podcast

Episode 13: Ridiculous Reasons for War

The Gallimaufry

• 2 min read
Episode 13: Ridiculous Reasons for War

What's the connection between the following items: a camel, a stray dog, a pig and a bucket? If you answered 'things Will's girlfriend has tried to take home with her from holiday', you'd technically be correct--but luckily that's not the topic of this episode. In fact, all of these items have also been used as ridiculous reasons to go to war over the years, despite what you would hope to be the instigators' better judgements.

Wars have been fought for a variety of reasons over the years--not all of them good, but the thought was there at least. Many of these wars which happened for petty, stupid or completely pointless reasons have however been understandably forgotten to history.

Ever felt like waging war over one of these? Us neither. 

Whether it's stools, emus or bat droppings: it turns out that no topic has been too stupid for humans to pick a fight over.

In this episode of The Gallimaufry, we delve into the more inglorious history of warfare and discuss our favourite bizarre battles and crazy conflicts. Brace yourself--it's going to get a bit silly.

Sources

  1. ‘Battle of the Camel | Islamic History | Britannica’. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Battle-of-the-Camel.
  2. Chandwani, Nikhil. ‘War of the Stray Dog – A War Sparked by Ridiculous Reasons’. The Times of India. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/desires-of-a-modern-indian/war-of-the-stray-dog-a-war-sparked-by-ridiculous-reasons/?source=app&frmapp=yes.
  3. Ewusi, Philip. ‘The Golden Stool (17th c.- ) •’, 21 October 2018. https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/golden-stool-17th-c/.
  4. Harbor, Mailing Address: P. O. Box 429 Friday, and WA 98250 Phone: 360 378-2240 Contact Us. ‘The Pig War - San Juan Island National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service)’. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.nps.gov/sajh/learn/historyculture/the-pig-war.htm.
  5. ‘Indian Mutiny | History, Causes, Effects, Summary, & Facts | Britannica’. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.britannica.com/event/Indian-Mutiny.
  6. Langford, Walter M. ‘Santa Anna and the Pastry War’. Southwest Review 31, no. 1 (1945): 70–73.
  7. Magazine, Smithsonian, and Mike Dash. ‘Pass It on: The Secret That Preceded the Indian Rebellion of 1857’. Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/pass-it-on-the-secret-that-preceded-the-indian-rebellion-of-1857-105066360/.
  8. Olympia, Contact Us Washington Secretary of State Legislative Building · PO Box 40220. ‘Washington State Archives - WA Secretary of State’. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.sos.wa.gov/archives/timeline/detail.aspx.
  9. ‘Pastry War | Mexican History | Britannica’. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.britannica.com/event/Pastry-War.
  10. ‘The Battle of Basra (the Battle of Camel)’, 10 November 2013. https://www.al-islam.org/restatement-history-islam-and-muslims-sayyid-ali-asghar-razwy/battle-basra-battle-camel.
  11. The Yucatan Times. ‘The Pastry War: Mexico vs France 1838’, 17 April 2020. https://www.theyucatantimes.com/2020/04/the-pastry-war-mexico-vs-france-1838/.
  12. HistoryCollection.com. ‘This African Queen Fought the British Empire in the War of the Golden Stool’, 4 December 2018. https://historycollection.com/this-african-queen-fought-the-british-empire-in-the-war-of-the-golden-stool/.
  13. ‘Why Did the Indian Mutiny Happen? | National Army Museum’. Accessed 12 December 2021. https://www.nam.ac.uk/explore/why-did-indian-mutiny-happen.