This Week in History

HISTORY, 14 Dec 2015

Satoshi Ashikaga – TRANSCEND Media Service

TWH logo history

Dec 14-20

QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

Don’t let fear or insecurity stop you from trying new things. Believe in yourself. Do what you love. And most importantly, be kind to others, even if you don’t like them.” – Stacy London

 

DECEMBER 14

2013  A reported coup attempt in South Sudan leads to continued fighting and hundreds of casualties.

A Coup Attempt in South Sudan of 2013:

Some Analytical Reports on the South Sudan Crisis:

2004  The Millau Viaduct, the tallest bridge in the world, is formally inaugurated near Millau, France.

2003  Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf narrowly escapes an assassination attempt.

Assassination Attempts against Musharraf:

1999  Torrential rains cause flash floods in Vargas, Venezuela, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths, the destruction of thousands of homes, and the complete collapse of the state’s infrastructure.

1998  Yugoslav Wars: The Yugoslav Army ambushes a group of Kosovo Liberation Army fighters attempting to smuggle weapons from Albania into Kosovo, killing 36.

Timeline of the December 14, Ambushes:

Kosovo Liberation Army:

Kosovo Conflict:

The United States, NATO and the Kosovo Conflict:

History of Kosovo:

1995  Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by the leaders of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Dayton Peace Agreement:

Background and Analysis of the Dayton Peace Agreement:

War in Bosnia-Herzegovina:

Bosnian War on the Ground:

Timeline of the War in Bosnia-Herzegovina:

1992  War in Abkhazia: Siege of Tkvarcheli – A helicopter carrying evacuees from Tkvarcheli is shot down, resulting in at least 52 deaths, including 25 children. The incident catalysis more concerted Russian military intervention on behalf of Abkhazia.

War in Abkhazia:

Abkhazia:

History of Abkhazia:

1983  The third Congress of the Communist Youth of Greece starts.

1981  Arab–Israeli conflict: Israel’s Knesset ratifies the Golan Heights Law, extending Israeli law to the occupied Golan Heights.

1980  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

1979  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

Nuclear Weapons and the United States:

1978  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

For some more pertinent information, see “1980 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR”, mentioned above.

1972  Apollo program: Eugene Cernan is the last person to walk on the moon, after he and Harrison Schmitt complete the third and final extra-vehicular activity (EVA) of the Apollo 17 mission.

1971  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

For some more pertinent information, see “1979 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site”, mentioned above.

1971  Bangladesh Liberation War: Over 200 of East Pakistan’s intellectuals are executed by the Pakistan Army and their local allies. (The date is commemorated in Bangladesh as Martyred Intellectuals Day.)

Bangladesh Liberation War:

History of Bangladesh:

1964  American Civil Rights Movement: Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States – The Supreme Court of the United States rules that Congress can use the Constitution’s Commerce Clause to fight discrimination.

1962  NASA‘s Mariner 2 becomes the first spacecraft to fly by Venus.

1962  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

For some more pertinent information, see “1979 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site”, mentioned above.

1961  Tanganyika joins the United Nations.

Tanganyika (Tanzania):

Foreign Relations of Tanzania:

Tanzania and the United Nations:

History of Tanzania:

Economy of Tanzania:

1958  The 3rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition becomes the first to reach the southern pole of inaccessibility.

1955  Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Ceylon, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Libya, Nepal, Portugal, Romania and Spain join the United Nations.

1946  The United Nations General Assembly votes to establish its headquarters in New York, New York.

1941  World War II: Thailand formally allies herself with Japan.

1939  Winter War: The Soviet Union is expelled from the League of Nations for invading Finland.

1918  Portuguese President Sidónio Pais is assassinated.

1909  New South Wales Premier Charles Wade signs the Seat of Government Surrender Act 1909, formally completing the transfer of State land to the Commonwealth to create the Australian Capital Territory.

1903  The Wright brothers make their first attempt to fly with the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

1902 The Commercial Pacific Cable Company lays the first Pacific telegraph cable, from San Francisco to Honolulu.02       

1900  Quantum mechanics: Max Planck presents a theoretical derivation of his black-body radiation law.

Black-Body Radiation:

1836  The Toledo War unofficially ends.

1814  War of 1812: The Royal Navy seizes control of Lake Borgne, Louisiana.

1812  The French invasion of Russia comes to an end as the remnants of the Grande Armée are expelled from Russia.

1782  The Montgolfier brothers‘ first balloon lifts off on its first test flight.

1751  The Theresian Military Academy is founded as the first military academy in the world.

 

 

DECEMBER 15

2010  A boat carrying 90 asylum seekers crashes into rocks off the coast of Christmas Island, Australia, killing 48 people.

