Month: October 2020

The Saturday Night Massacre (1973)

While investigating the Watergate scandal, special prosecutor Archibald Cox subpoenaed audiotapes of conversations implicating US President Richard Nixon in a cover-up of a burglary of the Democratic headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC. Nixon refused to produce the tapes and ordered the US attorney general and his deputy to fire Cox. On the same Saturday, both men resigned in protest, and public outcry eventually forced Nixon to surrender the tapes. What happened to Cox? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Pauline Bonaparte (1780)

A woman of great beauty and considerable scandal, Pauline Bonaparte was Napoleon’s favorite sister. She accompanied her first husband on an expedition to subdue Haiti, but he failed and died of yellow fever. Pauline then married a Roman nobleman, but she soon tired of him and returned to Paris, where her scandalous conduct earned her a reputation. Pauline was the only one of Napoleon’s siblings to come to his aid when he was exiled to Elba, despite having incurred his disfavor for what? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Fritz Joubert Duquesne

Said to have been handsome, charming, and fluent in several languages, Duquesne was a South African Boer who led a life of intrigue. He was a secret agent, military officer, big game hunter, saboteur, and journalist. Imprisoned on numerous occasions, he narrowly avoided execution by firing squad and once escaped from prison by feigning paralysis. While spying for Germany, he and 32 others were arrested in the FBI’s 1941 takedown of the Duquesne Spy Ring. Who is he suspected of assassinating? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Black Monday: Dow Jones Industrial Average Falls 508 Points (1987)

On what is known in the financial world as Black Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 508 points, nearly 23%—the largest drop since 1914. Although the cause of the crash is still debated, its result was immediately apparent: it sent the value of markets plummeting worldwide. By the end of the month, markets in Hong Kong and Australia had lost over 40%. That December, a group of eminent economists predicted that the next few years could be the worst since the Great Depression. Were they? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

John McLoughlin (1784)

A Canadian doctor and fur trader, McLoughlin became administrator of the far western region of England’s Hudson’s Bay Company in the 1820s. In spite of the strained relations between Britain and the US, “the Father of Oregon” offered help to American settlers in the disputed territory. After an 1846 treaty established the US-Canadian border farther north than he had hoped, he claimed a large tract of land whose ownership he disputed with the US until his death. Who was he accused of murdering? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

French Indochina

The region that is today home to Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam came under French control in the late 1800s as French Indochina. Though occupied by Japan during World War II, the area did not achieve full independence from France until 1954. Soon after independence, the Vietnam War erupted. After World War II, US President Franklin Roosevelt unsuccessfully attempted to arrange for China to acquire the region before France could regain control. What was Chairman Chiang Kai-shek’s emphatic response? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Earthquake Destroys Basel, Switzerland (1356)

Estimated to have been greater than 6.0 in magnitude, the Basel earthquake of 1356 may have been the most serious seismological event in the recorded history of central Europe. The main earthquake struck around 10 PM. In the Swiss city of Basel, all the major buildings—including castles and churches—were destroyed by the quake and subsequent fires. Three hundred people are thought to have been killed. The event was felt across Europe, including as far away as what locations? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary