|
280 |
Generally
recognised birthdate of Constantine the Great, Roman emperor
who turned the empire into a Christian state. |
|
1700 |
Southwest
Pacific island of New Britain is discovered by English
navigator William Dampier. |
|
1706 |
Death
of English writer John Evelyn; He kept a diary throughout
most of his life which is now considered an invaluable
record of the period. |
|
1807 |
Birth
of American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; He wrote The
Song of Hiawatha and The Wreck of the Hesperus. |
|
1844 |
The
Dominican Republic gains its independence from Haiti. |
|
1847 |
Birth
of Dame Ellen Terry, English stage actress; She played her
first role at age eight and became the leading Shakespearean
actress of the time. |
|
1887 |
Death
of Alexander Borodin, Russian composer who was also a
scientist. |
|
1900 |
The
British Labour Party is founded with Ramsay MacDonald as its
secretary. |
|
1902 |
Birth
of John Steinbeck, American novelist and Nobel Prize winner. |
|
1932 |
The
Central Committee of the Communist International sends a
letter to the Communist parties of France, China and India,
asking them to help and co-operate with the revolutionary
movements in Indochina. |
|
1932 |
Elizabeth
Taylor, film actress, is born in London. She made her screen
debut in 1942 at the age of 10 in There’s One Born Every
Minute. |
|
1933 |
The
German parliament building, the Reichstag, is destroyed by
fire. The Nazis blame the Communists. |
|
1952 |
The
United Nations held its frist meetings in its new permanent
headquarters in New York. |
|
1973 |
An
international conference on Viet Nam is held in Paris.
Participating in this conference are representatives of the
four signatories to the Paris Agreement on Viet Nam – the
Government of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam, the
Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of
South Viet Nam, the Sai Gon administration and the US
Government – as well as countries in many regions of the
world. |
|
1985 |
This
day begins to be celebrated in Viet Nam as Physicians Day
following a decision by the Council of Ministers. |
|
1995 |
Baring
Brothers and Co., one of Britain’s oldest and most
prestigious investment banks, goes broke when a trader loses
more than US$800 million gambling in Asian futures markets. |
|
1996 |
The
United Nations suspends sanctions against the Bosnian Serbs
after NATO verifies that Serb forces had withdrawn from
buffer zones. |
|
1997 |
A car
bomb explodes outside a police station in the
violence-plagued town of Apartado, Colombia, killing at
least seven people and injuring 43. |
|
1998 |
Vice
President Al Gore announces that the United States is
lifting a 35-year-old arms embargo against South Africa. |
|
1999 |
Nigeria
elects Olusegun Obasanjo in the first presidential elections
after fifteen years of military rule, but the results are
disputed. |
|
2000 |
After
a stormy debate and vociferous opposition from legislators,
Egypt’s parliament endorses President Hosni Mubarak’s
decision to extend the country’s 19-year-old state of
emergency for three more years. |
|
2001 |
A mob
of native Dayak fighters in Indonesia attack and massacre at
least 118 migrants traveling under police escort. Security
forces called in to quell the ethnic violence instead turned
their guns on each other. |
|
2002 |
Saudi
Crown Prince Abdullah says he will press the Arab League to
back a Saudi land-for-peace offer to end the Arab-Israeli
conflict. |
|
2003 |
Brazilian
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva deploys 3,000 troops to
Rio de Janeiro to back up the 30,000 state and local police
officers during the city’s six-day Carnival celebration.
It is the first time troops are sent to guard the city
during Carnival. — AP/REUTERS/VNS |
