BATTLE OF SLUYS

                In 1337, the Hundred Years’ War began when French King Philip IV died and English King Edward III claimed the throne.  On June 24, 1340, Edward’s fleet won the first major battle of the war at the port of Sluys.  Sluys was one of the biggest ports in Europe Read more

THE SAILFISH AND THE SCULPIN

                On March 23, 1939, the US submarine Squalus sank off the coast of New Hampshire.  The sinking was due to a faulty air induction valve which caused the aft engine room to flood, killing 24 sailors and two civilians.  The rest of the crew (32 sailors and a civilian) Read more

OPERATION AZORIAN

                In 1968, during the Cold War, the Soviet nuclear sub K-129 sank in the middle of the Pacific.  It came to rest 16,000 feet down.  Soviet attempts to locate it were unsuccessful and they gave up.  A few months later, the USS  Halibut, using a robot with cameras, was Read more

THE BATTLE OF LAKE TRASIMENE

                The greatest ambush in military history took place on June 21, 217 B.C.  Just one year earlier, Hannibal had crossed the Alps into Italy.  After winning the Battle of the Trebia, Hannibal continued south and bypassed a Roman army under Flaminius.  Scorching the earth as he marched, the Roman Read more

THE HISTORY OF FATHER’S DAY

                The first national Mother’s Day was celebrated in 1914.  Dads had to wait 58 years.  In 1909, Sonora Smart Dodd, the daughter of a widower who raised six kids, began to push for a day to honor fathers after she heard a sermon about Anna Jarvis’ proposed Mother’s Day. Read more

THE CLOSING OF THE GATE

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo.  There were many important moments in that decisive battle – a battle that changed the course of European history.  But according to the Duke of Wellington, the most crucial moment was the closing of the gate at Hougoumont.                 On June Read more

THE REICHSTAG FIRE

                Around 9 P.M. on Feb. 27, 1933, Hans Flotter witnessed a man on a balcony of the Reichstag building in Berlin.  The man was carrying something on fire.  Flotter called the police.  A policeman went into the building and shot at a man moving around in it.  The man Read more