2009  Boeing‘s 787 Dreamliner makes its maiden flight from Seattle, Washington.

2006  First flight of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II.

2005  Introduction of the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor into USAF active service.

2001  The Leaning Tower of Pisa reopens after 11 years and $27,000,000 spent to fortify it, without fixing its famous lean.

Leaning Tower of Pisa:

History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa:

2000  The third reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is shut down.

Chernobyl Third Reactor Shut-down:

1994  Palau becomes a member of the United Nations.

Palau:

Foreign Relations of Palau:

Palau and the United Nations:

History of Palau:

Economy of Palau:

1993  The Troubles: The Downing Street Declaration is issued by British Prime Minister John Major and Irish Taoiseach Albert Reynolds.

1981  A suicide car bombing targeting the Iraqi embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, levels the embassy and kills 61 people, including Iraq’s ambassador to Lebanon. The attack is considered the first modern suicide bombing.

1978  US President Jimmy Carter announces that the United States will recognize the People’s Republic of China and sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan

1976  The oil tanker MV Argo Merchant runs aground near Nantucket, Massachusetts, causing one of the worst marine oil spills in history.

1976  Western Samoa (“Samoa” since July 1997; officially the “Independent State of Samoa”) becomes a member of the United Nations.

Samoa:

Foreign Relations of Samoa:

Western Samoa and the United Nations:

History of Samoa:

Economy of Samoa:

1973  The American Psychiatric Association votes 13–0 to remove homosexuality from its official list of psychiatric disorders, the DSM-II.

1973  John Paul Getty III, grandson of American billionaire J. Paul Getty, is found alive near Naples, Italy, after being kidnapped by an Italian gang on July 10.

1971  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

1970  The South Korean ferry Namyong Ho capsizes in the Korea Strait, killing over 300 people.

1970  Soviet spacecraft Venera 7 successfully land on Venus. It is the first successful soft landing on another planet

1965  Project Gemini: Gemini 6A, crewed by Wally Schirra and Thomas Stafford, is launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida. Four orbits later, it achieves the first space rendezvous, with Gemini 7.

1961  Adolf Eichmann is sentenced to death after being found guilty by an Israeli court of 15 criminal charges, including charges of crimes against humanity, crimes against the Jewish people, and membership of an outlawed organization.

Adolf Eichmann:

Trial of Adolf Eichmann:

1960  King Mahendra of Nepal suspends the country’s constitution, dissolves parliament, dismisses the cabinet, and imposes direct rule.

1954  The Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands is signed.

1946  The first election to the Representative Assembly of French India was held.

1946  US-backed Iranian troops evict the leadership of the breakaway Republic of Mahabad, putting an end to the Iran crisis of 1946.

1945  Occupation of Japan: General Douglas MacArthur orders that Shinto be abolished as the state religion of Japan.

1943  World War II: The Battle of Arawe begins during the New Britain Campaign.

1942  World War II: The Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse begins during the Guadalcanal Campaign.

1941  The Holocaust: German troops murder over 15,000 Jews at Drobytsky Yar, a ravine southeast of the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine, Soviet Union.

1939  Gone with the Wind receives its premiere at Loew’s Grand Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.

1933  The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution officially becomes effective, repealing the Eighteenth Amendment that prohibited the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol.

1917  World War I: An armistice is reached between the new Bolshevik government and the Central Powers.

1914  World War I: The Serbian Army recaptures Belgrade from the invading Austro-Hungarian Army.

Belgrade, Serbia in World War I:

1913  Nicaragua becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.

Buenos Aires Convention and Some Other Pertinent International Treaties:

History of Nicaragua:

 

 

DECEMBER 16

2014  Militants belonging to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan attacked an Army Public School in the Pakistani city of Peshawar killing 145 people.

1995  Official adoption of the name of “Euro“.

Euro:

Problems of Euro:

1991  Kazakhstan declares independence from the Soviet Union.

Kazakhstan:

Foreign Relations of Kazakhstan:

Human Rights in Kazakhstan:

History of Kazakhstan:

Economy of Kazakhstan:

1989  Romanian Revolution: Protests break out in Timișoara, Romania, in response to an attempt by the government to evict dissident Hungarian pastor László Tőkés.

