The Northern Isles, which consist of the two island groups of Shetland and Orkney, have been inhabited since prehistoric times but were formally annexed by the Norwegian king Harald Hårfagre in around 875 after he subdued the Vikings who used the islands as a base from which to raid Norway and ...By Scott Allsop

Executive Order 9066 was issued two months after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbour and primarily targeted Japanese Americans, leading to their forced relocation and internment during World War ...By Scott Allsop

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, under his pen-name Mark Twain, had previously published the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in which the character of Huckleberry “Huck” Finn is introduced for the first ...By Scott Allsop

The Phantom's distinctive appearance of a skin-tight purple costume, domino mask, and striped trunks became iconic, influencing later superheroes in comic book ...By Scott Allsop

The DuPont company’s organic chemist Wallace Carothers received a patent for linear condensation polymers, the basis of the material better known as ...By Scott Allsop

A special parliamentary committee reviewed over 5,900 submissions, ultimately settling on a design created by historian George F. G. Stanley that featured a stylized red maple leaf with 11 points, with the red and white derived from Canada’s official ...By Scott Allsop

Pale Blue Dot, the most distant photograph ever taken of Earth, was created by the Voyager 1 space ...By Scott Allsop

The destruction of Dresden was extensive, with vast areas of the city reduced to rubble. While some argue the attack was a necessary military operation to disrupt German supply lines and weaken morale, others contend that the scale of destruction and the civilian toll were disproportionate, particularly given the advanced stage of the war and Germa…

The Gateway Arch was designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen to honour the role of St. Louis in the westward expansion of the United States. It was officially opened to the public on June 10, 1967, coon becoming one of the most recognizable landmarks in the United States, attracting millions of visitors each ...…

The overthrow of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi brought the 2,500 year old monarchy in Iran to an end and ushered in a theocracy overseen by the Ayatollah ...By Scott Allsop

Puss Gets the Boot was created by animators William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1941. This led to the studio deciding to continue producing cartoons with the characters, which were soon renamed Tom and ...By Scott Allsop

Volleyball was invented by William G. Morgan, the Director of Physical Education at the YMCA in Holyoke, ...By Scott Allsop

The Stasi used blackmail, intimidation, and imprisonment, as well as psychological manipulation, to target perceived dissidents. By the time the organisation’s activities ended following the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the Stasi was regarded as one of the most effective intelligence agencies of the Cold War ...…

The band landed at New York’s Kennedy Airport on 7 February to be greeted by 3,000 screaming ...By Scott Allsop

Sir Stamford Raffles, who had been appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Bencoolen in modern Indonesia, had identified Singapore as an ideal location for the British East India company due to its natural harbour and strategic position along the Straits of ...By Scott Allsop

Although now largely inaccurate as a result of the inherent delay in the encoding, transmission, and decoding of digital radio broadcasts, the Greenwich Time Signal pips are still a part of many BBC radio ...By Scott Allsop

47 of Asano Naganori's former samurai plotted to avenge their lord’s death from seppuku after he attacked Kira ...By Scott Allsop

Their private plane took off at 12:55am on 3 February, but managed to fly only 6 miles before crashing amidst deteriorating ...By Scott Allsop

A potential diphtheria epidemic in Alaska was avoided after a dogsled relay transported vials of antitoxin 674 miles in five and a half days in “Great Race of ...By Scott Allsop

On the 1st February 1968, American photojournalist Eddie Adams took a photograph of South Vietnamese National Police Chief General Nguyễn Ngọc Loan executing Viet Cong officer Nguyễn Văn Lém in ...By Scott Allsop

The Battle of May Island was not an actual battle but rather a peacetime disaster caused by miscommunication and navigational errors near the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth in Scotland during World War ...By Scott Allsop

On the twelfth anniversary of Charles I’s execution, Cromwell’s remains were subjected to a ceremonial trial and then hanged in chains at Tyburn. The body was subsequently decapitated, and the head displayed above Westminster Hall at the Palace of ...By Scott Allsop

The Benz Patent-Motorwagen was powered by a single-cylinder four-stroke engine that produced approximately 0.75 horsepower, enabling the vehicle to reach speeds of around 16 kilometers per ...By Scott Allsop

