This Day in History Class

Athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists in protest at the Olympic Games on this day in 1968. / On this day in 1834, the Palace of Westminster was destroyed in a fire.

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Mata Hari was executed for espionage on this day in 1917. / On this day in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian calendar, which was created as a way to reform the Julian calendar.

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The trial of Mary, Queen of Scots began on this day in 1586. / On this day in 1947, American test pilot Chuck Yeager became the first person to fly faster than the speed of sound.

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The revival of modern Hebrew began on this day in 1881, when Eliezer Ben-Yehuda began speaking it exclusively among friends and family. / On this day in 1917, a crowd of thousands of people gathered in Fátima, Portugal, to witness a miracle, and many reported seeing unusual solar activity that became known as the Miracle of the Sun.

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An iron lung was used for the first time on this day in 1928. / On this day in 1810, the first Oktoberfest began after the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen.

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The Second Vatican Council, also known as Vatican II, opened on this day in 1962. / This day in 1899 marks the beginning of the Second Boer War, a conflict between the British Empire and the Boer states of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State.

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Assassin Lyudmila Pavlichenko died on this day in 1974. / On this day in 1911, an uprising against the Qing government began in Wuchang in China.

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Che Guevara was executed on this day in 1967. / On this day in 1855, American inventor Joshua Stoddard was issued a patent for the calliope.

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Alvin York led a group of soldiers to capture a German machine gun nest on this day in 1918. / On this day in 1892, Russian poet Marina Tsvetaeva was born in Moscow.

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Desmond Tutu was born on this day in 1931. / On this day in 1916, the Georgia Tech vs. Cumberland College football game in Atlanta ended with a score of 222-0, making it the most lopsided college football game in history.

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