Dvořák's New World Symphony premieres at Carnegie Hall (1893), and United Kingdom recognises Bahrain's independence (1971). Born on this day: Jane Austen, Arthur C. Clarke and Wassily Kandinsky. Died: John VIII, W. Somerset Maugham and Camille Saint-Saëns.
31 events, 65 births and 49 deaths on this date.
The Czech composer's Symphony From the New World was heard for the first time in New York, a work he wrote while directing the National Conservatory of Music of America. It went on to spread his reputation across the world.
Unknown author Unknown author · Public domainBahrain had been a British protectorate since the late 19th century, and this recognition marked its move to full sovereignty. The day is still marked each year as Bahrain's National Day.
The volcano above the Bay of Naples burst into violent eruption, with more than 3,000 people reported killed. Vesuvius sits 9 km east of Naples and remains one of the world's most dangerous volcanoes, with millions living within reach of its eruptions.
pietro scerrato · CC BY 3.0
Set on the moon Pandora, James Cameron's science fiction epic earned more at the box office than any film before it. Its record-breaking run followed years of development and new filmmaking technology.
Confederate president Jefferson Davis removed Braxton Bragg and gave the Army of Tennessee to Joseph E. Johnston, a veteran general. It was one of the Confederacy's main field armies, and the change shows how Davis kept reshuffling his senior commanders during the war.
French troops seized the citadel at Sơn Tây during the Tonkin Campaign, their fight to bring northern Vietnam under French control. The success strengthened France's hold on Tonkin, part of its wider push into Indochina under the young Third Republic.
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Jane Austen was an English novelist whose six books satirised the landed gentry and the marriage market of her day. Most of her novels were published anonymously in her lifetime, yet they became some of the most widely read books in English.
Cassandra Austen · Public domain
Clarke was a British science fiction writer who co-wrote the screenplay for 2001: A Space Odyssey and proposed the idea of geostationary communication satellites in 1945. He was also a tireless champion of space travel, earning the nickname Prophet of the Space Age.
ITU Pictures · CC BY 2.0
Born in Moscow, Kandinsky began painting at thirty and became one of the earliest artists to make wholly abstract pictures. He later taught at the Bauhaus until the Nazis closed it, then settled in France.
未知上傳者 · Public domain
Pope John VIII led the Papal States from 872 until his death. He fought Muslim advances in southern Italy, backed the missionary Methodius among the Slavs, and authorised a Bible translation into Old Church Slavonic.
Anonymous Unknown author · Public domain
Maugham was an English playwright and novelist who gave up medicine for writing. He was best known for Of Human Bondage and his sharply observed short stories, many later adapted for film and television.
Carl Van Vechten (1880 - 1964) · Public domain
Camille Saint-Saëns was a French composer, organist and pianist, best known for Danse macabre, the opera Samson and Delilah and The Carnival of the Animals. A child prodigy who made his concert debut at ten, he spent his later years at odds with the impressionist composers of the day.
Agence de presse Meurisse · Public domain
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