World War II

Today in History 08/14 (Cologne Cathedral)

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Cologne Cathedral in Cologne, Germany (© nevereverro/Getty Images)(1880) Cologne’s colossal cathedral is finally finished
Its foundation stone laid almost exactly 632 years before, a soaring masterpiece of Gothic architecture gets its final touches and the Cologne Cathedral is officially completed. The mostly medieval structure will withstand two world wars and the foot traffic of tourists by the millions.
Cologne Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, Northrhine-Westfalia, Germany. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of Cologne. It is a renowned monument of German Catholicism and Gothic architecture and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1996. It is Germany’s most visited landmark, attracting an average of 20,000 people a day, and currently the tallest twin-spired church at 157 m tall.
Address: Margarethenkloster 5, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia 50667
Phone: 0221 16420
Opened: 1880
Height: 516 feet (Architectural)
Denomination: Catholic
Architectural style: Gothic architecture

Gothic Cologne Cathedral
Photos of Cologne Cathedral. From top-left going clockwise: bird’s-eye view facing west, side view facing northwest, bird’s-eye view facing northeast with the Rhine in the background, and the chancel of the cathedral.
wiki/Cologne_Cathedral
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(1880) Cologne’s colossal cathedral is finally finished.
Also on this day,

1040 | A tragedy of Shakespearean proportions in Scotland
Scotland’s king, Duncan I, is slain as he leads an expedition into his rival’s land. That rival is also his cousin, Macbeth, and when Duncan dies Macbeth takes the throne. Centuries later, this will inspire an English writer to pen an exaggerated tale, and those battling Scots will not be forgotten.
1945 | Truman announces Japan’s unconditional surrender
President Harry Truman announces Japan’s acceptance of Allied surrender terms, and celebrations erupt across the US and around the world, including in Manhattan’s Times Square where a photographer captures one very pucker-happy sailor and a nurse clad all in white.
1975 | Frank N. Furter and friends hit the silver screen
A low-budget homage to the kitschy charms of B-grade sci-fi and horror movies premieres in London, and will have its US debut a month later, but it won’t make much of a splash either critically or commercially at first. Nevertheless, ‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show won’t remain obscure for long, becoming a cult classic and midnight-movie mainstay.

Today in History 08/14/17

A sailor blows a horn during the V-J Day celebrations in Times Square, New York, on Aug 14, 1945 (© Hulton Archive/Getty Images)(1945) Truman announces Japan's unconditional surrender
President Harry Truman announces Japan's acceptance of Allied surrender terms, and celebrations erupt across the US and around the world, including in Manhattan's Times Square where a photographer captures one very pucker-happy sailor and a nurse clad all in white.
Victory over Japan Day is the day on which the Empire of Japan surrendered in World War II, in effect ending the war. The term has been applied to both of the days on which the initial announcement of Japan's surrender was made – to the afternoon of August 15, 1945, in Japan, and, because of time zone differences, to August 14, 1945 – as well as to September 2, 1945, when the signing of the surrender document occurred, officially ending World War II.
Surrender of Japan - USS Missouri
Surrender of Japan, Tokyo Bay, 2 September 1945: Japanese representatives on board USS Missouri (BB-63) during the surrender ceremonies. Standing in front are: Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu (wearing top hat) and General Yoshijiro Umezu, Chief of the Army General Staff. Behind them are three representatives each of the Foreign Ministry, the Army and the Navy. They include, in middle row, left to right: Major General Yatsuji Nagai, Army; Katsuo Okazaki, Foreign Ministry; Rear Admiral Tadatoshi Tomioka, Navy; Toshikazu Kase, Foreign Ministry, and Lieutenant General Suichi Miyakazi, Army. In the back row, left to right (not all are visible): Rear Admiral Ichiro Yokoyama, Navy; Saburo Ota, Foreign Ministry; Katsuo Shiba, Navy, and Kaziyi Sugita, Army. (Identities those in second and third rows are from an annotated photograph in Naval Historical Center files.)

wiki/Victory_over_Japan_Day
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Today in History 08/09 (Battle of Adrianople)

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Drawing depicting Roman Emperor Valens circa 376 (© ullstein bild/Getty Images)(378) Romans fail to crush a Goth rebellion in the east
Thousands of soldiers mass near Adrianople in present-day Turkey to fight a battle some historians will later cite as the beginning of the end of the Western Roman Empire. Hoping to crush a Visigoth rebellion in his Eastern Empire, Roman Emperor Valens is instead killed and his army is decimated by Goth horsemen.
The Battle of Adrianople, sometimes known as the Battle of Hadrianopolis, was fought between an Eastern Roman army led by the Eastern Roman Emperor Valens and Gothic rebels led by Fritigern. The battle took place about 13 km north of Adrianople in the Roman province of Thracia. It ended with an overwhelming victory for the Goths and the death of Emperor Valens.
Date: 378 AD

Battle of Adrianople 378 AD
Map of the battle, according to the History Department of the US Military Academy
wiki/Battle_of_Adrianople
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(378) Romans fail to crush a Goth rebellion in the east.
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1854 | Thoreau’s meditation on man and nature is published
Two years of living on the shores of Massachusetts’ Walden Pond have borne literary fruit as Henry David Thoreau’s memoir of his secluded time there is published. ‘Walden’ will sell well, and remain a seminal work of early environmentalism and a celebration of the individual’s spirit.
1945 | A-bomb hits Nagasaki as second nuclear military target
Three days after Hiroshima was destroyed by the first nuclear weapon strike in history, Nagasaki, Japan, is hit by an atomic blast dropped from a US bomber. Upwards of 39,000 people are immediately killed as the city is leveled, and Japan will surrender less than week later, ending World War II.
1969 | Five are found murdered at Sharon Tate’s L.A. home
Pregnant actress Sharon Tate and four others are discovered dead in Los Angeles at the Benedict Canyon hillside home she shares with her husband, film director Roman Polanski. The murders will be traced back to Charles Manson and members of his cult, known as ‘The Manson Family.’

