Peter the Great imposed a tax on beards!

Beards are a rather controversial topic. Most people either love them or want to run a lawn mower through them. Peter the Great, obsessed with Westernization, definitely belonged to the later group of people.

In order to encourage a nice, clean-shaven visage among Russians, he imposed a tax on beards. Noblemen paid 100 rubles a year for a medallion that served as a beard license and carried the inscription: “The beard is a useless burden.”

Now, don’t comfort yourself with the thought that this beard discrimination is a thing of the past. Brigham Young University’s dress code states: “Men are expected to be clean shaven; beards are not acceptable.” But BYU will make an exception if you have a beard for “medical reasons.”