Timeline
Recent publications from the archive.
On This Day: 1941 - Operation Grog Bombards Genoa
On February 9, 1941, the Royal Navy's Operation Grog bombarded Genoa, including the unexploded shell strike at the Cathedral of San Lorenzo.
On This Day: 1944 – Exercise Tiger Tragedy: E-boats Attack, 946 Killed
1944: World War II: Nine German E-boats attack US and UK units during Exercise Tiger, the rehearsal for the Normandy landings, killing 946. The Ghost of Slapton Sands: Remembering the Tragedy of Exercise Tiger The meticu...
On This Day: 1941 – Gudovac Massacre: Start of Ustaše Genocide
1941: The Ustaše massacre nearly 200 Serbs in the village of Gudovac, the first massacre of their genocidal campaign against Serbs of the Independent State of Croatia. Gudovac, 1941: The First Stain of a Genocidal Campai...
On This Day: 1996 – Port Arthur Massacre Shocks Australia
1996: Port Arthur massacre, Tasmania: A gunman, Martin Bryant, opens fire at the Broad Arrow Cafe in Port Arthur, Tasmania, killing 35 people and wounding 23 others. The Day Paradise Lost Its Innocence: Remembering the P...
On This Day: 1986 – Chernobyl's Fallout: Sweden Sounds the Alarm
1986: High levels of radiation resulting from the Chernobyl disaster are detected at Forsmark Nuclear Power Plant in Sweden, leading Soviet authorities to publicly announce the accident. The Silent Alarm: How Sweden Unco...
On This Day: 1952 – Japan Regains Sovereignty with San Francisco Treaty
1952: The Treaty of San Francisco comes into effect, restoring Japanese sovereignty and ending its state of war with most of the Allies of World War II. The Rising Sun Again: Remembering the Treaty of San Francisco and J...
On This Day: 1945 – Mussolini Executed by Italian Resistance
1945: Benito Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci are shot dead by Walter Audisio, a member of the Italian resistance movement. The Bitter End: Mussolini's Downfall in the Dust of 1945 The year 1945. The world was ho...
On This Day: 2018 – Koreas Declare End to Conflict in Panmunjom
2018: The Panmunjom Declaration is signed between North and South Korea, officially declaring their intentions to end the Korean conflict. A Hand Reaching Across the DMZ: Remembering the Panmunjom Declaration In the tumu...
On This Day: 1986 – Chernobyl Evacuation Begins: Pripyat Emptied
1986: The city of Pripyat and surrounding areas are evacuated due to the Chernobyl disaster. The Empty Swing Set: Reflecting on the Ghost City of Pripyat, 37 Years After Chernobyl Thirty-seven years ago, on April 26, 198...
On This Day: 1941 – Nazis Occupy Athens in WWII
1941: World War II: German troops enter Athens. The Swastika Over the Acropolis: When Athens Fell in 1941 April 27th, 1941. A date etched in Greek memory with a bitter sting. On this day, the ancient city of Athens, the...
On This Day: 1521 – Magellan Killed in Battle of Mactan, Philippines
1521: Battle of Mactan: Explorer Ferdinand Magellan is killed by natives in the Philippines led by chief Lapulapu. The Tide Turns: Remembering the Battle of Mactan and the Fall of Magellan Five hundred years ago, a name...
On This Day: 711 – Moors Invade Spain, Beginning Al-Andalus Era
711: Islamic conquest of Hispania: Moorish troops led by Tariq ibn Ziyad land at Gibraltar to begin their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus). 711: The Year the Moors Came to Iberia – A Turning Point in Histor...
On This Day: 1478 – Pazzi Conspiracy: Medici Bloodshed in Florence
1478: The Pazzi family attack on Lorenzo de' Medici in order to displace the ruling Medici family kills his brother Giuliano during High Mass in Florence Cathedral. Blood in the Sanctuary: The Pazzi Conspiracy and the De...
On This Day: 1933 – The Gestapo is Born: Nazi Germany's Secret Police
1933: The Gestapo, the official secret police force of Nazi Germany, is established by Hermann Göring. The Shadow Lengthens: The Birth of the Gestapo in 1933 The year 1933. A pivotal year not just for Germany, but for th...
On This Day: 1865 – Booth, Lincoln's Assassin, Killed in Virginia
1865: Union cavalry troopers corner and shoot dead John Wilkes Booth, assassin of President Abraham Lincoln, in Virginia. The End of the Line: Justice, Vengeance, and the Death of John Wilkes Booth April 26th, 1865. The...
On This Day: 1937 – Guernica Bombed: A Spanish Civil War Tragedy
1937: Spanish Civil War: Guernica, Spain, is bombed by the German Condor Legion and the Italian Aviazione Legionaria. Guernica: A Stain on Humanity, Etched in Paint and Memory The Spanish Civil War, a brutal precursor to...
On This Day: 1994 – South Africa's First Multiracial Election & Mandela's Victory
1994: South Africa begins its first multiracial election, which is won by Nelson Mandela's African National Congress. From Apartheid's Chains to Freedom's Embrace: South Africa's 1994 Miracle The year 1994 holds a specia...
On This Day: 1986 – Chernobyl Disaster: A Nuclear Catastrophe
1986: The Chernobyl disaster occurs in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. The Ghost of Chernobyl: A Legacy Etched in Radiation April 26th, 1986. A date that's etched in the collective memory of the 20th century, a...
On This Day: 1945 – Elbe Day: US & Soviet Troops Meet, Splitting Nazi Germany
1945: World War II: United States and Soviet reconnaissance troops meet in Torgau and Strehla along the River Elbe, cutting the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany in two. This would be later known as Elbe Day. Elbe Day: A Handsha...
On This Day: 1644 – End of Ming: Chongzhen Emperor's Suicide
1644: Transition from Ming to Qing: The Chongzhen Emperor, the last Emperor of Ming China, commits suicide during a peasant rebellion led by Li Zicheng. The Fall of Heaven: The Suicide of the Chongzhen Emperor and the En...