Romanian Revolution of 1989:

1986  Gennady Kolbin replaces Dinmukhamed Konayev as First Secretary of the Kazakh Communist Party, prompting the Jeltoqsan protests which began the next day.

1979  Libya joins four other OPEC nations in raising crude oil prices, which has an immediate, dramatic effect on the United States.

OPEC:

History of OPEC:

History of Libya:

Economy of Libya:

1978  Cleveland, Ohio, becomes the first major American city to default on its financial obligations since the Great Depression.

1974  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

1974  USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR.

1971  The United Kingdom recognizes Bahrain‘s independence. This is commemorated annually as Bahrain’s National Day.

Bahrain:

Foreign Relations of Bahrain:

Human Rights in Bahrain:

History of Bahrain:

Economy of Bahrain:

1971  Bangladesh Liberation War and Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The surrender of the Pakistan Army brings an end to both conflicts. This is commemorated annually as Victory Day in Bangladesh, and as Vijay Diwas in India.

Bangladesh Liberation War:

History of Bangladesh:

1970  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

For some more pertinent information, see, “1974 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site”, as mentioned above.

1968  Second Vatican Council: Official revocation of the Edict of Expulsion of Jews from Spain.

1965  Vietnam War: General William Westmoreland sends U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara a request for 243,000 more men by the end of 1966.

1964  US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Pacific Ocean.

[There are four US nuclear weapon test sites at the Pacific Ocean: 1) Eniwetok Atoll, Marshall Islands; 2) Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands; 3) Johnston Island, and 4) Christmas Island, Kiribati. However, the name of the above-mentioned nuclear weapon test site at the Pacific Ocean is unidentified. TWH assumes that the site was Johnston Island.]

Nuclear Tests by the United States:

Atmospheric/High-altitude Nuclear Explosion Testing:

Nuclear Weapons and the United States:

1960  A United Airlines Douglas DC-8 and a TWA Lockheed Super Constellation collide over Staten Island, New York and crash, killing all 128 people aboard both aircraft and 6 more on the ground.

1957  Sir Feroz Khan Noon replaces Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar as Prime Minister of Pakistan.

1950  Korean War: US President Harry S Truman declares a state of emergency, after Chinese troops enter the fight in support of communist North Korea.

Korean War and the Chinese Intervention:

Korean War in 1950:

1947  William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain build the first practical point-contact transistor.

1946  Thailand joins the United Nations.

Thailand:

Foreign Relations of Thailand:

Thailand and the United Nations:

History of Thailand:

Economy of Thailand:

1944  World War II: The Battle of the Bulge begins with the surprise offensive of three German armies through the Ardennes forest.

1942  The Holocaust: Schutzstaffel chief Heinrich Himmler orders that Roma candidates for extermination be deported to Auschwitz.

Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp:

Holocaust of the Roma and Sinti:

Some Relevant Resources:

1941  World War II: Japanese forces occupy Miri, Sarawak.

1938  Adolf Hitler institutes the Cross of Honor of the German Mother.

Cross of Honor of the German Mother:

1922  President of Poland Gabriel Narutowicz is assassinated by Eligiusz Niewiadomski at the Zachęta Gallery in Warsaw.

1920  The Haiyuan earthquake, magnitude 8.5, rocks the Gansu province in China, killing an estimated 200,000.

1918  Vincas Mickevičius-Kapsukas declares the formation of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic.

1914  World War I: German battleships under Franz von Hipper bombard the English ports of Hartlepool and Scarborough.

1912  First Balkan War: The Royal Hellenic Navy defeats the Ottoman Navy at the Battle of Elli.

Naval Battle of Elli:

First Balkan War:

1838  Great Trek: Battle of Blood River – Voortrekkers led by Andries Pretorius and Sarel Cilliers defeat Zulu impis, led by Dambuza (Nzobo) and Ndlela kaSompisi in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

1761  Seven Years’ War: After a four-month siege, the Russians under Pyotr Rumyantsev take the Prussian fortress of Kołobrzeg.

1707  Last recorded eruption of Mount Fuji in Japan.

1707 Eruption of Mt Fuji:

Warning of a Possible Re-eruption of Mt Fuji:

 

 

DECEMBER 17

2014  The United States and Cuba re-establish diplomatic relations after severing them 55 years ago.

US-Cuba Relations:

2013  The anti-corruption operation in Turkey begins with high profile detainments.

2010  Mohamed Bouazizi sets himself on fire. This act became the catalyst for the Tunisian Revolution and the wider Arab Spring.

2009  MV Danny F II sinks off the coast of Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of 44 people and over 28,000 animals.

