211: Roman Emperor Septimius Severus dies, leaving the Roman Empire in the hands of his two quarrelsome sons, Caracalla and Geta 960: Coronation of Zhao Kuangyin as Emperor Taizu of the Song, initiating three centuries of Song Dynasty dominance in southern China 1789: 1st US electoral college chooses George Washington as President and John Adams as Vice President 1859: One of the oldest known copies of the […]
1451: Sultan Mehmed II, the Conqueror inherits the throne of the Ottoman Empire 1509: The Battle of Diu, naval battle at port of Diu, India between Portugal and the Ottoman Empire, establishes Portuguese trading control 1870: US state of Iowa ratifies the 15th Amendment of the United States Constitution allowing suffrage for all races & colour 1928: Paleoanthropologist Davidson Black reports his […]
1653: New Amsterdam becomes a city (later renamed New York) 1848: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends the Mexican–American War: US acquires Texas, California, New Mexico and Arizona for $15 million 1901: Queen Victoria’s Funeral takes place in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, England 1922: James Joyce’s “Ulysses” published in Paris (1,000 copies) 1943: German 6th Army surrenders after Battle of […]
1587: Queen Elizabeth I of England signs death warrant for her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots 1843: Oldest continuous writer of insurance in America – The Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York (MONY) opens 1884: 1st volume of the Oxford English Dictionary, A-Ant, published 1908: King Carlos I of Portugal and his heir, Prince Luis Filipe are assassinated by Republican sympathizers […]
1865: Congress passes the 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery in America (passes 121-24) 1865: General Robert E. Lee named Commander-in-Chief of Confederate Armies during US Civil War 1943: Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrenders to Soviet troops at Stalingrad 1950: US President Harry Truman publicly announces support for the development of a hydrogen bomb 1985: South African President P. W. Botha offers to free Nelson Mandela if he denounces violence Source: […]
1661: Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England is ritually executed after having been dead for two years 1815: Burned US Library of Congress re-established with Thomas Jefferson’s 6,500 volumes 1902: Britain and Japan sign a treaty after months of negotiating which commits each country to supporting an independent China and Korea, although it acknowledges Japan’s ‘special […]
474: Zeno crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire together with his son Leo II (age 6 or 7) 661: Rashidun Caliphate, then the largest empire in history, ends with the death of its leader, Ali. Succeeded by the Umayyad Caliphate. 1595: William Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet” is thought to have been first performed. Officially published early […]
1521: Emperor Charles V opens the Diet of Worms in Worms, Germany which lasts until May 25th; Produced the “Edict of Worms” which denounced Martin Luther 1807: London’s Pall Mall is 1st street lit by gaslight 1813: Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” is published by Thomas Egerton in the United Kingdom 1819: Sir Stamford Raffles lands in Singapore 1933: The name “Pakistan” is coined by […]
1820: Russian Antarctic Expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev discover the continent of Antarctica 1825: US Congress approves Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma), clearing the way for the forced relocation of the Eastern Indian tribes via the “Trail of Tears” 1888: The National Geographic Society is founded in Washington, D.C. for “the increase and diffusion of geographic knowledge” […]
1482: “Pentateuch” the Jewish Bible is 1st printed as a book in Bologna, Italy 1531: Lisbon hit by Earthquake; about 30,000 die 1564: The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism 1788: Captain Arthur Phillip and British colonists hoist the Union Flag at Sydney Cove, New South Wales, now celebrated as […]
