History Blog Week of September 12-18 and 19-25
This Week in History
September 12, 1940
Near Montignac, France, a collection of prehistoric cave paintings is discovered by four teenagers who stumbled upon the ancient artwork after following their dog down a narrow entrance into a cavern. The 15,000- to 17,000-year-old paintings, consisting mostly of animal representations, are among the finest examples of art from the Upper Paleolithic period.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/lascaux-cave-paintings-discovered?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0912-09122021&om_rid=
September 13, 1971
The four-day revolt at the maximum-security Attica Correctional Facility near Buffalo, New York, ends when hundreds of state police officers storm the complex in a hail of gunfire. Thirty-nine people were killed in the disastrous assault, including 29 prisoners and 10 prison guards and employees held hostage since the outset of the ordeal.
September 14, 1814
On September 14, 1814, Francis Scott Key pens a poem which is later set to music and in 1931 becomes America’s national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The poem, originally titled “The Defence of Fort M'Henry,” was written after Key witnessed the Maryland fort being bombarded by the British during the War of 1812. Key was inspired by the sight of a lone U.S. flag still flying over Fort McHenry at daybreak, as reflected in the now-famous words of the “Star-Spangled Banner”: “And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.”
September 15, 1914
The first trenches are dug on the Western Front of World War I. In the wake of the Battle of the Marne—during which Allied troops halted the steady German push through Belgium and France that had proceeded over the first month of World War I—a conflict both sides had expected to be short and decisive turns longer and bloodier, as Allied and German forces begin digging the first trenches on the Western Front on September 15, 1914.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-trenches-are-dug-on-the-western-front?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0915-09152021&om_rid=
September 15, 1916
During the Battle of the Somme, the British launch a major offensive against the Germans, employing tanks for the first time in history. At Flers Courcelette, some of the 40 or so primitive tanks advanced over a mile into enemy lines but were too slow to hold their positions during the German counterattack and subject to mechanical breakdown. However, General Douglas Haig, commander of Allied forces at the Somme, saw the promise of this new instrument of war and ordered the war department to produce hundreds more.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/tanks-introduced-into-warfare-at-the-somme?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0915-09152021&om_rid=
September 16, 1932
On September 16, 1932, in his cell at Yerwada Jail in Pune, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi begins a hunger strike in protest of the British government’s decision to separate India’s electoral system by caste.
Further reading: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/gandhi-begins-fast-in-protest-of-caste-separation?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0916-09162021&om_rid=
September 16, 1973
On September 16, 1973, North Georgia College became the first Senior Military College to incorporate women into its Corps of Cadets.
Further reading: https://ung.edu/military-college-admissions/learn-more/boars-head-brigade/women-in-the-corps.php
September 16, 1620
On September 16, 1620, the Mayflower sails from Plymouth, England, bound for the Americas with 102 passengers. The ship was headed for Virginia, where the colonists—half religious dissenters and half entrepreneurs—had been authorized to settle by the British crown. However, stormy weather and navigational errors forced the Mayflower off course, and on November 21 the “Pilgrims” reached Massachusetts, where they founded the first permanent European settlement in New England in late December.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/mayflower-departs-england?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0916-09162021&om_rid=
September 17, 1787
The Constitution of the United States of America is signed by 38 of 41 delegates present at the conclusion of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Supporters of the document waged a hard-won battle to win ratification by the necessary nine out of 13 U.S. states.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/u-s-constitution-signed?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0917-09172021&om_rid=
September 17, 1862
Beginning early on the morning of September 17, 1862, Confederate and Union troops in the Civil War clash near Maryland’s Antietam Creek in the bloodiest single day in American military history.
Read more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/battle-of-antietam?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0917-09172021&om_rid=
September 17th, 1976
On September 17, 1976, NASA publicly unveils its first space shuttle, the Enterprise, during a ceremony in Palmdale, California. Development of the aircraft-like spacecraft cost almost $10 billion and took nearly a decade. In 1977, the Enterprise became the first space shuttle to fly freely when it was lifted to a height of 25,000 feet by a Boeing 747 airplane and then released, gliding back to Edwards Air Force Base on its own accord.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/space-shuttle-unveiled?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0917-09172021&om_rid=
September 18th, 1793
George Washington lays the cornerstone of the Capitol building in Washington D.C. The building took nearly a century to complete.
