On This Day
1882 - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture debuts in Moscow, Russia.
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On This Day
On This Day
1968 - Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
Cold War: Warsaw Pact troops invade Czechoslovakia, crushing the Prague Spring. East German participation is limited to a few specialists due to memories of the recent war. Only Albania and Romania refuse to participate.
On This Day
1858 - Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin first publishes his theory of evolution through natural selection in The Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society of London, alongside Alfred Russel Wallace's same theory.
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1991 - 1991 Soviet coup attempt
Dissolution of the Soviet Union: The August Coup begins when Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev is placed under house arrest while on holiday in the town of Foros, Ukraine.
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1944 - Liberation of Paris
World War II: Liberation of Paris: Paris, France rises against German occupation with the help of Allied troops.
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1839 - Louis Daguerre
The French government announces that Louis Daguerre's photographic process is a gift "free to the world".
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1963 - James Meredith
Civil rights movement: James Meredith becomes the first African American to graduate from the University of Mississippi.
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1945 - List of presidents of Indonesia
Sukarno takes office as the first president of Indonesia, following the country's declaration of independence the previous day.
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1868 - Helium
French astronomer Pierre Janssen discovers helium.
On This Day
1914 - World War I
World War I: Battle of Stallupönen: The German army of General Hermann von François defeats the Russian force commanded by Paul von Rennenkampf near modern-day Nesterov, Russia.
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1549 - Prayer Book Rebellion
Battle of Sampford Courtenay: The Prayer Book Rebellion is quashed in England.
On This Day
1916 - Treaty of Bucharest (1916)
World War I: Romania signs a secret treaty with the Entente Powers. According to the treaty, Romania agreed to join the war on the Allied side.