1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:18,400 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:22,159 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales are right there on display, just 5 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 1: waiting for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:40,840 Speaker 1: In seventeen sixty four, an unprecedented scandal rocked the French court. 7 00:00:41,360 --> 00:00:44,839 Speaker 1: Someone close to King Louis the fifteenth had become a whistleblower. 8 00:00:45,159 --> 00:00:48,959 Speaker 1: This former spy published a series of letters detailing correspondence 9 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:52,120 Speaker 1: with the French king during and after the Seven Years War. 10 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:55,520 Speaker 1: The spy in question was a member of a secret 11 00:00:55,560 --> 00:00:59,240 Speaker 1: circle of spies for King Louis, who interfaced with both 12 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:04,040 Speaker 1: England and Russia on behalf of France. The individual who 13 00:01:04,080 --> 00:01:07,720 Speaker 1: had leaked these conversations was already a figure of great interest, 14 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:11,319 Speaker 1: a dashing thirty six year old war hero named Charles 15 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:15,360 Speaker 1: de Beaumont, or the Chevalier Dion. The child of relatively 16 00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:18,920 Speaker 1: poor French nobility, Dion was well liked among the courts, 17 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:23,000 Speaker 1: a charming, strikingly handsome individual who was quite renowned as 18 00:01:23,120 --> 00:01:27,000 Speaker 1: offencer in fact, the title chevalier was the French equivalent 19 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:29,880 Speaker 1: of knight and had been bestowed upon Dion the year 20 00:01:29,920 --> 00:01:32,800 Speaker 1: before for helping to draft a peace treaty that ended 21 00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:35,920 Speaker 1: the Seven Years War, and yet things seemed to have 22 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:39,320 Speaker 1: soured between the young noble and the French monarch. After 23 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:44,280 Speaker 1: a swashbuckling career that involved fighting the English, negotiating in Russia, 24 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: and successfully dressing as a woman to accomplish secret missions, 25 00:01:48,040 --> 00:01:51,640 Speaker 1: Dion was usurped by the subsequent ambassador to England and 26 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:56,600 Speaker 1: demoted an absolute insult to someone with Dion's qualifications. Rather 27 00:01:56,640 --> 00:02:00,160 Speaker 1: than taking this line down, Dion had retaliated, which brings 28 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 1: us to that series of letters published in seventeen sixty four. 29 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:06,320 Speaker 1: They were alarming to King Louis the fifteenth, but what 30 00:02:06,400 --> 00:02:09,560 Speaker 1: was even more alarming is that Dion held back. Louis 31 00:02:09,639 --> 00:02:12,880 Speaker 1: had corresponded with Dion for years about a potential French 32 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:17,000 Speaker 1: invasion of England. These letters were not among the published documents. 33 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:20,640 Speaker 1: It seemed that Dion was holding those back as insurance, 34 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:25,160 Speaker 1: and ultimately King Louis granted Dion a generous pension, which 35 00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:29,120 Speaker 1: many theorized was a payout to ensure the Chevalier's silence. 36 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:32,240 Speaker 1: No longer welcome in the French court, the Chevalier settled 37 00:02:32,240 --> 00:02:35,600 Speaker 1: in London for the time, being a stranger in a 38 00:02:35,639 --> 00:02:39,560 Speaker 1: strange land. Dion developed a curious reputation among the British. 