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TIL as early as 839 AD, Swedes & Scandanavians served as mercenaries in the Byzantine army. Swedish men left to enlist in such numbers that a new law "Västgötalagen" was created that said no one could inherit while staying in Greece to stop emigration.

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po64 TIL two nights before Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier, he broke two ribs when he fell from a horse. He was so afraid of being removed from the mission that he went to a veterinarian for treatment. On the day of the flight, he was in such pain that he could not seal the hatch by himself.
axA0 TIL That of the top 100 biggest economies in the world, 51 are corporations and 49 are countries.
oBmvK The only sculpture on the Moon, this statuette and plaque were secretly left by the crew of Apollo 15 in 1971 as a memorial to those who “made the ultimate contribution” to the exploration of space.
6yLZ TIL that there’s a Justice League comic in which a superhero assassinates a Saddam Hussein analogue in order to end the atrocities of his regime. His actions actually end up destabilizing the country, making the quality of life for citizens much worse than it was before. The comic came out in 1999.
D10kj TIL Jay Leno has never spent a penny of his “The Tonight Show” income. He has always worked two jobs and spent the lesser of the two incomes. To date, he has saved every penny from his time as a host. He owns all his cars and buildings and bought them with his secondary income.