Today in History!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[n11pilot]

1494 - The Treaty of Tordesillas is signed in which Spain and Portugal divide the new world along a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands, off the west coast of Africa.

1498 - Christopher Columbus left on his third voyage of exploration.

1546 - Peace of Ardes ended the war between France and England.

1628 - English King Charles I ratifies the Petition of Rights.

1712 - The Pennsylvania Assembly banned the importation of slaves.

1776 - Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed to the Continental Congress a resolution calling for a Declaration of Independence.

1863 - Mexico City was captured by French troops.

1900 - Boxer rebels cut the rail links between Peking and Tientsin in China.

1903 - Professor Pierre Curie revealed the discovery of Polonium.

1929 - The sovereign state of Vatican City came into existence as copies of the Lateran Treaty were exchanged in Rome.

1939 - King George VI arrived in the U.S. It was the first visit to the U.S. by a reigning British monarch.

1942 - The Battle of Midway officially ended. The actual sea and air battle lasted 4 days. Japan lost four carriers, a cruiser, and 292 aircraft, and suffered 2,500 casualties. The U.S. lost the Yorktown, the destroyer USS Hammann, 145 aircraft, and suffered 307 casualties. This American victory shocked the Imperial Japanese all the way to the Emperor's palace in Tokyo.

1942 - Japan landed troops on the islands of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutians. The U.S. invaded and recaptured the Aleutians one year later. The action in the Aleutians and the eventual recapture yielded a trove of intelligence to US Forces including a look at a Japanese Zero fighter seized mostly intact.

1944 - Off of the coast of Normandy, France, the USS Susan B. Anthony sank. The transport ship had struck a floating mine and was breached in the area of the #4 hold on the starboard side. The Captain immediately ordered the embarked soldiers to the port side and through this use of two footed ballast bought precious time for the ship's personnel to be rescued. Not a single life was lost. Well done.

1948 - The Communists completed their takeover of Czechoslovakia.

1965 - In the U.S., the Gemini 4 mission was completed. The mission featured the first spacewalk by an American.

1968 - In Operation Swift Saber, U.S. Marines swept an area 10 miles northwest of Danang in South Vietnam.

1981 - Israeli F-16 fighter-bombers destroyed Iraq’s only nuclear reactor.

[Cousi]

1942 - The Battle of Midway officially ended. The actual sea and air battle lasted 4 days. Japan lost four carriers, a cruiser, and 292 aircraft, and suffered 2,500 casualties. The U.S. lost the Yorktown, the destroyer USS Hammann, 145 aircraft, and suffered 307 casualties. This American victory shocked the Imperial Japanese all the way to the Emperor's palace in Tokyo.

That's a rather stunning victory. I'd always heard it described as "decisive" but that really doesn't give it enough credit.

1942 - Japan landed troops on the islands of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutians. The U.S. invaded and recaptured the Aleutians one year later. The action in the Aleutians and the eventual recapture yielded a trove of intelligence to US Forces including a look at a Japanese Zero fighter seized mostly intact.

Hey! I've been there! Kiska, I mean. I've seen Attu but we didn't stop for sightseeing.

[n11pilot]

1942 - The Battle of Midway officially ended. The actual sea and air battle lasted 4 days. Japan lost four carriers, a cruiser, and 292 aircraft, and suffered 2,500 casualties. The U.S. lost the Yorktown, the destroyer USS Hammann, 145 aircraft, and suffered 307 casualties. This American victory shocked the Imperial Japanese all the way to the Emperor's palace in Tokyo.

That's a rather stunning victory. I'd always heard it described as "decisive" but that really doesn't give it enough credit.

1942 - Japan landed troops on the islands of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutians. The U.S. invaded and recaptured the Aleutians one year later. The action in the Aleutians and the eventual recapture yielded a trove of intelligence to US Forces including a look at a Japanese Zero fighter seized mostly intact.

Hey! I've been there! Kiska, I mean. I've seen Attu but we didn't stop for sightseeing.

Cousi, the Battle of Midway was that one turning point in the war that was feared by Admiral Yamamoto. The Admiral having lived in the US and knowing the American people and out armed forces honestly and accurately told his superiors that Japan could run wild in the Pacific for about six months then America would gain its feet and end the march. Midway was the turning point in his prophesy.

