On March 30, 1814 a coalition army from nations including Austria, Prussia, the United Kingdom, Spain, Russian and several others, push Napoleon Bonaparte's forces out of the city of Paris. Napoleon had built an empire across Europe over the first decade of the 19th century, but the tides began to turn with his ill-fated invasion of Russia in 1812. He led his Grand Army of 450,000 men into Russia that year; by 1814 he was down to 90,000 troops, a third of whom were guarding Paris. The Coalition attacked with 5 times as many men. A month later the Coalition, declaring Napoleon the only obstacle to peace in Europe, will exile him to the island of Elba. On March 30, 2009, President Barak Obama issues an ultimatum to General Motors and Chrysler, ordering a significant shakeup if the two struggling automakers wish to continue to receive government bailouts. In December, GM and Chrysler had accepted a combined 15 billion dollars in federal aid. Now, acting on the advice of a bureaucratic task force, Obama orders GM to cut assets and for Chrysler to acquire new ones. Both comply; GM closes several divisions including long-time brand Pontiac. Chrysler completes negotiations for a merger with Italian manufacturer Fiat. Despite the moves and continued assistance, both corporations would enter Chapter 11 by summer; both have since returned to profitability. On March 30, 1974, "Sunshine On My Shoulder" becomes John Denver's first #1 pop single. The song is a great example of Denver's upbeat approach to music; opening with the lyric "Sunshine on my shoulder makes me happy," Denver would say in interviews that this was actually his attempt at a sad, bluesy number. Although critics panned "Sunshine On My Shoulder", the song's success would lead to a number of pop stars writing and recording low-energy numbers, taking pop in a new direction for the mid-70's. John Denver - Sunshine On My Shoulders (Official Video from The Wildlife Concert) - YouTube
On March 31, 1854, the U.S. and Japan agree on the Treaty of Kanagawa, which permits the establishment of a U.S. Consulate in Japan and opens the ports of Shimoda and Hakodate to American ships. Its actually an early effort in gunboat diplomacy; President Millard Filmore's letter of proposal is carried to Japan by Commodore Matthew Perry (below), who sails into Tokyo Bay with a squadron of four ships. Nevertheless, the U.S. becomes the first Western country to establish diplomatic relations with Japan since it declared itself a closed country in 1683. On March 31, 1959, Tensin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama, crosses the border from Tibet to India and is granted political asylum. In 1950, China had invaded Tibet and declared it a "national autonomous region," supposedly under the rule of the Dalai Lama (under normal conditions both the political and spiritual ruler of Tibet). Revolts broke out early in 1959 and when the Chinese crushed the movement, Gyatso fled and set up a government in exile in India. He remains in exile to this day (at the age of 85), and is a vocal advocate for the rights of the Tibetan people. March 31, 1776 sees possibly the first advocacy for women's rights in U.S. history, in the form of a private letter from Abigail Adams to her husband John, member of the Continental Congress and future President of the United States. In her letter, Abigail urges John not to forget the rights of women in the struggle for independence. "...in the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make," she writes, " I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.” Much of the Adams' married life was lived in separation due to John's political duties; a collection of more than a thousand letters they exchanged over 4 decades is now owned by the Massachusetts Historical Society.
