1934

Today in History 08/19 (Liberation of Paris)

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Crowd cheering resistance leader Charles De Gaulle during the Paris Liberation, Aug 1944 (© Serge DE SAZO/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images)(1944) French capital drives out Nazi control
The Nazi occupation of ‘the City of Light’ nears its end as the French Resistance mobilizes fighting units against the German garrison in advance of the arrival of US General Patton’s Third Army. As they withdraw their forces, German commanders will ignore Hitler’s order to destroy Paris.
The Liberation of Paris was a military action that took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944. Paris had been ruled by Nazi Germany since the signing of the Second Compiègne Armistice on 22 June 1940, after which the Wehrmacht occupied northern and western France.
Start date: Aug 19, 1944
End date: Aug 25, 1944

Crowds of French patriots line the Champs Elysees
Crowds of French patriots line the Champs Elysees to view Free French tanks and half tracks of General Leclerc’s 2nd Armored Division passes through the Arc du Triomphe, after Paris was liberated on August 26, 1944. Among the crowd can be seen banners in support of Charles de Gaulle.
wiki/Liberation_of_Paris
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(1944) French capital drives out Nazi control.
Also on this day,

1939 | FDR creates National Aviation Day
A presidential proclamation from Franklin Delano Roosevelt designates August 19 as National Aviation Day. The day marks Orville Wright’s birthday and encourages citizens to ‘observe the day with activities that promote interest in aviation.’
1934 | Homemade rattling racers roll in a glide to the finish
Dayton, Ohio, hosts the inaugural All-American Soap Box Derby, and 362 entrants have cobbled together racers made of packaging crates, buggy wheels, scrap metal, and yes, soap boxes. Gravity does the work as none of the cars are powered, so aerodynamics and wheel quality are key.
1991 | ‘August Coup’ puts Soviet President Gorbachev under arrest
Communist hardliners, unhappy with President Mikhail Gorbachev’s policies, attempt to take over the Soviet Union’s government. Tanks patrol Moscow, Gorbachev is placed under house arrest, and tens of thousands of citizens are out in the streets protesting against the coup.

Today in History 08/19/17

Soviet Army tanks parked in Moscow's Red Square on Aug 19, 1991, after a coup toppled Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev (© DIMA TANIN/AFP/Getty Images)(1991) 'August Coup' puts Soviet President Gorbachev under arrest
Communist hardliners, unhappy with President Mikhail Gorbachev's policies, attempt to take over the Soviet Union's government. Tanks patrol Moscow, Gorbachev is placed under house arrest, and tens of thousands of citizens are out in the streets protesting against the coup.
The 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, also known as the August Coup, was an attempt by members of the Soviet Union's government to take control of the country from Soviet President and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev. The coup leaders were hard-line members of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union who were opposed to Gorbachev's reform program and the new union treaty that he had negotiated which decentralised much of the central government's power to the republics. They were opposed, mainly in Moscow, by a short but effective campaign of civil resistance. Although the coup collapsed in only two days and Gorbachev returned to government, the event destabilised the Soviet Union and is widely considered to have contributed to both the demise of the CPSU and the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Start date: Aug 19, 1991
End date: Aug 21, 1991

wiki/1991_Soviet_coup_d'état_attempt
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Today in History 07/22 (Battle of Salamanca)

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Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, enters Salamanca before the Battle of Salamanca in Spain (© Hulton Archive/Getty Images)(1812) French are routed at Salamanca by Wellington
His historic battle with Napoleon at Waterloo less than three years away, Arthur Wellesley, Earl of Wellington, helps liberate Madrid as he leads Anglo-Portuguese units against France in the Battle of Salamanca, an offensive that will garner him great praise and a rapid military rise.
In Battle of Salamanca an Anglo-Portuguese army under the Duke of Wellington defeated Marshal Auguste Marmont’s French forces among the hills around Arapiles, south of Salamanca, Spain on 22 July 1812 during the Peninsular War. A Spanish division was also present but took no part in the battle.
Date: Jul 22, 1812

