Category Archives: History

History

On this day March 19

Today in History

  • 1962 Bob Dylan releases his first album

    Dylan is one of the world’s most influential music artists. His songs “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times They Are a-Changin’” became anthems for the anti-war movement.

  • 1954 Willie Mosconi sets the world record for running most consecutive Pool balls without a miss

    Mr. Pocket Billiards, as the hugely successful American sportsman was often called, ran 526 consecutive balls.

  • 1945 Adolf Hitler orders the destruction of all industries in Germany

    The Nero Decree was issued in the light of Germany’s imminent defeat in World War II. It was never fully executed.

  • 1911 The first International Women’s Day is observed by over 1 million people in several European countries

    German socialists Clara Zetkin and Luise Zietz initiated the observance, which has become an annual global event.

  • 1895 The Lumière brothers record their first footage

    Sortie des Usines Lumière à Lyon showed workers leaving their factory in Lyon. The film is about 50 seconds long. Auguste and Louis Lumière were the earliest filmmakers in history.

 

History

On this day March 18

Today in History

  • 1990 East Germany holds its first and only free parliamentary elections

    The election was held between the peaceful revolution leading to the demise of the German Democratic Republic in 1989 and the German reunification in 1990.

  • 1971 A 100 feet (30 meter) high wave destroys a Peruvian mining camp and kills hundreds of people

    The tsunami was caused by a massive rock avalanche that crashed into Lake Yanahuani from a height of 1300 feet (400 meters).

  • 1965 Russian cosmonaut Aleksei Leonov becomes the first person to walk in space

    During the tethered spacewalk, which lasted 12 minutes, Leonov ventured up to 10 meters from his spacecraft, Voskhod 2.

  • 1962 The Évian Accords are signed, ending the Algerian War

    Algeria gained its independence from France as a consequence.

  • 1892 Lord Stanley of Preston pledges to donate a challenge cup for the best ice hockey team in Canada

History

On this day March 12

Today in History

  • 1967 Suharto rises to power in Indonesia

    His presidency, which lasted 31 years, was overshadowed by crass human rights violations and the occupation of East Timor.

  • 1947 The Truman doctrine is proclaimed

    In his speech before Congress, U.S. President Harry S. Truman defined his foreign relations priorities, which included military and economic support to Turkey and Greece to prevent the spread of communism there.

  • 1938 Hitler invades Austria

    The occupation of Hitler’s homeland is known as Anschluss, which is the German word for annexation.

  • 1930 Mahatma Gandhi embarks on his Salt March

    The 240-mile march was an act of civil disobedience to protest the British monopoly on salt. It was one of the most significant events during the Indian independence movement.

  • 1918 Moscow becomes Russia’s capital city

    St. Petersburg lost its status as the Russian capital following the Revolution of 1917, which dismantled the Tsarist autocracy.

History

On This Day – March 11

On This Day – March 11

  • 2011 The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster strikes Japan

    The nuclear meltdowns occurred after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami. It was the worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

  • 2004 191 people die as several bombs explode on Madrid commuter trains

    The bombings were conducted by an Islamist terrorist cell and came 3 days before Spain’s general elections.

  • 1990 Lithuania becomes the first Soviet republic to declare its independence

    The Baltic country’s secession marked an important step in the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

  • 1990 Patricio Aylwin becomes Chile’s first democratically elected president since the end of Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship

    Pinochet had been in power since a CIA-backed coup d’état in 1973. Under his command, thousands of political opponents were interned, tortured, and killed.

  • 1851 Giuseppe Verdi’s opera, Rigoletto, receives its premiere

    Rigoletto is one of the most popular operas of all time. The piece was premiered at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Italy.