I'm not sure that you missed much by sailing by Attu. I think that it has been declared "Uninhabited" for some time and is now the property of the US Government.

[n11pilot]

452 - Italy was invaded by Attila the Hun.

793 - Vikings in long ships from modern-day Norway plunder St Cuthbert's monastery on Lindisfarne Island, off the northeast coast of England.

1191 - King Richard I of England arrives at Acre in modern day Israel to join the Siege of Acre during the Third Crusade.

1789 - James Madison introduces a proposed Bill of Rights in the US House of Representatives.

1790 - The first loan to the U.S. was repaid. The Temporary Loan of 1789 was negotiated and secured on September 18, 1789 by Alexander Hamilton.

1861 - Tennessee voted to secede from the Union and joined the Confederacy.

1904 - U.S. Marines landed in Tangiers, Morocco, to protect U.S. citizens.

1915 - U.S. Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan resigned in a disagreement over U.S. handling of the sinking of the Lusitania.

1918 - Nova Aquila, brightest nova since Kepler's nova of 1604, discovered.

1953 - The U.S. Supreme Court outlawed segregated restaurants in Washington, DC.

1965 - U.S. troops in South Vietnam were given orders to begin fighting offensively.

1967 - Israeli airplanes attacked the USS Liberty in the Mediterranean during the 6-Day War between Israel and its Arab neighbors. 34 U.S. Navy crewmen were killed. Israel later called the incident a tragic mistake due to the mis-identification of the ship. The U.S. has never publicly investigated the incident. I believe that the US accepted the Israeli apology but not its explanation.

1969 - U.S. President Richard Nixon met with President Thieu of South Vietnam to tell him 25,000 U.S. troops would pull out by August.

1982 - U.S. President Reagan became the first American chief executive to address a joint session of the British Parliament.

1995 - U.S. Air Force pilot Captain Scott O'Grady was rescued by U.S. Marines after surviving alone in Bosnia after his F-16 fighter was shot down on June 2.

[n11pilot]

Spoiler Alert!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is the history for tomorrow 9 June, so don't read it early or you will be in for a crushing disappointment tomorrow.
You have been warned!!!!!!!!!!!!

68 - Roman Emperor Nero commits suicide, imploring his secretary Epaphroditos to slit his throat to evade a Senate-imposed death by flogging.

721 - Odo of Aquitaine defeats the Moors in the Battle of Toulouse.

1064 - Coimbra, Portugal fell to Ferdinand, the King of Castile.

1534 - Jacques Cartier became the first to sail into the river he named Saint Lawrence.

1549 - Book of Common Prayer is adopted by the Church of England.

1815 - End of the Congress of Vienna: New European political situation is set.

1856 - 500 Mormons leave Iowa City, Iowa, and head west for Salt Lake City, Utah, carrying all their possessions in two-wheeled handcarts.

1860 - The Ms. Ann Stevens book "Malaeska, the Indian Wife of the White Hunter" was offered for sale for a dime. It was the first published "dime novel."

1923 - Bulgaria's government was overthrown by the military.

1931 - Robert H. Goddard patented a rocket propelled aircraft design.

1940 - Norway surrendered to the Nazis during World War II.

1945 - Japanese Premier Kantaro Suzuki declared that Japan would fight to the last rather than accept unconditional surrender. Events ultimately changed his mind.

1959 - The first ballistic missile carrying submarine, the USS George Washington, was launched.

1985 - Thomas Sutherland, an American educator, was kidnapped in Lebanon. He was not released until November 1991.

1986 - The Rogers Commission released a report on the Challenger disaster. The report explained that the spacecraft blew up as a result of a failure in a solid rocket booster joint.

1997 - British lease on the New Territories in Hong Kong expires.

1999 - NATO and Yugoslavia signed a peace agreement over Kosovo.

2000 - Canada and the United States signed a border security agreement. The agreement called for the establishment of a border-enforcement team.

2011 - The world's first artificial organ transplant was performed. It was an artificial windpipe coated with stem cells.

