June 17, 2012 By
Vlad Courtesy of National Authority of Tourism The medieval citadel of Sighisoara
On this day, 550 years ago, the Ottoman Turks faced the wrath of Vlad Dracula also known as Vlad the Impaler.
Mehmed II, the conqueror of Constantinople, had invaded Wallachia with the intention of controlling the lower Danube. The odds were stacked against Vlad as the Ottomans heavily outnumbered the Wallachians. [Read more…]
June 15, 2012 By
James Douglas 1st Governor of Vancouver Island which straddled the 49th parallel
On this day in 1846, the United States and the British Empire agreed to extend the 49th parallel border from the Rockies all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
As a result, the southern tip of Vancouver Island remained as the only British (now Canadian) territory, west of Minnesota that lay south of 49th parallel. [Read more…]
June 13, 2012 By
Ernesto Miranda
On June 13, 1966, the Supreme Court of United States decided that all criminal suspects must be advised of their rights before an interrogation.
The decision was a legal procedural landmark that marked the transition from the “tell me all you know” method to the “you have the right to remain silent…” scenario. [Read more…]
June 12, 2012 By
J.E.B. Stuart dapper and daring Cavalry General
On June 12, 150 years ago, the Confederate Cavalry ran a 100 mile long reconnaissance raid. They went full circle around the Union Army of the Potomac of General McClellan.
J.E.B. Stuart, the Confederate Cavalry General, accomplished this feat by eluding the northern cavalry commanded by his father-in-law, Philip St George Cooke.
June 11, 2012 By
On June 11 1937, the NKVD (old style KGB) executed eight Soviet high ranking officers (one Red Army Marshal included). A military court found them guilty of anti-Soviet conspiracy.
In order to keep the purge productive and secret, most members of the court later died of pneumonia caused by cold bullets. [Read more…]
June 10, 2012 By
Illustration of a scene in Henry Wardsworth Longfellow's play "Giles Corey of Salem Farms" as Mary Warren points to the ghost of a man Giles Corey is accused of killing.
Starting on June 10, 1692, the Puritan community of Salem, Massachusetts, ‘tried’ and executed 20 innocents for witchcraft.
The ‘prosecution’ based their case on the ‘fits and hallucinations’ caused by the defendants. Such a faultless argument resulted in 19 hangings.
The accusations originated with the inexplicably bizarre behavior of a group of young girls. Convulsive seizures, blasphemous screaming, and trance-like states afflicted them. Physicians had no answers so the belief that Satan was at work through others in their community took hold.
Giles Corey, one of the alleged sorcerers, refused to enter a plea in the judicial proceeding. [Read more…]
June 9, 2012 By
James Edward Oglethorpe (1696-1785)
On June 9 1732 a British philanthropist received a royal charter to establish the colony of Georgia. James Edward Oglethorpe intended to settle the new land with English debtors from the overcrowded London prisons.
In the end it was the Scots who made up the bulk of the settlers. Oglethorpe, however, made the land available to many persecuted groups. [Read more…]
June 8, 2012 By
Image from cvsflags.com
Leaders…
Volunteer spirit:
Tennessee is known as the Volunteer State. This is due to the record number of Tennesseans fighters the state provided during both the War of 1812 and the Mexican War.
On June 8 1861, the state of Tennessee voted to join the Confederacy. True to their tradition, the men from Tennessee provided more troops for the Confederacy than any other state and more volunteers for the Union than any southern state. [Read more…]
June 7, 2012 By
Veni, Vidi, Ouch: A fitting motto for Japanese Navy after the Battle of Midway. The Japanese tried to eliminate the American naval threat with another surprise attack. Their plan backfired. On June 7 the Japanese withdrew after heavy losses. It was the turning point of the WWII in Pacific.
June 6, 2012 By
Few days conjure so much emotion as the 6th of June, 1944. D-Day, the “Greatest Generation’s” greatest moment, still inspires. And rightly so! American citizen-soldiers were bedecked with glory, from the 82nd Airborne paratroopers dropped over Sainte-Mère-Église, to the infantry crawling on beaches swept by machinegun fire. [Read more…]