Dueling Fates

That even forces people to adapt. Spies assume new identities so they can infiltrate enemy lines, while taxi cabs and libraries turn into ambulances and infirmaries when the real things are in short supply. That's what happened with two ships during a maritime battle at the start of World War One. In September of nineteen fourteen, two ships, the British h M S Carmenia and the German Captrefalgar, engaged in a

contentious duel in the South Atlantic. Dozens died, and by the end it was Britain's pride and joy the Carmenia that had defeated the German Captre Falgar and sent it to the bottom of the ocean. I know I'm kind of giving away the ending right up front, but bear with me. All will become clear in a moment, I promise you. See. Both vessels had begun life as passenger ships, carrying folks to various ports all over the world. Brazil, Argentina,

and Uruguay had all been intended destinations. But in August of nineteen fourteen, the Captre Falgar was commandeered by the German Imperial Navy and turned into a warship. A naval crew outfitted her with guns and other artillery, while the Carmenia underwent similar treatment by the British, including having its red and white funnels painted gray to match the st

of the hull. Not only did their respective militaries decked them out with all the latest weapons, but they had also made their ships as stealthy as possible, allowing them to sneak by the enemy undetected. Once complete, both vessels were released back into the ocean to perform their new jobs hunt down and sink the enemy. The Carmenia's crew had gotten word of the Capture Falgar's position off the coast of Trinidad in South America. They were closing in,

but the area was swimming with German ships. It was time for their Commania's crew to put their stealthy efforts to the test. They spotted the Capture Falgar in the exact spot that they'd been told. At least they thought it was the Capture Falgar. It fit the description and had just left a German supply base with a fresh belly full of coal. But something felt off. That ship looked awfully familiar, like the Carmenia crew had seen it before somewhere else. The Capture Falgar tried to get away,

but the British were right behind them. The Carmania fired first straight across the bow of the enemy ship, and the Captre Falgar stopped running. It returned fire with its main gun, firing out fifty six pound shells at half a mile per second. That was it. The battle had begun. They fought for over two hours, firing bullets into each other's hulls. Would splintered off and fell into the water as metal exploded inward, leaving gashes in the sides of

each ship. The Capture Falgar's machine guns turned the Carmania into Swiss cheese, but the Carmania managed to hit the other ship's bow and start a fire. Both vessels did their best to take out each other's guns and water lines, but it was the Carmania that proved victorious. The Captre Falgar started taking on too much water and the crew was forced either flee in lifeboats or jump into the

waves below to escape the sinking ship. All told, about sixty sailors died that day between the two ships, and another were wounded. Those who managed to escape the Capture falgar sinking were rescued by another German ship and taken to Buenos Aires for safety. Though to those who witnessed the sinking, it might have looked a little different. It might have looked as though the Carmania had been sunk

in battle instead. As it turned out, the crew of the Capture Falgar had intended to entrap British merchant ships off the Trinidadian coast. To do so, it had to look friendly like one of British's own ships, So the crew took down her forward funnel and painted the remaining two funnels with red and black tops. In other words, they had disguised the Capture Falgar to look just like the Carmania and the Carmania. Well it must have been like looking in a mirror, or maybe like seeing a ghost.

We weren't always such a litigious society. Ever since the Middle Ages, people in need of mediation didn't turn to lawyers or conference rooms to settle their disputes. Honor would not be one at an hourly rate. Now. Instead, they handle things personally, some might say dramatically. Before the late eighteenth century, they let their swords do the talking. As technology progressed and firearms became the norm, it was pistols

at dawn. Yes, I'm talking about dueling. If someone besmirched to the honor of you or someone you loved, you were expected to defend that honor by any means necessary, sometimes to the death. Alexander Hamilton's famously died after being shot in the stomach by Aaron Burr, who had challenged the former Treasury secretary to a duel to restore his reputation following a vicious smear campaign. Painter Edouard Manet was forced to defend his art after his friend, a critic,

disparaged it in a review. One sentence was all that friend had written, but it had been enough to put two men on opposite sides. They drew their swords and After the critics sustained a minor wound, man A considered his honor restored. The two men patched things up and resumed their friendship as though nothing had ever happened. Andrew Jackson killed several men defending his wife's honor, long before he became President of the United States. It was how

certain matters were settled. In most cases, one dueler had to be faster than the other, quicker on the draw, and a steady shot, with nerves high and the stakes even higher. One slip up and that would be it lights out. It was not something one did lightly unless you were Nri Trona. Henri lived in France during what was known as the Beautiful Era, a period of peace and prosperity. It was a time of dance, art and literature, a modern renaissance of sorts, and the people were happy,

well most of them, not Unri. He had a bit of a reputation for his bad temper, which got him in trouble with certain folks. Five folks to be exact, five men, all of whom he challenged to duels to defend his honor or, the honor of a loved one. And it all started in eighteen sixty one, when Henri fought his first duel. Actually fought is a bit of a loose term here. He didn't really fight the other man. He didn't get off a single shot, and yet Unri

emerged victorious. Nonetheless, as it turned out, his opponent dropped dead before the duel had even begun. From eighteen sixty one to eighteen seventy eight, unredueled men who had wronged him in some way, and as you can tell by those dates, he came out on the other side. Okay. The funny enough, Henri's talents for dueling never got a chance to shine. See that first opponent who dropped dead

before the duel. He wasn't the only one. The next person he challenged also before either man could fire their pistol, and the man after that, and the man after that, four men, all of whom died mysteriously just before they were to draw pistols against Henri Trona. It's certainly possible that Henry might have continued dueling after eighteen seventy eight.

He clearly had luck on his side when he faced off against the four men who died of very natural causes heart attacks, most likely brought on by the fear of losing against such a formidable opponent, but we'll never know what Henri would have gone on to do. Like I said, he'd faced off against five men over the years, but I've only mentioned four of them so far, and it was the fifth who proved to be his greatest challenge. Henri and the other man stood with their backs to

one another, guns at their sides. They marched in opposite directions one step, two, step three, step four. Then when they'd gone far enough, both men turned and one of them dropped dead, just like before, though neither man had fired a single shot. This time it was Unri who lost. You can't win them all, I suppose, but we can die trying. I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of

the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was created by me Aaron Manky in partnership with how Stuff Works. I make another award winning show called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show, and you can learn all about it over at the World of Lore dot com. And until next time, stay curious,