No one knows for sure when the tradition of April Fool's Day began, but some literary scholars point to Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, published in 1392. In the "Nun's Priest's Tale," the story is told of a cock tricked by a fox on "syn march bigan thritty dayes and two." Some interpret this as a reference to March 32nd, or April 1st. Others believe it begins with people who mocked those who were slow to transition to the new calendar. They continued to follow the old calendar, and celebrated the New Year in what was now early April. Some even go back to the Book of Genesis, suggesting Noah released the dove before the flood receded on April 1st. (below: lsusports.net announced on 4/1/2010 that purple turf would be installed in Tiger Stadium) On April 1, 1789 Pennsylvania Representative Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg is elected first Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. He would serve two non-consecutive terms as Speaker, 1789-1791 and 1793-1795. The position of Speaker of the House is built largely on traditions and customs; the U.S. Constitution in fact lists no duties for the position whatsoever. It does not even say that the Speaker must be a member of Congress. The Speaker is second in line of Presidential succession, after the Vice President and before President Pro-Tem of the Senate. On April 1, 1976, Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne found Apple Inc. Wozniak and Jobs had met five years earlier while working for Hewlitt Packard. Wozniak had begun to develop a small computer of his own design a year earlier, and when HP showed no interest in the project, Jobs suggested the two branch off on their own, bringing along Wayne as an administrator. Wayne would sell his 10% share of the project back to the others 12 days later for $800, but Jobs and Wozniak, financing the project through the sale of personal items and working in Jobs' garage, would have the Apple I computer ready for commercial sale later that year. Apple Computer Inc. was incorporated the following year, the name being suggested by Jobs over a fondly remembered summer picking apples as a teenager. (the original Apple I computer)
On April 4, 1841, President William Henry Harrison dies of pneumonia, ending - at just 32 days - the shortest term of presidential office in US history. Ironically, Harrison may have done himself in by delivering - at an hour and 45 minutes - the longest inaugural address ever. Delivered on a chilly March morning, Harrison took to his bed with a cold that evening and never recovered. Historians believe a case of hepatitis may have complicated Harrison's condition. On April 4, 1933, the US Navy dirigible Akron crashes in the Atlantic Ocean killing 73 of the 76 on board. It is one of America's first air disasters, and the worst in history involving a dirigible. Two human errors - a communications mistake that send the Akron into a storm, and a handling error that causes a loss of control - contribute to the crash. A smaller airship dispatched to the crash site also crashes, killing two more people. On April 4, 1960, Ben Hur dominates the Academy Awards. The story of a Jewish aristocrat who rebels against Roman rule of Judea and eventually gains personal triumph (with a nod to Christianity thrown in) wins 11 of the 12 Oscars for which it is nominated, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor for Charlton Heston and Best Special Effects, including its magnificent chariot race (below). Ben Hur's 11 Oscars has been tied twice (by Titanic and LOTR: Return of the King) but never topped. (Note: Heston and Stephen Boyd, playing Ben Hur's rival in the chariot race, learned to drive chariots and performed the race scene themselves) The Chariot Race in Ben-Hur (1959) - YouTube
I've never seen the whole thing, but the chariot race is remarkable movie making, all the better because its done without the benefit of CGI. Bet you've heard that before.
On April 5, 1774 while on a visit to London, Benjamin Franklin writes an open letter to Prime Minister Frederick, Lord North, that will soon be published in London's Public Advertiser. It is a tongue-in-cheek letter that suggests the colonies will virtually roll over and surrender if North were to use military force to quell the growing discontent in the New World. Franklin states that these so-called "Yankee Doodles" have "degenerated to such a degree that one born in Britain is equal to 20 Americans." Franklin's intentions should have been obvious; he stated in the letter that he was writing from Smyrna Coffee House, an establishment with a known clientele of political liberals. Franklin turned up the sarcasm further by signing the letter from "A friend of military government." But based on what happened over the next few years, some believe North may have taken the letter seriously. On April 5, 1976 Howard Hughes, one of the richest Americans of the 20th century, dies on a flight from Acapulco to Houston. He was 71 years old. Hughes inherited one of the country's most successful oilfield service companies at age 18. No mental lightweight, Hughes used his inherited fortune to venture first into the film industry, then aviation, both with grand results. In 1967 he bought one of Las Vegas' most renowned resorts, the Desert Inn, and within a few years was both Nevada's top landowner and employer. He became increasingly reclusive starting in the 1950's - though reports of his eccentricities were often exaggerated - and was almost never seen in public in his later years. On April 5, 1624, Pocahontas, daughter of native American Chief Powhatan, marries English tobacco planter John Rolfe in Jamestown, VA. Pocahontas (real name Matoaka) gained a place in American folklore by pleading for the life of Englishman John Smith, an early Jamestown settler, after he was captured by the Powhatan. She was probably about 13 years old at the time; she was probably about 20 when she met and fell in love with Rolfe. She had acted often as an emissary to the English for her father in the years between. After their marriage, Pocahontas and Rolfe visited England, where she was received as a foreign princess by the upper class and even presented at court. But the day before their scheduled return to America in 1617, Pocahontas contracted smallpox and died. She is buried in Kent, England; Rolfe returned to America alone and was killed in a battle with Indians in 1622.
