On this day in 1977, the first film of the “Star Wars” series premiered. The film has seen such incredible success that was not even expected by its director, George Lucas. In fact, only $11 million was spent on this film, but it earned a huge $ 775...
Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne married Count La Fayette in 1655, attaining the title of countess. Countess de La Fayette, full name Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne, died on this day in 1693. She became known as a writer – her novel La Prince...
On this day in 2001, Erik Weihenmayer became the first blind person who managed to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Indeed, he remains the only such person to this day. Interestingly, he later conquered the highest peaks of all seven continents as...
Halley’s Comet comes close to the Sun around every 75.3 years, but the period varies somewhat due to changes in the comet’s orbit. Halley’s Comet became visible to the naked eye in the night sky this day in 240 BC, and remained so for a few more days...
On this day in 1659, (according to the Julian calendar, which was in use in England at the time), Richard Cromwell resigned as the Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland. It was the formal end of the period known as the P...
Cannon like that can fire nuclear shells of about 15 kilotons, which roughly corresponds to the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. On this day the first nuclear shell was fired out of a cannon. It happened at the American nuclear testing site in Nevada, only...
On this day in World War II, about 900 German paratroopers landed near Drvar, the center of Partisan Supreme Headquarters, with the aim of capturing or liquidating Josip Broz Tito and his associates. On that day fell Tito’s official birthday (which w...
On this day in 1968, the Gateway Arch was dedicated in the U.S. city of St. Louis. It is the world's tallest arch. The Gateway Arch is 192 meters tall, which means that the largest European cathedrals could be built under it. The arch is as wide as i...
On this day in 1961, the U.S. President John F. Kennedy delivered a speech in which he announced the Apollo program. Namely, he announced that the United States would send a man to the Moon before the end of the decade, (1969 was their last option)....
Sultan Mahmud Begadi, one of the most powerful rulers of Gujarat, came to power on this day in 1458. He is known for leading the war against the Portuguese (1509). Sultan Mahmud Begadi ruled Gujarat, a state in the western part of India, along the co...
On this day back in 1626 one of the most famous transactions in history was made. Dutch sailor Peter Minuit bought the island of Manhattan from a local Indian tribe in exchange for goods worth 60 Dutch guilders. One historian later calculated...
At the first competition, each country was represented by two songs. There were only seven competing countries. The first Eurovision Song Contest (Eurovision) was held on this day in 1956. Europe was still recovering from the consequences of W...
Elvis Presley was drafted by the U.S. Army in 1958. He was in Germany when he met the 14-year-old Priscilla. Priscilla Ann Presley (née Wagner) was born on this day in 1945. Her parents were of Norwegian, Scots-Irish, English and German origin. Prisc...
On this day in 1725, the most famous English criminal from the 18th century - Jonathan Wild - was executed on the gallows. His criminal career is truly astonishing, especially taking into account that he presented himself as the main guardian of the...
On this day in 1956, the first Eurovision Song Contest was held. Europe was then still recovering from World War II, and the organizers wanted to devise a program that would be entertaining and would gather Europeans around a common goal. The competi...
Its towers are in some way comparable to the European cathedrals. They are about 108 meters tall. On this day in 1883, the famous Brooklyn Bridge (New York City) was opened for use. It happened during the Wild West era. For example, the gunfight at t...
On this day the drilling of the deepest hole that humans have ever made began in Soviet Union. This hole is called "Kola Superdeep Borehole" (Кольская сверхглубокая скважина) and is 12,262 meters deep. It is the lowest point underground the Earth rea...
The British Queen Victoria, who ruled her country for more than 63 years, was born on this day in 1819. The Victorian era of British history was named after Queen Victoria, and it covered the long period of her reign. Victoria was born at Kensington...
The infamous doctor Josef Mengele, nicknamed "White Angel" and "Angel of Death", became a medical officers in the largest Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz on this day in 1943. Mengele completed two studies (medicine and anthropology), and performed...
Robert Ritter von Greim, the last man who received the rank of German field marshal, died on this day in 1945 (Ritter is a noble title, which means knight in German). Greim received this title in 1918, when he was awarded the Bavarian Military Order...
On this day, in 2005, the tallest roller coaster in the world - Kingda Ka in New Jersey was opened. It is 139 meters high and the train achieves a maximum speed of 206 kilometers per hour. That speed makes Kingda Ka the second fastest roller coaster...
The BNP Paribas is based in Paris and has around 185,000 employees worldwide. BNP Paribas was founded on this day in 2000. It is the largest of the French banks according to the deposits held and the third-largest in the world. Its assets are estimat...
On this day in 1430, St. Joan of Arc was captured at Compiègne in northern France. She was captured by the Burgundians, who had allied with the British against the French King Charles VII (his coronation at Reims was secured by St. Joan of Arc in th...
Paul IV founded the Theatines, a Catholic religious order properly called the Clerics Regular. Pope Paul IV was born on this day in 1555 as Gian Pietro Carafa. His family was a powerful force on the territory of the Kingdom of Naples and produced 16...
On this day in 1915 the Kingdom of Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary (during World War I, which had started in 1914). Italy was originally neutral during World War I, and technically part of the Central Powers. However, it later decided to enter...
The famous Konrad Adenauer was elected as the first Chancellor of the new country. He proved to be a capable man who brought Germany from post-war poverty onto a path to prosperity. On this day, three Western occupying powers (USA, the UK, and Franc...
The famous Nazi official Hans Frank, one of the 23 defendants in the Nuremberg Trials, was born on this day in 1900. During World War II, he held an important position, and responsible for the crimes which were committed in the areas under German occ...
On this day the richest man in the world, John Davison Rockefeller, died. It is believed that Rockefeller was probably the richest man who ever lived because his wealth, taking into account how the value of money changed, largely surpassed the wealth...
On this day the richest man in the world, John Davison Rockefeller, died. It is believed that Rockefeller was probably the richest man who ever lived because his wealth, taking into account how the value of money changed, greatly surpassed the wealth...
On this day police bullets killed Bonnie and Clyde, the famous lovers who committed a series of bank robberies, killing a dozen civilians and law enforcement officers during their criminal career. The ambush for Bonnie and Clyde was set by Texas Rang...
