TODAY IN HISTORY

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT March 4, 1793

George Washington was sworn in for a second term as president of the United States during a ceremony in Philadelphia.

ALSO ON THIS DATE

1193

Saladin, the Muslim warrior who opposed the Crusades, died in Damascus.

1681

England’s King Charles II granted a charter to William Penn for an area of land in North America that later became Pennsylvania.

1791

Vermont became the 14th state.

1893

Grover Cleveland was inaugurated for his second, non-consecutive term as president.

1925

President Calvin Coolidge’s inauguration was broadcast live on 21radio stations coast-to-coast.

1933

Franklin D. Roosevelt took office as America’s 32nd president.

1977

Some 1,500people were killed in an earthquake that shook southern and eastern Europe.

1987

President Ronald Reagan addressed the nation on the Iran-Contra affair, acknowledging that his overtures to Iran had “deteriorated” into an arms-for-hostages deal.

1998

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that sexual harassment at work can be illegal even when the offender and victim are of the same gender.

2013

Cardinals from around the world gathered inside the Vatican for their first round of meetings before the conclave to elect the next pope, following the retirement of Benedict XVI.