Pope John Paul II makes first papal visit to the White House (1979), and Fiji becomes a republic (1987). Born on this day: Le Corbusier, Hafez al-Assad and Thor Heyerdahl. Died: Anwar Sadat, Bette Davis and Charles II.
30 events, 70 births and 62 deaths on this date.
John Paul II was the first pope to be received at the White House, meeting President Jimmy Carter during his first trip to the United States as pontiff. The visit marked a new level of contact between the Vatican and the American government.
Unknown author Unknown author · CC BY 3.0 plFollowing two military coups that year, Fiji formally cut its ties to the British crown and became a republic. The military government behind the change had taken power only weeks earlier, and the country remains a republic today.
Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger launched Instagram for iPhone users, letting them filter and share photos. It grew quickly, reaching a million users within two months, and Facebook bought it in 2012.
Austria-Hungary formally annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, which it had administered since 1878 but which remained nominally part of the Ottoman Empire. The move angered Russia and Serbia, leaving lasting bitterness that helped set the stage for the First World War.
Attackers struck the French-chartered tanker Limburg with an explosive boat, and roughly 90,000 barrels of crude spilled into the Gulf of Aden. The attack showed that al-Qaeda could strike commercial shipping far from its bases.
Eudoxia, wife of the Eastern Roman emperor Arcadius, died after losing her seventh pregnancy. She had been a powerful figure at court, and her death came shortly after a bitter quarrel with the bishop John Chrysostom.
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Born Charles-Édouard Jeanneret in Switzerland, Le Corbusier was a leading figure in modern architecture, with buildings from Europe to India and Japan. He also drew up the master plan for Chandigarh, though his ties to fascism remain contested.
Joop van Bilsen for Anefo · CC0
Hafez al-Assad was a Syrian air force commander who became president in 1971 after seizing power in a coup. He ruled Syria until his death in 2000, leaving the country to his son Bashar.
Government of Syria · Public domain
Norwegian adventurer and ethnographer who crossed the Pacific in 1947 on the Kon-Tiki, a hand-built raft, to test whether South Americans could have settled Polynesia. He sailed a papyrus reed boat from Africa to Barbados, though most scientists rejected his theories.
uncredited · Public domain
Egyptian president who led the 1973 war to regain Sinai, then made peace with Israel at Camp David. He was shot dead by militants at a military parade in Cairo in 1981.
Press · Public domain
Bette Davis was an American actress who played sharp, unsympathetic characters and won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice. She was also the first person to receive ten Academy Award acting nominations, and she later became known for her memoirs.
Studio Publicity · Public domain
Charles the Bald ruled West Francia for over three decades and was crowned Emperor of the Carolingian Empire in 875. He died on this day in 877, while crossing the Alps on his way back from Italy.
Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain
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