1 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:07,520 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Menke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:14,480 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,560 --> 00:00:18,520 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,560 --> 00:00:22,680 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales right there on display, just waiting 5 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:28,920 Speaker 1: for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:39,639 Speaker 1: For hundreds of years, arguments and feuds were handled one 7 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:43,080 Speaker 1: of two ways, either with a healthy conversation or with 8 00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:46,840 Speaker 1: a duel. Up until the late eighteenth century, those duels 9 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:49,879 Speaker 1: were mostly carried out with swords, until guns became the 10 00:00:49,920 --> 00:00:52,960 Speaker 1: weapon of choice. Funny enough, the object of a duel 11 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 1: wasn't to kill the other person. It was only to 12 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:58,680 Speaker 1: achieve a sense of justice that honor had been restored 13 00:00:58,720 --> 00:01:01,600 Speaker 1: to the wronged party. Now, a duel was considered an 14 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:04,840 Speaker 1: appropriate way to seek retribution for a long time. But 15 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:07,039 Speaker 1: what happened if someone felt that their honor had been 16 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:10,360 Speaker 1: besmirched in a less serious way? Where did they go 17 00:01:10,480 --> 00:01:14,199 Speaker 1: for satisfaction? Well, if they were a German college student 18 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:17,600 Speaker 1: in eighteen seventy one, then they had an alternative. According 19 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:20,360 Speaker 1: to a book from that time, students at Leipsick University 20 00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:22,960 Speaker 1: would challenge each other to a special kind of face off, 21 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:25,320 Speaker 1: but not one that would leave the other side bleeding 22 00:01:25,360 --> 00:01:28,160 Speaker 1: out from a bullet wound. Rather, they might pass out 23 00:01:28,200 --> 00:01:31,679 Speaker 1: from drinking too much alcohol. They were called beer duels, 24 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:33,919 Speaker 1: and they were part of a lengthy set of rules 25 00:01:33,959 --> 00:01:37,600 Speaker 1: known as the Beer Code. According to the Code, students 26 00:01:37,959 --> 00:01:40,760 Speaker 1: usually male students, that is, would be split off into 27 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:45,319 Speaker 1: two groups depending on their drinking abilities. Newcomers were called foxes, 28 00:01:45,560 --> 00:01:49,200 Speaker 1: while experienced drinkers were referred to as beer boys. A 29 00:01:49,280 --> 00:01:52,160 Speaker 1: fox could become a beer boy either by waiting two 30 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 1: semesters or passing a drinking test. Often, beer boys would 31 00:01:56,560 --> 00:02:00,440 Speaker 1: challenge each other to different drinking related competitions, such as 32 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:02,920 Speaker 1: who could drink the most beer in a given period 33 00:02:02,920 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 1: of time. Anyone who declined the challenge faced ridicule and 34 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:11,360 Speaker 1: embarrassment and even more drinking. But sometimes things got out 35 00:02:11,400 --> 00:02:13,960 Speaker 1: of hand and one drinker would offend a beer boy. 36 00:02:14,440 --> 00:02:16,760 Speaker 1: They might call them a name, like a sage or 37 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,720 Speaker 1: a beer baby. When that happened, the wronged party would 38 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:22,800 Speaker 1: challenge the offender to a beer duel. But there were 39 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:25,280 Speaker 1: no swords or pistols in a beer duel. The only 40 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:29,240 Speaker 1: weapon allowed was beer. I know you didn't see that 41 00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:33,040 Speaker 1: one coming, did you? And the rules were surprisingly complex. 42 00:02:33,480 --> 00:02:36,760 Speaker 1: Different challenges and responses were often given depending on whether 43 00:02:36,800 --> 00:02:40,200 Speaker 1: the offense had been carried out on purpose or accidentally. 