Holidays
- Christian feast day:
- Commemoration of Sen no Rikyū (Schools of Japanese tea ceremony)
- Serfs Emancipation Day (Tibet)
- Teachers’ Day (Czech Republic and Slovakia)
History
In 37, Roman emperor Caligula accepts the titles of the Principate, entitled to him by the Senate.
In 193, Roman Emperor Pertinax is assassinated by Praetorian Guards, who then sell the throne in an auction to Didius Julianus.
In 364, Roman Emperor Valentinian I appoints his brother Flavius Valens co-emperor.
In 1380, Gunpowder first used in Europe, by the Venetians against the Genoese
In 1566, The foundation stone of Valletta, Malta‘s capital city, is laid by Jean Parisot de Valette, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
In 1584, Ivan the Terrible, Russian king (b. 1530) dies. He was commonly known as Ivan the Terrible, he was the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and ‘Tsar of All the Russias’ from 1547 until his death in 1584.
His long reign saw the conquest of the Khanate of Kazan, Khanate of Astrakhan and Khanate of Sibir, transforming Russia into a multiethnic and multicontinental state spanning almost one billion acres, approximately 4,050,000 km2 (1,560,000 sq mi). Ivan managed countless changes in the progression from a medieval state to an empire and emerging regional power, and became the first ruler to be crowned as Tsar of All the Russias.
Historic sources present disparate accounts of Ivan’s complex personality: he was described as intelligent and devout, yet given to rages and prone to episodic outbreaks of mental illness, that increased with his age, affecting his reign. In one such outburst, he killed his groomed and chosen heir Ivan Ivanovich. This left the Tsardom to be passed to Ivan’s younger son, the weak and intellectually disabled Feodor Ivanovich.
Ivan’s legacy is complex: he was an able diplomat, a patron of arts and trade, founder of the Moscow Print Yard, Russia’s first publishing house, a leader highly popular among the common people (see Ivan the Terrible in Russian folklore) of Russia, but he is also remembered for his paranoia and arguably harsh treatment of the Russian nobility. The Massacre of Novgorod is regarded as one of the biggest demonstrations of his mental instability and brutality
In 1592, The first picture book for children was written by J.A. Comenius. This, however, is the day of his birth. He was a Czech philosopher, pedagogue and theologian from the Margraviate of Moravia who is considered the father of modern education. He served as the last bishop of the Unity of the Brethren before becoming a religious refugee and one of the earliest champions of universal education, a concept eventually set forth in his book Didactica Magna. As an educator and theologian, he led schools and advised governments across Protestant Europe through the middle of the seventeenth century.
Comenius introduced a number of educational concepts and innovations including pictorial textbooks written in native languages instead of Latin, teaching based in gradual development from simple to more comprehensive concepts, lifelong learning with a focus on logical thinking over dull memorization, equal opportunity for impoverished children, education for women, and universal and practical instruction. Besides his native Bohemian Crown, he lived and worked in other regions of the Holy Roman Empire, and other countries: Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Transylvania, England, the Netherlands and Hungary.
In 1611, Adrian Block and Hendrick Christiaensen sail to Manhattan to trade with the Indians
In 1738, English parliament declares war on Spain (War of Jenkin’s Ear).
In 1774, Britain passes Coercive Act against Massachusetts.
In 1776, Juan Bautista de Anza finds the site for the Presidio of San Francisco.
In 1794, Allies under Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld defeat French forces at Le Cateau.
In 1794, Marquis de Condorcet, French mathematician and philosopher (b. 1743) dies. He was known as Nicolas de Condorcet, was a French philosopher, mathematician, and early political scientist whose Condorcet method in voting tally selects the candidate who would beat each of the other candidates in a run-off election. Unlike many of his contemporaries, he advocated a liberal economy, free and equal public instruction, constitutionalism, and equal rights for women and people of all races. His ideas and writings were said to embody the ideals of the Age of Enlightenment and rationalism, and remain influential to this day. He died a mysterious death in prison after a period of flight from French Revolutionary authorities.
In 1795, Partitions of Poland: The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, a northern fief of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, ceases to exist and becomes part of Imperial Russia.
In 1797, Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire received a patent for the washing machine.
In 1799, N.Y. State abolished slavery.
In 1802, Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers discovers 2 Pallas, the second asteroid known to man.
In 1809, Peninsular War: France defeats Spain in the Battle of Medellín.
In 1814, War of 1812: The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom defeats the United States Navy in the Battle of Valparaiso, Chile.
In 1834, the U.S. Senate voted to censure President Jackson for the removal of federal deposits from the Bank of the United States. Good for him.
In 1845, Mexico drops diplomatic relations with US.
In 1848, a Pennsylvania law decrees that no child under twelve could engage in commercial labor.
