Post by MacBeth on May 29, 2009 11:33:20 GMT -5
In 526, a major earthquake accompanied by a fire destroys the city of Antioch, killing perhaps a quarter of a million people. The rebuilding efforts are wiped away two years later by another major quake.
In 1453, Constantinople is taken by Ottoman Turks, after a fifty day siege led by Sultan Mehmet II. The city defense of 10,000 men was no match for a force of 100,000 armed with heavy artillery. It is the final gasp of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire.
In 1765, Patrick Henry denounced the Stamp Act before Virginia's House of Burgesses, saying, "If this be treason, make the most of it!".
In 1790, Rhode Island became the 13th original colony to ratify the U.S. Constitution.
In 1806, dueling over a horse racing wager, future President Andrew Jackson takes a bullet in the chest from fellow lawyer Charles Dickinson. The slug shatters two ribs and buries itself near his heart. Then it is Jackson's turn to fire, which manages to sever an artery and kill his opponent.
In 1913, the ballet "The Rite of Spring," with music by Igor Stravinsky and choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky, had its chaotic world premiere in Paris.
In 1932, World War I veterans began arriving in Washington to demand cash bonuses they weren't scheduled to receive until 1945.
In 1943, Norman Rockwell's portrait of "Rosie the Riveter" appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post.
In 1953, Mount Everest was conquered as Edmund Hillary, of New Zealand, and Tensing Norgay, of Nepal, became the first climbers to reach the summit.
In 1969, the self-titled debut album by Crosby, Stills and Nash was released.
In 1973, Tom Bradley was elected the first black mayor of Los Angeles.
In 1985, 39 people were killed at the European Champions Cup Final in Brussels, Belgium, when rioting broke out and a wall separating British and Italian soccer fans collapsed.
In 1988, President Ronald Reagan began his first visit to the Soviet Union as he arrived in Moscow for a superpower summit with Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev.
In 1995, Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman to serve in both the House and Senate, died in Skowhegan, Maine, at age 97.
In 1996, Benjamin Netanyahu was elected Israeli prime minister.
In 1999, the space shuttle Discovery completed the first-ever docking with the international space station. Olusegun Obasanjo became Nigeria's first civilian president in 15 years, ending a string of military regimes. Hikers discover the skeletal remains of Philip "Taylor" in his Ford Aerostar at the bottom of a 200-foot ravine in Malibu, California. The onetime bassist for the band Iron Butterfly had disappeared four years prior.
In 2001, four followers of Osama bin Laden were convicted in New York of a global conspiracy to murder Americans, including the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa that killed 224 people.
In 2004, a shooting rampage by al-Qaida militants at a housing complex in Khobar, Saudi Arabia's oil hub, killed 22 people, most of them foreign oil industry workers. America dedicated a memorial to its World War II veterans on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
In 2005, French voters soundly rejected the European Union's proposed constitution.
In 2008, in a crushing blow to Texas' massive seizure of children from a polygamist sect's ranch, the state Supreme Court ruled that child welfare officials overstepped their authority and the children should go back to their parents.
In 1453, Constantinople is taken by Ottoman Turks, after a fifty day siege led by Sultan Mehmet II. The city defense of 10,000 men was no match for a force of 100,000 armed with heavy artillery. It is the final gasp of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire.
In 1765, Patrick Henry denounced the Stamp Act before Virginia's House of Burgesses, saying, "If this be treason, make the most of it!".
In 1790, Rhode Island became the 13th original colony to ratify the U.S. Constitution.
In 1806, dueling over a horse racing wager, future President Andrew Jackson takes a bullet in the chest from fellow lawyer Charles Dickinson. The slug shatters two ribs and buries itself near his heart. Then it is Jackson's turn to fire, which manages to sever an artery and kill his opponent.
In 1913, the ballet "The Rite of Spring," with music by Igor Stravinsky and choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky, had its chaotic world premiere in Paris.
In 1932, World War I veterans began arriving in Washington to demand cash bonuses they weren't scheduled to receive until 1945.
In 1943, Norman Rockwell's portrait of "Rosie the Riveter" appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post.
In 1953, Mount Everest was conquered as Edmund Hillary, of New Zealand, and Tensing Norgay, of Nepal, became the first climbers to reach the summit.
In 1969, the self-titled debut album by Crosby, Stills and Nash was released.
In 1973, Tom Bradley was elected the first black mayor of Los Angeles.
In 1985, 39 people were killed at the European Champions Cup Final in Brussels, Belgium, when rioting broke out and a wall separating British and Italian soccer fans collapsed.
In 1988, President Ronald Reagan began his first visit to the Soviet Union as he arrived in Moscow for a superpower summit with Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev.
In 1995, Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman to serve in both the House and Senate, died in Skowhegan, Maine, at age 97.
In 1996, Benjamin Netanyahu was elected Israeli prime minister.
In 1999, the space shuttle Discovery completed the first-ever docking with the international space station. Olusegun Obasanjo became Nigeria's first civilian president in 15 years, ending a string of military regimes. Hikers discover the skeletal remains of Philip "Taylor" in his Ford Aerostar at the bottom of a 200-foot ravine in Malibu, California. The onetime bassist for the band Iron Butterfly had disappeared four years prior.
In 2001, four followers of Osama bin Laden were convicted in New York of a global conspiracy to murder Americans, including the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa that killed 224 people.
In 2004, a shooting rampage by al-Qaida militants at a housing complex in Khobar, Saudi Arabia's oil hub, killed 22 people, most of them foreign oil industry workers. America dedicated a memorial to its World War II veterans on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
In 2005, French voters soundly rejected the European Union's proposed constitution.
In 2008, in a crushing blow to Texas' massive seizure of children from a polygamist sect's ranch, the state Supreme Court ruled that child welfare officials overstepped their authority and the children should go back to their parents.