A RIVER RUNS PUTRID: A SUMMER OF FILTH, 1858

The city of London sweltered in the heat of summer, 1858. But it was not merely the sun that parched the metropolis. An even more repellent force infested its very heart: the River Thames. Years of industrial waste had transformed London's lifeblood into a stench. The stench was all-consuming, a miasma that clung to every cobblestone and infused th

For centuries, the region of Catalonia flourished under its own distinct heritage, fostering a language and traditions that set it apart from its neighbors. However, this autonomy was assailed by the increasing influence of the Spanish crown, leading to growing tensions between the two entities. The Catalan people aspired for self-determination, a