In 1850, Gerard Brandon, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 4th Governor of Mississippi (b. 1788) dies. Gerard Brandon was the son of Irish immigrant, Gerard Chittocque Brandon, who established and ran the Selma Plantation in Adams County, Mississippi and Dorothy Nugent, the daughter of Irish immigrants Matthew Nugent and Isabel MacBray. The couple moved to Mississippi from South Carolina sometime in 1785.
Brandon was born September 15, 1788 in Natchez, Mississippi, the second child and first son of the family. He was educated at Princeton University and William and Mary College, and served in the War of 1812. He later practiced law at Washington, Mississippi and was a successful planter, following his father’s footsteps, in Adams County, Mississippi.
He married Margaret Chambers on January 18, 1816 in Bardstown, Kentucky. After Margaret’s death in June 1820, Gerard married Betsy Stanton on July 12, 1824 in Adams County, Mississippi. The governor had a total of eight children with his two wives.
Brandon died, at the age of 61, on March 28, 1850 and was buried in a private family cemetery at his Columbian Springs Plantation in Wilkinson County, Mississippi.
In 1854, Crimean War: France and Britain declare war on Russia.
In 1860, First Taranaki War: The Battle of Waireka begins.
In 1862, American Civil War: Battle of Glorieta Pass – in New Mexico, Union forces stop the Confederate invasion of New Mexico territory. The battle began on March 26.
In 1864, The business section of downtown Jackson was burned by Union Colonel Fielding Hurst’s men in 1864.
Fielding and Colonel William Jay Smith lead he 6th Tennessee Cavalry which was organized at Bethel Springs, LaGrange, Bolivar, and Trenton and mustered in 11 August 1862 for a three year enlistment under the command of Colonel Fielding Hurst. These last four companies of the regiment were mustered in October 1862, as the 1st West Tennessee Infantry and transferred to the 6th Tennessee Cavalry in July 1863, per orders dated 10 June 1863.
The regiment was attached to District of Jackson, Department of the Tennessee, to November 1862. District of Jackson, XIII Corps, Department of the Tennessee, to December 1862. Cavalry Brigade, District of Jackson, XVI Corps, to March 1863. Cavalry Brigade, 3rd Division, XVI Corps, to June 1863. 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, XVI Corps, to December 1863. 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, XVI Corps, to June 1864. Unassigned, District of West Tennessee, Department of the Tennessee, to November 1864. 2nd Brigade, 4th Division, Cavalry Corps, Military Division Mississippi, to December 1864. 2nd Brigade, 7th Division, Cavalry Corps, Military Division Mississippi, to February 1865. 1st Brigade, 6th Division, Cavalry Corps, Military Division Mississippi, and District of Middle Tennessee, to August 1865.
The 6th Tennessee Cavalry mustered out of service 26 July 1865.
From Dale Smith Brittain: You didn’t mention the $5,000 ransom Hurst demanded from the city, the fact the ransom was paid, and that Hurst burned downtown Jackson anyway. This was only after his troops had cut the ropes of downtown wells so the fires couldn’t be extinguished. A sad part of our history!
In 1865, outdoor advertising legislation was enacted in New York State on this day. We’re not certain if New York City was exempted or not, but from the looks of things, it may have been. The law banned “painting on stones, rocks and trees.”
In 1871, The Paris Commune is formally established in Paris.
In 1883, Tonkin Campaign: French victory in the Battle of Gia Cuc.
In 1889, The Yngsjö murder in Yngsjö, Sweden: Anna Månsdotter is arrested along with her son.
In 1898, The Supreme Court ruled that a child born in the United States to Chinese immigrants was a U.S. citizen, and therefore could not be deported under the Chinese Exclusion Act.
In 1902, 27.9 cm precipitation at McMinnville, Tennessee (state record).
In 1910, Henri Fabre becomes the first person to fly a seaplane, the Fabre Hydravion, after taking off from a water runway near Martigues, France.
In 1913, Guatemala becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
In 1920, Palm Sunday tornado outbreak of 1920 affects the Great Lakes region and Deep South states.
In 1930, the names of the Turkish cities of Constantinople and Angora were changed to Istanbul and Ankara.
In 1933, The Imperial Airways biplane City of Liverpool is believed to be the first airline lost to sabotage when a passenger sets a fire on board.
In 1933, German Reichstage confers dictatorial powers to Adolph Hitler.
In 1939, Spanish Civil War: Generalissimo Francisco Franco conquers Madrid after a three-year siege.
In 1939, Adolf Hitler denounced Germany’s 1934 non-aggression pact with Poland.
In 1941, World War II: Battle of Cape Matapan – in the Mediterranean Sea, British Admiral Andrew Browne Cunningham leads the Royal Navy in the destruction of three major Italian heavy cruisers and two destroyers.