44 00:02:40,639 --> 00:02:43,800 Speaker 1: Sometimes the offended party had to demand a beer duel himself, 45 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:46,639 Speaker 1: and other times the offender had the option to call 46 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:49,679 Speaker 1: for a duel either way, though these incidents always ended 47 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:54,000 Speaker 1: the same way. Everyone drank a lot, and just as 48 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:58,639 Speaker 1: with an actual duel involving weapons, challengers and challenges had 49 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:02,000 Speaker 1: to choose their own second or representatives to handle the 50 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:06,520 Speaker 1: logistics of each confrontation. Umpires maintained order and officiated the 51 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:10,680 Speaker 1: proceedings as well. Considering these were drunk college students drinking 52 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:14,560 Speaker 1: the night away, their rules were thorough and impressive. Now, 53 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: beer duels were only one manner of retribution. Beer boys 54 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:21,880 Speaker 1: had other ways to demand justice for perceived offenses, such 55 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:25,280 Speaker 1: as the order x plano. This gave any beer boy 56 00:03:25,320 --> 00:03:28,280 Speaker 1: the right to force a fox to drink, usually to 57 00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:31,200 Speaker 1: teach them a lesson for being too arrogant. Refusal to 58 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:34,560 Speaker 1: drink led to more shame for the fox, and this 59 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:38,200 Speaker 1: extended beyond the university. According to the rule book, any 60 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:41,600 Speaker 1: man of a higher semester drinking in a nearby beer 61 00:03:41,680 --> 00:03:44,960 Speaker 1: village had the right to force someone lower to them 62 00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:48,120 Speaker 1: to drink, and if that person refused, the challenger was 63 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:51,680 Speaker 1: allowed to dump his beer on their head. And finally, 64 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:55,080 Speaker 1: the university beer code had something called the grand seravis. 65 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:58,360 Speaker 1: This was reserved for those times when everybody has been 66 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,680 Speaker 1: drinking for a while and they were too far gone 67 00:04:00,720 --> 00:04:03,680 Speaker 1: to see reason. If a beer boy felt insulted by 68 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:07,400 Speaker 1: someone's remarks late into the evening, the grand seravus was 69 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 1: the equivalent of sworn testimony in a court of law. 70 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:13,440 Speaker 1: Only what someone saw or heard during the course of 71 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:16,200 Speaker 1: the evening could be spoken of in order to put 72 00:04:16,200 --> 00:04:19,200 Speaker 1: the matter to bed for good. The grand Seravus was 73 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:22,440 Speaker 1: not to be used frivolously. It was the last resort 74 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:25,360 Speaker 1: to settle any and all disputes, so as to avoid 75 00:04:25,480 --> 00:04:29,560 Speaker 1: further arguments or worse. I suppose it seems the Germans 76 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: have always been serious about their beer. The beer Code 77 00:04:32,400 --> 00:04:35,600 Speaker 1: is perfect evidence of their dedication. To offend a beer 78 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:38,200 Speaker 1: boy was no joke. Lest you wanted to wind up 79 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:41,400 Speaker 1: an object of ridicule or find yourself being peeled off 80 00:04:41,440 --> 00:04:45,479 Speaker 1: the floor after passing out from drinking. Perhaps something could 81 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:47,880 Speaker 1: be learned from their rule book. Maybe we could avoid 82 00:04:47,920 --> 00:04:50,559 Speaker 1: a lot more problems in the world if we shared 83 00:04:50,560 --> 00:04:53,560 Speaker 1: a beer or three together every now and then. And 84 00:04:53,640 --> 00:05:11,520 Speaker 1: to that I say cheers. The sun blazed overhead as 85 00:05:11,560 --> 00:05:14,599 Speaker 1: the crowd gathered in the square, fanning themselves in the 86 00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:18,200 Speaker 1: tropical heat. Their soft murmurs quieted as the man of 87 00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:20,840 Speaker 1: the hour was led to his place on the gallows. 