Gilbert M. Stack's Blog, page 108

Today in History: Charles I Executed

On this day (January 30) in 1649 King Charles I of England was beheaded by his own people. Charles is a difficult historical figure to feel sympathy toward. He created all of his own problems by refusing to believe that there were any practical limits on his authority. Many men in England’s Parliament and within the New Model Army were willing to work with him to achieve a political comprise that left Charles as king, but time and time again he acted in bad faith until even his supporters threw up their hands in despair. And even as he picked fights with his English subjects, he picked them with his Scottish and Irish subjects as well creating a situation that a like-minded genius could not have handled—and Charles never struck me as being particularly bright.

But if you’re looking for a silver lining in Charles’s political ineptness (aside from the push it gave to those advocating for limits on the executive power in the kingdom) you can always look to literature. Charles’ demise inspired Alexandre Dumas to make the attempt to stop the execution of Charles I the focal point of the action toward the end of Twenty Years After with Athos literally having made it to a point beneath the stage upon which the execution took place but still unable to prevent the fatal blow.

Today in History: Henry VIII Died

On this day (January Twenty-Eight) in 1547, Henry VIII died. He was one of the most influential kings England ever had changing the course of its government and history as decisively as did William the Conqueror in the eleventh century. Over the course of his reign, Henry came to the opinion that the pope was usurping authority over the church in England that Henry believed rightly belonged the king. He was influenced in this opinion by his desire to rid himself of his wife, Catharine of Aragon, and marry Anne Boleyn, who was probably the great love of his life at least until he grew irritated with her and executed her on trumped up charges. Henry’s decision to take control of the English church put England into the Protestant camp in Europe but Henry was a rather Catholic Protestant and successfully resisted efforts to make his church one of the more radical ones. Henry would be succeeded by his nine-yea- old son, Edward VI. Edward was less bloodthirsty than either his father or his two half sisters but didn’t live long enough for us to see what sort of king he would have been.

How Did Alexander the Great Die?

There is a new theory of how Alexander the Great died that is really quite creepy. It suggests that his symptoms--especially the claim that his body waited six days to start decomposing--was the result of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). This rare disorder causes paralysis which (if true) suggests that Alexander might well have been conscious but unable to communicate while his generals fought over the succession and the embalmers got to work...

Here is an article discussing the new theory: https://www.foxnews.com/science/alexa...

Today in History: The Outer Space Treaty

On this day (January 27) in 1967 The Outer Space Treaty was signed by the United States, The United Kingdom and The Soviet Union. This treaty forms the foundation of current international space law. It specifically precludes any nation from claiming sovereignty over the moon or any other celestial body and it also forbids the placing of weapons of mass destruction in space and the use of the moon or celestial bodies for military maneuvers, fortifications or the testing of weapons. The treaty went into effect on October 10, 1967 and currently has 107 countries who are parties to the treaty with 23 more who have signed the treaty but not completed the ratification process. The clear purpose of the treaty is to keep the wars of earth from spreading into the solar system. Thus we get the inscription on the plaque left on the moon by the astronauts of Apollo 11; “Here men of the planet Earth first set foot on the Moon, July 1969 A.D. We came in peace for all mankind.”

Today in History: Bald Eagle or Turkey?

On this day (January 26) in 1784, Benjamin Franklin wrote to his daughter to express his disapproval of the choice of the “bald eagle” as the nation’s national bird. He reportedly preferred the turkey, which he found to be a more useful animal. Now I greatly respect Benjamin Franklin but somehow I don’t think row after row of turkeys grown in cages waiting to be eaten is the symbol I want for my nation.

Today in History: Henry VIII Married Anne Boleyn

On this day (January 25) in the year 1533 Henry VIII secretly married Anne Boleyn. The ceremony had to be secret because he was actually married to Catherine of Aragon at the time and it would not be until May of 1533 that he set about publicly putting his marriage to Catherine on trial so that he could break it and have Anne as his queen. The fact that Anne was pregnant with Henry’s child made the matter more urgent. Henry wanted an heir, not another illegitimate child—thus the secret wedding.

Today in History: Gold Discovered in California

On this day (January 24) in 1848, gold was discovered at Sutter’s Mill in California, starting the California Gold Rush. It is difficult to over emphasize the importance of the gold rush to the development of the young United States of America. By the end of 1849, three hundred thousand 49ers had immigrated to California from disparate parts of the world and the rest of the United States. This transformed California from a sparsely settled territory to a full-fledged state of the union in 1850 and marked the beginning of a massive shift in population to the far west of the continent.

 

The gold rush and following migration also led to a massive investment in transportation infrastructure over the next decades—railroads, ships and the telegraph usually get the most attention, but there were also smaller scale ventures such as wagon-building for the overland trips. The Studebaker company is a famous example of a business venture that started in wagons and successfully transitioned into automobiles in the 20th century.

 

To support the miners, agriculture and ranching expanded in the west. More money was often made supplying the miners than in mining itself, as was the experience of Levi-Strauss and his famous clothing company.

 

The extraordinary increase in the amount of gold in circulation in the U.S. led to a huge economic boom and substantial economic development.

 

Today in History: A Ghost in the Courtroom

On this day (January 23) in 1897, Elva Zona Heaster was found dead at the foot of her stairs. This was originally ruled an accident but her mother, who had opposed her marriage, found her son-in-law's behavior at the wake and funeral to be suspicious. After praying for four weeks on the matter, she claimed to be visited by her daughter's ghost who told her she was the victim of abuse. The body was exhumed and a new autopsy showed that Heaster's neck had been broken, her windpipe crushed and there was bruising that suggested fingers had been wrapped around her throat. A trial was held in which the defense tried unsuccessfully to damage the mother-in-law's credibility by questioning her regarding the ghostly sighting. The husband was found guilty and died in prison three years later. This is the only known case of a ghost's testimony being brought into a U.S. courtroom.

Today in History: The Apple Macintosh Introduced

On this day (January 22) in 1984 one of the most famous commercials of all time aired during Super Bowl XVIII introducing the Apple Macintosh. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zfqw...

Today in History: NYC Women Banned from Smoking in Public

On this day (January 21) in 1908, New York City passed the Sullivan Ordinance, which banned women from smoking in public places. The next day, Katie Mulcahey was fined $5 for breaking the ordinance and then arrested for refusing to pay. As the ordinance did not mention fines for violation, she was released the next day. The ordinance was ridiculed in some places in the city including The Evening World which ran the attached cartoon. Two weeks later, the mayor decided to veto the Sullivan Ordinance, striking a blow for women's rights while unintentionally striking one against their health.