2005  Jigme Singye Wangchuck abdicates the throne as King of Bhutan.

2005  Anti-World Trade Organization protesters riot in Wan Chai, Hong Kong.

2003  SpaceShipOne, piloted by Brian Binnie, makes its first powered and first supersonic flight.

2002  Second Congo War: The Congolese parties of the Inter Congolese Dialogue sign a peace accord which makes provision for transitional governance and legislative and presidential elections within two years.

Second Congo War:

Background, Origins and/or Causes of the Second Congo War:

First Congo War:

History and the Timeline of Congo Wars:

1997  The British Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997 comes into force, banning all handguns with the exception of antique and show weapons.

1989  Fernando Collor de Mello defeats Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the second round of the Brazilian presidential election, becoming the first democratically elected President in almost 30 years.

1989  Romanian Revolution: Protests continue in Timișoara, Romania, with rioters breaking into the Romanian Communist Party‘s District Committee building and attempting to set it on fire.

1988  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

1983  Provisional IRA members detonate a car bomb at Harrods Department Store in London, England, United Kingdom. Three police officers and three civilians are killed.

1981  American Brigadier General James L. Dozier is abducted by the Red Brigades in Verona, Italy.

1973  Thirty passengers are killed in an attack by Palestinian terrorists on Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport.

1970  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

For some more pertinent information, see “1988 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR”, mentioned above.

1970  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

Nuclear Weapons and the United States:

1970  Polish 1970 protests: In Gdynia, soldiers fire at workers emerging from trains, killing dozens.

1969  Project Blue Book: The United States Air Force closes its study of UFOs.

Project Blue Book:

1960  Troops loyal to Emperor Haile Selassie in Ethiopia crush the coup that began December 13, returning power to their leader upon his return from Brazil. Haile Selassie absolves his son of any guilt.

1957  The United States successfully launches the first Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

1951  The American Civil Rights Congress delivers “We Charge Genocide” to the United Nations.

1950  The F-86 Sabre‘s first mission over Korea.

F-86-Sabre:

Korean War in 1950:

1944  World War II: Battle of the Bulge – Malmedy massacre – American 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion POWs are shot by Waffen-SS Kampfgruppe Peiper.

Battle of the Bulge:

Malmedy Massacre:

Historical Background:

Malmedy Massacre Investigation:

Malmedy Massacre Trial:

1943  All Chinese are again permitted to become citizens of the United States with the repealing of the Act of 1882 and the introduction of the Magnuson Act.

1941  World War II: Japanese forces land in Northern Borneo.

1939  World War II: Battle of the River Plate – The Admiral Graf Spee is scuttled by Captain Hans Langsdorff outside Montevideo.

1938  Otto Hahn discovers the nuclear fission of the heavy element uranium, the scientific and technological basis of nuclear energy.

Discovery of Nuclear Fission:

1927  Indian revolutionary Rajendra Lahiri is hanged in Gonda jail, Uttar Pradesh, India, two days before the scheduled date.

1926  Antanas Smetona assumes power in Lithuania as the 1926 coup d’état is successful.

1919  Uruguay becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.

1918  Darwin Rebellion: Up to 1,000 demonstrators march on Government House in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.

1907  Ugyen Wangchuck is crowned first King of Bhutan

1903  The Wright brothers make the first controlled powered, heavier-than-air flight in the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

1892  First issue of Vogue is published

1865  First performance of the Unfinished Symphony by Franz Schubert.

1819  Simón Bolívar declares the independence of Gran Colombia in Angostura (now Ciudad Bolívar in Venezuela).

1807  Napoleonic Wars: France issues the Milan Decree, which confirms the Continental System.

1718  War of the Quadruple Alliance: Great Britain declares war on Spain.

 

 

DECEMBR 18

Today is the INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS DAY

2006  United Arab Emirates holds its first-ever elections.

2006  The first of a series of floods strikes Malaysia. The death toll of all flooding is at least 118, with over 400,000 people displaced.

2005  The Chadian Civil War begins when rebel groups, allegedly backed by neighboring Sudan, launch an attack in Adré.

1999  NASA launches into orbit the Terra platform carrying five Earth Observation instruments, including ASTER, CERES, MISR, MODIS and MOPITT.

1997  HTML 4.0 is published by the World Wide Web Consortium.

1989  The European Economic Community and the Soviet Union sign an agreement on trade and commercial and economic cooperation.

