1009 The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is destroyed by the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, who hacks the Church’s foundations down to bedrock
1685 French King Louis XIV revokes Edict of Nantes cancelling rights of French Protestants
1867 Alaska Purchase: US takes formal possession of Alaska from Russia, having paid $7.2 million
1931 American gangster Al Capone convicted of tax evasion
1962 James Watson (US), Francis Crick (UK) and Maurice Wilkins (UK) win the Nobel Prize for Medicine for their work in determining the structure of DNA
1938 Spetume Florence Njangali is converted and becomes an active member of the East African revival movement within the Anglican Church. She will overcome barriers that had prevented women from obtaining a theological education and ordination as deacons.
Today’s Historical Events
Today in Film & TV
1922 British Broadcasting Company (BBC) founded, later called British Broadcasting Corporation
Today in Music
1946 Aaron Copland’s 3rd Symphony premieres
Do you know this fact about today? Did You Know?
In a bar decorated with bird tail in Elmsford, New York, a customer requests a glassful of “those cock tails” from bartender Betsy Flanagan, on this day in 1776
Would you believe this fact about today? Would You Believe?
Count Bernard von Bulow becomes Chancellor of Germany, famous for first referring to Germany’s need for ‘place in the sun’ and global empire, on this day in 1900
