Sundae, Sundae

The state of TIAH

July 8th, 2006

in 1881, druggist Edward Berner of Two Rivers, Wisconsin felt that he needed a gimmick to set his drugstore apart from others. Being something of a historian, he knew of an old 18th century dessert called ice cream, that had failed to catch on in the U.S. He tried to revive it by pouring chocolate syrup over it. As delicious as the syrup was, it couldn’t revive the full dish – people ate the syrup and left the ice cream. Berner even added bananas, cherries, sweet whipped cream and nuts to the mix, but was always left with the melted soup of the ice cream at the end of the dessert. As hard as he tried to make a go of it, Americans just didn't like ice cream.

in 1918, Red Cross ambulance driver Ernest Hemingway, barely 19 years old, is shot nearly to death as he attempts to carry a soldier from the field of battle on the Italian front. Hemingway manages to struggle himself and his charge into the ambulance and drive almost 12 miles to the field hospital before collapsing. Doctors struggle to save the valiant young driver, but his immense loss of blood during the long drive proves too great, and he dies on the operating table. The family of the soldier he saved petitions for Hemingway to receive the Medal of Honor, which he is awarded posthumously in 1921.

in 1947, Bessie Brazel keeps a precarious hold on her life as Dr. Powell prepares to use a blood transfusion to cure what he believes is radiation poisoning. He has examined the glowing stick she kept beside her bed for several days, and it is indeed very radioactive. Bessie's father, rancher Mac Brazel, explains about the strange wreckage to Sheriff George Wilcox, but neglects mentioning the bodies that he also found and buried. Wilcox insists on going to the site where Brazel and his sons buried everything, and while there, finds one of the bodies. When he confronts Brazel about it, the rancher breaks down and tells him everything, pointing out the other bodies as well. Sheriff Wilcox takes some of the wreckage to the Roswell Air Force base to ask them if it is anything they have recently lost. To his great surprise, they begin interrogating him about where he found this wreckage, and if he found anything else with it. The sheriff tells them where the rest of the wreckage, and the bodies, are buried, and they tell him that this matter is classified, and he is to tell no one else about it. Air Force security pay a visit to the Brazel ranch and the hospital to tell Brazel and Dr. Powell the need for secrecy in this matter.

in 1954, Comrade President Jacobo Arbenz Guzman of The People's Republic of Guatemala orders the execution of failed coup leader Colonel Carlos Castillo Armas. Reactionary European monarchies had backed the colonel's attempt to take over his country and turn it into a capitalist bastion in the backyard of the Soviet States of America. Ever-vigilant Soviet spies in the People's Republic alerted Comrade Arbenz to the danger represented by Colonel Castillo Armas, and the SSA provided him with troops and arms to fight off the colonel's treacherous attack. The American Secretary of State proudly announced that “the people of Guatemala have been saved from European imperialism. The foiling of this dastardly plot has added a new and glorious chapter to the comrades of the American hemisphere.”

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Birth Of Siddhartha; Death Of Place & Lynn

April 8th, 2006

in 563 BC, Emperor Siddhartha was born in India among the Shakya. After achieving spiritual enlightenment as a young prince, Siddhartha led the Shakya to conquest across the Asian subcontinent, unifying most of southeast Asia in an advanced empire of great learning and wisdom.

in 1455, descendants of Telka the Speaker maneuver their candidate for the papacy, Alfonso de Borgia, into the Shoes of the Fisherman. Pope Callistus III funnels huge amounts of wealth to a secret fund that will finance the Speaker’s Children for centuries.

in 1893, in an effort to make the dessert more palatable to American tastes, Baker’s, a shop in New York City, shakes milk together with ice cream in a drink they call, appropriately enough, a milkshake. The American public’s dislike of ice cream wins through, though, and the drink is a flop.

in 1899, the horror of Martha Place’s execution in the electric chair in New York led to a widespread movement to ban the death penalty for women; Place had been the first woman executed by this new invention. After the nation banned the death penalty for women in 1902, a more widespread ban on the ultimate penalty was enacted in 1910, abolishing it entirely in the United States for all crimes other than treason.

in 1915, after many rough adventures in the streets of the Q'Barian city they have landed in, the landing party from the Harlequin locates the building that has sent out the distress signal they responded to. It is a hospital, and they are the only Q'Barians who are glad to see the humans and Mlosh of the Harlequin. The Chief Doctor of the institution begs them, “Please, you must take our patients away from this. We cannot hold out much longer.” Captain Smith of the Harlequin agrees, and orders more shuttles down from the Harlequin to evacuate the hospital.

