History is a cause of celebration and reflection. It is a source of inspiration. There have been uncountable inventions, innovations, treaties, and other significant events in the past and all of them have something to teach us, to inspire us to keep going, and not to stop even if we fail. Start your day with a positive thought. Do something great today and we might publish it in our Daily Column in the years to come. Let us read the historical milestones of May 18.
1792: Russian troops invaded Poland
The battle took place between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Army and an Imperial Russian Army group. On 18 May 1792, the Russian ambassador to Poland delivered a declaration of war to the Polish Foreign Minister. The war took place in two folds: one in the northern part and the other in the southern. The Russian army had a nearly 3:1 numerical advantage, forcing the Polish forces to retreat.
1802: Britain declares war on France
This was the last one of the French Revolutionary Wars, a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, Russia, and several other monarchies. After this, the British and French signed the Treaty of Amiens, ending the war. Moreover, this treaty is generally considered to be the most appropriate point to mark the transition between the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars.
1804: Napoleon Bonaparte became the Emperor of France
On May 18, 1804, the Senate – who had all been chosen by Napoleon — passed a law making him Emperor of the French and his family, was made hereditary heirs. After seizing political power in France in 1799, he crowned himself emperor in 1804. However, after a disastrous French invasion of Russia in 1812, he abdicated the throne two years later and was exiled to the island of Elba.
1860: Abraham Lincoln is nominated for president
Image by WikiImages from Pixabay
This was in 1860 when it was a time to nominate the Republican Party’s candidates for president and vice president in the 1860 election. The convention selected former Representative Abraham Lincoln of Illinois for president and Senator Hannibal Hamlin of Maine for vice president. Lincoln won the party’s presidential nomination. In the November election, he again faced Douglas, the previous opponent, and defeated him with only 40% of the popular vote, becoming the first Republican to win the presidency.
1951: The United Nations moves its headquarters to New York City
Sixty-nine years ago on May 18, the headquarters for the United Nations officially move. They shift from their temporary offices in Lake Success to the brand new 39-story Secretariat Building in Manhattan. It was facing the East River, just a few months after the building opened in January. Thus, the General Assembly that year would be held in Paris. As the permanent assembly hall would not be ready until the following year 1952. However, none of the UN’s 15 specialized agencies are located at the headquarters. However, some autonomous subsidiary organs have their headquarters at the main UN Headquarters.
1974: India becomes the sixth nation to explode an atomic bomb
The first successful atomic bomb test in the Pokharan desert shaking the Earth violently. Therefore, India became the world’s sixth nuclear power. However, this feat was after the U.S., Soviet Union, Britain, France, and China. However, this was a peaceful nuclear explosion by India.
1980: Mount Saint Helens, in Washington, erupts 3 times in 24 hours
After rumbling for two months, an earthquake struck below the north face of Mount St. Helens in Washington State. And, it was triggering the largest landslide in recorded history and a major volcanic eruption that scattered ash across a dozen states. Consequently, a total of 57 people lost their lives in the disaster. Further, the column of ash and gas reached 15 miles into the atmosphere, depositing ash across a dozen states. As well as, the volcano erupted again on July 22, 1980.
2009: Sri Lankan Civil War ends
Sri Lankan government defeats the LTTE. This ends the 26 years of fighting between the two sides. The origins of this war lie in the continuous political rancor between the majority Sinhalese and the minority Sri Lankan Tamils. The conflict arose from the ethnic tension between Sinhalese and Tamil citizens. Finally, Colombo declared the end of the 26-year civil war between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, also known as Tamil Tigers.
