This week in history
April 1, 1979
Iran becomes an Islamic republic by a 99% vote, officially overthrowing the Shah.
April 2, 1976
Prince Norodom Sihanouk resigns as leader of Cambodia and is placed under house arrest.
April 3, 1883
Jack The Ripper: The first of 11 unsolved brutal murders of women committed in or near the impoverished Whitechapel district in the East End of London occurs.
April 4, 1975
Microsoft is founded as a partnership between Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800.
April 5, 1242
During the Battle on the Ice of Lake Peipus, Russian forces, led by Alexander Nevsky, rebuff an invasion attempt by the Teutonic Knights.
April 6, 1974
Swedish pop band ABBA wins the Eurovision Song Contest held at The Dome in Brighton, UK, giving Sweden its first triumph in the contest with the song “Waterloo”, and launching the band’s historic international career.
April 7, 1933
Prohibition in the United States is repealed for beer of no more than 3.2% alcohol by weight, eight months before the ratification of the XXI amendment. (Now celebrated as National Beer Day in the United States.)