Today In History - Sunday, May 19th
1991
Croatian's vote for independence at their independence referendum.
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1971
Mars probe program: Mars 2 is launched by the Soviet Union.
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1962
A birthday salute to U.S. President John F. Kennedy takes place at Madison Square Garden, New York City. The highlight is Marilyn Monroe's infamous rendition of ''Happy Birthday''.
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1961
Venera program: Venera 1 becomes the first man-made object to fly-by another planet by passing Venus (the probe had lost contact with Earth a month earlier and did not send back any data).
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1943
World War II: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt set Monday, May 1, 1944 as the date for the cross-English Channel landing (D-Day would later be delayed over a month due to bad weather).
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1922
The Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union is established.
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1921
The U.S. Congress passes the Emergency Quota Act establishing national quotas on immigration.
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1919
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk lands at Samsun on the Anatolian Black Sea coast, initiating what was later termed the Turkish War of Independence. The anniversary of this event is the official date of commemoration of the Pontic Greek Genocide in Greece and Cyprus.
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1897
Oscar Wilde is released from Reading Gaol.
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1864
American Civil War: the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House ends.
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1848
Mexican-American War: Mexico ratifies the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo thus ending the war and ceding California, Nevada, Utah and parts of four other modern-day U.S. states to the United States for $15 million USD.
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1828
U.S. President John Quincy Adams signs the Tariff of 1828 into law, protecting wool manufacturers in the United States.
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1802
The Légion d'Honneur is founded by Napoleon Bonaparte.
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1780
New England's Dark Day: A combination of thick smoke and heavy cloud cover causes complete darkness to fall on Eastern Canada and the New England area of the United States at 10:30 A.M.
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1749
King George II of Great Britain grants the Ohio Company a charter of land around the forks of the Ohio River.
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1649
An Act declaring England a Commonwealth is passed by the Long Parliament. England would be a republic for the next eleven years.
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1643
Thirty Years' War: French forces under the duc d'Enghien decisively defeat Spanish forces at the Battle of Rocroi, marking the symbolic end of Spain as a dominant land power.
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1568
Queen Elizabeth I of England has Mary Queen of Scots arrested.
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1536
Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery, treason, and incest.
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1535
French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships, 110 men, and Chief Donnacona's two sons (whom Cartier kidnapped during his first voyage).
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1499
Catherine of Aragon, is married by proxy to Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales. Catherine is 13 and Arthur is 12.
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