Charles VI of France danced in the Bal des Ardents in which four people died after their costumes caught ...By Scott Allsop

The Outer Space Treaty, which provides the basic framework on international space law, was opened for signatures in the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United ...By Scott Allsop

Seven months elapsed before Clinton was called before a grand jury, where he admitted he and Lewinsky had had a relationship that was ‘not ...By Scott Allsop

Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr was the director of research at DuMont Laboratories in New Jersey where he was exploring the use of cathode ray tubes in television ...By Scott Allsop

Three Praetorian Guards cornered Caligula in a cryptoporticus beneath his palace on the Palatine Hill and stabbed him to ...By Scott Allsop

On the night of 23 January, a contingent of French cavalry, supported by infantry, was able to approach the Dutch ships across thick ice on ...By Scott Allsop

Recognizing the military prowess of Swiss mercenaries, Pope Julius II obtained funding from the wealthy German merchant Jakob Fugger to fund a contingent of soldiers to ensure his safety, protect Vatican property, and assist in military engagements when ...By Scott Allsop

Alderman Timothy Sullivan proposed the ordinance that made it illegal for proprietors or managers of hotels, restaurants, and other public places to allow women to smoke on their premises. Despite public opposition, the New York City Board of Aldermen voted for it ...By Scott Allsop

Temple's years in the limelight had made her a target for death threats, kidnapping threats, and extortion threats. As a result she formed a close relationship with J. Edgar Hoover, the director of the FBI, who gave her a tear-gas fountain pen while they watched the inauguration procession from his office ...…

Designed by Thomas Edison and his team, the system included a central steam-powered generator that supplied electricity to a store and the railroad station, alongside 40 houses and 150 ...By Scott Allsop

Wilhelm was formally declared the German Emperor in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles on 18 ...By Scott Allsop

The Battle of Monte Cassino began when Allied forces launched the first of four attacks against the Gustav Line in ...By Scott Allsop

The coronation ceremony was an elaborate event designed to emphasize Ivan’s authority and the sanctity of his rule, and he followed it by pursuing a series of reforms and expansionist policies aimed at consolidating his power and strengthening the ...By Scott Allsop

21 people were killed and a further 150 were injured after 2.3 million gallons of molasses swept through North End in Boston, Massachusetts after a storage tank ...By Scott Allsop

Elvis Presley became the first solo entertainer to broadcast a live performance via satellite with Aloha From ...By Scott Allsop

The riots spread throughout Constantinople and buildings, including the Hagia Sophia and parts of the imperial palace, were set on fire. Much of the city was left in ...By Scott Allsop

Dr James Hiram Bedford became the first human to be cryonically ...By Scott Allsop

The British plan involved a three-pronged advance into Zululand, with the main column, led by Lord Chelmsford, heading toward the Zulu capital at ...By Scott Allsop

Metropolis later gained recognition as a masterpiece of early cinema with Its iconic imagery influencing countless films and works of science ...By Scott Allsop

Troops were first withdrawn from the Suvla Bay and Anzac Cove areas in December 1915. The final phase, involving the evacuation of Cape Helles, was completed on 9 January 1916 with the departure of the Newfoundland Regiment and remnants of The Plymouth Battalion, Royal Marine Light ...By Scott Allsop

American President George Washington delivered the very first State of the Union address to ...By Scott Allsop

The first aerial crossing of the English Channel was conducted by Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard and American John Jeffries in a gas-filled ...By Scott Allsop

When the Witenaġemot met after the death of Edward the Confessor, the elected Harold to be the new king and his coronation took place the same ...By Scott Allsop

Beckett originally wrote the play in French, despite being fluent in English, as he believed the language allowed for greater simplicity and precision. It has since became one of the most studied and performed plays of the 20th ...By Scott Allsop

American inventor Samuel Colt received the first government order for his revolver firearms from Captain Samuel Walker of the Texas ...By Scott Allsop

Although numerous suspension bridges had been built prior to the Brooklyn Bridge, nothing came close to the almost 1,600 foot span across the East River from Brooklyn to ...By Scott Allsop

Sutcliffe was found guilty of murdering 13 women over a six-year period, and of attempting to murder a further ...By Scott Allsop