October 15

Events533 - Byzantine general Belisarius makes his formal entry into Carthage, having conquered it from the Vandals.1552 - Khanate of Kazan is conquered by troops of Ivan Grozny.1582 - Pope Gregory XIII implements the Gregorian calendar. In Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain, October 4 of this year is followed directly by October 15.1764 - Edward Gibbon observes a group of friars singing in the ruined Temple of Jupiter in Rome, which inspires him to begin work on The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire1815 - Napoleon I of France begins his exile on Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. 1863 - American Civil War: The CSS H. L. Hunley, the first submarine to sink a ship, sinks during a test, killing its inventor, Horace L. Hunley. 1878 - The Edison Electric Light Company begins operation. 1880 - Mexican soldiers kill  Victorio, one of the greatest Apache military strategists. 1888 - The "From Hell" letter sent by Jack the Ripper is received by the investigators. 1894  - Alfred Dreyfus is arrested for spying - Dreyfus affair begins.1904  - The Russian Baltic Fleet leaves Reval, Estonia for Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War.1917 - World War I: At Vincennes outside of Paris, Dutch dancer Mata Hari is executed by firing squad for spying for Germany.1928 - The airship, the Graf Zeppelin completed its first trans-Atlantic flight, landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, USA.1932 - Tata Airlines (later to become Air India) makes its first flight.1934 - The Soviet Republic of China collapses when Chiang Kai-shek's National Revolutionary Army successfully encircle Ruijin, forcing the fleeing Communists to begin the Long March.1939 - The New York Municipal Airport (later renamed La Guardia Airport) is dedicated. 1940 - "The Great Dictator", a satiric social commentary film by and starring Charlie Chaplin, is released. 1944 - The Arrow Cross Party (very similar to Hitler's NSDAP (Nazi party)) takes over the power in Hungary. 1945 - World War II: The former premier of Vichy France Pierre Laval is shot by a firing squad for treason. 1946 - Nuremberg Trials: Hermann Göring poisons himself the night before his execution. 1951 - Television sitcom I Love Lucy premieres.1951 - Mexican chemist Luis E. Miramontes synthesized the first oral contraceptive1953 - British nuclear test Totem 1 detonated at Emu Field, South Australia.1965 - Vietnam War: The National Coordinating Committee to End the War in Vietnam stages the first public burning of a draft card in the United States to result in arrest under a new law. 1969 - Vietnam War: Hundreds of thousands of people take part in National Moratorium antiwar demonstrations across the United States.1970 - Thirty-five construction workers are killed when a section of the new West Gate Bridge in Melbourne collapses.1970 - Anwar Sadat becomes president of Egypt1971 - The start of the 2500-year celebration of Iran, celebrating the birth of Persia. 1981 - Professional cheerleader Krazy George Henderson leads what is thought to be the first audience wave in Oakland, California.1987 - The Great Storm of 1987 hits France and England.1988 - Kirk Gibson of the Los Angeles Dodgers hits a walk off home run to beat the Oakland Athletics in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.1989 - Wayne Gretzky becomes the all-time leading points scorer in the NHL.1990 - Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to lessen Cold War tensions and open up his nation. 1992 - In Russia, Andrei Chikatilo is found guilty of 53 serial murders.1997 - The first supersonic land speed record is set by Andy Green in ThrustSSC (United Kingdom). 1997 - The Cassini probe launches from Cape Canaveral on its way to Saturn.2001 - NASA's Galileo spacecraft passes within 112 miles of Jupiter's moon Io. 2003 - China launches Shenzhou 5, its first manned space mission.2003 - The Staten Island Ferry boat Andrew J. Barberi collides with a pier at the St. George Ferry Terminal in Staten Island, killing 11 people and injuring 43. 2005 - Iraqi constitution ratification vote2005 - Riot in Toledo, Ohio breaks out during a National Socialist/Neo-Nazi protest; over 100 are arrested.2007 - Sir Menzies Campbell resigns effective immediately as Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the United Kingdom.
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