Today in history
Today is Thursday, April 12, the 102nd day of 2018. There are 263 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date:
1606 — England adopts as its flag the original version of the Union Jack, which combines the crosses of St George of England and St Andrew of Scotland.
1654 — Ireland and Scotland are united with
England.
1709 — The British magazine The Tatler, founded
by Sir Richard Steele, is first published.
1782 — Britain opens peace talks with the
Americans to end the American Revolution.
1796 — Napoleon’s forces defeat the Austrian and Sardinian armies at the Battle of Montenotte; it is Napoleon’s first significant victory.
1815 — Austria declares war on Joachim Murat,
King of Naples, for occupying Rome.
1840 — A small party of settlers arrives at Banks Peninsula. They are the first farmersettlers to arrive in Canterbury, although they abandon the land within 18 months.
1850 — French troops restore Pope Pius IX and
occupy Rome.
1855 — A Lyttelton court finds James Mackenzie guilty of stealing sheep and sentences him to five years hard labour. Despite three escape attempts, he is granted a free pardon nine months later.
1861 — The United States Civil War starts as Confederates fire on Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina.
1872 — Communication by telegraph is established between Auckland and Wellington.
1914 — George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion opens in London, with Mrs Patrick Campbell as Eliza Doolittle and Sir Herbert Tree as Professor Higgins.
1934 — The highestvelocity natural wind recorded occurs at Mount Washington, New Hampshire, with gusts reaching 371.6kmh.
1935 — George MoncktonArundell, the eighth Viscount Galway, assumes office as New Zealand GovernorGeneral, serving until February 1941.
1945 — Death of US president Franklin D. Roosevelt of cerebral haemorrhage, aged 63. Harry Truman is sworn in as his successor. 1954 — Bill Haley and His Comets record the breakthrough rock’n’roll song Rock Around the Clock.
1955 — The Salk vaccine against polio is
declared safe and effective.
1961 — At 85 years old, New Zealand writer and publisher A.H. Reed completes a walk from North Cape to Bluff (2742km); the Soviet Union puts the first man in space. Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin makes a safe landing after one orbit of Earth.
1966 — US bombers carry out their first strikes
against North Vietnam.
1981 — The first reusable space shuttle, Columbia, blasts off from Cape Canaveral on its first test flight.
1988 — The US Patent and Trademark Office issues a patent to Harvard University for a genetically engineered mouse, the first time a patent is granted for an animal lifeform.
1990 — The East German Parliament names Lothar de Maiziere as prime minister, supports swift reunification, apologises for the
Holocaust and recognises the Polish border.
1992 — Euro Disneyland opens in France amid controversy as French intellectuals bemoan the invasion of US pop culture, labelling it a ‘‘cultural Chernobyl’’.
1994 — The entire Rwandan cabinet flees Kigali while the radio urges civilians to support the armed forces in repelling advancing rebels.
Today’s birthdays
Jules Malfroy, New Zealand lawyer and legal advisor to British Government in World War 2 (19011973); Herbie Hancock, US jazz musician (1940); Ed O’Neill, US actor (1946);
David Letterman, US television personality (1947); Scott Turow, US author (1949); David Cassidy, US actorsinger (19502017);
Leicester Rutledge, All Black (1952);
Andy Garcia, Cubanborn actor
(1956); Magda Szubanski,
Australian comedian (1961);
Shannen Doherty, US actress
(1971); Jenny Shepherd, New Zealand women’s hockey representative (1972); Jared Turner, New Zealand actor (1978); Claire Danes, US actress (1979); Brian McFadden, Irish singer (1980); Saoirse Ronan, Irish actress (1994).
Quote from history
‘‘Once that bell rings, you’re on your own. It’s just you and the other guy.’’ — Heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis, who held the world title for a record 12 years and won 68 of his 71 professional fights. Louis died on April 12, 1981, aged 66.
ODT and agencies