Battle of Salamanca 22 July 1812
W & A.K. Johnston Battle of Salamanca 22 July 1812 published by William Blackwood & Sons 1870
wiki/Battle_of_Salamanca
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(1812) French are routed at Salamanca by Wellington.
Also on this day,

1587 | English colonists land at Roanoke Island
Hundreds of English settlers arrive on Roanoke Island, off the coast of present-day North Carolina. Although a previous colony on the island had vanished, Sir Walter Raleigh hopes this second colony will flourish. But three years later, relief ships will find it completely deserted, and the Lost Colony of Roanoke will become a haunting mystery.
1793 | Explorer completes crossing of North America
Twelve years before Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific, Scottish explorer Alexander Mackenzie finishes a North American cross-continental trip in what will be Canada. Mackenzie will lay the groundwork for Britain’s settlement of Canada and future continent-spanning expeditions further south.
1934 | Dillinger’s criminal career ends in a hail of bullets
John Dillinger’s seemingly superhuman skill at prison breaks, evading police raids, and literally getting away with murder finally falters as he leaves Chicago’s Biograph Theater. His companion, brothel owner Anna Sage, has set him up and he’s shot while attempting to flee police.

Today in History 07/22/17

Illustration depicting John White and others as they find a tree into which is carved the word 'Croatoan,' Roanoke Island, NC, 1590 (© Stock Montage/Getty Images)(1587) English colonists land at Roanoke Island
Hundreds of English settlers arrive on Roanoke Island, off the coast of present-day North Carolina. Although a previous colony on the island had vanished, Sir Walter Raleigh hopes this second colony will flourish. But three years later, relief ships will find it completely deserted, and the Lost Colony of Roanoke will become a haunting mystery.
The Roanoke Colony, also known as the Lost Colony, was established in 1585 on Roanoke Island in what is today's Dare County, North Carolina. It was a late 16th-century attempt by Queen Elizabeth I to establish a permanent English settlement in North America. The colony was founded by Sir Walter Raleigh.
Founded: 1585
Roanoke Map 1584

wiki/Roanoke_Colony
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Today in History 06/30/17

Painting of King Henry II of France (© Hulton Fine Art Collection/Getty Images)(1559) A knightly sport claims a king
France’s King Henry II is celebrating both his daughter’s wedding and peace with the Habsburgs in one of his favorite ways, by jousting. This will be his final match, as a lance fragment strikes him in the head, killing him days later. The royal death will hasten the sport’s decline.
Henry II was a monarch of the House of Valois who ruled as King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis III, Duke of Brittany, in 1536.
Lived: Mar 31, 1519 – Jul 10, 1559 (age 40)
Spouse: Catherine de’ Medici (m. 1533)
Children: Henry III of France (Son) · Elisabeth of Valois (Daughter) · Charles IX of France (Son) · Claude of France (Daughter) · Francis II of France (Son) · Francis, Duke of Anjou (Son) · Victoria of France (Daughter) · Louis of Valois (Son) · Margaret of Valois (Daughter) · Joan of France (Daughter) · Henri d’Angoulême (Son) · Diane de France (Daugh…
Parents: Francis I of France (Father) · Claude of France (Mother)
Siblings: Francis III, Duke of Brittany (Brother) · Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry (Sister)
Buried: Basilica of St Denis
Highlights
  • 1533: Henry married Catherine de’ Medici, a member of the ruling family of Florence, on 28 October 1533, when they were both fourteen years old.

  • 1536: The second son of Francis I, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis III, Duke of Brittany, in 1536.

  • 1554: Henry captured the three episcopal cities of Metz, Toul, and Verdun, and secured them by defeating the Habsburg army at the Battle of Renty in 1554.

  • 1556: After the abdication of Charles V in 1556, the Habsburg empire was split between Philip II of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I.

  • 1559: The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis was signed between Henry and Elizabeth I of England on 2 April and between Henry and Philip II of Spain on 3 April 1559 at Le Cateau-Cambrésis.

