On this day in the year 196 before
the common era (BCE) Ptolemy V, aged 13, is crowned King of Ptolemaic Egypt at
Memphis by the High Priest of Ptah; the Rosetta Stone is inscribed afterward to
proclaim this event; three hundred and twenty-three years later, the Greek
astronomer and mathematician Ptolemy begins his observations of the heavens,
which he continues to document for the next fourteen years.
On this day in the year 685 of the
common era (CE), St. Cuthbert is consecrated bishop of Lindisfarne by archbishop
Theodore at York, England; three hundred and forty-two years later, pope John
XIX crowns Conrad II as the “Holy Roman” emperor, founding the Salian dynasty. Nine
hundred and forty years after that, in 1967 CE, pope Paul VI issues the encyclical
Populorum Progression; eighteen years later, pope John Paul II proclaims the first
ever World Youth Day; forty-eight years later, the remains of Richard III of
England (1452-85) are reburied at Leicester Cathedral in England after being
discovered under a carpark in Leicester in 2012.
On this day in the year 1484 (CE)
William Caxton prints his translation of Aesop's Fables.
On this day in 1534 CE, Lübeck
accepts free Dutch ships into East Sea; one hundred and fifty-eight years
later, king Maximilian is installed as land guardian of South Netherlands. Two
hundred and eight years after that, in 1900 CE, the first edition of The
(Free) People is printed in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; three years later,
an American Hotel opens in Amsterdam. Twenty-three years after that, in 1926
CE, ‘de Graeff is appointed governor general of Dutch East Indies; forty-three
years later, the Dutch commission the Dodewaard nuclear reactor in the
Netherlands.
In 1552 CE, Amar Das becomes the
Third Sikh Guru
In 1636 CE the University of
Utrecht holds its opening ceremony; twenty-seven years later, the Quebec
Seminary is established by François de Montmorency-Laval, the first bishop of
New France...it is the first institution of higher learning in North America. Two
hundred and five years later, in 1878 CE, the Hastings College of Law is founded
in San Francisco, California.
In 1752 CE the Murder Act passes
into law in Great Britain, allowing for the corpses of executed murderers to be
given to the Company of Surgeons for dissection and experimentation.
In 1790 CE the United States (U.S.)
Congress passes the Naturalization Act, requiring a two-year period of residency
before citizenship may be conferred; fourteen years later, Congress orders the removal
of all Native Americans living east of Mississippi to Louisiana. One hundred
and six years after that, in 1910 CE, the U.S. forbids immigration to
criminals, anarchists, paupers and the sick; twenty years late, Congress appropriates
fifty-thousand dollars for the Inter-American highway system.
In 1804 CE the Territory of
Orleans is organized through the Louisiana Purchase.
In 1812 CE, an Earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale
destroys 90% of Caracas, Venezuela, and killing an estimated fifteen to twenty
thousand people; sixty years later a 7.8 earthquake shakes Owens Valley,
California.
In 1820 CE, according to Mormon
scholars, the future leader of the Mormon church, Joseph Smith, has his
"First Vision" in a wooded area of New York; ten years later, the Book
of Mormon is published in Palmyra, New York.
In 1845 CE, Joseph Francis from
NYC, patents a corrugated sheet-iron lifeboat, on this same day a patent is awarded
for adhesive medicated plaster, precursor of the “Band-aid.” Twenty-seven years
after that, in 1872 CE, Thomas J. Martin of Alabama, receives a U.S. patent for
a pipe and valve fire extinguisher system.
In 1852 CE, Napoleon III issues
the Decree of Paris Streets and officially launches the massive modernization
of Paris by easing expropriation laws and empowering the executive to seize
property for public utility, including road widening and sanitation. This,
followed by Baron Haussmann's appointment in 1853, enabled the creation of wide
boulevards, sanitation systems, and new, uniform street regulations; nineteen
years later, municipal elections bring revolutionaries to power in Paris who
form the short-lived Paris Commune government.