In 1942, World War II: St Nazaire Raid: In occupied France, British naval forces successfully raid the German-occupied port of Saint-Nazaire.
In 1944, Astrid Lindgren sprains ankle & begins writing PippiLongstocking
In 1946, Cold War: The United States State Department releases the Acheson–Lilienthal Report, outlining a plan for the international control of nuclear power.
In 1951, First Indochina War: In the Battle of Mạo Khê, French Union forces, led by World War II hero Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, inflict a defeat on Việt Minh forces commanded by General Võ Nguyên Giáp.
In 1953, Jim Thorpe, American football player and coach (b. 1887) dies. He was a Sac and Fox athlete of Native American and European ancestry. Considered one of the most versatile athletes of modern sports, he won Olympic gold medals in the 1912 pentathlon and decathlon, played American football (collegiate and professional), and also played professional baseball and basketball. He lost his Olympic titles after it was found he was paid for playing two seasons of semi-professional baseball before competing in the Olympics, thus violating the amateurism rules that were then in place. In 1983, 30 years after his death, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) restored his Olympic medals.
Thorpe grew up in the Sac and Fox Nation in Oklahoma. He played as part of several all American Indian teams throughout his career, and “barnstormed” as a professional basketball player with a team composed entirely of American Indians.
From 1920 to 1921, Thorpe was nominally the first president of the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which would become the National Football League(NFL) in 1922.
He played professional sports until age 41, the end of his sports career coinciding with the start of the Great Depression. Thorpe struggled to earn a living after that, working several odd jobs. Thorpe suffered from alcoholism, and lived his last years in failing health and poverty.
In a poll of sports fans conducted by ABC Sports, Thorpe was voted the Greatest Athlete of the Twentieth Century out of 15 other athletes including Muhammad Ali, Babe Ruth, Jesse Owens, Wayne Gretzky, Jack Nicklaus, and Michael Jordan
In 1959, The State Council of the People’s Republic of China dissolves the government of Tibet. This occurred 11 days after Tibet uprising, China installs Panchen Lama.
In 1968, Brazilian high school student Edson Luís de Lima Souto is shot by the police in a protest for cheaper meals at a restaurant for low-income students. The aftermath of his death is one of the first major events against the military dictatorship.
In 1969, Greek poet and Nobel Prize laureate Giorgos Seferis makes a famous statement on the BBC World Service opposing the junta in Greece.
In 1969, Dwight D. Eisenhower, American general and politician, 34th President of the United States (b. 1890) dies. He was the 34th President of the United States from 1953 until 1961. He was afive-star general in the United States Army during World War II and served as Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe. He was responsible for planning and supervising the invasion of North Africa in Operation Torch in 1942–43 and the successful invasion of France and Germany in 1944–45 from the Western Front. In 1951, he became the first Supreme Commander of NATO.
Eisenhower was of Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry and was raised in a large family in Kansas by parents with a strong religious background. He graduated from West Point in 1915 and later married Mamie Doud and had two sons. After World War II, Eisenhower served as Army Chief of Staff under President Harry S. Truman and then accepted the post of President at Columbia University.
Eisenhower entered the 1952 presidential race as a Republican to counter the non-interventionism of Senator Robert A. Taft, campaigning against “communism, Korea and corruption.” He won in a landslide, defeating Democratic candidate Adlai Stevenson and temporarily upending the New Deal Coalition. Eisenhower was the first U.S. president to be constitutionally term-limited under the 22nd Amendment.
Eisenhower’s main goals in office were to keep pressure on the Soviet Union and reduce federal deficits. In the first year of his presidency, he threatened the use of nuclear weapons in an effort to conclude the Korean War; his New Look policy of nuclear deterrence prioritized inexpensive nuclear weapons while reducing funding for conventional military forces. He ordered coups in Iran and Guatemala. Eisenhower refused to send American soldiers to help France in Vietnam, although he gave the French bombers and napalm, and CIA pilots flew passenger planes to ferry French troops. CIA files released in 2005 showed that US pilots flew bombing raids with the French during Operation Castor, and two US pilots were killed during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Congress agreed to his request in 1955 for the Formosa Resolution, which obliged the U.S. to militarily support the pro-Western Republic of China in Taiwan and continue the ostracism of the People’s Republic of China.
In 1970, Gediz earthquake: A 7.2 magnitude earthquake strikes western Turkey at about 23:05 local time, killed 1,086 and injured 1,260.
In 1978, The US Supreme Court hands down 5–3 decision in Stump v. Sparkman, 435 U.S. 349, a controversial case involving involuntary sterilization and judicial immunity.