  • 1559: Despite the efforts of royal surgeon Ambroise Paré, the king died of septicemia on 10 July 1559.

wiki/Henry_II_of_France
Charles Blondin crossing Niagara Gorge on a tightrope in 1859 (© William England/Getty Images)(1859) A terrifying tightrope walk conquers the air above Niagara
French daredevil ‘The Great Blondin’ steps out onto a 2-inch-diameter, 1,300-foot hemp rope stretched 160-feet above a raging gorge, and 25,000 spectators hold their collective breath. Blondin will travel from America to Canada on the first tightrope walk over Niagara Falls.
Charles Blondin was a French tightrope walker and acrobat. Blondin was born on 28 February 1824 at St Omer, Pas-de-Calais, France. His real name was Jean-François Gravelet and he was known also by the names Charles Blondin, Jean-François Blondin and called the “Chevalier Blondin”, or simply “The Great Blondin”. At the age of five he was sent to the École de Gymnase at Lyon and, after six months training as an acrobat, made his first public appearance as “The boy Wonder”. His superior skill and grace, as well as the originality of the settings of his acts, made him a popular favourite. He first married Marie Blancherie, and at the same time legitimised their son Aime Leopold. It is not known what happened to his French family after he went to America.
Born: Feb 28, 1824 · Saint-Omer, France
Died: Feb 22, 1897
Highlights
  • 1824: Blondin was born on 28 February 1824 at St Omer, Pas-de-Calais, France.

  • 1861: In 1861, Blondin first appeared in London, at the Crystal Palace, turning somersaults on stilts on a rope stretched across the central transept, 70 feet (21 m) from the ground.

  • 1862: In 1862, he again gave a series of performances at the Crystal Palace, and elsewhere in England, and on the continent of Europe.

  • 1866: While he was living in England he and Charlotte had two more children, Henry, born about 1863, and Charlotte Mary Janet, baptised on 25 April 1866.

  • 1873: On 6 September 1873, Blondin crossed Edgbaston Reservoir in Birmingham.

  • 1897: Blondin died of diabetes at his “Niagara House” in Ealing, London, on 22 February 1897, in his 73rd year, and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery.

wiki/Charles_Blondin
(From left) Adolf Hitler with SA leader Ernst Röhm circa 1933 (© Photo12/UIG via Getty Images)(1934) Hitler orders a purge of potential political rivals
Turning his homicidal paranoia inwards, Adolph Hitler sends execution squads to eliminate hundreds of Nazi Party members he deems a threat to his future domination. The SS and Gestapo secret police inflict the Night of the Long Knives mostly on members of the SA, or Stormtroopers.
The Night of the Long Knives, also called Operation Hummingbird or, in Germany, the Röhm Putsch, was a purge that took place in Nazi Germany from June 30 to July 2, 1934, when the Nazi regime carried out a series of political extrajudicial executions intended to consolidate Hitler’s absolute hold on power in Germany. Many of those killed were leaders of the SA, the Nazis’ own paramilitary Brownshirts organization; the best-known victim was Ernst Röhm, the SA’s leader and one of Hitler’s longtime supporters and allies. Leading members of the left-wing Strasserist faction of the Nazi Party, along with its figurehead, Gregor Strasser, were also killed, as were establishment conservatives and anti-Nazis. The murders of Brownshirt leaders were also intended to improve the image of the Hitler government with a German public that was increasingly critical of thuggish Brownshirt tactics.
Start date: Jun 30, 1934
End date: Jul 02, 1934
Night of the Long Knives

wiki/Night_of_the_Long_Knives
1953 Chevrolet Corvette (© Heritage Images/Getty Images)(1953) First Chevrolet Corvette rolls off the line
The first Corvette is built in Flint, Michigan. The ‘Vette had been designed solely for the 1953 New York Auto Show, but enthusiasm from the public and Chevy ‘s chief engineer led to production of this consumer model. It will become an iconic sports car, with the one millionth Corvette being produced in 1992.
The Chevrolet Corvette, known colloquially as the Vette, or Chevy Corvette, is a sports car manufactured by Chevrolet. The car has been produced through seven generations. The first model, a convertible, was introduced at the GM Motorama in 1953 as a concept show car. Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after the type of small, maneuverable warship called a corvette. Originally built in Flint, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri, the Corvette is currently manufactured in Bowling Green, Kentucky and is the official sports car of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
Corvette Wings

wiki/Chevrolet_Corvette
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Today in History 05/28/17

