News & Politics - On This Day (April 2) 
MSFixR says: 742 - Charlemagne born. (d. 814) (Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 to his death. He expanded the Frankish kingdoms into a Frankish Empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned Imperator Augustus by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800 as a rival of the Byzantine Emperor in Constantinople. His rule is also associated with the Carolingian Renaissance, a revival of art, religion, and culture through the medium of the Catholic Church. Through his foreign conquests and internal reforms, Charlemagne helped define both Western Europe and the Middle Ages. He is numbered as Charles I in the regnal lists of France, Germany, and the Holy Roman Empire.) 1118 - Baldwin I of Jerusalem , King of Jerusalem died. 1513 - Juan Ponce de Leon sets foot on Florida becoming the first known European to do so. 1725 - Giacomo Casanova , Italian adventurer and writer born. (d. 1798) (Casanova was a Venetian adventurer and author. His autobiography, Histoire de ma vie (Story of My Life), is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century.) 1743 - Thomas Jefferson , 3rd President of the United States (Old style date) born. (d. 1826) (Jefferson was the third President of the United States (1801–1809), the principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776), and one of the most influential Founding Fathers for his promotion of the ideals of republicanism in the United States. Major events during his presidency include the Louisiana Purchase (1803) and the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806).) 1792 – By the Coinage Act, the United States Mint was founded and the U.S. currency was decimalized. 1801 – War of the Second Coalition: British forces led by Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson (pictured) defeated the Dano-Norwegian fleet at the Battle of Copenhagen off the coast of Copenhagen.
Admiral Horatio Nelson 1805 - Hans Christian Andersen , Danish writer born. (d. 1875) (Andersen was a Danish author and poet, most famous for his fairy tales. Among his best-known stories are "The Snow Queen", "The Little Mermaid", "The Emperor's New Clothes" and "The Ugly Duckling".) 1872 - Samuel F. B. Morse , American painter and inventor of the telegraph died. (b. 1791) (Morse was an American painter of portraits and historic scenes, the creator of a single wire telegraph system, and co-inventor, with Alfred Vail, of the Morse Code.) 1875 - Walter Chrysler , American automobile pioneer born. (d. 1940) 1922 - Hermann Rorschach , Swiss psychologist died. (b. 1884) (Rorschach was a Swiss Freudian psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, best known for developing a projective test known, from his name, as the Rorschach inkblot test.)
The first of the ten cards in the Rorschach inkblot test. It has been reported that popular responses include bat, badge and coat of arms. 1956 – As the World Turns premiered on U.S. television as the first half-hour serial drama. 1962 - The first official Panda crossing is opened outside Waterloo station, London. 1982 – Argentine special forces invaded the Falkland Islands, sparking the Falklands War. 1984 – Aboard Soyuz T-11, Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to be launched into space. 2002 – Operation Defensive Shield: Approximately 200 Palestinians fled advancing Israeli forces into the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, starting a month long standoff. Original post: On This Day (April 2) |