1978  Larry Wall releases the first version of the Perl programming language.

1978  USSR performs underground nuclear test in Atyrau (Kazakhstan), Russia.

Underground Nuclear Tests:

USSR’s Nuclear Weapons Tests:

Effect and/or Impact of Nuclear Weapons Tests:

1978  Dominica joins the United Nations.

[Not to be confused with the Dominican Republic.]

Dominica:

Foreign Relations of Dominica:

Dominica and the United Nations:

History of Dominica:

Economy of Dominica:

1973  The Islamic Development Bank is founded.

1973  Soviet Soyuz Programme: Soyuz 13, crewed by cosmonauts Valentin Lebedev and Pyotr Klimuk, is launched from Baikonur in the Soviet Union.

1972  Vietnam War: President Richard Nixon announces that the United States will engage North Vietnam in Operation Linebacker II, a series of Christmas bombings, after peace talks collapsed with North Vietnam on the 13th.

1971  Capitol Reef National Park is established in Utah.

1970  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

Nuclear Weapons and the United States:

1969  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

For some more pertinent information, see “1970 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site,” mentioned above.

1969  Capital punishment in the United Kingdom: Home Secretary James Callaghan‘s motion to make permanent the Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965, which had temporarily suspended capital punishment in England, Wales and Scotland for murder (but not for all crimes) for a period of five years.

1968  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

1966  USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR.

For some more pertinent information, see “1968 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR,” mentioned above.

1966  Saturn‘s moon Epimetheus is discovered by Richard L. Walker.

1964  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

For some more pertinent information, see “1970 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site,” mentioned above.

1958  Project SCORE, the world’s first communications satellite, is launched.

1956  Japan joins the United Nations.

Japan:

Japan and the United Nations:

1944  World War II: Seventy-seven B-29 Superfortress and 200 other aircraft of US Fourteenth Air Force bomb Hankow, China, a Japanese supply base.

1939  World War II: The Battle of the Heligoland Bight, the first major air battle of the war, takes place.

1935  The Lanka Sama Samaja Party is founded in Ceylon.

1916  World War I: The Battle of Verdun ends when German forces under Chief of staff Erich von Falkenhayn are defeated by the French, and suffer 337,000 casualties.

1892  Premiere performance of The Nutcracker by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

1888  Richard Wetherill and his brother in-law discover the ancient Indian ruins of Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde.

1878  The Al-Thani family become the rulers of the state of Qatar

 

 

DECEMBER 19

2012  Park Geun-hye is elected the first female president of South Korea.

2001  Argentine economic crisis: December 2001 riots – Riots erupt in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

2001  A record high barometric pressure of 1085.6 hPa (32.06 inHg) is recorded at Tosontsengel, Khövsgöl, Mongolia.

2000  The Leninist Guerrilla Units wing of the Communist Labour Party of Turkey/Leninist attack a Nationalist Movement Party office in Istanbul, Turkey, killing one person and injuring three.

1998  President Bill Clinton is impeached by the United States House of Representatives, becoming the second President of the United States to be impeached.

1995  The United States Government restores federal recognition to the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Native American tribe.

1986  Mikhail Gorbachev, leader of the Soviet Union, releases Andrei Sakharov and his wife from exile in Gorky.

1984  The Sino-British Joint Declaration, stating that China would resume the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong and the United Kingdom would restore Hong Kong to China with effect from July 1, 1997 is signed in Beijing, China by Deng Xiaoping and Margaret Thatcher.

1984  China detonates its first nuclear weapon at Lop Nor, China.

Lop Nor Nuclear Weapons Test Site:

China’s Nuclear Weapon Programs:

1978  France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island.

Muruora:

France’s Nuclear Tests:

1975  John Paul Stevens is appointed a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

1972  Apollo program: The last manned lunar flight, Apollo 17, crewed by Eugene Cernan, Ronald Evans (astronaut) and Harrison Schmitt, returns to Earth.

1964  The South Vietnamese military junta of Nguyễn Khánh dissolve the High National Council and arrest some of the members.

1961  India annexes Daman and Diu, part of Portuguese India.

1946  Start of the First Indochina War.

First Indochina War:

1941  World War II: Limpet mines placed by Italian divers heavily damage the HMS Valiant and HMS Queen Elizabeth in Alexandria harbour.

1941  World War II: Adolf Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-chief of the German Army.

1932  BBC World Service begins broadcasting as the BBC Empire Service.

1927  Three Indian revolutionaries, Ram Prasad Bismil, Roshan Singh and Ashfaqulla Khan are executed by the British Empire.