88 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:24,400 Speaker 1: It was July seventh of seventeen thirty. Before the day 89 00:05:24,480 --> 00:05:28,160 Speaker 1: was out, the pirate Olivier Lavasieur would meet his end. 90 00:05:29,040 --> 00:05:32,080 Speaker 1: As the crowd watched, the wind weathered pirate pulled something 91 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:34,680 Speaker 1: free from the strap around his neck. It was a 92 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:38,480 Speaker 1: small locket. Find my treasure, he said in the French, 93 00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:41,000 Speaker 1: hardened by the wind and the waves, And as he 94 00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:44,280 Speaker 1: threw the necklace into the crowd, he shouted his last words. 95 00:05:44,760 --> 00:05:49,560 Speaker 1: Only one may understand it. Olivier Lavasieur's life ended that 96 00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:52,159 Speaker 1: hot summer day on the island of law Reunion, a 97 00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:55,679 Speaker 1: French colony off the coast of Madagascar, but his legend 98 00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:59,440 Speaker 1: was only beginning. Inside the dead man's locket was a 99 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:02,239 Speaker 1: code that hid the location of one of the greatest 100 00:06:02,279 --> 00:06:07,440 Speaker 1: buried treasures in history, Olivier Lavasieur wasn't always a pirate. 101 00:06:07,839 --> 00:06:10,719 Speaker 1: Born sometime in the late sixteen eighties to a wealthy 102 00:06:10,760 --> 00:06:14,040 Speaker 1: family in northern France, he initially studied to become an 103 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:17,359 Speaker 1: architect in the early seventeen hundreds, though he set his 104 00:06:17,400 --> 00:06:20,799 Speaker 1: sights instead on a naval career, so when France became 105 00:06:20,839 --> 00:06:24,280 Speaker 1: involved in the War of Spanish Secession, he received permission 106 00:06:24,279 --> 00:06:27,400 Speaker 1: from the king to sail as a privateer, plundering enemy 107 00:06:27,400 --> 00:06:30,640 Speaker 1: ships for the glory of France. By the time the 108 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:33,880 Speaker 1: war ended in seventeen fourteen, Olivier found that he had 109 00:06:33,920 --> 00:06:36,520 Speaker 1: a taste for murder and mayhem on the high seas, 110 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:39,640 Speaker 1: so when he was ordered to return to Paris instead, 111 00:06:39,680 --> 00:06:43,880 Speaker 1: he became a pirate, sailing under his own flag. Olivier 112 00:06:43,960 --> 00:06:47,160 Speaker 1: quickly gained a fearsome reputation too. He was known by 113 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:49,799 Speaker 1: some as the Buzzard for the way that he stripped 114 00:06:49,839 --> 00:06:53,240 Speaker 1: gold from a ship like meat from a carcass. Others 115 00:06:53,279 --> 00:06:56,239 Speaker 1: called him the mouth in honor of the vicious verbal 116 00:06:56,320 --> 00:06:59,400 Speaker 1: lashings that he would give to his victims. He struck 117 00:06:59,480 --> 00:07:02,839 Speaker 1: terror cross the high seas, plundering ships from the Caribbean 118 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:05,640 Speaker 1: and West Africa, all the way to the Indian Ocean, 119 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:09,360 Speaker 1: which is where in seventeen twenty one he launched his 120 00:07:09,400 --> 00:07:13,360 Speaker 1: most famous attack. In April of that year, Olivier happened 121 00:07:13,440 --> 00:07:16,680 Speaker 1: upon a Portuguese galleon named Our Lady of the Cape, 122 00:07:16,760 --> 00:07:20,800 Speaker 1: leaving the Indian ports of Goa, ladened with treasures. Our 123 00:07:20,880 --> 00:07:23,480 Speaker 1: Lady had run into a storm, and, fearing that she 124 00:07:23,520 --> 00:07:26,960 Speaker 1: would sink, had dumped any extra weight. In this case, 125 00:07:27,000 --> 00:07:30,120 Speaker 1: that meant all seventy two of her cannons. Olivier and 126 00:07:30,160 --> 00:07:32,920 Speaker 1: her crew captured the ship easily and made off with 127 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:37,000 Speaker 1: thousands of pounds of treasure. However, their biggest prize was 128 00:07:37,040 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 1: a huge cross of solid gold studded with rubies, emeralds, 129 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:44,720 Speaker 1: and diamonds. The heist was legendary, and Olivier and his 130 00:07:44,840 --> 00:07:48,080 Speaker 1: crew were rich men a thousand times over. The story 131 00:07:48,080 --> 00:07:51,520 Speaker 1: even made its way into Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. 