Monday, July 28, 1997
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.
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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.
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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.
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Newslink
Up for an adventure? Try a virtual visit to Mali, which celebrates Prophet's Baptism Day today.
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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.
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Sources: Associated Press,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan
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