Today in History
Significant Events
- 1813 Battle of Leipzig, largest battle in Europe prior to WWI, Napoleon's forces defeated by Prussia, Austria and Russia
- 1900 Great Britain and Germany sign the Anglo-German Treaty, agreeing to maintain territorial integrity of China and support 'open door' policy called for by US Secretary of State
- 1934 Mao Zedong & 25,000 troops begin 6,000 mile Long March
- 1962 Cuban missile crisis begins as JFK is shown photos confirming the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba
- 1978 Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla elected Pope John Paul II
- 1998 Former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet is arrested in London on a Spanish warrant requesting his extradition on murder charges
Today in Film & TV
- 1923 Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio founded
Today in Music
- 1912 Arnold Schoenberg's "Pierrot Lunaire," premieres at the Berlin Choralion-Saal sung by Albertine Zehme
Today in Sport
- 1968 Americans Tommie Smith (gold 19.83 WR) and John Carlos (bronze) famously give the Black Power salute on the 200m medal podium during the Mexico City Olympics
Did You Know?
Findings published of neutron star collision that occurred two months prior on August 17, the first cosmic event seen in gravitational waves and light. Confirms heavy elements such as gold the result of such collisions
On this day in 2017
Oscar Wilde
David Ben-Gurion
Michael Collins
Arthur Miller
Evel Knievel
EminemFamous Weddings
- 1923 General Francisco Franco (30) marries María del Carmen Polo y Martínez-Valdés (23) at Church of San Juan el Real in Oviedo
- 1965 Singer Leslie Uggams marries Grahame Pratt in NYC
- 1979 MLB outfielder Tim Raines (20) weds his high school sweetheart Virginia Hilton
- 1986 Marie Osmond marries Brian Blosil
- 1992 Author J. K. Rowling (27) weds Portuguese television journalist Jorge Arantes
Famous Divorces
- 1924 American writer ("Gone with the Wind") Margaret Mitchell divorces 1st husband Berrien (Red) Upshaw
- 1984 Joyce King divorces NBA guard George Gervin (32) after nearly 8 years of marriage
Marie Antoinette
Joachim von Ribbentrop
George Marshall
Agrippina the Elder
Frederic Chopin
Laura SecordThis Month in History
The Great Stand on the Ugra River
On one side of the Ugra River stood the Mongol Golden Horde, on the other, Ivan III, Grand Prince of the rising Muscovy Principality. At stake, everything.
October 8, 1480
Grim History of London's Speakers' Corner
Nowhere in England is the principal of free speech embodied more than at Speakers’ Corner in London’s Hyde Park. But this right was won through death and protest.
October 14, 1855
Hurricane on the Way? Don't Worry
A cosy assurance from a BBC weather forecaster for viewers not to worry about an impending storm has gone down as the most spectacular mis-forecast in history.
October 15, 1987
Test of Time for the Date of Creation
The assertion by a 17th Century bishop that the universe was created on this day in the year 4004 BC was put to the test in a famous trial in the United States.
October 23, 4004 BC
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