These four stories share a theme the history books rarely highlight: the gap between what people intended and what actually happened. Whether it's a bomb squad that pressed the wrong wire or an explorer who could not find his way back, overconfidence and circumstance have always been a formidable combination.
The FBI received very clear instructions with the bomb at Harvey’s Resort Hotel: do not attempt to disarm it. The FBI attempted to disarm it.
On 26 August 1980, the device John Birges had built and placed inside the casino exploded. The bomb contained a thousand pounds of dynamite and was fitted with multiple anti-tamper mechanisms. Birges had demanded three million dollars, warned explicitly against any disarming attempt, and turned out to be completely right about what would happen if someone tried. The resulting blast caused twelve million dollars in damage. Remarkably, nobody died. Birges was eventually caught, convicted, and died in prison.
A Prince, a Bribe, and a Very Complicated Crown
Also on this date, in 1976, letters confirmed that Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands had accepted 1.1 million dollars in bribes from Lockheed. The scandal placed Queen Juliana in an extraordinary position: she threatened to abdicate if her husband faced prosecution. He did not face prosecution. He resigned from his public duties instead, which is a fairly soft landing for a bribe of that size.
The Explorer Who Accidentally Crossed a Continent
On 26 August 1542, Francisco de Orellana reached the Atlantic Ocean. This sounds like a straightforward achievement until you learn that the journey had started as a food supply run, and that Orellana had spent the intervening time navigating the entire length of the Amazon, some 4,800 kilometres, not because he planned to, but because the river gave him no real alternative. He crossed a continent by accident. There are worse legacies.
The Colonial Footnote Nobody Teaches
In 1642, Dutch forces expelled the Spanish from northern Taiwan, ending a sixteen-year colonial presence that most people have genuinely never heard of. The Dutch held the island until 1662, when Ming loyalist commander Koxinga expelled them in turn. Colonial ambitions in Taiwan, it seems, had a consistent problem with working exit strategies.
Four stories from a single date, and every one of them involves someone being rather more confident about the outcome than the outcome warranted. The episode is ten minutes. The bomb alone is worth it.