History
On this day in 1953: Josef Stalin died
Josef Stalin remains one of the most consequential and controversial leaders of the twentieth century. As the dominant figure in...
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On this day in 1678: Antonio Vivaldi was born – video
Antonio Vivaldi stands as one of the defining composers of the Baroque era, a musician whose prolific output and innovative...
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On this day in 1996: Marguerite Duras died in Paris
Marguerite Duras remains one of the most influential and unconventional voices in modern European literature and cinema, known for works...
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On this day in 1956: Morocco proclaimed independence from France.
On 2 March 1956, the North African kingdom of Morocco formally proclaimed its independence from France, bringing an end to...
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On this day in 1810: Frédéric Chopin was born – video
Frédéric Chopin, one of the most influential composers and pianists of the Romantic era, was born on 1 March 1810...
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On this day in 1986: Olof Palme assassinated in Stockholm
On 28 February 1986, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was shot dead on a Stockholm street in one of the...
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On this day in 1933: The Reichstag building in Berlin caught fire
In the evening of 27 February 1933, flames engulfed Germany’s parliament building in Berlin, an event that would rapidly reshape...
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On this day in 1802: Victor Hugo was born
Few authors have shaped the moral imagination of modern Europe as profoundly as Victor Hugo, whose novels and political activism...
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On this day in 1570: Pope Pius V excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I of England from the Roman Catholic Church
On 25 February 1570, Pope Pope Pius V formally excommunicated Elizabeth I, declaring her a heretic and releasing her subjects...
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On this day in 2022: Russia launches full-scale invasion of Ukraine, reshaping Europe’s security order
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine marked one of the most consequential turning points in modern European history, triggering the largest...
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