[n11pilot]

1190 - During the Third Crusade, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa drowns while crossing the Saleph River (modern Turkey) leading an army to Jerusalem. There has been some debate among suspicious historians as to exactly how hard courtiers worked to save Fred.

1776 - The Continental Congress appointed a committee to write a Declaration of Independence.

1793 - The Jardin des Plantes zoo opened in Paris. It was the first public zoo.

1801 - The North African State of Tripoli declared war on the U.S. The dispute was over merchant vessels being able to travel safely through the Mediterranean. Basically, freedom of the seas was at stake.

1854 - The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, held its first graduation.

1898 - U.S. Marines landed in Cuba during the Spanish-American War. 600 U.S. Marines landed at Guantanamo with assistance of Colonel Enrique Thomas of the Cuban forces.

1903 - Binney & Smith Company began developing a product line of wax crayons. The product was named Crayola.

1909 - The SOS distress signal was used for the first time. The Cunard liner SS Slavonia used the signal when it wrecked off the Azores.

1920 - The Republican convention in Chicago endorsed woman suffrage.

1940 - Italy declared war on France and Britain. In addition, Canada declared war on Italy.

1943 - The Allies began bombing Germany around the clock.

1946 - Italy established a republic replacing its monarchy.

1948 - It was publicly announced that pilot Chuck Yeager exceeded the speed of sound in the Bell X-1. The record breaking flight had occurred on 14 October 1947 but the announcement of the success of the mission was withheld.

1970 - A fifteen-man group of special forces troops began training for Operation Kingpin. The operation was a POW rescue mission in North Vietnam.

1984 - The United States and the Vatican established full diplomatic relations for the first time in 117 years.

[Cousi]

A few thoughts:

1190 - During the Third Crusade, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa drowns while crossing the Saleph River (modern Turkey) leading an army to Jerusalem. There has been some debate among suspicious historians as to exactly how hard courtiers worked to save Fred.

Fred was an ass, I take it

1801 - The North African State of Tripoli declared war on the U.S. The dispute was over merchant vessels being able to travel safely through the Mediterranean. Basically, freedom of the seas was at stake.

I have never heard this before. I know what I'll be researching if/when work slows down.

1854 - The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, held its first graduation.

Frigging squids

1948 - It was publicly announced that pilot Chuck Yeager exceeded the speed of sound in the Bell X-1. The record breaking flight had occurred on 14 October 1947 but the announcement of the success of the mission was withheld.

So they withheld the announcement for like 8 months? Why?

[n11pilot]

A few thoughts:

1190 - During the Third Crusade, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa drowns while crossing the Saleph River (modern Turkey) leading an army to Jerusalem. There has been some debate among suspicious historians as to exactly how hard courtiers worked to save Fred.

Fred was an ass, I take it

1801 - The North African State of Tripoli declared war on the U.S. The dispute was over merchant vessels being able to travel safely through the Mediterranean. Basically, freedom of the seas was at stake.

I have never heard this before. I know what I'll be researching if/when work slows down.

1854 - The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, held its first graduation.

Frigging squids

1948 - It was publicly announced that pilot Chuck Yeager exceeded the speed of sound in the Bell X-1. The record breaking flight had occurred on 14 October 1947 but the announcement of the success of the mission was withheld.

So they withheld the announcement for like 8 months? Why?

Yeah, it has been a busy day in history. Let me address your notes in order.

1. Frederick I Barbarossa was an autocrat of the old school and that means pretty damn ruthless but no more than most. He did make enemies and there were always court intrigues and there were religious intrigues as well. Fred ruled with an iron fist especially if you were on his bad side. The co leaders of the crusade were actually rivals of Fred's, Richard I of England and Philip of France both of whom had much to gain at Fred's demise. Added to all of this are the conflicting reports on how he died. If I recall the official scribe stated to the effect,"The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa fell from his horse into a rushing stream while on march. The stream was cold and the Emperor expired from a heart failure before he could be rescued."

2. The Pasha of Tripoli actually declared war on the US on 14 May 1801 but communications being what they were we didn't know about it until 10 June. The US Navy at the time was in decline headed for extinction when this declaration and demand for increased tribute actually cause the service to increase in size. Jefferson was somewhat anti Navy not really seeing a need for it and this partially at least changed his mind. The was lasted until 1805 and was brought to a satisfactory end for the US through the means of a Naval blockade and an overland expedition from Egypt led by US Army LT Eaton. Eaton let a small detachment of US Marines at the head of a mercenary force of about 500, an adventure story in itself and one of the earlier examples of post Revolutionary war "Spook work" by Army personnel.