In 1859 CE the first supposed
sighting of Vulcan is declared, a planet thought to orbit the sun, inside the
orbit of Mercury, only the planet doesn't exist, and its sighting was something
that happen in the human consciousness, similar to an AI hallucination…sometimes
we just make it up.
In 1863 CE, fully committed to
half measures and unmoved by basic morality, voters in West Virginia approve the
gradual emancipation of slaves.
In 1881 CE Thessaly is freed from
Ottoman rule becoming a part of Greece again.
In 1885 CE, Eastman Film Co.
manufactures the first commercial motion picture film; forty-two years later, Alfred
Hugenberg purchases the German film company UFA. On this same day, in 1927 CE, the
Gaumont-British Film Corporation forms.
In 1885 CE the first modern and “legal
cremation” is held at the township of Woking, in Surrey, England.
In 1895 CE, king Alfonso of Spain
plants a pine sapling in Madrid, initiating Spain’s Arbor Day tradition, a
precursor to the modern Earth Day movement.
In 1909 CE Russian military forces
invade northern Persia to support Mohammad Ali Shah's coup d'état against the
constitutional government in Persia and relieve the siege of Tabriz.
In 1924 CE, George Bernard Shaw's
play Saint Joan, opens in London, England; sixteen years later, The
Fifth Column, a play by Ernest Hemingway and adapted by Benjamin Glazer
premieres in New York, New York courtesy of the Theater Guild
In 1926 CE the first lip-reading
tournament is held in the United States.
In 1931 CE, Leo Bentley bowls three
consecutive perfect games in Lorain, Ohio.
In 1934 CE, driving tests are introduced
in Britain.
In 1935 CE, RJ Mitchell &
Major Sorley discuss the armament of Supermarine Spitfire.
In 1937 CE, the spinach growers of
Crystal City, Texas erect statue of Popeye; also on this day, William H. Hastie
becomes the first person of African descent to hold a federal judgeship, in the
Virgin Islands, U.S..
In 1942 CE the first
"Eichmann transport" carries the condemned to Auschwitz and Birkenau
concentration camps, also on this day a German offensive in North Africa under
General Erwin Rommel fails. One year later, in 1943 CE, Elsie S. Ott is becomes
the first female to be awarded U.S. Air Force Medal; one year later, seven
hundred and five British bombers attack Essen, Germany. One year after that, in
1945 CE, allied generals Dwight D. Eisenhower, Omar Bradley and George S.
Patton launch an attack at Remagen on the Rhine, and the U.S. 7th
Army crosses Worms while Churchill looks on; also on this day, allies led by the
U.S. Marine Corps secure the island of Iwo Jima, taking it from Imperial
Japanese Army, after eighteen thousand Japanese, and six thousand Americans are
killed. Later that day in 1945 CE, there is a Kamikaze attack on the U.S.
battle fleet near Kerama Retto.
In 1953 CE, Dr. Jonas Salk
announces that he has successfully tested a vaccine to prevent polio, clinical
trials begin; three years later, the Medic Alert Foundation forms. Sixty-two
years after that, in 2018 CE, a U.S. soldier receives the world's first penis-and-scrotum
transplant at John’s Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland; one year later,
the maker of Oxycontin, Purdue Pharma, agrees to pay the State of Oklahoma a
two hundred, and seventy million dollar settlement ahead of trial, after facing
accusations that company had been intentionally fueling the American opioid
epidemic. On this same day in 2019 CE, a state of emergency is declared in Rockland
County, New York due to an outbreak of the measles epidemic, with unvaccinated
children banned from public spaces for thirty days after one hundred and fifty
three cases.
In 1954 CE the United States
performs atmospheric nuclear test at Bikini Island; sixteen years later, the
five-hundredth nuclear explosion since 1945 is announced by the U.S.
government. Thirteen years after that, in 1983 CE, the U.S. performs nuclear
test at Nevada Test Site.
