Important Events From This day in History May 12th

 

1937 England King George VI

1937 : King George VI was crowned at Westminster Abbey. King George was second in line to the throne but following his younger brother Edward who abdicated so he could marry American socialite Wallis Simpson he became King. King George's wife was the much loved Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon much better known as "Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother", who died at the grand old age of 102 on March 30th 2002. Their oldest daughter Queen Elizabeth is current Queen of England.

1932 U.S.A. Lindbergh Baby Found Dead

1932 : The Baby son kidnapped from Charles Lindbergh was found dead just miles away from the Lindbergh home today.

1966 U.S.A. Draft Deferment Test

1966 : Hundreds of thousands of College and University Students are preparing to sit the Draft Deferment Test , The test is a way for them to convince the Draft Board that they would serve the nation better in the quiet of the Classrooms than in the Jungles of Vietnam.

2008 China Earthquake Magnitude 7.8

2008 : An Earthquake measuring 7.8 strikes near Chengdu, Sichuan's provincial capital in south western China. Early reports indicate primary school buildings collapsed in the Chongqing area leaving hundreds of children buried in the rubble. As the full scale of the destruction caused by the largest earthquake in China for many years become known, the death toll is expected to reach 60,000 and up to five million Chinese are now homeless. Video shot by students during the earthquake.

1926 England General Strike Ends

1926 : The British general strike ends with no changes for working conditions or wages for the miners.

1935 Poland Joseph Pilsudski

1935 : The Polish dictator Joseph Pilsudski has died and thousands mourn in Poland meanwhile the rest of Europe are wondering how the passing of this strong man will effect alliances in Europe.

1943 Tunisia World War II

1943 : Allied Armies completed the conquest of Tunisia in North Africa as a base for invasion of Southern Europe capturing some 150,000 prisoners, 1000 guns and 250 tanks. The two generals commanding this part of the war in North Africa General Eisenhower and General Alexander said the conquest of North Africa is now complete.

1949 Germany West Berlin Blockade

1949 : After blocking all road traffic into West Berlin for 11 months after diplomatic meetings around the world the Soviet Union has lifted the blockade of road and rail links. The Blockade of West Berlin had been broken by a U.S. / British airlift of vital supplies to West Berlin's two million citizens.

1967 England Stansted Airport

1967 : British Government has agreed to allow development of Stansted Airfield to become London's third airport, currently the airfield is used mostly for pilot training.

1971 France Mick Jagger

1971 : The Rolling Stones singer, Mick Jagger, marries Bianca Perez Morena de Macias at a civil ceremony in the local town hall in the French Mediterranean town of St Tropez.

1973 U.S.A. Pentagon Papers Trial

1973 : The Pentagon Papers trial which was focused on THE FIRST AMENDMENT and The Governments Authority to control information and the Public's access to that information has now ended and with a verdict of NOT GUILTY for the defendants Daniel Ellsburg and Anthony J Russo Jr , but many of the answers given by defendants and testimony by witnesses raise many more questions concerning the Watergate Affair. ( This eventually led to Impeachment proceedings against President Nixon ) Daniel Ellsberg was a contributor but gave most of the Pentagon Papers to New York Times reporter Neil Sheehan, with Ellsberg's friend Anthony Russo assisting in their copying.

1981 Northern Ireland IRA Hunger Striker

1981 : Following the death of Bobby Sands on May 5th a second IRA hunger striker, 25-year-old Francis Hughes, starves to death in the Maze Prison in Northern Ireland.

1987 China Deadly Forest Fire

1987 : A forest fire that had spread quickly in Mohe County of the Heilongjiang Province now covers 2,000 square miles with 100 dead. The fire eventually burned two and a half million acres of land with 50,000 people losing their homes. and 193 people dead.

1994 U.S.A. Abortion Clinics

1994 : A bill has been sent to President Clinton making it a Federal Crime to block access to an abortion clinic or to use force or threats against people using these facilities. This is in response to over 1000 acts of violence at these facilities in the last 20 years.

2003 Saudi Arabia Suicide Bombers

2003 : Suicide bombers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, killed 26 people, including nine U.S. citizens.

2006 Oil Pipeline Explosion in Nigeria

2006 : Dozens of people are killed by an explosion at an oil pipeline near Lagos, Nigeria. The explosion occurred on Atlas Creek Island and incinerated nearly everything around the site of the blast leaving many bodies burnt beyond recognition.

2008 Destructive Earthquake Hits China

2008 : An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 struck the Sichuan province of China killing thousands of people. The quake left almost 90,000 people either missing or dead and injuring many more. In some places, nearly all buildings in the area had been destroyed.

2010 United States BP Places Top Hat Near Oil Spill

2010 : The "Top Hat" dome is placed near the site of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The top hat shaped container dome was the second attempt at placing a container over the leak after the first attempt failed. The second dome was much smaller than the first, the first failed when it became blocked. Officials stated it could take a week to place the new dome over the actual leak and get it to work.

2013 United States Mother's Day Parade Shooting

2013 : Nineteen people were injured after a shooting occurred during a Mother's Day parade in New Orleans, Louisiana. Two children were among those injured. Three suspects fled the scene and authorities stated they believe the shooting was related to street violence and not terrorism.

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