The US drive on the right because Napoleon was left handed

Posted by | January 22, 2004 | trivia | No Comments

“In olden days the nobility would ride on the left so their sword hand–usually the right hand, of course–would be on the same side as an oncoming horseman…Napoleon switched the convention in Europe from driving on the left to driving on the right for a simple reason–he was left-handed. This meant he mounted and dismounted his horse on the right-hand side, which he naturally preferred to be at the road edge.”

New Scientist: The Last Word Science Questions and Answers