On this day in 1577, English seaman Francis Drake set out from Plymouth, England, with five ships and 164 men on a mission to raid Spanish holdings on the Pacific coast of the New World, as well as to explore the Pacific Ocean. In 1621 on this day, Emperor Ferdinand II delegated the first anti-Reformation decree. On this day in 1643 during the English Civil War, the Battle of Alton took place in Hampshire. In 1920 on this day, the League of Nations (predecessor to the United Nations) established the International Court of Justice in The Hague. This day in 1937 saw the infamous Rape of Nanking during the Sino-Japanese War,. Nanking had been the capital of China, but it fell to Japanese forces, and the Chinese government fled to Hankow, further inland along the Yangtze River. To break the spirit of Chinese resistance, Japanese General Matsui Iwane ordered that the city of Nanking be destroyed. Much of the city was burned, and Japanese troops launched a campaign of atrocities against civilians. Goebbels complained of what he felt was the Italians' treatment of Jews in his journal on this day in 1942. He expressed his belief that the Italians were far too lax on the Jews. On this day in 1981, the Polish government imposed martial law in an attempt to crush the Solidarity movement. South African President F. W. de Klerk met with Nelson Mandela for the first time on this day in 1989, just months before Mandela would be freed from 27 years of imprisonment. On this day in 2000, then sitting American Vice President Al Gore reluctantly conceded defeat to Texas Governor George W. Bush, effectively ending the controversy surrounding the 2000 presidential race. On this day in 2001, the Indian Parliament Sansad was attacked by terrorists. 15 people were killed, including all of the terrorists. There was a major enlargement of the European Union (EU) on this day in 2002 when it announced that Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia would become members starting on May 1, 2004. In 2004 on this day, former Chilean Dictator General Augusto Pinochet was placed under house arrest after being sued under accusations of more than nine kidnapping actions and manslaughter. Nevertheless, the house arrest was lifted that very same day on appeal.
Here's a more detailed look at events that transpired on this date throughout history:
1577 - Five ships under the command of Sir Francis Drake left Plymouth, England, to embark on Drake's circumnavigation of the globe. The journey took almost three years. 1636 - The United States National Guard was created when militia regiments were organized by the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 1642 - New Zealand was discovered by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman. 1769 - Dartmouth College, in New Hampshire, received its charter. 1809 - The first abdominal surgical procedure was performed in Danville, KY, on Jane Todd Crawford. The operation was performed without an anesthetic. 1816 - John Adamson received a patent for a dry dock. 1862 - In America, an estimated 11,000 Northern soldiers were killed or wounded when Union forces were defeated by Confederates under General Robert E. Lee, at the Battle of Fredericksburg. 1883 - The border between Ontario and Manitoba was established. 1884 - Percy Everitt received a patent for the first coin-operated weighing machine. 1913 - It was announced by authorities in Florence, Italy, that the "Mona Lisa" had been recovered. The work was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris in 1911. 1913 - The Federal Reserve System was established. 1918 - U.S. President Wilson arrived in France, becoming the first chief executive to visit a European country while holding office. 1921 - Britain, France, Japan and the United States signed the Pacific Treaty. 1937 - Japanese forces took the Chinese city of Nanking (Nanjing). An estimated 200,000 Chinese were killed over the next six weeks. The event became known as the "Rape of Nanking." 1944 - During World War II, the U.S. cruiser Nashville was badly damaged in a Japanese kamikaze suicide attack. 138 people were killed in the attack. 1961 - Anna Mary Robertson Moses, "Grandma Moses," passed away at the age of 101. 1964 - In El Paso, TX, President Johnson and Mexican President Gustavo Diaz Ordaz set off an explosion that diverted the Rio Grande River, reshaping the U.S.-Mexican border. This ended a century-old border dispute. 1966 - The rights to the first four Super Bowls were sold to CBS and NBC for total of $9.5 million. 1978 - The Philadelphia Mint began stamping the Susan B. Anthony U.S. dollar. The coin began circulation the following July. 1980 - Three days after a disputed general election, Uganda’s President Milton Obote was returned to office. 1981 - Authorities in Poland imposed martial law in an attempt to crackdown on the Solidarity labor movement. Martial law ended formally in 1983. 