On April 7, 1994, a so-called crisis committee responds to the previous day's assassination of Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana (below) by launching attacks against the nation's Tutsi minority ethnic group. Bolstered by members of the Hutu ethnic group and cheered on by Rwanda national radio, the Rwandan Genocide is launched. Over the next 100 days, hundreds of thousands of Tutsi are put to death; best informed estimates put the total between 5 and 600,000. Many are hacked to death with machetes', while an estimated half million Tutsi women are raped. It is the worst act of genocide since World War II. The UN, which has a peace-keeping force in country (Rwanda had been in civil war for four years), does nothing to stop the massacre. In the aftermath, the Rwandan Patriotic Front, the insurgent group most likely responsible for Habyarimana's assassination, drove the Hutu out of the country and assumed power, but the Tutsi population by then had been reduced by about 75%. On April 7, 1945, US Navy aircraft sink the Japanese battleship Yamato in the East China Sea. Along with her sister ship Musashi, the Yamato is the largest warship afloat at the time, displacing more than 72,000 tons and armed with a main battery of 9-18 inch guns, the largest guns ever placed on a warship. The Yamato is dispatched on what is essentially a kamikaze mission. Hoping to disrupt the invasion of Okinawa, she sails for the island with enough fuel for a one-way trip; her captain's orders are to ground the vessel on the Okinawa beach to create an unsinkable gun platform, then fight to the last. Detected by Navy patrol planes far from her destination, the Yamato is struck with at least 11 torpedoes and 6 bombs, sending her to the bottom. On April 7, 1970, legendary actor John Wayne wins his only Oscar, for his portrayal of drunken renegade lawman Rooster Cogburn in True Grit. Despite a prolific catalog of more than 150 films and considered one of America's most popular actors, Wayne's work bore little weight with the Academy of Motion Picture Artists. It is only his second Best Actor Oscar nomination (1950, The Sands of Iwo Jima), and this will be his only Oscar win. Many in the industry consider it more a lifetime achievement award than recognition of a singularly stellar performance in True Grit.
April 8th is celebrated as the birthday of Gautama Buddha, the central figure of Buddhism. Born Siddhartha, a prince of the kingdom of Sakya in present-day Nepal (probably in the 6th century BC), he was raised in isolation, never venturing beyond the palace until age 29. At that time, legend says he encountered poverty, sickness and death for the first time in his life, but when he saw a monk he was intrigued by his peaceful demeanor and chose to follow his path. By age 35, he had attained the title of Buddha - extremely enlightened teacher - and became known by the name of his clan, Gautama. The Gautama Buddha developed a philosophy built on four noble truths, the last of which is the achievement of a state of nirvana, the cessation of human suffering by eliminating earthly desires. Today Buddhism is earth's fourth most practiced religion, with about 520 million followers. On April 8, 1935, Congress approves funding of the Works Progress Administration. Conceived as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, the WPA was meant to stem the Great Depression by creating government jobs. Before its disbanding in 1943, the WPA would employ about 8 and a half million Americans on large projects chosen because they were beyond the scope of private industry, such as the construction of highways and dams. The WPA also funded education and the arts. (below: Wilson Dam on the Tennessee River is part of the Tennessee Valley Authority, the largest WPA funded-project) On April 8, 1990, Ryan White dies of pneumonia brought on by AIDS, at age 18. White had become a national symbol of the AIDS crisis in America after contracting the virus from a blood transfusion at age 13. Given six months to live, he hung on for nearly five years. Despite knowledge that AIDS could only be transmitted through an exchange of bodily fluids, White's family needed court intervention to get him back into school after his diagnosis. Numerous celebrities rallied behind him, and White would become a noted figure in the battle to destigmatize HIV/AIDS.
On April 10, 1919, Mexican revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata is lured into an ambush in Chinameca and killed. For nearly a decade, Zapata, a former soldier, had led a self-recruited peasant army, known to the masses as Zapatistas, against the Mexican government. In the end, an Army officer facing disgrace and court martial was coerced into convincing Zapata that he was willing to defect to the Zapatistas. Zapata agreed to meet the man at a hacienda in Chinameca, where he was gunned down by government soldiers. His followers kept up the fight despite his loss, and subsequently earned many concessions from the government, including near total control of the state of Morelos, where they instituted an agrarian economy. Zapata remains a near-mythic martyr to the Mexican people to this day. On April 10, 1778, Commander John Paul Jones and the USS Ranger depart Brest, France, bound for the Irish Sea to conduct raids on British warships. It is the first Continental Navy operation in British waters of the Revolution. Jones conducted land raids in Scotland, including the plundering of the home of the Earl of Selkirk, before later attacking and capturing the HMS Drake. April 10, 1971, sees the beginning of "ping pong diplomacy", as the US table tennis team departs for a goodwill trip to the People's Republic of China (usually referred to as Red China in the 1970's press). Invited by the PRC government, which had severed diplomatic ties with the US in 1949 and was seeking to improve relations, the team's successful visit was a factor in President Richard Nixon deciding to visit China himself a year later. The Chinese national team would also accept an invitation to tour the US, sparking a brief ping pong craze here.