3. Yeah, be they Annapolis or West Point "Ring Knockers" are a class of their own and a bane to all NCOs.

4. The only reason I can find for the delay in the announcement of Yeager's successful mission is "Security".

[n11pilot]

1184 BC - During the Trojan War the city of Troy is sacked and burned. This date is according to calculations made by the scholar Eratosthenes.

631 - Emperor Taizong of Tang of China, sends envoys to the Xueyantuo bearing gold and silk for the release of Chinese prisoners captured during transition from Sui to Tang from northern frontier; succeeds in freeing 80,000.

1346 - Charles IV of Luxembourg was elected Holy Roman Emperor in Germany.

1509 - King Henry VIII married his first of six wives, Catherine of Aragon.

1770 - Captain James Cook discovered the Great Barrier Reef off of Australia when he ran aground. Making historical lemonade out of navigational lemons.

1776 - Continental Congress finalizes a committee (Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston) to draft a Declaration of Independence.

1798 - Napoleon Bonaparte took the island of Malta.

1895 - Charles E. Duryea received the first U.S. patent granted to an American inventor for a gasoline-driven automobile.

1912 - Silas Christoferson became the first pilot to take off from the roof of a hotel. The flight originated from atop the Multnomah Hotel in Portland, OR. It is believed that the aviator modified his Curtiss pusher aircraft by adding a ten foot span to the wings to achieve the extra needed lift for what amounts to an STOL run from the roof.

1915 - British troops took Cameroon in Africa.

1919 - Sir Barton became the first horse to capture the Triple Crown when he won the Belmont Stakes in New York City.

1927 - Charles A. Lindberg was presented the Distinguished Flying Cross.

1930 - William Beebe dove to a record-setting depth of 1,426 feet off the coast of Bermuda. He used a diving chamber called a bathysphere.

1937 - Soviet leader Josef Stalin began a purge of Red Army generals.

1942 - The U.S. and the Soviet Union signed a lend lease agreement to aid the Soviets in their effort in World War II.

1967 - Israel and Syria accepted a U.N. cease-fire.

[n11pilot]

1099 - Crusade leaders visited the Mount of Olives where they met Peter the Hermit who urged them to assault Jerusalem.

1381 - During the Peasants Revolt (AKA Wat Tyler's Rebellion) in England, rebels arrive at Blackheath. The peasants demanded a reduction in taxes, less regulations on workers including and end to serfdom, and removal of officials who were the King's cronies who lined their pockets under the guise of duty. This does sound familiar.

1665 - England installed a municipal government in New York. It was the former Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam.

1812 - Napoleon's invasion of Russia began.

1830 - Beginning of the French colonization of Algeria: 34,000 French soldiers land 27 kilometers west of Algiers, at Sidi Ferruch.

1864 - The Battle of Trevilian Station, the bloodiest and largest all-cavalry battle of the American Civil War in Louisa County ends with Confederate tactical victory and Union successful retreat.

1897 - Carl Elsener patented his penknife. The object later became known as the Swiss army knife. All hail Elsener!

1898 - Philippine nationalists declared their independence from Spain.

1901 - Cuba agreed to become an American protectorate by accepting the Platt Amendment.

1918 - The first airplane bombing raid by an American unit occurred on World War I's Western Front in France.

1926 - Brazil quit the League of Nations in protest over plans to admit Germany.

1931 - Al Capone is indicted on multiple counts of prohibition violations and perjury.

1937 - The Soviet Union executed eight army leaders under Joseph Stalin. Most historians agree that only thing these generals were guilty of was competence.

1941 - In London, the Inter-Allied Declaration was signed. It was the first step towards the establishment of the United Nations.

1963 - Civil rights leader Medgar Evers was fatally shot in front of his home in Jackson, MS.

1967 - State laws which prohibited interracial marriages were ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.

1981 - "Raiders of the Lost Ark" opened in the U.S.