Today in History 08/09/17

Remains of a temple after the bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945 (© Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)(1945) Nagasaki is second nuclear military target
Three days after Hiroshima was destroyed by the first nuclear weapon strike in history, Nagasaki, Japan, is hit by an atomic blast dropped from a US bomber. Upwards of 39,000 people are immediately killed as the city is leveled, and Japan will surrender less than week later, ending World War II.
During the final stage of World War II, the United States dropped nuclear weapons on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945, respectively. The United States had dropped the bombs with the consent of the United Kingdom as outlined in the Quebec Agreement. The two bombings, which killed at least 129,000 people, remain the only use of nuclear weapons for warfare in history.
Start date: Aug 06, 1945
End date: Aug 09, 1945

wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki
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Today in History 08/05 (Cowra Breakout)

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Cowra Prisoner of War Compound site in New South Wales, Australia (© Claver Carroll/Getty Images)(1944) More than 1,000 POWs attempt largest WWII escape
A prisoner of war camp near Cowra, Australia, is plunged into chaos as 1,100 Japanese POWs storm barbed wire fences, set fires, and attack guards. Four Australian soldiers and 231 Japanese will be killed, while some 359 POWs manage to flee before later being caught.
The Cowra breakout occurred on 5 August 1944, when at least 1,104 Japanese prisoners of war attempted to escape from a prisoner of war camp near Cowra, in New South Wales, Australia. It was the largest prison escape of World War II, as well as one of the bloodiest. During the escape and ensuing manhunt, four Australian soldiers and 231 Japanese soldiers were killed. The remaining escapees were captured and imprisoned.
Date: Aug 05, 1944

Cowra POW camp
Sourced from: http://www.awm.gov.au/database/collection.asp Copyright: The AWM record for this photo states that the copyright status is ‘clear’. The photo was taken on 1944-07-01. The AWM requests that you assist their record keeping by keeping the image number and watermark intact. Given that this image is in the public domain, it is not clear that the AWM has any legal basis to enforce their request. AWM Caption: Cowra, NSW. 1944-07-01. Japanese prisoners of war practising baseball on their sports ground near their quarters, at the 12th prisoner of war camp. These photographs were taken for the far east liaison office as a basis for propaganda leaflets to be dropped over Japnanese held islands and the Japanese mainland. No. 12 Prisoner of War Camp, Cowra, Australia. 1 July, 1944. Japanese prisoners of war practice baseball on the sportsground near their quarters, several weeks before the Cowra breakout. This photograph was taken for the Allied Far Eastern Liaison Office, with the intention of using it in propaganda leaflets, to be dropped over Japanese held islands and Japan itself. (The copyright was owned by the Australian War Memorial.
wiki/Cowra_breakout
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(1944) More than 1,000 POWs attempt largest WWII escape.
Also on this day,

1926 | A master magician, Houdini, defies death and debunks fraud
Magician Harry Houdini beats rival Rahman Bey today by remaining in a sealed casket at the bottom of a swimming pool for 91 minutes, with honest Houdini admitting the amazing feat was not accomplished with magical powers but instead his own concentration and controlled breathing.
1957 | Philadelphia’s dance show, American Bandstand, debuts on nationwide TV
A low-budget show featuring dancing teens and lip-syncing musical acts is a hit on local Philadelphia stations, and now ‘American Bandstand’ makes its US network debut on ABC. The show, with its host Dick Clark, will prove popular and enduring, lasting another 32 years.
1984 | Women’s marathon makes dramatic Olympic debut
Female runners get their ultimate test of endurance at the first Olympic women’s marathon in Los Angeles. The field includes Joan Benoit of the US, who wins the gold medal with a time of 2:24:52, and Switzerland’s Gabriela Andersen-Schiess, who completes the course despite suffering from heat stroke.

Today in History 08/05/17

Joan Benoit breaks away from the pack of women marathoners during the summer Olympics in Los Angeles on Aug 5, 1984 (© Ron Heflin/International Olympic Photography Pool/AP)(1984) Women's marathon makes dramatic Olympic debut
Female runners get their ultimate test of endurance at the first Olympic women's marathon in Los Angeles. The field includes Joan Benoit of the US, who wins the gold medal with a time of 2:24:52, and Switzerland's Gabriela Andersen-Schiess, who completes the course despite suffering from heat stroke.
The Women's Marathon at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California was held on August 5, 1984. It was the first time a women's marathon had been held at the Olympic Games. The 50 competitors came from 28 countries. 44 finished the race. The world record holder Joan Benoit of the United States won the gold medal, with the silver medal going to the 1983 World champion Grete Waitz of Norway, and bronze to Rosa Mota of Portugal.
Date: Aug 05, 1984
Olympic Athletics

wiki/Athletics_at_the_1984_Summer_Olympics_–_Women's_marathon
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