10 Pivotal Battles That Changed History

The battles that changed history we cover in this episode of The List Show include some of the usual suspects, like the Battle of Yorktown. But Erin also covers battles that changed history in more unexpected ways, from the World War II engagement that helped instigate a medical breakthrough to the devastating attack that indirectly contributed to the Renaissance.

[msr]

Erin, you just keep getting better! I've got to remember not to be eating tho; the inevitable belly laugh you gave me had me spraying food. Napoleon had several death masks made and I had the wierd opportunity of looking at his likeness pretty close. (there is one in a New Orleans museum) BEST to your team!!

[bekkaanneee]

ive never seen hamilton, but i grew up in yorktown and got out of school every yorktown day to go celebrate down by the beach.

[frankydman]

If we are talking about uncracked codes, then we have to make mention of the most famous example- Egyptian Hieroglyphics

No, really- before 1799 nobody had even the slightest idea of how to translate them, they were a total mystery. It took the discovery of the Rosetta Stone to finally crack their code.

In other words, for most of recorded history- hieroglyphs were truly an uncracked code

[ironicnation]

13:42: That should be ‘Britain’ not ‘England’ (for accuracy and consistency reasons - had literally just referred to them as “British” only 20 seconds earlier)!

[matthewdrummond]

I appreciate that you said *died from* instead of *committed*
🤗🤗🤗

[frankydman]

One of the stranger facts I’ve heard about the Battle of Waterloo-

Apparently one of the contributing factors to Napoleon’s loss was that he had developed hemorrhoids prior to battle. This meant he could not comfortably sit on a horse and by extension, could not effectively direct his troops

[tessat]

The Dutch were also at the Battle of Waterloo against Napoleon.

[TWX]

The battle of hair. Things really went bang.

[firstcynic]

Favorite ciphers-

Zodiac killer. Only cracked in 2021. It still doesn't conclusively point to who the killer is.

Pirate Olivier Levasseur. While cracked in the 1930s, the meaning behind it (its supposed to point to his buried treasure) is still unknown.

Maybe do an episode on written languages we still can't read?

[sabikitsune]

Favorite cypher is the Beale cypher. Supposedly points to untold riches hidden in Virginia USA, although they could also be a hoax.
Also, the Golden Owl. A book full of cryptic clues that leads to a buried golden owl. It was originally written in french.
There's another treasure hunt book too, in the USA although I can't remember its name. A couple of the puzzles have actually been solved but many are still waiting.

[itaintalfot]

Strange how a small island off the coast of Europe is involved in so many of these pivotal battles. For good or evil!

[jonathanconnor]

Because his parents weren’t married, William the conqueror was known in France as William the Bastard. The Anglo-saxons called him that for other reasons!…

[titosj]

A series of coded letters by Charles Dickens!!

[jacobbaird]

I can't believe you forgot the Alamo.

[jasonjohnston]

Interesting that you posted this the day before April 21, San Jacinto Day in Texas. It was on April 21, 1836 that General Sam Houston and his volunteer Texian army defeated Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and his Mexican regulars on the coastal plains of South Texas near the San Jacinto river. The battle lasted all of 19 minutes but it secured the freedom of the Republic of Texas from Mexico and eventually led to annexation by the United States in 1845, the Mexican/American war in 1846-1848, and the addition of California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, and most of Arizona and New Mexico to the United States in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The United States looks the way it does today in large part because Texas won its independence 186 years ago.

[DylanSwayneHughes]

Surprised the Battle of Zama wasn't included. The Roman defeat of the Carthaginians was pivotal in shaping the power of the Roman republic and later Empire.

[firstcynic]

The Battle of Saratoga was far more important to The Revolutionary War than Yorktown. Yorktown was a foregone conclusion after The Battle of the Chesapeake. Neither of those would have happened without the victory at Saratoga.

Waterloo was also a foregone conclusion. France didn't have enough skilled troops remaining.

[christopherstanko]

The Zodiac killer's code has always intrigued me

[Velata]

What about the ciphers left by the Somerton Man?

[SantomPh]

for a seemingly research based channel you can't seem to use the correct name for Liu Bang. He should be referred to as "Liu" or "Liu Bang". Not "Bang".