Today in history
Today is Friday, August 31, the 243rd day of 2018. There are 122 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date:
1422 — King Henry V of England dies in France and
is succeeded by his 9monthold son, Henry VI. 1841 — The brig Sophia Pate is wrecked on South
Head, Kaipara Harbour, with the loss of 21 lives.
1854 — While it lasted just three days, New Zealand politician Thomas Forsaith heads an Executive Council consisting of Jerningham Wakefield, William Travers and James Macandrew. It replaced that established eight weeks earlier by James FitzGerald, which included future prime ministers Henry Sewell and Frederick Weld.
1870 — The Canterbury region is shaken by a magnitude5.8 earthquake centred south of Banks Peninsula near Lake Ellesmere, causing structural damage to a number of buildings and rocks to fall from cliffs around Lyttelton Harbour.
1888 — The body of Mary Ann ‘‘Polly’’ Nichols, the
first victim of ‘‘Jack the Ripper’’, is found in London.
1894 — New Zealand becomes the first country in the world to outlaw strikes in favour of compulsory arbitration when the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act passes into law. The system is an immediate success, with no strikes for 11 years and wages and conditions improving.
1907 — The Sports Special, a special Saturdaynight edition of Dunedin’s Evening Star, begins publication.
1920 — The first news programme is broadcast by
the radio station 8MK in Detroit, Michigan.
1939 — Attempts by French premier Edouard Daladier and British prime minister
Neville Chamberlain to negotiate with Adolf Hitler, of Germany, fail, when Hitler orders the invasion of Poland.
1960 — The telex service is officially launched, linking New Zealand with 23 other countries by highfrequency radio.
1965 — CER, a limited freetrade agreement between New Zealand and Australia, is signed, becoming effective as of January 1, 1966.
1968 — West Indian Garfield Sobers becomes the first cricketer to score six sixes off one over in firstclass cricket, in England.
1969 — Rocky Marciano, the former world heavyweight boxing champion, is killed in an air crash in Iowa.
1974 — In just his second year in office, Prime Minister Norman Kirk dies aged 51. He is the fifth New Zealand prime minister to die in office.
1976 — The Ophir Post Office building and site are handed over to the New Zealand Historic Places Trust by the MP for Otago, Warren Cooper; Invercargill’s morning newspaper, The Southland
Times, publishes its final afternoon edition.
1978 — National Superannuation in New Zealand is increased to 80% of the average wage amid doubts the scheme is sustainable.
1986 — The Soviet passenger ship Admiral Nakhimov collides with a merchant vessel in the Black Sea, causing both vessels to sink; 448 die.
1988 — The last Press Association telegram is sent from Dunedin to Wellington by NZPA afternoon agent Clarke Isaacs. Coincidentally, on this day 23 years later and after 132 years of service, NZPA ceases operations.
1989 — Princess Anne and her husband, Captain
Mark Phillips, separate after 16 years of marriage.
1997 — Princess Diana and her millionaire companion, Dodi Al Fayed, are killed in a Paris car crash.
2010 — The darling of the New Zealand finance industry, South Canterbury Finance, is put into receivership, despite a huge amount of support for the company’s director, Allan Hubbard. 2011 — Ltgen Sir Jerry Mateparae is sworn in as GovernorGeneral at Parliament. He replaced Sir Anand Satyanand, who was honoured at a state farewell a week earlier. Sir Jerry was chief of the New Zealand Defence Force 20062011.