Franklin D Roosevelt

Today in History 11/28 (Ferdinand Magellan)

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A print of Ferdinand Magellan discovering the path to the Pacific (© Hulton Archive/Getty Images)(1520) Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific
The navigator is the first European to reach the Pacific Ocean after sailing the treacherous waters around the tip of South America. Magellan had left Spain in search of a western route to the Spice Islands. His expedition will be the first to circumnavigate the globe.
Magellan’s expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe and the first to navigate the strait in South America connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Magellan’s name for the Pacific was adopted by other Europeans.
After sailing through the dangerous straits below South America that now bear his name, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan enters the Pacific Ocean with three ships, becoming the first European explorer to reach the Pacific from the Atlantic.

On September 20, 1519, Magellan set sail from Spain in an effort to find a western sea route to the rich Spice Islands of Indonesia. In command of five ships and 270 men, Magellan sailed to West Africa and then to Brazil, where he searched the South American coast for a strait that would take him to the Pacific. He searched the Rio de la Plata, a large estuary south of Brazil, for a way through; failing, he continued south along the coast of Patagonia. At the end of March 1520, the expedition set up winter quarters at Port St. Julian. On Easter day at midnight, the Spanish captains mutinied against their Portuguese captain, but Magellan crushed the revolt, executing one of the captains and leaving another ashore when his ship left St. Julian in August. On October 21, he finally discovered the strait he had been seeking.

French map of the first world circumnavigation of Ferdinand de Magellan and Juan Sebastián Elcano, from 1519 to 1522
The Magellan–Elcano voyage. Victoria, one of the original five ships, circumnavigated the globe, finishing 16 months after Magellan’s death.
wiki/Ferdinand_Magellan
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(1520) Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific.
Also on this day,

1582 | William Shakespeare marries Anne Hathaway
Eighteen-year-old William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway, age 26, pay 40 pounds for a wedding license in Stratford-upon-Avon. Six months later the couple will have a daughter, followed later by twins. Scant details will be known about the Bard’s marriage.
1943 | ‘Big Three’ allied leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet in Tehran
US President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, the so-called ‘Big Three,’ come together to discuss strategies for winning the war against the Nazis. The Tehran Conference is the first time Roosevelt and Stalin meet in person.
1974 | John Lennon joins Elton John in NYC
After losing a bet, John Lennon performs three songs with Elton John at New York’s Madison Square Garden, including Lennon’s hit ‘Whatever Gets You Thru the Night.’ It would be one of Lennon’s final performances, and his last in front of such a large audience.

Today in History 11/28/17

(From left) Soviet Union Premier Josef Stalin, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill at the Teheran Conference, November 28, 1943 (© British Official Photo via AP)(1943) Allied leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet in Tehran
US President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, the so-called 'Big Three,' come together to discuss strategies for winning the war against the Nazis. The Tehran Conference is the first time Roosevelt and Stalin meet in person.
The Tehran Conference was a strategy meeting of Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill from 28 November to 1 December 1943, after the Anglo-Soviet Invasion of Iran. It was held in the Soviet Union's embassy in Tehran, Iran. It was the first of the World War II conferences of the "Big Three" Allied leaders. It closely followed the Cairo Conference which had taken place on 22–26 November 1943, and preceded the 1945 Yalta and Potsdam conferences. Although the three leaders arrived with differing objectives, the main outcome of the Tehran Conference was the Western Allies' commitment to open a second front against Nazi Germany. The conference also addressed the 'Big Three' Allies' relations with Turkey and Iran, operations in Yugoslavia and against Japan, and the envisaged post-war settlement. A separate protocol signed at the conference pledged the Big Three to recognize Iran's independence.
Start date: Nov 28, 1943
End date: Dec 01, 1943

Mohammad Reza Shah, Stalin und Molotov, Tehran Conference, 1943
The Shah of Iran (center), pictured to the right of Joseph Stalin at the Tehran Conference (1943)

wiki/Tehran_Conference
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Today in History 11/26 (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland)

