930: World’s oldest parliament, the Icelandic Parliament, the Alþingi (anglicised as Althing or Althingi), established 1868: Christopher Latham Sholes patents the Sholes and Glidden typewriter, the first commercially successful of its kind 1960: 1st contraceptive pill is made available for purchase in the U.S. 1972: Hurricane Agnes becomes America’s costliest natural disaster, affecting 15 states, with 119 deaths and $3 billion in […]
1027: Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II Holy Roman Emperor, founder of the Salian dynasty 1812: Earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale destroys 90% of Caracas, Venezuela and kills an estimated 15,000–20,000 people 1871: Municipal elections bring revolutionaries to power in Paris to form Commune government 1909: In support of Mohammed Ali Shah’s coup d’etat against the constitutional government […]
1821: The Greek Revolution begins 31: Easter, according to calendar-maker Dionysius Exiguus 1436: Florentine cathedral Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore with then the largest dome in the world by Filippo Brunelleschi, consecrated by Pope Eugene IV (begun 1296) 1807: British Parliament abolishes slave trade throughout the British Empire; penalty of £120 per slave introduced for ship captains 1895: Italian […]
1616 Roman Inquisition delivers injunction to Galileo demanding he abandon his belief in heliocentrism, which states the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun 1797 Bank of England issues first £1 note 1815 Napoleon Bonaparte and his supporters leave Elba to start a 100 day re-conquest of France 1885 Berlin Conference gives Congo to Belgium and Nigeria to Great Britain 1935 RADAR (Radio […]