In 1955 CE The Ballad of Davy
Crockett, recorded by Bill Hayes becomes the #1 record in U.S.; fifteen
years later, folk singer Peter Yarrow (Peter, Paul & Mary) pleads guilty to
"taking immoral liberties" with a 14-year-old girl and serves 3
months in prison. He is granted presidential pardon by Ronald Regan in 1981.
Six years after that, in 1976 CE, Wings release the album: Wings at the
Speed of Sound; one year later, Elvis Costello releases his first record: Less
Than Zero. Three years after that, in 1980 CE, The Police perform in Bombay
gets, it is the nation’s first rock concert in a decade; two years later, Paul
McCartney and Stevie Wonder release the single: Ebony & Ivory in the
UK. Three years after that, in 1986 CE, Geffen records signs Guns & Roses;
thirty-six years later, the British rock band Genesis performs the final
concert of their farewell tour at the O2 Arena in London, England.
In 1958 CE, at the 30th
Academy Awards, The Bridge on the River Kwai wins Best Picture, eleven
years later, Marcus Welby, M.D., starring Robert Young and James Brolin
debuts as a TV movie on ABC-TV, prior to becoming a weekly series. Two years
after that, in 1971 CE The Benny Hill Show tops TV ratings in UK; two
years later, the television soap opera, The Young & the Restless,
premieres on CBS. Two years after that, in 1975 CE, Ken Russell's film Tommy,
based on the rock opera by The Who, premieres in London; Roger Daltrey and
Ann-Margret star, Tina Turner and Elton John are featured; fifteen years later,
Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa wins the Academy Award for Lifetime
Achievement. Five years after that, in 2000 CE, American Beauty, wins best
picture at the 72nd Academy Awards; eighteen years later, Marvel’s Black
Panther becomes the highest-grossing superhero film in America.
In 1958 CE the U.S. Army launches
America's third successful satellite, Explorer III; eleven years later, the Union
of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) launches the weather satellite Meteor I.
Twelve years after that, in 1981 CE, the U.S.S.R.’s Soyuz T-4 lands, six years
later, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (N.A.S.A.) launches
Fltsatcom-6…it fails to reach orbit.
In 1960 CE the Baltimore Orioles
and Cincinnati Reds have a series planned for Havana, Cuba moved to Miami,
Florida; sixteen years later, the American League approves the purchase of the Toronto
franchise by LaBatt Brewing for seven Million dollars. Three years after that,
in 1979 CE, the San Diego Padres and the San Francisco Giants announce plans to
play exhibition series in Tokyo…the Giant’s players reject it.
In 1962 CE the U.S. Supreme Court ratifies
the concept of one-person-one-vote for the apportionment of seats in state
legislatures.
In 1966 CE, large-scale
anti-Vietnam War protests take place in the United States, including in New
York City, Washington, D.C. and Chicago; sixteen years later, the groundbreaking
takes place in Washington, D.C. for Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a conflict that
claimed the lives, of fifty-nine thousand Americans, while wounding one hundred
and fifty-four thousand more service men and women.
In 1970 CE, in Northern Ireland, The
Police Act becomes law; providing for the disarmament of the Royal Ulster
Constabulary (R.U.C.) and the establishment of an R.U.C. reserve force; two
years later, William Whitelaw appointed as the first Secretary of State for
Northern Ireland.
In 1972 CE the LA Lakers break the
NBA wins record by winning 69 of 82 games…this record stands twenty-four years.
In 1973 CE Susan Shaw becomes the first
woman in one hundred and seventy-one years to step foot inside the London Stock
exchange; four years later, Focus on the Family is founded by American
evangelist Dr. James Dobson.
In 1974 CE, George Foreman win a
technical knock-out in his match with Ken Norton, winning the combined titles Heavyweight
Champion of the World from the World Boxing Association (W.B.A.), the World
Boxing Council (W.B.C.) and the The Ring, in Caracas, Venezuela; eighteen years
later, Mike Tyson is sentenced to ten years in prison for the rape of Desiree
Washington.