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An illustration from 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' (© The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)(1865) ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ published in US
Lewis Carroll (real name Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) captures the imaginations of adults and children with his story of a girl who falls down a rabbit hole into a fantasy world. It will quickly become a hit and later inspire adaptations for the stage, movies, and TV.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is an 1865 novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. It tells of a girl named Alice falling through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world populated by peculiar, anthropomorphic creatures. The tale plays with logic, giving the story lasting popularity with adults as well as with children. It is considered to be one of the best examples of the literary nonsense genre. Its narrative course, structure, characters, and imagery have been enormously influential in both popular culture and literature, especially in the fantasy genre.
Author: Lewis Carroll
First published: Nov 26, 1865
Number of pages: 12
Characters: Hatter · Alice · Cheshire Cat · White Rabbit · Queen of Hearts · March Hare · Caterpillar · Duchess · Knave of Hearts · Dormouse · Gryphon · Dodo · Mock Turtle · Bill the Lizard · Mouse
Adaptations: Alice in Wonderland (2010) · Alice in Wonderland (1951) · Alice in Wonderland (1999) · Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1972) · Alice in Wonderland (1985) · Alice in Wonderland (1903) · Alice (1988) · Alice in Wonderland (1933) · Alice in Wonderland (1949) · Alice in Wonderland (1966) · Alice in Wonderland (1915) · Alice’s Adventures in …
Followed by: Through the Looking-Glass

Manuscript of Alice's Adventures Under Ground (f. 45v / p. 88)
Page from the original manuscript copy of Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, 1864
wiki/Alice’s_Adventures_in_Wonderland
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(1865) ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ published in US.
Also on this day,

1941 | FDR backpedals, abandons “Franksgiving”
After bowing to public pressure, US President Franklin Roosevelt signs a bill to set Thanksgiving Day as the fourth Thursday in November. Two years prior, in a bid to boost retail sales, Roosevelt had shifted the holiday a week earlier, a move met with public outrage and derided as the creation of “Franksgiving.”
1942 | Rick’s Café Américain opens its doors as ‘Casablanca’ premieres
At its premiere, few involved in the production expect ‘Casablanca’ to cause much of a stir, despite its star power in Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. But the film will go into wide distribution in January, and as time goes by, its characters, theme song, and dialogue will go on to reach iconic status.
1975 | Squeaky Fromme guilty in Ford assassination attempt
A jury finds Fromme, a follower of serial killer Charles Manson, guilty of trying to assassinate President Gerald Ford. On September 5, Fromme, dressed as a nun, pointed a gun at the president but was quickly subdued. She will be sentenced to life in prison, but then will be granted parole in 2009.

Today in History 11/26/17

Queen Elizabeth II smiles to photographers as she arrives at St James's Palace 26 November 1992 (© AFP/Getty Images)(1992) Queen Elizabeth agrees to pay income tax
In a surprise announcement, Queen Elizabeth II breaks with tradition to become the first British monarch to pay income tax since the 1930s. The move is seen as a public relations move to appease a public weary of supporting the monarchy during a prolonged recession, though Buckingham Palace denies this.
The British royal family is financed mainly by the hereditary revenues of the Crown. The British Parliament uses a percentage of the Crown Estate, a part of the Crown's hereditary revenues belonging to the sovereign that is placed at the disposal of the House of Commons, to meet the costs of the sovereign's official expenditures. This includes the costs of the upkeep of the various royal residences, staffing, travel and state visits, public engagements, and official entertainment. Other sources of income include revenues from the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, a parliamentary annuity, and income from private investments. The Keeper of the Privy Purse is Head of the Privy Purse and Treasurer's Office and has overall responsibility for the management of the sovereign's financial affairs.
wiki/Finances_of_the_British_Royal_Family
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