22 December: Gregor MacGregor

Even as a young man, Gregor MacGregor seems to have been obsessed with appearances.
Even as a young man, Gregor MacGregor seems to have been obsessed with appearances.

Name: Gregor MacGregor

Tagline: A Scotsman who, after a stint in the Napoleonic Wars, went off to South America to join the wars of independence.

Claim to Fame: Perpetrating several plots to enrich himself at the cost of others, including twice selling off land in a non-existent province. Continue reading 22 December: Gregor MacGregor

20 December: Carsten Niebuhr

Carsten Niebuhr dressed and ate like the natives of the countries he passed through - as opposed to his travelling companions, who most likely tried to hold on to European sensibilities.
Carsten Niebuhr dressed and ate like the natives of the countries he passed through – as opposed to his travelling companions, who most likely tried to hold on to European sensibilities.

Name: Carsten Niebuhr

Tagline: As a young man with a knack for cartography, Niebuhr was selected for the Danish king’s expedition to the “Arabia Felix”. After his travelling companions died in the early stages of the trip, he travelled alone throughout the Middle East, returning to give the world a much better understanding of the Arabian Peninsula.

Claim to Fame: Literally writing the book on the “Happy Arabia”.

Carsten Niebuhr was born in 1733, Niebuhr was originally planning to become a surveyor, but attended university instead. He caught the eye of an academic, who recommended him as a participant for the Danish king Frederick V’s Danish Arabia Expedition.

The expedition set sail in January 1761, sailing first to Marseilles and Malta, before going to Istanbul and Alexandria. After arriving in Egypt, the expedition went to Cairo and to Sinai. Then they crossed the Red Sea and entered Mocha.

And this is where the story turns a bit bleak. Cause this is where the first member of the expedition died on May 25th, 1763. A month and a half, the next member died on the way to Sana, the capital of Yemen. After an audience with the Imam of Yemen, the remains of the expedition set off to sea towards Bombay. On the 29th and 30th of August, two more members of the expedition died at sea. And finally, shortly after the ship landed in Bombay, the second-to-last member of the expedition died.

Niebuhr was a cartographer and surveyor, and prepared maps of the places he visited. This one is of Yemen.

Which left Niebuhr all alone. He spent 14 months in Bombay, before travelling home by land, visiting many countries and cities on his way.

On his way, Niebuhr spoke to many, many of the local people he met. Not only that, he dressed like them, ate with them, and integrated himself with them to a large extent.

And of course he brought home notes and samples of all kinds of things. Apparently, his drawings were essential to cracking the old Cuneiform script, and he is considered one of the founding fathers of Assyriology.

I would posit that he can also be considered a founding father of ethnography. He was a keen observer of people, and understood to describe them more or less on their own terms.

How would I use him: Niebuhr is a stellar example of an explorer. He goes around, meets people, has adventures, and reports it all to his home. Use him as a mold for a fantasy game about bold adventurers – or maybe try moving him into space.

The whole expedition also offers a great opportunity for a story of intrigue and politics on an expedition. There was a lot of drama connected with the beginning of the expedition, which I don’t have time to go into – and while it’s not such a mystery why so many of Niebuhr’s travelling companions died (they were ill adjusted to the climate, and didn’t have resistance to the many tropical diseases they encountered), it would be easy to make a mystery out of their deaths.

There is also a great case to be made for using Niebuhr as a precursor. In the Cthulhu game, he is the one who wrote the tome on the weird rituals of certain cults. Or maybe something followed him home, hidden in some object sent home to Copenhagen … getting ready to awaken …

19 December: Erich Mielke

Mielke in 1976, almost 20 years into his tenure as head of Stasi. Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R0522-177 / CC-BY-SA 3.0
Mielke in 1976, almost 20 years into his tenure as head of Stasi. Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R0522-177 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Name: Erich Fritz Emil Mielke

Tagline: Joining the communists at an early age, Erich rose in the hierarchy of the newly formed GDR.

Claim to Fame: Head of the East German secret police (Stasi) throughout most of its existence and one of the fathers of the Berlin Wall. Continue reading 19 December: Erich Mielke

18 December: Artemisia of Halicarnassus

Artemisia ruled her city on behalf of her son.
Artemisia ruled her city on behalf of her son.

Name: Artemisia I of Halicarnassus

Tagline: Warrior Queen of the Greek city-state of Halicarnassus, satrap (Persian governor) of the satrapy of Caria, fought for the Persians against the Greeks during the second Persian invasion of Greece, 480 BC.

Claim to Fame: Artemisia of Halicarnassus was the only Persian naval commander to come out of the disastrous battle of Salamis with both life and honour largely intact. She was also the only Persian commander in the invasion to give the Persian King Xerxes honest advice rather than flattery. Continue reading 18 December: Artemisia of Halicarnassus

17 December: Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen

You can almost see this guy's duplicitous nature shining from his eyes.
You can almost see this guy’s duplicitous nature shining from his eyes.

Name: Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen, nicknamed ‘The Professor of Cunning.’

Tagline: played a father and son against each other in a regicidal drama.

Claim to fame: Pahlen is a source of inspiration for weasels everywhere. A combination of duplicity and luck led him nearly unscathed through the murder of Russian Emperor Paul and the accession of Alexander. Continue reading 17 December: Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen

16 December: Odin

Odin is, deep down, a trickster. That's probably why he keeps Loki around.
Odin is, deep down, a trickster. That’s probably why he keeps Loki around.

Name: Odin, The Allfather. Woden, Wotan and similar variations. Also, more than 200 other names. Seriously, take a look at this list of his many different names!

Tagline: The ruler of Asgard, he sits in his tower in Valhalla, his keep, from whence he watches the world and lays plans for defeating the Giants of Jotunheim.

Claim to fame: Though he’s not quite as famous as some of his subordinate gods, like Thor, Loki and Freya, Odin is the chief of all the Norse gods. He is also one of the creators of mankind, and a powerful god of magic and wisdom. Continue reading 16 December: Odin

15 December: Bishop Absalon

Bishop Absalon is the only non-king to have an equastrian statue in Copenhagen. Photo by Calimo, CC SA BY 3.0.
Bishop Absalon is the only non-king to have an equastrian statue in Copenhagen. Photo by Calimo, CC SA BY 3.0.

Name: Absalon

Tagline: Born into a famous Danish family, he became a powerful bishop and ally to the king.

Claim to Fame: Founded Copenhagen. Also, he paid the guy who wrote the first history of Denmark Continue reading 15 December: Bishop Absalon

14 December: Enkidu

Enkidu defeating a lion.
Enkidu defeating a lion.

Name: Enkidu, “Enki’s Creation”

Tagline: Created by the god Aruru from clay and spit to humble the hero, Gilgamesh, he starts off as a wild man, until he is civilised by a temple prostitute. He becomes friends and fast companions with Gilgamesh

Claim to Fame: being Gilgamesh’s right hand man for much of The Epic of Gilgamesh. Continue reading 14 December: Enkidu

13 December: Saint Lucy

Saint Lucy is usually portrayed with her eyes on a platter. She is the patron saint of blind people.
Saint Lucy is usually portrayed with her eyes on a platter. She is the patron saint of blind people.

Name: Saint Lucia, Lucia of Syracuse, Saint Lucy.

Tagline: Born to a wealthy roman family, Lucia swore herself to virginity, and gave her dowry to the poor, somewhat irking her prospective husband. In the end, she was executed by the governor of Syracuse.

Claim to Fame: Saint Lucy is venerated on the 13th of December in many places around the world, particularly in the Nordic Countries. Continue reading 13 December: Saint Lucy