In 1974 CE the Romanian communist
party names party leader Nicolae Ceaușescu as president.
In 1975 CE The Biological Weapons
Convention is enacted with the force of international law.
In 1976 CE, queen Elizabeth II of England,
sends the first royal e-mail from the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment.
In 1979 CE Israeli Prime Minister
Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat sign the Egypt-Israel Peace
Treaty in Washington, D.C.; also on this day, OPEC announces a 14.5% price
increase for crude oil.
In 2001 CE. Kazakhstan's Prime
Minister opens an oil pipeline from the giant Tengiz Field to the Russian port
of Novorossiysk, giving the Central Asian producer its first direct link to
international markets.
In 1996 CE The International
Monetary Fund (I.M.F.) approves a 10.2 billion-dollar loan for Russia; one year
later, thirty-nine bodies are found in in Rancho Santa Fe, California as a part
of the Heaven's Gate cult-suicides. Two years after that, in 1999 CE, a jury in
Michigan finds Dr. Jack Kevorkian guilty of second-degree murder for
administering a lethal injection to a terminally ill man; also on this day in 1999
CE, the "Melissa worm" infects Microsoft Word processing and email
systems around the world.
In 2012 CE, Canadian filmmaker
James Cameron becomes the first person to visit Challenger Deep in over 50
years…it is the deepest point on Earth.
In 2017 CE, anti-corruption
protests in Russia result in hundreds arrested including opposition leader
Alexei Navalny; also on this day, Carrie Lam is the first woman elected to lead
Hong Kong by the Beijing-influenced electoral committee. One year after that,
in 2018 CE, the United States, the European Union and Ukraine expel more than one
hundred diplomats from the Russian Federation in response to Russia’s use of
nerve gas as a tool of assignation in United Kingdom.
In 2018 CE the American entertainer
and entrepreneur, Stormy Daniels, in an interview with CBS's 60 Minutes claims
she had an affair with Donald Trump and was threatened to keep quiet about it,
before being paid to be quiet about…
Also on this day in 2018 CE, the U.S.
Federal Trade Commission confirms it will investigate Facebook over privacy
concerns; one year later, the European Parliament votes for changes to
copyright laws, making internet companies responsible for copyright
infringements. Seven years after that, in 2026 CE, Meta and YouTube lose a
landmark social media addiction trial, awarding $6 million in damages to a
20-year-old woman.
In 2019 CE, a painting by Pablo
Picasso, Buste de Femme (Dora Maar, 1938), is recovered by a Dutch detective after
having been stolen twenty-years earlier.
In 2020 CE, confirmed cases of
COVID-19 in the United States exceed all other countries on this date, with
81,578 cases and 1,180 deaths…according to the New York Times; also on this day,
a record number of Americans file for unemployment: 3.3 million according to the
U.S. Department of Labor.
In 2020 CE the United States
Justice Department, in an unequal exercise of its legal authority, charges
Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and other officials in his administration with
"narco-terrorism," a crime for which there is no statute, ostensibly for
flooding the America with drugs, though there are many other responsible parties
including other state actors who are not given the same treatment.
In 2022 CE, U.S. President Joe
Biden says of Russian President Vladimir Putin, “For God’s sake, this man
cannot remain in power" in unscripted remarks in Poland…he had failed to
come to Ukraine’s aid in their hour of need, and in contravention to treaty
obligations that the United States had entered into when Ukraine gave up their
Nuclear Weapons at the end of the Cold War, together with N.A.T.O. and their
allies in Europe to defend Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression,
In 2024 CE the Francis Scott Key
Bridge in Baltimore is struck by a Singapore-flagged cargo ship that had lost
power (steering), causing the 1.6-mile-long, forty-seven-year-old structure to
completely collapse…six maintenance workers lost their lives.
In 2025 CE, Masaki Kashiwara is
the first Japanese mathematician to be awarded Mathematics' greatest award, the
Abel Prize, for his work on the theory of symmetry.
Reference
https://www.onthisday.com/
