disease on the way home.
Fatal map Weyrother
Wanting to punish the French for the seizure of Malta, the Russian Emperor Paul I sent in 1798 the Russian troops in Italy and Switzerland. Italian detachment commanded by Alexander Suvorov, Swiss — Alexander Rimsky-Korsakov. They were supposed to meet at Zurich to attack the troops of Marshal Massena.
When developing a campaign of Suvorov’s army through Switzerland, the Austrian Lieutenant-Colonel of staff, Bareuther was the route staff method, without reconnaissance and very conditional card, which, as it turned out later, a number of roads existed only on paper.
As a result, Suvorov did not, Rimsky-Korsakov was defeated, France continued to wage wars that shook Europe for another 15 years.
Interestingly, this lesson was not learned. The author of the “brilliant” plan Weyrother once again “distinguished” in 1805, to prepare the disposition of infamous for the allies the battle of Austerlitz.
Waterloo
The word “Waterloo” became a household word. And today talking about a major defeat, failure. For Napoleon the battle of Waterloo became a major in his life “epic fail”, was defeated in the battle was caused, including, next to random facts.
First, during the beginning of the battle Napoleon had a worsening of his illness (the Emperor had been suffering from hemorrhoids), so instead of having to be on the site of the decisive battle and quickly assess the situation, Napoleon took therapeutic baths. Second, to the battle were not able to come forces of Marshal grouchy. The actions of the Marshal in this critical situation of Napoleon most historians estimated as at least strange. He showed indecision and extreme negligence. According to one version he just lost. The Russo-Japanese.
A series of fatal accidents
The Russo-Japanese war was, unfortunately, full of Russian troops to fatal accidents. Our squadron in the first days of the war carried ridiculous and unnecessary losses. So, after two days after the outbreak of hostilities, at its own mines killed frontier Yenisei and the cruiser Boyarin. Nicholas II in those days wrote in his diary: “January 29. Thursday. Today there was only one sad news: mine transport Enisey ran into a floating mine and was blown up, and killed someone. the cap I R. Stepanov, 3 officers and 92 enlisted men. A terrible accident”.
“Accidentally” hitting a mine, killing and the cruiser “Petropavlovsk”. Were on it, Admiral Makarov was killed in the first minutes of the disaster. One of the sailors of the squadron so appreciated this fatal for the Russian Navy event: “What battleship? Though two and even a couple of cruisers in the bargain! The head was missing!..”.
The Sinking Of The Titanic
The sinking of the Titanic, occurred in the night from 14 to 15 April 1912, is the most famous Maritime disaster in history. It has claimed the lives, according to various estimates, from 1495 to 1635. Until December 1987, it was the largest number of victims of disaster at sea in peacetime.
Despite the fact that today we have many different versions of death of the liner, none of them is a priority for serious researchers. We have to admit that the best ship of its time undoing a series of coincidences.
From the inadequate number of lifeboats and settings flooding the ship to the point that the lookouts that night was not of the binoculars (the key to the safe in which they kept accidentally took David Blair, who at the last moment was removed from the flight). “Titanic,” which received not one ice warning, went at full speed to his death.
Sandwich Gavrilo Princip
As you know, the reason for the beginning of the First world war was the assassination in Serbia of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The history of this attempt is replete with fatal accidents.
First, the first two of the conspirators, was waiting for a car with Ferdinand, I was just taken aback and not threw a bomb at it. Then a bomb thrown by Nedelko Cabrinovic, hit the canvas top of the convertible and jumped back from him. Then another conspirator was confused and could not throw a bomb into standing still for 10 minutes vehicle.
Coffee shop “Delicatessen Moritz Schiller’s” where in the end the murder occurred, the machine was also by accident (the chauffeur mistook the route), happened to be there and Gavrilo Princip, the man who came to the coffee shop to eat…
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