39 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:42,400 Speaker 1: Everyone knew that this was a French ex pat, but 40 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:46,440 Speaker 1: something about the Chevaler drew their attention. Dion's facial appearance 41 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:50,239 Speaker 1: was actually quite androgynous, leading many to speculate that Dion 42 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:54,320 Speaker 1: was hiding a secret under a signature dragoon's uniform. A 43 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:57,680 Speaker 1: betting pool started in the London Stock Exchange. Was this 44 00:02:57,760 --> 00:03:01,720 Speaker 1: former spy a man or a woman? The Chevalier, upon 45 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:05,399 Speaker 1: hearing these rumors, declined to comment, offering only that submitting 46 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:09,560 Speaker 1: to an examination would rightly so be beneath anyone's dignity. 47 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:12,919 Speaker 1: The betting pool, as a result, fizzled out, and Dion 48 00:03:13,080 --> 00:03:16,080 Speaker 1: continued to make friends in British high society, but was 49 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:19,520 Speaker 1: growing homesick along the way. Following the death of King 50 00:03:19,560 --> 00:03:23,600 Speaker 1: Louis the fifteenth the Chevalier was permitted to return to France. However, 51 00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:26,679 Speaker 1: there was some negotiation in this process. As part of 52 00:03:26,720 --> 00:03:29,640 Speaker 1: the arrangement to let Dion back into the country, they 53 00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:33,320 Speaker 1: had to turn in the correspondence withheld from publication and 54 00:03:33,600 --> 00:03:37,880 Speaker 1: conduct themselves properly as a woman. This is where historical 55 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:41,800 Speaker 1: opinion about the Chevalier Dion sharply splits. What we know 56 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:45,360 Speaker 1: is that from the mid seventeen seventies onward, the Chevalier 57 00:03:45,480 --> 00:03:48,480 Speaker 1: Dion wore dresses and was legally declared a woman by 58 00:03:48,520 --> 00:03:52,560 Speaker 1: the French government, who even paid for the aforementionable wardrobe change. 59 00:03:52,760 --> 00:03:55,320 Speaker 1: What we don't know is whether this was a social 60 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:59,240 Speaker 1: role forced upon the Chevalier or one that Dion freely chose. 61 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:02,040 Speaker 1: The story told about the Chevalier is that she was 62 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:04,360 Speaker 1: born a female, forced into the role of a man 63 00:04:04,400 --> 00:04:07,200 Speaker 1: by a father who wanted a son. Whichever is the case, 64 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:09,720 Speaker 1: though Dion did not accept that role of a quiet, 65 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:13,120 Speaker 1: demure woman, Becoming a celebrity in France, much to the 66 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:17,240 Speaker 1: chagrin of the French government. Now known as Charlotte de Beaumont, 67 00:04:17,600 --> 00:04:21,000 Speaker 1: Dion gained a reputation as a modern Amazon, a woman 68 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:23,520 Speaker 1: who had fought for her country and now earned a 69 00:04:23,560 --> 00:04:27,720 Speaker 1: military pension. When the French supported the American War for Independence, 70 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,039 Speaker 1: Charlotte volunteered to return to military service, but was refused 71 00:04:32,600 --> 00:04:35,960 Speaker 1: once again. Growing weary with France, Charlotte returned to England 72 00:04:35,960 --> 00:04:38,800 Speaker 1: and made a career as a fencer. Paintings of the 73 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:42,720 Speaker 1: era depict the Chevalier crossing blades with famous duellists while 74 00:04:42,839 --> 00:04:46,480 Speaker 1: dressed in layers of petticoats. Writings of the era remarked 75 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:50,240 Speaker 1: upon Dion's skill in swordsmanship, even while encumbered by a 76 00:04:50,279 --> 00:04:54,039 Speaker 1: heavy gown. The Chevalier died in eighteen ten at the 77 00:04:54,080 --> 00:04:57,040 Speaker 1: age of eighty one. Dion had lived forty eight years 78 00:04:57,080 --> 00:05:00,480 Speaker 1: as a man and thirty three as a woman. Naturally, 79 00:05:00,560 --> 00:05:04,799 Speaker 1: much of Dion's reputation became obscured by tall tales. Even today, 80 00:05:04,839 --> 00:05:08,279 Speaker 1: it's difficult to ascertain where the line sits between honest 81 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:12,960 Speaker 1: truth and fanciful fiction. Whether as Charles or Charlotte, this 82 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:16,800 Speaker 1: was a singular individual, one whose primary ambition was to 83 00:05:16,839 --> 00:05:19,760 Speaker 1: live a life of adventure. He lived a life of 84 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:23,120 Speaker 1: excitement so that she could retire and fence in skirts. 85 00:05:23,600 --> 00:05:41,240 Speaker 1: What other historical figure can make such a curious claim. 86 00:05:42,000 --> 00:05:44,200 Speaker 1: Turn on the cable news or spend a few minutes 87 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 1: on social media, and you'll soon come to the conclusion 88 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:50,200 Speaker 1: that humanity is in dire straits. Whether it's due to 89 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:55,040 Speaker 1: natural disasters, the latest epidemic, international wars, global warming, or 90 00:05:55,160 --> 00:05:58,240 Speaker 1: dropping fertility rates. There is no shortage of problems that 91 00:05:58,279 --> 00:06:00,800 Speaker 1: we could worry about in times like please, it is 92 00:06:00,839 --> 00:06:03,760 Speaker 1: worth remembering that as bad as things may seem, they 93 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:06,640 Speaker 1: can always get worse. Unless, that is, you were alive 94 00:06:06,720 --> 00:06:09,840 Speaker 1: in five point thirty six CE, the year pinpointed by 95 00:06:09,839 --> 00:06:14,360 Speaker 1: some experts as the worst year in human history. To 96 00:06:14,440 --> 00:06:17,600 Speaker 1: understand what made this particular year so bleak, put yourselves 97 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:21,320 Speaker 1: in the uncomfortable shoes of an everyday peasant living in well, 98 00:06:21,440 --> 00:06:24,880 Speaker 1: let's just say western France. Your days are full of 99 00:06:24,920 --> 00:06:28,240 Speaker 1: backbreaking work, either on your own dismal plot of land, 100 00:06:28,360 --> 00:06:31,520 Speaker 1: or more likely, on your vassal's estate. At night, you 101 00:06:31,600 --> 00:06:34,839 Speaker 1: sleep side by side with the livestock and burn manure 102 00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:37,680 Speaker 1: chips for warmth. The smell is so bad it's all 103 00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:40,640 Speaker 1: you can do just to fall asleep. Then one day 104 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:43,400 Speaker 1: you're out in the fields, toiling away like always, when 105 00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:46,720 Speaker 1: you look up and see dark clouds rolling across the sky. 106 00:06:46,800 --> 00:06:49,000 Speaker 1: It looks like a storm is about to break, but 107 00:06:49,040 --> 00:06:53,200 Speaker 1: the rain never comes. That night, the moon is eerily faint, 108 00:06:53,360 --> 00:06:55,880 Speaker 1: and the next morning the sky is still dark. You 109 00:06:55,920 --> 00:06:58,160 Speaker 1: can see the sun through the clouds if you really 110 00:06:58,200 --> 00:07:00,839 Speaker 1: look for it, but its rays are a week pale blue, 111 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:03,760 Speaker 1: and it doesn't give off the usual heat. The sky 112 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:07,200 Speaker 1: smells of sulfur, and every now and then, yellow flakes 113 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:10,960 Speaker 1: of ash rain down from the sky like snow. It's 114 00:07:11,120 --> 00:07:14,239 Speaker 1: the same thing the next day and the next. After 115 00:07:14,280 --> 00:07:16,600 Speaker 1: a few weeks of darkness, the crops start to wither 116 00:07:16,640 --> 00:07:19,400 Speaker 1: and die. You hear that the harvests been postponed, which 117 00:07:19,440 --> 00:07:22,040 Speaker 1: means no work and no money to feed your family. 