What Happened on This Day in History?
On July 18, 1806, a gunpowder magazine known as the Polverista in the town of Birgu, Malta, catastrophically exploded, instantly killing around 200 people and devastating the surrounding area. The explosion was one of the deadliest accidents in Maltese history.
Why It's Strange
This catastrophic explosion in a densely packed historic fortified town is almost entirely forgotten outside of Malta, despite killing 200 people in a single blast - a death toll that would be front-page news anywhere in the world today, yet it has virtually vanished from broader historical memory.
