Wednesday

Switzerland:

Famed for the Swiss folk hero and patriot, William. When you look beyond the legend, Tell was a famed leader of the Swiss independence movement and was later heavily involved in the revolution which led to the Swiss Confederation being granted their freedom from Austria.

On November 18, 1307 William refused to bow towards a hat placed on a pole as a sign of imperial power. As a result he was ordered to shoot an apple off his son's head. (He was known as an expert crossbowman.) He succeeded in shooting the apple without harming his son.

The story of his feat also stated that he had a second crossbow bolt hidden behind his belt in case he failed and killed his son, he would have quickly reloaded and killed the official who had ordered him to shoot the apple off his son's head.