The Battle of the Bulge ended with high casualties. The Cullinan diamond was found and given to the King of England. The first Emmy Awards ceremony was held, and Idi Amin became the leader of Uganda. President Kennedy gave the first live televised presidential press conference. The Norwegian missile incident occurred, and Jiang Qing was sentenced to death. The first national monument in the US was commissioned, and the first Winter Olympics were held. The “Wedding March” was played at Queen Victoria’s daughter’s wedding.
The Battle of the Bulge ended. (1945) One of the greatest battles of World War II, the Battle of the Bulge has the dubious distinction of being the bloodiest and most fatal battle of the war. There were several hundred thousand soldier casualties and another approximately 3,000 civilian casualties.
Found the Cullinan diamond, one of the largest diamonds in the world. (1905) 3.106 carat diamond was discovered in South Africa on this day. Weighing approximately 1.3 pounds (nearly 600 grams), the diamond was given as a birthday present to the King of England, who had it cut into several large diamonds and placed in the crown jewels.
The first Emmy Awards ceremony was held. (1949) Despite a lack of support from Hollywood film executives, the Emmys took off and later became as respected as the Oscars. The first Emmy winner was Shirley Dinsdale, who hosted a ventriloquist show called Judy Splinters.
Idi Amin became the leader of Uganda. (1971) Amin deposed Uganda’s former president in a military coup, and became notorious for his capricious and cruel policies. His rule was characterized by incompetence, nepotism, paranoia and human rights abuses.
US President Kennedy gave the first live televised presidential press conference. (1961) The lecture consisted of Kennedy reading a prepared statement that spoke of a famine in Africa and negotiations with Russia, among other things. Kennedy used his photogenic good looks to his advantage throughout his presidency and set the standard for presidential mass media appearances.
The Norwegian missile incident occurred. (1995) Russia nearly fired a nuclear missile at a Norwegian seeker rocket after mistaking it for an American missile. The event highlighted the remaining tensions of the Cold War, despite the fact that the war had officially ended four years earlier.
Jiang Qing, Mao Zedong’s wife, was sentenced to death. (1981) Qing was an actress before marrying Mao, but she quickly became influential in communist politics. She was instrumental in the excesses of the Cultural Revolution and remained powerful after Mao’s death as part of the Gang of Four before she and other Gang members were tried for treason.
The first national monument in the United States was commissioned. (1776) The Continental Congress authorized the first national monument in the United States in honor of Brigadier General Richard Montgomery, who had been killed in an attack on Quebec. The monument, which consisted of a bust of Montgomery, remained in New York for years before being transferred to the Bibliotheque Mazarine in Paris.
The first Winter Olympics were held. (1924) The first Winter Olympics were held in Chamonix in the French Alps. There were a total of 12 events, including ski jumping and bobsleigh.
The “Wedding March” was played at the wedding of Queen Victoria’s daughter. (1858) Mendelssohn’s famous Rescission of Marriage became extremely popular after being portrayed in Marriage. It has gone on to become the iconic wedding song for most Western weddings in the 20th and 21st centuries.
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