Today in History for March 15: In 44 BC, Roman General Julius Caesar was assassinated in Rome by a group of nobles that included Brutus and Cassius. In 453, Attila the Hun died of a nose bleed.
Today in History for March 15:
In 44 BC, Roman General Julius Caesar was assassinated in Rome by a group of nobles that included Brutus and Cassius.
In 453, Attila the Hun died of a nose bleed.
In 1493, Christopher Columbus returned to Spain from his first voyage to the Western Hemisphere.
In 1521, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan arrived in the Philippines during his round-the-world voyage. He died in a battle with natives on April 27th.
In 1603, French explorer Samuel de Champlain made his first voyage to New France as a member of a fur-trading expedition. The expedition explored the St. Lawrence River as far as the rapids at Lachine. In 1604, Champlain returned with the Sieur de Monts, who had a monopoly of trade in the region, to found a colony in what is now Port Royal, N.S.
In 1657, Mother Giffard de Saint-Ignace, the first Canadian woman to take religious vows, died.
In 1862, a Canadian commission recommended the conscription of 50,000 men in case of war with the United States, which was in the midst of the Civil War.
In 1869, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first professional baseball team, was organized.
In 1871, the Manitoba legislature opened its first session.
In 1892, the first escalator — the Reno Inclined Elevator — was patented by Jesse W. Reno of New York.
In 1906, the Alberta government opened its first session. It was held at the Thistle skating rink in Edmonton.
In 1913, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson held the first White House news conference.
In 1917, Czar Nicholas II of Russia abdicated after a four-day revolt by the armed forces. He and his family were murdered by the Bolsheviks the following year.
In 1943, Canadian Pacific’s “Empress of Canada,” retooled as a troop ship, was sunk off the coast of West Africa after being torpedoed by the Italian submarine “Leonardo da Vinci.” Of the 1,800 people aboard, 400 were Italian prisoners of war and 200 Poles who had been released by the Soviet Union after Germany invaded. There were 392 fatalities: 340 passengers, including a majority of the Italian prisoners, 44 crew and eight gunners.
In 1945, after three weeks of fierce fighting, the United States took control of the Japanese island of Iwo Jima, although sporadic fighting continued. The battle for Iwo Jima was one of the deadliest of the war, resulting in the deaths of about 20,000 Japanese and 6,800 Americans.
In 1961, Prime Minister Hendrick Verwoerd led South Africa out of the Commonwealth, announcing it would become a republic on May 31st.
In 1962, Donald Jackson, of Oshawa, Ont., won the world men’s figure skating championship in Prague. During his free skate, Jackson landed the first triple lutz jump in competition.
In 1973, aboriginals in Alberta won a settlement of nearly $200,000 in so-called “ammunition money” because an 1877 treaty stipulated they should have been paid $2,000 annually.
In 1975, Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis died near Paris at age 69.
In 1990, the federal government decided that Sikh members of the RCMP could wear turbans and other religious garb while on duty. Many, including Western MPs, were opposed, but Solicitor General Pierre Cadieux said it was the right decision in terms of human rights, in terms of multiculturalism policy, and because it’s just smart to have visible minorities represented on the force.
In 1992, the United Nations officially embarked on its largest peacekeeping operation with the arrival of a diplomat in Cambodia.
In 1996, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved, in a record 42 days, the anti-AIDS drug Indinavir, which wipes out much of the deadly virus from a patient’s blood.
In 1998, Dr. Benjamin Spock, the world’s most famous baby doctor, died in San Diego. He was 94. His common-sense books on baby care helped guide parents around the world. Spock’s 1946 “Baby and Child Care” and its revised editions have sold more than 50 million copies in 40 languages. Spock was also an Olympic rowing champion in 1924, and became a vocal opponent of the Vietnam War in the 1960s.
In 2003, the World Health Organization issued a global travel advisory and named the mysterious pneumonia that hit China, Hong Kong, Vietnam Singapore and Canada “severe acute respiratory syndrome” — or SARS.
In 2004, astronomers announced the discovery of the furthest known object in the solar system at 16 billion kilometres away, a “planetoid” provisionally named “Sedna.”
In 2004, 10 days after being convicted in a stock scandal, Martha Stewart resigned from the board of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia.
In 2005, Bernard Ebbers, the Alberta-born former CEO of WorldCom, was convicted on all nine charges of engineering the colossal accounting fraud that sank the telecom company.
In 2007, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the longstanding legal ban on reporting early vote results on federal election nights in regions of the country where the polls are still open. In a 5-4 decision, the court ruled the ban could be justified under the Charter of Rights.
In 2010, a Saskatchewan court ruled that convicted wife killer Colin Thatcher couldn’t make any money from “Final Appeal: Anatomy of a Frame,” the book he wrote proclaiming his innocence in the 1983 murder of JoAnn Wilson, upholding a 2009 law that stated criminals couldn’t profit from recounting their crimes.
In 2013, Canadian Patrick Chan won his third consecutive world figure skating title, becoming the first men’s singles skater in 13 years to win three straight.
In 2018, a newly built pedestrian bridge at the Florida International University in Miami collapsed while undergoing stress tests, falling onto a busy six-lane highway, crushing cars and killing at least six people. The $14.2 million project was supposed to take advantage of a faster, cheaper and safer method of bridge-building promoted by the university.