1982 - The Sentry Armored Car Company in New York discovered that $11 million had been stolen from its headquarters overnight. It was the biggest cash theft in U.S. history. 1987 - U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz told reporters in Copenhagen, Denmark, that the Reagan administration would begin making funding requests for the proposed Star Wars defense system. 1988 - PLO chairman Yasser Arafat addressed the U.N. General Assembly in Geneva, where it had reconvened after the United States had refused to grant Arafat a visa to visit New York. 1988 - A bankruptcy judge in Columbia, SC, ordered the assets of the troubled PTL television ministry sold to a Toronto real estate developer for $65 million. 1989 - South African President F.W. de Klerk met for the first time with imprisoned African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela, at de Klerk's office in Cape Town. 1991 - Five Central Asian republics of the Soviet Union agreed to join the new Commonwealth of Independent States. 1991 - North Korea and South Korea signed a historic non-aggression agreement. 1993 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that people must receive a hearing before property linked to illegal drug sales can be seized. 1993 - The European Community ratified a treaty creating the European Economic Area (EEA), to go into effect January 1, 1994. 1994 - An American Eagle commuter plane carrying 20 people crashed short of Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina, killing 15 people. 1995 - China's most influential democracy activist, Wei Jingsheng, who already had spent 16 years in prison, was sentenced to 14 more years. 1997 - The Getty Center in Los Angeles, CA, was opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony. 1998 - Puerto Rican voters rejected U.S. statehood in a non-binding referendum. 1998 - Gary Anderson (Minnesota Vikings) kicked six field goals against Baltimore. In the game Anderson set an National Football League (NFL) record for 34 straight field goals without a miss. 2000 - U.S. Vice President Al Gore conceded the 2000 Presidential election to Texas Gov. George W. Bush. The Florida electoral votes were won by only 537 votes, which decided the election. The election had been contested up to the U.S. Supreme Court, which said that the Florida recount (supported by the Florida Supreme Court) was unconstitutional. 2000 - Seven convicts, the "Texas 7," escaped from Connally Unit in Kenedy, TX, southeast of San Antonio, by overpowering civilian workers and prison employees. They fled with stolen clothing, pickup truck and 16 guns and ammunition. 2001 - The U.S. government released a video tape that showed Osama bin Laden and others discussing their knowledge of the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. 2001 - U.S. President George W. Bush served formal notice to Russia that the United States was withdrawing from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. 2001 - Israel severed all contact with Yasser Arafat. Israel also launched air strikes and sent troops into Palestine in response to a bus ambush that killed 10 Israelis. 2001 - Gunmen stormed the Indian Parliament and killed seven people and injured 18. Security forces killed the attackers during a 90-minute gunbattle. 2001 - NBC-TV announced that it would begin running hard liquor commercials. NBC issued a 19-point policy that outlined the conditions for accepting liquor ads. 2001 - Michael Frank Goodwin was arrested and booked on two counts of murder, one count of conspiracy and three special circumstances (lying in wait, murder for financial gain and multiple murder) in connection to the death of Mickey Thompson. Thompson and his wife Trudy were shot to death in their driveway on March 16, 1988. Thompson, known as the "Speed King," set nearly 500 auto speed endurance records including being the first person to travel more than 400 mph on land.
1642 New Zealand was discovered by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman. 1918 President Wilson arrived in France, becoming the first U.S. president to visit Europe while in office. 1978 The U.S. Mint began stamping the Susan B. Anthony dollar, the first U.S. coin honoring a woman. 1981 The Polish government imposed martial law in an attempt to crush the Solidarity movement. 1989 South African President F. W. de Klerk met with Nelson Mandela for the first time. 1996 Kofi Annan of Ghana chosen to become UN secretary-general. 2000 George W. Bush accepted presidency 36 days after election; Al Gore, Jr., conceded. 2003 American forces captured Saddam Hussein who was hiding in a hole near his hometown of Tikrit.
The following links are to web sites that were used to complete this blog entry:
http://www.historyorb.com/today/events.php
http://on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/dec13.htm
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history
http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory
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