1920  King Constantine I is restored as King of the Hellenes after the death of his son Alexander of Greece and a plebiscite.

1916  World War I: Battle of Verdun: On the Western Front, the French Army successfully holds off the German Army and drives it back to its starting position.

1796  French Revolutionary Wars: Two British frigates under Commodore Horatio Nelson and two Spanish frigates under Commodore Don Jacobo Stuart engage in battle off the coast of Murcia.

 

 

DECEMBER 20

2013  China successfully launches the Bolivian Túpac Katari 1 from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center.

2007  Elizabeth II becomes the oldest monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria, who lived for 81 years, 7 months and 29 days.

2007  The Portrait of Suzanne Bloch (1904), by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, and O Lavrador de Café by Brazilian modernist painter Cândido Portinari, are stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art.

2007  Elizabeth II becomes the oldest monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria, who lived for 81 years, 7 months and 29 days.

1999  Macau is handed over to China by Portugal.

1996  NeXT merges with Apple Computer, starting the path to Mac OS X.

1995  NATO begins peacekeeping in Bosnia.

1989  United States invasion of Panama: The United States sends troops into Panama to overthrow government of Manuel Noriega. This is also the first combat use of purpose-designed stealth aircraft.

1988  The United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances is signed in Vienna, Austria.

1987  In the worst peacetime sea disaster, the passenger ferry Doña Paz sinks after colliding with the oil tanker Vector in the Tablas Strait in the Philippines, killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).

1985  Pope John Paul II announces the institution of World Youth Day.

1984  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

Nuclear Weapons and the United States:

1977  Djibouti and Vietnam join the United Nations.

Djibouti:

Foreign Relations of Djibouti:

Djibouti and the United Nations:

History of Djibouti:

Economy of Djibouti:

Vietnam:

Foreign Relations of Vietnam:

Vietnam and the United Nations:

History of Vietnam:

Economy of Vietnam:

1973  The Prime Minister of Spain, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, is assassinated by a car bomb attack in Madrid.

1971  The international aid organization Doctors Without Borders is founded by Bernard Kouchner and a group of journalists in Paris, France.

1966  US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

For some more pertinent information, see “1984 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site”, mentioned above.

1960  The National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam is formed.

1957  The initial production version of the Boeing 707 makes its first flight.

1941  World War II: First battle of the American Volunteer Group, better known as the “Flying Tigers” in Kunming, China.

1924  Adolf Hitler is released from Landsberg Prison

1917  Cheka, the first Soviet secret police force, is founded.

1915  World War I: The last Australian troops are evacuated from Gallipoli.

1522  Siege of Rhodes: Suleiman the Magnificent accepts the surrender of the surviving Knights of Rhodes, who are allowed to evacuate. They eventually settle on Malta and become known as the Knights of Malta.

______________________________

Satoshi Ashikaga, having worked as researcher, development program/project officer, legal protection/humanitarian assistance officer, human rights monitor-negotiator, managing-editor, and more, prefers a peaceful and prudent life, especially that in communion with nature.  His previous work experiences, including those in war zones and war-torn zones, remind him of the invaluableness of peace.  His interest and/or expertise includes international affairs, international law, jurisprudence, economic and business affairs, project/operations or organizational management, geography, history, the environmental/ecological issues, visual/audio documentation of nature and culture, and more. Being a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace, Development and Environment, he is currently compiling This Week in History on TMS.

(Sources and references: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/december_14   to_december_20; http://www.historyorb.com/events/december/14     to december/20; http://www.brainyhistory.com/days/december_14.html   to December_20.html; and other pertinent web sites and/or documents, mentioned above.)

  1. The views expressed in the cited or quoted websites and/or documents in this article do not necessarily reflect those of the author of this article. These websites and/or documents are cited or quoted for academic or educational purposes. Neither the author of this article nor the Transcend Media Service (TMS) is responsible for the contents, information, or whatsoever contained in these websites and/or documents.
  2. One of the primary purposes of this article is to provide the readers with opportunities to think about “peace”, including positive peace and negative peace as well as external/outer peace and internal/inner peace, and more, directly or indirectly, from various angles and/or in the broadest sense, through historical events. It is because this article is prepared specifically for the TMS whose main objective is to address “peace” through peace journalism.

This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 14 Dec 2015.

Anticopyright: Editorials and articles originated on TMS may be freely reprinted, disseminated, translated and used as background material, provided an acknowledgement and link to the source, TMS: This Week in History, is included. Thank you.

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