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/capitol-cornerstone-is-laid?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0918-09182021&om_rid=
September 19th, 1957
On September 19, 1957, the United States detonates a 1.7-kiloton nuclear weapon in an underground tunnel at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), a 1,375-square-mile research center located 65 miles north of Las Vegas. The test, known as Rainier, was the first fully contained underground detonation and produced no radioactive fallout.
Further reading: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/nevada-is-site-of-first-ever-underground-nuclear-explosion?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0919-09192021&om_rid=
September 19th, 1893
New Zealand becomes the first country ever to allow women to vote.
Learn more at: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/new-zealand-first-in-womens-vote?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0919-09192021&om_rid=
September 20th, 1565
The first battle between Europeans on American soil takes place between the Spanish and French forces near Jacksonville, Florida.
Learn more at: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-european-battle-on-american-soil?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0920-09202021&om_rid=
September 21st, 1780
On September 21, 1780, during the American Revolution, American General Benedict Arnold meets with British Major John Andre to discuss handing over West Point to the British, in return for the promise of a large sum of money and a high position in the British army. The plot was foiled and Arnold, a former American hero, became synonymous with the word “traitor.”
Learn more here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/benedict-arnold-commits-treason?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2021-0921-09212021&om_rid=
September 22nd, 1862
On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issues a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which sets a date for the freedom of more than 3 million enslaved in the United States and recasts the Civil War as a fight against slavery.
September 22nd, 1906
On the afternoon of September 22, 1906, Atlanta papers report four separate assaults on white women by Black men, none of which are ever substantiated by hard evidence. Inflamed by these fabrications, and resentful of the city’s growing African American population, white Atlanteans riot. Over the next few days, the race riot will claim the lives of at least 12 Black Atlanteans—the total may be more than twice as high—and devastate the city’s Black community.
September 24th, 1789
The Judiciary Act of 1789 is passed by Congress and signed by President George Washington, establishing the Supreme Court of the United States as a tribunal made up of six justices who were to serve on the court until death or retirement. That day, President Washington nominated John Jay to preside as chief justice, and John Rutledge, William Cushing, John Blair, Robert Harrison and James Wilson to be associate justices. On September 26, all six appointments were confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Further reading: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-first-supreme-court
September 24th, 1969
The trial for eight antiwar activists charged with inciting violent demonstrations at the August 1968 Democratic National Convention opens in Chicago before Judge Julius Hoffman. Initially there were eight defendants, but one, Bobby Seale of the Black Panthers, denounced Hoffman as a racist and demanded a separate trial. The seven other defendants, including David Dellinger of the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam (MOBE); Rennie Davis and Tom Hayden of MOBE and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS); and Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman of the Youth International Party (Yippies), were accused of conspiring to incite a riot.
Further reading: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/chicago-8-trial-opens-in-chicago
September 25th, 1789
The first Congress of the United States approves 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and sends them to the states for ratification. The amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were designed to protect the basic rights of U.S. citizens, guaranteeing the freedom of speech, press, assembly, and exercise of religion; the right to fair legal procedure and to bear arms; and that powers not delegated to the federal government were reserved for the states and the people.
Further reading: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/bill-of-rights-passes-congress
Reading Recommendation: The Art of War, by Sun Tzu
The Art of War is the ultimate guide to strategy, and has lasted for about 2500 years because of its deep understanding of the nature of war. This book is the single most important military book ever written, and its influence on countless great generals throughout the ages cannot be overstated. Sun Tzu writes about deceiving and outwitting the enemy, writing general rules for tactics rather than about any specific military technology that would expire with time. Sun Tzu's masterpiece is also useful for non-soldiers, as he stressed the importance of diplomacy to avoid war whenever possible. It's also very easy to read, as it's really just a collection of small pieces of wisdom. There is no book more essential for a cadet to read because the principles of war that are laid out in this book are said more concisely here than anywhere else.
Fun Fact of the Week:
Back in October of 1916, a National Guard Soldier down in Gainesville apparently saw fit to go all Yosemite Sam on the town after getting completely wasted one evening. Meaning that he fired his weapon or weapons up in the air a few times and caused a disturbance. He received a significant fine of one hundred dollars (about $2500 in today's money), or the option to serve 90 days of community service. Here's an original clip from a newspaper a few days later.
