October 12th, 2008

Today in History

1915:
World War I: British nurse Edith Cavell is executed by a German firing squad for helping Allied soldiers escape from Belgium

2003:
Michael Schumacher clinches his 6th Formula One championship, an all-time record

1964:
The Soviet Union launches the Voskhod 1 into Earth orbit as the first spacecraft with a multi-person crew and the first flight without space suits

1492:
Christopher Columbus's expedition makes landfall in the Caribbean. The explorer believes he has reached East Asia

1654:
The Delft Explosion devastates the city in the Netherlands, killing more than 100.