November 23rd, 2008

Today in History

1499:
Pretender to the throne Perkin Warbeck is hanged for reportedly attempting to escape from the Tower of London. He had invaded England in 1497, claiming to be the lost son of King Edward IV of England.

1971:
The People's Republic of China is given the Taiwan's seat on the United Nations Security Council. (See China and the United Nations)

1979:
In Dublin, Ireland, Irish Republican Army member Thomas McMahon is sentenced to life in prison for the assassination of Lord Mountbatten.

1980:
A series of earthquakes in southern Italy kills approximately 4,800 people.

1869:
In Dumbarton, Scotland, the clipper Cutty Sark is launched -- one of the last clippers ever to be built, and the only one still surviving to this day.