Legends and Legendary People Story Briefs

Meet some of the world's most-colorful characters in this collection. From Roman times to the Spanish Main, these individuals were famous in their own lifetimes and later, when their stories became the "stuff of legends."

Before Rome's legions left the Empire's province of Britannia - the country we know today as Britain - Saxon raiders were already terrorizing the loca...

What is a scimitar? It is a weapon which, among other things, Alexander the Great's men used to fight against elephants.

Leonard D. Smith, who was a teen-aged ranch hand at Ridgewood (and later became a veterinarian), tells an interesting story of Seabiscuit during his r...

When the Terror and Erebus went missing, how did searchers know where to look for them?

On June 9, 1973, Secretariat won the Belmont by 31 lengths. His triple crown run remains unmatched. He became the first racehorse in twenty-five years...

Also known as the "African Emperor," Septimius Severus, a Caesar, rules the Roman Empire for nearly 18 years.

There was a real Dracula. Learn how Sigismund of Luxembourg (1369-1437) gave the Dracula family its name.

Because English ships could not easily penetrate the Spanish crescent formation, the Brits had to use different tactics to attack the Armada.

Dr. Valentine Dale, a British diplomat during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, was attempting to negotiate with the Duke of Parma (Alexander Farnese) j...

As Britain's ships are stuck in Plymouth Harbor, awaiting a turn of the tide and wind direction, Spanish ships pass by. They have been ordered, by the...

It is the 29th of July, 1588, and a huge fleet of ships - known as the Spanish Armada - approaches the English Channel. The future of Britain hangs in...

As ships of the Spanish Armada continued to make their way east, in the English Channel, neither side had harmed the other.  Although two Spanish...

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