TODAY IN history
In 1308, medieval scholar Duns Scotus died. His given name led to the introduction of the word dunce.
In 1414, in Constance, Switzerland, more than 50,000 people gathered to resolve the Great Schism in the Roman Catholic Church. The Constance council got rid of three men who all claimed to be pope and elected Martin V as the church’s new leader.
In 1519, Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez reached Mexico City.
In 1623, William Shakespeare’s collected works were first published.
In 1656, British astronomer Edmund Halley, who discovered the comet that bears his name, was born. He was the first to predict the return of a comet.
In 1873, Winnipeg was incorporated as a city.
In 1900, Margaret Mitchell — author of “Gone With the Wind” — was born in Atlanta. She died in a 1949 car crash.
In 1917, Vladimir Lenin became chief commissar and Leon Trotsky was named premier as the Bolsheviks seized power in Russia.