In 2018, Canadian biathletes won three medals at the Pyeongchang Paraympic Games: Mark Arendz took gold in the men’s standing 15-km, while Collin Cameron took silver in the men’s sitting 15-km; Brittany Hudak took bronze in the women’s standing 12.5-km event.
In 2018, University of Maryland-Baltimore County beat Virginia 74-54 to become the first No. 16 seed to knock off a No. 1 at March Madness, the U.S. college men’s basketball tournament. Previously, No. 1 seeds were a combined 135-0.
In 2018, Toys R Us sought court approval to liquidate its remaining 735 U.S. stores, a day after its U.K. counterpart announced it would shutter all 75 locations in the country. (The last U.S stores closed on June 29. Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. bought the 82 Canadian stores for $300 million.)
In 2019, 51 people were killed in mass shootings at two mosques full of worshippers attending Friday prayers on what the New Zealand prime minister called one of the country’s darkest days. One man was arrested and charged with murder in what appeared to be a carefully planned racist attack. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the events in Christchurch represented “an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence” and that many of the victims could be migrants or refugees. In addition to the dead, 40 people were treated for gunshot wounds. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canadians were appalled by the attack and said far too often, Muslims suffer unimaginable loss and pain in the places where they should feel safest. Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old man from Grafton, New South Wales, Australia, described as a white supremacist and part of the alt-right, was arrested and charged with murder, attempted murder and engaging in a terrorist act. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
In 2020, Ontario became a hotspot for COVID-19 in Canada, with 101 cases. Meanwhile, three people in Nova Scotia were reported to be the province’s first COVID-19 cases. Alberta ordered the immediate cancellation of all kindergarten to Grade 12 classes and closed all daycares. Spain announced a lockdown of its 46 million people.
In 2020, Canada’s top public health officer said there should be no gatherings of 250 people or more to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Dr. Theresa Tam also said all travel should be cancelled unless it’s absolutely essential, calling the situation “serious.”
In 2020, the U.S. Federal Reserve slashed its benchmark interest rate by a full percentage point to nearly zero in a bid to offset the impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
In 2020, the Republic of Congo, home to the World Health Organization’s regional Africa headquarters, reported its first case of the novel coronavirus.
In 2020, the Vatican announced Pope Francis would not lead any public celebrations for Easter due to the novel coronavirus.
In 2021, the number of Canadians who’d received a shot of COVID-19 vaccine passed the three-million mark.
In 2021, France, Germany and Italy joined a growing list of countries suspending use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said all shots approved for use in Canada are safe. Trudeau said Health Canada is keeping close watch on investigations into reports of blood clots in some people in Denmark and Norway who received the vaccine. European regulators said there’s no evidence the shot is to blame. Trudeau said ”The very best vaccine for you to take is the first one that is offered to you.”
In 2021, the man who played a legendary James Bond villain died. Yaphet Kotto was 81. The longtime character actor was probably best known as Dr. Kanaga and his alter ego Mr. Big in 1973’s “Live and Let Die.” The villain tried to kill Roger Moore’s double-0-7 by lowering him into shark-infested waters. Kotto also appeared in T-V series including “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Law & Order,” and films including “Alien” and “Midnight Run.”
In 2022, a day after Jerry Dias announced his sudden retirement, Unifor revealed it had been investigating the now-former union president since late January. Canada’s largest private sector union said the secretary-treasurer was sent a complaint alleging Dias engaged in a breach of the union’s constitution. Dias was notified of an independent investigation Jan. 29, took medical leave Feb. 6, then decided March 11 to retire immediately, citing health issues.
In 2022, Canada announced sanctions against another 15 Russians, and a short time later, Moscow responded by banning more than 300 Canadians from entering the country. The names on that list included Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, chief of defence staff Gen. Wayne Eyre and almost every member of Parliament.
In 2022, Fox News videographer Pierre Zakrzewski was killed in Ukraine, after the vehicle he was travelling in was struck by incoming fire. Reporter Benjamin Hall was injured in the attack outside of Kyiv. Zakrzewski covered conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria and helped get freelancers and their families out of Afghanistan the previous year.
In 2023, Canadian Pacific Railway’s takeover of Kansas City Southern Railway received its final regulatory approval. Approval from the U.S. Surface Transportation Safety Board cleared the way for the $42.7-billion deal, which would create the only single-line rail network linking Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.
In 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the appointment of former governor general David Johnston as special rapporteur on foreign interference. Johnston was tasked with looking into allegations of foreign meddling in Canada’s last two federal elections. He was also to make recommendations on what the Liberal government should do about it.
In 2024, Australia followed Canada, Sweden and the European Commission in restoring funding to UNWRA, the United Nations relief agency for Palestinians.
In 2024, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he’s willing to work with Quebec to limit temporary workers where needed, but rejected the province’s request for full powers over immigration. Trudeau made the comments following a meeting in Montreal with Premier Francois Legault. He added that Quebec already has more control over newcomers than any other province or territory, with authority over the number of economic immigrants to the province. Legault said Quebec needs full control over immigration because the number of newcomers to the province is causing a breaking point in social services and threatening the French language.
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The Canadian Press
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