A total solar eclipse can be seen in Svalbard, Longyearbyen, Norway, on March 20, 2015 (© Haakon Mosvold Larsen/AFP/Getty Images)(585 BCE) A calendar-setting solar eclipse halts a Greek battle
Arguably the oldest historical event that can be precisely dated, the Eclipse of Thales is named after the Greek philosopher who’s said to have predicted the event. The eclipse is responsible for ending the Battle of Halys, as both sides are sufficiently spooked into a ceasefire.
The Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus accurately predicted a solar eclipse, according to The Histories of Herodotus. If Herodotus’s account is accurate, this eclipse is the earliest recorded as being known in advance of its occurrence. Many historians believe that the predicted eclipse was the solar eclipse of May 28, 585 BC. How exactly Thales predicted the eclipse remains uncertain; some historians claim the eclipse was never predicted at all. Others have argued for different dates.
Date: 585 BC
Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak and Jean Meeus (NASA's GSFC)

wiki/Eclipse_of_Thales
Painting detail of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry storming Fort Wagner (© MPI/Getty Images)(1863) African-American 54th Regiment sets off for glory
Amid much celebration, the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment departs Boston heading for Beaufort, South Carolina. Although sendoffs of Union soldiers are a common sight, the 54th distinguishes itself as one of the first African-American regiments to join the conflict.
The 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that saw extensive service in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The unit was the first African-American regiment organized in the northern states during the Civil War. Authorized by the Emancipation Proclamation, the regiment consisted of African-American enlisted men commanded by white officers.
Founded: 1863
Force: Union Army

wiki/54th_Massachusetts_Infantry_Regiment
Dionne quintuplets shown shortly after their birth in Corbeil, near Callander in northern Ontario, Canada, on May 28, 1934 (© AP Photo)(1934) Rare quintuplet birth leads to sensation and sadness
Ontario, Canada’s Dionne family welcomes five baby girls, an extremely rare multiple birth. All will survive to adulthood, but at four months old they’re made wards of the state, becoming a lucrative attraction while living, and being constantly observed, in a tourist park called ‘Quintland.’
The Dionne quintuplets are the first quintuplets known to have survived their infancy. The identical sisters were born in Canada, just outside Callander, Ontario, near the village of Corbeil. All five survived to adulthood.
Born: May 28, 1934 · Ontario, Canada
Died: Jun 23, 2001
Parents: Elzire Dionne · Oliva Edouard

wiki/Dionne_quintuplets
Peter Benenson, British founder of Amnesty International (© PA Archive/Press Association Images)(1961) ‘The Forgotten Prisoners’ shines a light for human rights
English lawyer Peter Benenson’s article in The Observer uncovers human rights abuses that fly under the world’s radar, and whose victims are usually powerless individuals speaking out against tyranny. The article will inspire such a response that Benenson will create Amnesty International within weeks.
Peter Benenson was a British lawyer and the founder of human rights group Amnesty International. Benenson refused all honours but in his 80s, largely to please his family, he accepted the Pride of Britain Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2001.
Lived: Jul 31, 1921 – Feb 25, 2005 (age 83)
Spouse: Susan Booth · Margaret Anderson
Founded: Amnesty International
Parents: Flora Solomon (Mother)
Education: University of Oxford · Eton College · Balliol College

wiki/Peter_Benenson
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Today in History 05/23/17