In 1979, A coolant leak at the Three Mile Island‘s Unit 2 nuclear reactor outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania leads to the core overheating and a partial meltdown. America’s worst commercial nuclear disaster occurred inside the Unit Two reactor at the Three Mile Island plant near Middletown, Pa, as a series of human and mechanical failures caused the cooling system to malfunction, resulting in damage to the reactor’s core and the leakage of radioactivity into the atmosphere. Residents are forced to evacuate after a nuclear meltdown.
In 1979, The British House of Commons passes a vote of no confidence against James Callaghan‘s government, precipitating a general election.
In 1983, Fred Jipp was sent to prison for 28 years in Phoenix, he was convicted of bigamy and fraud. He had married 104 women in 28 countries in 30 years.
In 1985, The U.S. Senate approved a resolution urging President Reagan to take retaliatory trade measures against Japan unless the Japanese opened new markets to U.S. goods. The same day, Japan announced it would increase automobile exports to the U.S. by 25 percent.
In 1990, President George H. W. Bush posthumously awards Jesse Owens the Congressional Gold Medal.
In 1992, Democrats Bill Clinton and Jerry Brown clashed over Brown’s flat-tax proposal, with Clinton charging the plan would hurt the poor, and Brown accusing Clinton of inventing “another big lie.”
In 1994, In South Africa, Zulus and African National Congress supporters battle in central Johannesburg, resulting in 18 deaths.
In 1994, BBC Radio 5 is closed and replaced with a new news and sport station BBC Radio 5 Live.
In 1996, Congress passed the line-item veto, giving the president power to cut government spending by scrapping specific programs.
In 1999, Kosovo War: Serb paramilitary and military forces kill 146 Kosovo Albanians in the Izbica massacre.
In 2000, Three children are killed when a Murray County, Georgia, school bus is hit by a CSX freight train.
In 2003, In a friendly fire incident, two A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft from the United States Idaho Air National Guard‘s 190th Fighter Squadron attack British tanks participating in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, killing British soldier Matty Hull.
In 2005, The 2005 Sumatra earthquake rocks Indonesia, and at magnitude 8.7 is the fourth strongest earthquake since 1965.
In 2006, At least one million union members, students, and unemployed take to the streets in France in protest at the government’s proposed First Employment Contract law.
In 2007, John Allen, a local contractor, called City Councilman Frank Neudecker and asked to talk him privately about a proposal that he was going to make to the Jackson city council during this agenda cycle. John was actively working on plans to build a parking garage on the northwest corner of Highland and Main block. He and his partner had purchased the Patterson building and are planning to demolish that property and purchase approximately 20 feet from a local radio station to complete the plans. Mr. Allen was wanting the city council to approve a letter of intent that would virtually guarantee the lease of the majority of the parking spaces in his three level garage to the city itself. This might mean that Mr. Allen and his partner could financially justify the loan needed to build the property. Basically this means that the taxpayers would be paying for, over a period of time, for Mr. Allen and his partners to develop private property. The city would be leasing spaces for it’s employees as a perk. The approximate total cost of the project was about 5 million dollars.
In 2009, The word was never used at Wednesday’s Power Board meeting, but it appears the Clarksville Department of Electricity’s plan to provide telecommunications services over a new fiber-optic network needs a bailout. To borrow a phrase from Washington, D.C., to describe the Clarksville Department of Electricity’s incomplete telecommunications project … mistakes were made. The CDE Power Board voted Monday to enter into a formal agreement with a consultant group that could eventually oversee the creation of a citywide wireless network. CCA officials met with the board last month to pitch the idea of spending $27 million to blanket the city in a wireless network that could be used to remotely read meters and provide cable, phone and Internet services to customers without hooking them directly to the city’s fiber network.
In 2010, A federal appeals court in San Francisco upheld the use of the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance and “In God We Trust” on U.S. currency, rejecting arguments on Thursday that the phrases violate the separation of church and state. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel rejected two legal challenges by Sacramento atheist Michael Newdow, who claimed the references to God disrespect his religious beliefs. “The Pledge is constitutional,” Judge Carlos Bea wrote for the majority in the 2-1 ruling. “The Pledge of Allegiance serves to unite our vast nation through the proud recitation of some of the ideals upon which our Republic was founded.” The same court ruled in Newdow’s favor in 2002 after he sued his daughter’s school district for having students recite the pledge at school.
In 2014, Nine commanders were fired by the Air Force Thursday and another resigned in the fallout of the Air Force’s cheating scandal in its nuclear missile squads. The Air Force said the commanders were being relieved of duty after a cheating ring uncovered dozens of cases where missileers had cheated on their proficiency tests or had known about the cheating but didn’t do anything about it.
In 2014, Tennessee Senate approves bill to strip cities of ability to annex by ordinance, which critics deride as “forced annexation.”
