Today in History, July 12: 927 – Æthelstan, King of England, secures a pledge from Constantine II of Scotland that the latter will not ally with Viking kings, beginning the process of unifying Great Britain. This is considered the closest thing that England has to a foundation date. 1191 – Third Crusade: Saladins garrison surrenders to Philip Augustus, ending the two-year siege of Acre. 1543 – King Henry VIII of England marries his sixth and last wife, Catherine Parr, at Hampton Court Palace. 1562 – Fray Diego de Landa, acting Bishop of Yucatán, burns the sacred books of the Maya. 1790 – The Civil Constitution of the Clergy is passed in France by the National Constituent Assembly. 1799 – Ranjit Singh conquers Lahore and becomes Maharaja of the Punjab (Sikh Empire). 1804 – Former United States Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton dies a day after being shot in a duel. 1806 – Sixteen German imperial states leave the Holy Roman Empire and form the Confederation of the Rhine. 1812 – War of 1812: The United States invades Canada at Windsor, Ontario. 1862 – The Medal of Honor is authorized by the United States Congress. 1920 – The Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty is signed. Soviet Russia recognizes independent Lithuania. 1943 – World War II: Battle of Prokhorovka – German and Soviet forces engage in one of the largest tank engagements of all time. 1948 – Arab–Israeli War: Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion orders the expulsion of Palestinians from the towns of Lod and Ramla. 1962 – The Rolling Stones perform their first concert, at the Marquee Club in London, England, United Kingdom. 1971 – The Australian Aboriginal Flag is flown for the first time. 2006 – Hezbollah initiates Operation True Promise. 2007 – U.S. Army Apache helicopters perform airstrikes in Baghdad, Iraq; footage from the cockpit is later leaked to the Internet. 2012 – The Turaymisah massacre kills 250 people during a Syrian military operation in a village within the Hama Governorate.
Posted on: Sat, 12 Jul 2014 22:59:51 +0000
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