Category Archives: History

History

On this day April 27

 

Today in History

  • 2005 The Airbus A380 takes to the skies for the first time

    The double-deck airliner is the world’s largest commercial jet.

  • 1994 South African citizens of all races are allowed to vote in a general election for the first time

    The 1994 general election was held precisely 44 years after Apartheid was formalized by the government with the passing of the Group Areas Act.

  • 1992 For the first time in its 700-year history, the British House of Commons is presided over by a female Speaker

    Betty Boothroyd served as Speaker of the House of Commons from 1992 to 2000.

  • 1961 Sierra Leone becomes an independent republic

    The West African country’s first Prime Minister, Sir Milton Margai, ended over 150 years of British colonial rule.

  • 1810 Ludwig van Beethoven composes “Für Elise”

    “Bagatelle No. 25” for solo piano is one of the German composer’s most popular works and one of the most recognized melodies in the history of music.

 

History

On this day April 25

Today in History

  • 2011 The largest tornado outbreak ever recorded hits the U.S.

    348 people in six states were killed during the outbreak, which encompassed a total of 358 confirmed tornadoes.

  • 1983 The German news magazine, Stern, announces discovery of Hitler’s diaries

    The documents were later exposed as forgeries, triggering one of the most spectacular media scandals in history. Experts believe that Hitler never kept a diary.

  • 1974 In Portugal, the fascist Estado Novo is overthrown in a bloodless coup

    The leftist Carnation Revolution was led by military officers and supported by widespread civil resistance.

  • 1953 The double helix structure of DNA described for the first time

    Francis Crick and James D. Watson published their groundbreaking findings about the molecule containing genetic information was in Nature that day.

  • 1859 Construction of the Suez Canal begins

    The waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea became the shortest sea link between Europe and Asia.

History

On this day April 18

Today in History

  • 1956 Rainier III marries Grace Kelly

    The wedding celebrations for the Prince of Monaco and the glamorous U.S. actress were broadcast around the world and enthused the population of war-torn Europe.

  • 1951 The European Coal and Steel Community, a precursor of the European Union, is established

    The Treaty of Paris was signed by France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

  • 1949 Ireland becomes an independent republic

    Six counties in the northern part of the island remained in the Commonwealth, leading to a decades-long ethno-nationalist conflict that culminated in The Troubles.

  • 1906 A massive earthquake destroys San Francisco

    About 3000 people died in the disaster. Over 80 percent of the city was destroyed by the quake and resulting fires.

  • 1506 Construction of the current St. Peter’s Basilica begins

    St. Peter’s in Vatican City is one of the world’s most important Catholic sites.

History

On this day April 15

Today in History

  • 1994 The World Trade Organization is founded

    The WTO coordinates and strives to liberalize international trade. It has been criticized for ignoring and escalating the negative social and environmental side-effects of globalization.

  • 1989 A small group of students initiates pro-democracy protest on Tiananmen Square in Beijing

    The death of reformer Hu Yaobang triggered the demonstrations, which grew in size and were brutally dispersed in the Tiananmen Square Massacre on June 4.

  • 1986 The United States launches retaliatory air strikes against Libya

    Around 40 Libyans died in Operation El Dorado Canyon, including an infant girl. The attack was the United States’ response to the bombing of a Berlin discotheque on April 5, in which 3 people had died.

  • 1945 The German concentration camp Bergen-Belsen is liberated

    British and Canadian troops found about 53,000 prisoners inside the camp. Tens of thousands died before and after the liberation.

  • 1935 The Eastman Kodak Company launches Kodachrome

    The photographic film was one of the most popular media used by professional and hobby photographers around the world. The product was discontinued in 2009 because of the advent of digital photography.