Marquis de Sade, after whose name the word sadism derived, died on this day. He was a descendant of an old French noble family, which originated back from the Middle Ages. Such families the French called “noblesse d’épée” (Nobles of the Sword) and we...
One of the most famous Napoleon’s victories – the one at Austerlitz – occurred on this day in 1805, exactly one year after he proclaimed himself Emperor of the French. Austerlitz, after which the battle is called, is now part of the Czech Republic, m...
On this day Cuban revolutionaries, led by Fidel Castro, landed in Cuba, ending a period of exile spent in Mexico and starting a new phase of revolutionary struggle on the island. Castro had fled to Mexico after the first attempt to attack the regime ...
On this day, exactly on the 48th anniversary of the coronation of Emperor Napoleon I of France, his nephew Napoleon III, also known as Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, proclaimed himself emperor. He was the son of Napoleon’s brother Louis and Hortense de Be...
On this day the solemn coronation of Napoleon as Emperor of the French took place. It was performed in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame, in the presence of Pope Pius VII and several thousand people. It is interesting that the French people voted in a refe...
On this day one of the most shameful events in national history to the French took place. Namely, the English king Henry V entered the conquered capital of France – Paris. Today, many are not aware that, at one point in history, France was a single s...
English King Henry I died on this day, supposedly from overeating on a delicacy which he very much liked – lampreys. This is a species of aquatic animals similar to eels, considered a delicacy in the Middle Ages and appraised on the aristocratic dini...
Digging a tunnel under the English Channel began back in 1988. The tunneling was done simultaneously from the French and British side, and 11 drills were used. On 30 November 1990, the machines from the opposite sides came close to one another. A hol...
World AIDS Day is commemorated on this day, because the existence of the virus that causes the disease was officially acknowledged for the first time on 1 December 1981. It is assumed that the AIDS virus originated back in the late 19th or early 20th...
On this day, an unusual method of determining who will be drafted into the army in the United States was administered for the first time. The method was as follows: only men born between 1944 and 1950 (i.e. between 18 and 25 years of age) were consid...
The famous artist Oscar Wilde died on this day. He was very controversial during his life, and remained famous for his artistic genius, as well as for his unusual personality. Today there is practically not one person who did not at least hear of his...
This day in 1786 marked the first time in European history one country permanently abolished the death penalty as a form of punishment. The country was Tuscany, the capital of which was Florence. Tuscany was at that time a monarchy led by Leopold of...
The first recorded case in history that a meteorite from outer space hit a human being occured on this day. It happened in the town of Sylacauga, Alabama, at 2:46 p.m. local time. A grapefruit-sized meteorite broke through the roof of a wooden house,...
Winston Churchill was born on this day, to one of the most prominent British aristocratic families. His father was Lord Randolph Churchill, younger son of the seventh Duke of Marlborough and a prominent politician (he was at one time the British Mini...
The first official international football match was played on this day back in 1872, between the Scottish and English national teams. It took place in the town of Patrick near Glasgow, Scotland, and attracted around 4,000 spectators. The result was 0...
On this day in 1690 was born German Prince Christian August von Anhalt-Zerbst. He is notable by the fact that his eldest daughter became Empress of Russia, known as Catherine the Great. Namely, many people today in the general public are not aware th...
On this day a civil war, also known as the Sonderbund War, ended in Switzerland. The whole thing is not well-known in European history, but it is actually very interesting because it is reminiscent of the civil war between North and South in the Unit...
French King Philip IV the Fair died suddenly on this day. He is considered responsible for the abolition of the famous Order of the Knights Templar, because he ordered the arrest of the Templars in his kingdom, and also influenced the then Pope Cleme...
On this day the owners of the British ship Zong threw overboard the slaves they were transporting from Africa to Jamaica. They did it to get the insurance money. Namely, on departure from Africa, the ship was overladen with slaves. Soon, many of them...
Empress and Queen Maria Theresa died on this day, at the age of 64. She spent 40 years and 40 days on the throne of Austria, Hungary, and the lands associated with these two crowns. It is interesting that, in Hungary and Croatia, she was considered a...
On this day a document was written about the wedding of famous William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway. The whole story was not at all idyllic and holds many mysteries. Firstly, Shakespeare was only 18 years old and the bride was 26. Secondly, she was...
On this day, then men that would lead the First Crusade to the Holy Land were appointed. This happened at the famous Council of Clermont, in the heart of France, where the call to the First Crusade was proclaimed. Pope Urban II appointed as leaders t...
So far, only seven people in history have become honorary citizens of the United States. The first was Sir Winston Churchill. Beside him, only Mother Theresa was named one during her life, while the other five received this status after death. Those...
On this day there was a crash in which 257 people were killed when the DC-10 type plane operated by Air New Zealand crashed into Mount Erebus in Antarctica. It was a flight intended for Antarctica sightseeing. The flight was advertised as a unique ex...
The inventor of basketball, Canadian James Naismith, died on this day. He developed basketball while teaching physical education at the YMCA Training School in Springfield in the United States. In this school there existed a problem of how to provide...
The man whose name we unconsciously mention almost every day when we talk about the temperature in degrees Celsius, was born on this day in 1701, in the Swedish city of Uppsala. That city is of double importance for Sweden. Namely, the oldest and mos...
This day marked the start of an unfortunate series of events which would ultimately weaken the Roman Empire. Namely, the reigning Emperor Marcus Aurelius gave his son Commodus the title of Imperator. The fact that Commodus became the official success...
On this day occurred one of the worst bombings in aviation history. Specifically, a bomb was placed that blew up the plane with 107 passengers and crew members while flying at a speed of 794 kilometers per hour, at an altitude of around 4,000 meters....
Jimi Hendrix, according to many the best guitarist of all time, was born on this day. He was born during World War II, in Seattle. Interestingly, his father was partly of Indian origin – namely, one of his great-grandmothers was a Cherokee Indian. An...
The inventor of dynamite Alfred Nobel signed his last will and testament on this day, It stipulated that, after his death, 94% of his total wealth is to be used for the annual award ceremony in five areas of human activity (physics, chemistry, medici...