118 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:25,240 Speaker 1: Even if you were working, there's nothing worth buying at 119 00:07:25,240 --> 00:07:30,040 Speaker 1: the market. Pretty soon, violent crime skyrockets as everyone fights 120 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:33,280 Speaker 1: over the dwindling resources. When your neighbors start to drop 121 00:07:33,320 --> 00:07:37,400 Speaker 1: from starvation, their rotting corpses lead to pestilence outbreaks. The 122 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:39,960 Speaker 1: next thing you know, you're being invaded by people who 123 00:07:40,040 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 1: are even hungrier than you. And in the face of 124 00:07:43,160 --> 00:07:46,200 Speaker 1: all this misery, you might wonder if you've been abandoned 125 00:07:46,200 --> 00:07:49,000 Speaker 1: by God or conclude that you're living through the end 126 00:07:49,040 --> 00:07:52,800 Speaker 1: of the world. Either way, you'll eventually realize this might 127 00:07:52,920 --> 00:07:56,640 Speaker 1: finally be as bad as it gets. While people living 128 00:07:56,680 --> 00:07:58,760 Speaker 1: in five point thirty six had no way of knowing 129 00:07:58,800 --> 00:08:01,800 Speaker 1: what had gone wrong. We now have a pretty good idea. 130 00:08:02,160 --> 00:08:05,760 Speaker 1: A volcanic eruption in the Northern Hemisphere spat ash and 131 00:08:05,840 --> 00:08:09,760 Speaker 1: toxic gas into the atmosphere, darkening the sky and triggering 132 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:13,880 Speaker 1: volcanic winter. As a result, temperatures dropped around the globe, 133 00:08:13,960 --> 00:08:16,840 Speaker 1: wreaking havoc on the seasons. In parts of China, it 134 00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:19,440 Speaker 1: snowed during the late summer, while in the Middle East 135 00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:22,640 Speaker 1: and Europe, a thick, dry heat rolled across the land, 136 00:08:22,800 --> 00:08:26,800 Speaker 1: choking crops and livestock. The darkness didn't lift for roughly 137 00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:30,000 Speaker 1: eighteen months, and even when the sun finally returned, the 138 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:33,920 Speaker 1: after effects continued. The widespread drought led to the collapse 139 00:08:33,960 --> 00:08:38,400 Speaker 1: of multiple civilizations, hastening the decline of the collapsing Roman Empire, 140 00:08:38,720 --> 00:08:42,160 Speaker 1: and may have even triggered the world's first pandemic. According 141 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:46,120 Speaker 1: to Michael McCormick, a Harvard University archaeologist and historian, it 142 00:08:46,160 --> 00:08:49,400 Speaker 1: took over one hundred years for the global economy to recover. 143 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:52,920 Speaker 1: That means at least five generations were impacted by the 144 00:08:53,000 --> 00:08:56,760 Speaker 1: volcanic winter, while millions of people spent their entire lives 145 00:08:56,880 --> 00:08:59,679 Speaker 1: under its shroud of darkness. So the next time you're 146 00:08:59,679 --> 00:09:02,880 Speaker 1: feeling down about the state of things, consider going outside 147 00:09:02,920 --> 00:09:05,120 Speaker 1: for a walk. As long as the sun is still 148 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: shining in the sky, it's safe to say that things 149 00:09:07,760 --> 00:09:10,360 Speaker 1: could be worse, at least by five point thirty six 150 00:09:10,440 --> 00:09:13,600 Speaker 1: CE standards, which means we've all got a lot to 151 00:09:13,640 --> 00:09:17,040 Speaker 1: still be thankful for until the next volcanic winter hits, 152 00:09:17,080 --> 00:09:24,600 Speaker 1: that is, and then all bets are off. I hope 153 00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:27,920 Speaker 1: you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. 154 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:31,360 Speaker 1: Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about 155 00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:35,920 Speaker 1: the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show 156 00:09:36,160 --> 00:09:39,400 Speaker 1: was created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how 157 00:09:39,480 --> 00:09:43,080 Speaker 1: Stuff Works. I make another award winning show called Lore, 158 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:46,920 Speaker 1: which is a podcast, book series, and television show, and 159 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:49,600 Speaker 1: you can learn all about it over at the Worldolore 160 00:09:49,880 --> 00:09:55,240 Speaker 1: dot com. And until next time, stay curious.