CNN logo
navigation

Infoseek/Big Yellow


Pathfinder/Warner Bros


Barnes and Noble



Almanac Main banner

Monday, July 28, 1997

  • Today's Events
  • On Horizon
  • On This Day
  • Newslink
  • Holidays & more
  • Almanac archive
  • "Let the world not forget Alice Hawthorne."

    -- John Hawthorne





    Today's events


  • ASEAN and 10 dialogue partners, including European Union "troika" countries -- Britain, Luxembourg and the Netherlands -- and European Commission, hold a post-ministerial meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

  • The Pan African Women's Organization is scheduled to discuss improving the status of women in Africa.

  • Bulgarian President Petar Stoyanov visits Turkey.

  • rule


    On the horizon


  • On Tuesday, July 29, the biennial meeting of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children is scheduled in Seattle. The group is dedicated to the advocacy and education of gifted and talented kids.

  • On Wednesday, July 30, the Baalbek Festival, once Lebanon's leading cultural event, resumes with a performance by cellist Mstislav Rostropovich; the festival was last held in 1974.

  • On Thursday, July 31, a Beirut court issues a verdict in the case of five Japanese Red Army guerrillas charged with forgery and other offenses carrying maximum sentences of 10 years in prison.

  • On Friday, August 1, Lima, Peru's, Latin American film festival opens.

  • On Saturday, August 2, the World Gold Council holds a seminar on Gold Banking in New Delhi.

  • rule


    On this day


  • In 1540, King Henry VIII of England married Catherine Howard, his fifth wife.

  • In 1586, the first potatoes arrived in England from Colombia, brought by Sir Thomas Harriot.

  • In 1588, many galleons were destroyed when Lord High Admiral Howard sent English fire ships to the Spanish fleet anchored off Calais to try and stope their attempted invasion.

  • In 1655, Cyrano de Bergerac, French poet, novelist and soldier whose works combined political satire and scientific fantasy, died.

  • In 1656, the Battle of Warsaw in the First Northern War began when Charles X of Sweden invaded Poland.

  • In 1741, composer Antonio Vivaldi died; he was best known for his concerti for violin and orchestra "The Four Seasons."

  • In 1750, Johann Sebastian Bach, German composer and organist, died. Composer of "St Matthew Passion" and "Brandenburg Concertos," his output covered every musical genre with innovations in format, quality and technical demands.

  • In 1794, Maximilien Robespierre was guillotined with four political allies. Known as "The Incorruptible," he played a leading role in the French Revolution and launched the "Reign of Terror."

  • In 1809, the British under Sir Arthur Wellesley (subsequently Duke of Wellington) defeated the French under Marshal Victor at the Battle of Talavera, southwest of Madrid.

  • In 1821, Peru declared itself independent of Spain.

  • In 1858, the first use of fingerprints as a means of identification was made by William Herschel of the Indian Civil Service at Jungipur in India. He took the print of Rajyadhar Konai on the back of a contract.

  • In 1868, the 14th amendment to the U.S. constitution was ratified, granting citizenship to U.S. blacks.

  • In 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia after the June 28 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo. This led to further declarations of war, precipitating World War I.

  • In 1938, the 34,000-ton Cunard-White Star liner Mauretania was launched at Birkenhead, England.

  • In 1939, William James Mayo, U.S. surgeon and co-founder of the Mayo Clinic, died.

  • In 1941, the crisis in the Far East worsened when 30,000 Japanese troops swarmed into French Indochina.

  • In 1945, a B-25 bomber lost in clouds and fog slammed into the side of the Empire State building, killing 14 people.

  • In 1968, Otto Hahn, German nuclear physicist and Nobel Prize winner, died; he signed the Goettingen Declaration (1957), refusing to cooperate in possible West German construction of nuclear devices.

  • In 1973, the United States launched Skylab 2 carrying astronauts Bean, Garriott and Lousma; they returned to earth after 59 days.

  • In 1976, an earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale completely destroyed the city of Tangshan in China; it caused the highest quake death toll in modern times -- at least 242,000 dead and 164,000 injured.

  • In 1977, the first oil through the TransAlaska Pipeline System reached Valdez, Alaska.

  • In 1995, President Ernesto Samper asked the Colombian Congress to investigate whether cocaine money helped him win presidential elections in June 1994.

  • rule


    Newslink


    Up for an adventure? Try a virtual visit to Mali, which celebrates Prophet's Baptism Day today.


    rule


    Holidays and more


  • Today is Constitution Day in Fiji.

  • It is Prophet's Baptism day in Mali.

  • It is Carnival in the Netherlands Antilles.

  • Peru celebrates Independence Day.

  • Puerto Rico celebrate Barbosa's Birthday.

  • It is a People Holiday in San Marino.

  • It is Supplication Day in the Virgin Islands.

  • rule


    Sources: Associated Press,
    Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan



    To the top

    © 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
    All Rights Reserved.

    Terms under which this service is provided to you.