Privateer William Kidd hanging in chains at 'Execution Dock' in London, wood engraving of the early 19th century (© Archiv Gerstenberg/ullstein bild via Getty Images)(1701) Infamous privateer and possible pirate executed
Once a pirate hunter of great repute, and now convicted of piracy and treason himself, Scottish sailor Captain William Kidd is hung in London, his body then gibbeted over the River Thames as a gruesome warning to other would-be pirates.
William Kidd, also Captain William Kidd or simply Captain Kidd was a Scottish sailor who was tried and executed for piracy after returning from a voyage to the Indian Ocean. Some modern historians deem his piratical reputation unjust.
Born: 1645 · Dundee, Scotland
Died: May 23, 1701 · Wapping, United Kingdom
Romance: Elizabeth Kidd · Sarah Kidd
Children: Sarah Latham (Daughter) · Elizabeth Troup (Daughter) · Henry Rousby (Son) · William Rousby (Son) · Christopher Rousby (Son)
Parents: John Kyd (Father) · Bessie Kidd
Highlights
  • 1691: On 16 May 1691, Kidd married Sarah Bradley Cox Oort, an English woman in her early twenties, who had already been twice widowed and was one of the wealthiest women in New York, largely because of her inheritance from her first husband.

  • 1696: In September 1696, Kidd weighed anchor and set course for the Cape of Good Hope.

  • 1697: Kidd killed one of his own crewmen on 30 October 1697.

  • 1698: On 1 April 1698, Kidd reached Madagascar.

  • 1701: He was hanged on 23 May 1701, at Execution Dock, Wapping, in London.

  • 1701: William Kidd died on May 23, 1701 in Wapping, United Kingdom.

wiki/William_Kidd
A lancer of the Northwest Mounted Police, 1875 (Public domain)(1873) North-West Mounted Police patrol the provinces
Riflemen on horseback are needed to maintain order in Canada’s newly acquired North-West Provinces, so the ‘North-West Mounted Rifles’ are founded. US officials will be wary of the militaristic name, so the force is renamed the North-West Mounted Police and, later, the ‘Royal Canadian Mounted Police.’
The North-West Mounted Police was a Canadian police force. It was established in 1873, and in 1904 the name was changed to Royal Northwest Mounted Police. In 1920 it merged with the Dominion Police to become the current Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Founded: 1873
Royal Canadian Mounted Police

wiki/North-West_Mounted_Police
Portrait of bank robbers and Bonnie Parker, circa 1933 (© Hulton Archive/Getty Image)(1934) Notorious outlaw couple gunned down in Louisiana
A stolen Ford Deluxe is met with a hail of bullets as it passes an ambush of lawmen lying in wait on a rural highway in Louisiana’s Bienville Parish. Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow’s car is hit by 130 rounds, and the FBI’s most wanted criminals are brought down after a 2-year manhunt.
Bonnie Elizabeth Parker and Clyde Chestnut Barrow a.k.a. Clyde Champion Barrow were American criminals who traveled the central United States with their gang during the Great Depression, robbing people and killing when cornered or confronted. At times, the gang included his older brother Buck Barrow and his wife Blanche, Raymond Hamilton, W. D. Jones, Joe Palmer, Ralph Fults, and Henry Methvin. Their exploits captured the attention of the American public during the “Public Enemy Era,” between 1931 and 1935. Though known today for their dozen-or-so bank robberies, the two preferred to rob small stores or rural gas stations. The gang is believed to have killed at least nine police officers and several civilians. The couple were eventually ambushed and killed by law officers near the town of Sailes, in Bienville Parish, Louisiana. Their reputation was revived and cemented in American pop folklore by Arthur Penn’s 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde.
wiki/Bonnie_and_Clyde
(From left) Keith Moon, Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend of The Who in 1970 (© Harry Harris/AP)(1969) The Who release rock opera ‘Tommy’
The Who release the double-album rock opera ‘Tommy’—the story of a ‘deaf, dumb, and blind’ boy who finds redemption through pinball and becomes a spiritual leader. The album will go on to sell tens of millions of copies and be adapted as a film and a stage musical.
Tommy is the fourth studio album by the English rock band The Who, a double album first released in May 1969. The album was mostly composed by guitarist Pete Townshend as a rock opera that tells the story about a deaf, dumb and blind boy, including his experiences with life and his relationship with his family.
Tommy Album Cover
Release year: 1969
Genre: Rock, Classic Rock
Label: Geffen
Artists: The Who · London Symphony Orchestra
Adaptations: Tommy (1975) · The Who’s Tommy
Awards: Grammy Hall of Fame · Grammy Award for Best Recording Package

wiki/Tommy_(album)
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