132 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:55,320 Speaker 1: In seventeen twenty four, the French government offered amnesty to 133 00:07:55,360 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: any remaining French pirates sailing the seas. All they would 134 00:07:58,640 --> 00:08:00,400 Speaker 1: have to do is give up a large share of 135 00:08:00,480 --> 00:08:04,720 Speaker 1: their riches. Unwilling to part with his fortune, Olivier refused 136 00:08:04,760 --> 00:08:08,040 Speaker 1: amnesty and was hunted for six years. Finally, he was 137 00:08:08,080 --> 00:08:11,800 Speaker 1: caught in Madagascar in seventeen thirty and sentenced to hang, 138 00:08:12,160 --> 00:08:14,880 Speaker 1: and moments before he died, he tossed that necklace to 139 00:08:14,920 --> 00:08:18,960 Speaker 1: the crowd, which contained a cryptogram with seventeen lines. Hidden 140 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:22,400 Speaker 1: somewhere in the code was the key to his great treasure. 141 00:08:23,440 --> 00:08:26,880 Speaker 1: Over the years, many have tried to decipher Olivier's code. 142 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:30,320 Speaker 1: It's widely accepted that it's a pigeon cipher where letters 143 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:33,320 Speaker 1: are replaced with symbols. What's not quite as easy to 144 00:08:33,320 --> 00:08:36,920 Speaker 1: figure out is what exactly the symbols spell out. After 145 00:08:36,960 --> 00:08:39,880 Speaker 1: many attempts over the years, a man named Reginald Cruz 146 00:08:39,920 --> 00:08:43,520 Speaker 1: Wilkins found a new lead in the nineteen forties. Reginald 147 00:08:43,600 --> 00:08:47,360 Speaker 1: believed that since the Night Templars used similar cipher's, Olivier's 148 00:08:47,400 --> 00:08:50,240 Speaker 1: code must have something to do with them. However, he 149 00:08:50,520 --> 00:08:53,479 Speaker 1: also hypothesized that it had something to do with the Freemasons, 150 00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:57,720 Speaker 1: King Solomon, or the twelve Labors of Hercules. Needless to say, 151 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:01,640 Speaker 1: Reginald died in nineteen seventy seven without ever having cracked 152 00:09:01,679 --> 00:09:05,680 Speaker 1: the code. Even with Reginald's theories It's not clear what 153 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:08,480 Speaker 1: exactly the cipher points to. It could be a map 154 00:09:08,679 --> 00:09:11,600 Speaker 1: or a riddle, but some believe the whole thing might 155 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:16,480 Speaker 1: just be a hoax. Olivier Lavasieur was certainly a fabulously 156 00:09:16,520 --> 00:09:20,000 Speaker 1: wealthy pirate, but he died in seventeen thirty The first 157 00:09:20,040 --> 00:09:22,319 Speaker 1: mention of the code he supposedly gave to the crowd 158 00:09:22,360 --> 00:09:27,080 Speaker 1: at his execution wasn't until nineteen thirty four, two hundred 159 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:31,360 Speaker 1: years after his death. Whether the code is a treasure 160 00:09:31,400 --> 00:09:34,160 Speaker 1: map straight out of Robert Lewis Stevenson or just an 161 00:09:34,160 --> 00:09:37,880 Speaker 1: elaborate hoax, people have dedicated their whole lives to discovering 162 00:09:37,880 --> 00:09:42,480 Speaker 1: the truth. So maybe, just maybe, hiding under the sand 163 00:09:42,559 --> 00:09:47,360 Speaker 1: on some long forgotten island, Olivier's treasure lies waiting. Here's 164 00:09:47,400 --> 00:09:53,720 Speaker 1: hoping after three hundred years, X still marks the spot. 165 00:09:55,559 --> 00:09:58,280 Speaker 1: I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet 166 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:02,160 Speaker 1: of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn 167 00:10:02,200 --> 00:10:06,760 Speaker 1: more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. 168 00:10:06,800 --> 00:10:10,400 Speaker 1: The show was created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership 169 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:13,720 Speaker 1: with how Stuff Works. I make another award winning show 170 00:10:13,840 --> 00:10:17,880 Speaker 1: called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show, 171 00:10:18,160 --> 00:10:20,000 Speaker 1: and you can learn all about it over at the 172 00:10:20,200 --> 00:10:25,319 Speaker 1: worldoflore dot com. And until next time, stay curious.