THE THAMES RAN FOUL: A SUMMER OF FILTH, 1858

The city of London breathed in the heat of summer, 1858. But it was not merely the sun that scorched the metropolis. An even more detestable force infested its very heart: the River Thames. Years of industrial effluents had transformed London's lifeblood into a foul-smelling mire. The stench was overwhelming, a miasma that clung to every cobbleston

The year 845 AD. A chill wind blasted across the Seine River, carrying with it the scent emanating from salt and fear. The Norsemen were upon us, a ravenous swarm of warriors seeking plunder. Their longships, like wolves, sliced through the waters, their flags billowing in the wind. A city once confident now trembled beneath the menace of the comin