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 12.
1851: The Tule River War ends
Image by David Mark from Pixabay
A treaty was signed with the local tribes in 1851, one of eighteen such treaties signed state-wide, setting aside seven and a half percent of California’s land area, defining a proposed reservation and two hundred head of cattle per year
1926: The Airship Norge became the first vessel to fly over the North Pole
On May 12, 1926, group of sixteen fearless adventurers boarded a small dirigible to fly over the North Pole. The audacious journey would be the first-ever flight from the European continent to the American continent over the Arctic ice cap. The tiny lighter-than-air craft they piloted they named the Norge.
1940: The Nazi conquest of France begins with the crossing Meuse River
In six weeks, Nazi Germany conquered Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg adding these countries to their third Reich. German General Guderian with his three divisions had successfully reached the Meuse River. The French believed it would take 4 days to cross the Meuse River, but German engineer’s determination even under fire completed the bridgehead at Dinant, Montherme, and Sedan in just 24 hours.
1943: Axis forces in North Africa surrender
On surrendering, they yielded over 275,000 prisoners of war. The last Axis force to surrender in North Africa was the first Italian army. This huge loss of experienced troops greatly reduced the military capacity of the Axis powers, although the largest percentage of Axis troops escaped Tunisia.
1949: The Berlin Blockade ends
This war started in 1948 on 24 June. It was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War. However, the blockade was lifted and West Berlin remained under the control of the Western Allies. The Berlin Blockade was an attempt in 1948 by the Soviet Union to limit the ability of the United States, Great Britain, and France to travel to their sectors of Berlin, which lay within Russian-occupied East Germany. Thus the war came to an end today (May 12), that year.