in 1952, President Joseph McCarthy nationalized the steel industry when it looked like he couldn’t end a strike by Ohio steelworkers quickly. When the Supreme Court ruled that he was stepping outside of constitutional boundaries by doing so, he sent in the U.S. military to arrest the Court. After he suspended the elections that year, millions of Americans, including large numbers of the military, rose up against him and plunged the nation into a 5-year civil war.

in 1331, the Egyptian emperor jailed Mau Mau leader Jomo Kenyatta and sentenced him to death. Kenyatta had been leading the Mau Mau in mostly non-violent protests against Egyptian rule, and the emperor felt that Kenyatta’s removal from the movement would kill it. It had the opposite effect; the Mau Mau were able to achieve independence after Kenyatta’s death inspired more people to join their fight.

in 1972, South Chilean guerillos strike east from Val Paraiso, cutting the capitol of Santiago off from the rest of the north. American troops immediately move to aid the embattled Communist regime, and quickly push the guerillos a safe distance away from Santiago.

in 1997, anti-Constitutionalist minister Barry W. Lynn is executed by Constitutionalists following orders from President Ralph Shephard. Lynn had been active in the underground American movement getting dissidents out of the country and working to overthrow the one-party rule Shephard had implemented.

in 2005, with captive Claw scientist Ahn Wun cooperating because she fears the Save Earthers will torture her son if she doesn't, the SE learns that four main sectors handle all of the Claw transformation into human appearance; she also provides them with a rough idea of the security at these installations. None are in the U.S., and Representative Worthington's ability to tap into government funds for travel is now in question, so they call on another resource.


Timelines in today's post: the Speaker, the Mlosh, Islam Ascendant, the Ralph Shephard timeline, The Claw and Communist America.

Today's "Six Degrees of Star Trek" challenge: Connect The Shoes of the Fisherman to Star Trek. Place your answers in the comments and see the Forum for previous results. For more on 6 degrees games, click here.

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Establishment Of The Congress Of Nations

July 8th, 2005

in 477, the faithful of Jerusalem destroyed the infidel Godfrey as his forces marched around the holy city’s walls. Never would an unbeliever set foot within Jerusalem’s sacred streets.

in 1709, Charles XII of Sweden defeated Peter the Great of Russia in battle at Poltava in the Ukraine. The Swedish Empire grew even larger after that, swallowing up chunks of Russia over the years, and, after Peter’s death in 1725, annexing the once-great nation altogether.

in 1864, the Congress of Nations is established. The Mlosh First Chancellors of the North American Confederation and Ml’Astra both speak at the opening, as do Prime Minister Henry Palmerston of England and Karangan King Abayomi. The event in Cairo, Egypt is marred by violence as Human League terrorists fire at the stage during First Chancellor Telgala’s speech, disintegrating the podium she was standing behind. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and the terrorists were apprehended immediately.

in 1881, druggist Edward Berner of Two Rivers, Wisconsin felt that he needed a gimmick to set his drugstore apart from others. Being something of a historian, he knew of an old 18th century dessert called ice cream, that had failed to catch on in the U.S. He tried to revive it by pouring chocolate syrup over it. As delicious as the syrup was, it couldn’t revive the full dish – people ate the syrup and left the ice cream.

in 1947, rancher Mac Brazel is taken into custody at the Roswell Army Air Base, and questioned about the wreckage. Repeatedly, the military interrogators ask him about a second crash, and where the aliens are. Several newspapers break the story that a flying saucer has crashed in Roswell, New Mexico.

in 4648, the b’Han scientists finish their preliminary mission on earth and take their leave of Emperor Dao-Ming. While they have enjoyed his company, and he their’s, they have some criticisms they give him of the government he rules over. “In your society, people are born to a class and die in that class. For a high-born individual such as you, this is a fine existence, filled with opportunities as well as challenges. But, what motivation does someone born in the lower classes have? What opportunities are permitted them, to leaven the challenges that your society places in their way? In our society, we all have an equal voice in determining the path of our people. But here, your voice alone does that.” The emperor was troubled at their words, so they left him with this: “We believe that you are a being of good moral values; that you wish to do what is right. Perhaps it is time to search within your spirit to determine what that right is.”

in 1961, country singer Toby Keith was born. During the Second Gulf War, Keith’s Marines Reserve unit was called up, and he left music to fight for his country. He was killed in Iraq during the Fallujah uprising.

in 1981, John Hartnett and Matthew Knoll (better known as Electro-Man and Sparky of the Vegas 6), along with Cynthia Matthews (Meteora), visit their families in Las Vegas one last time before the assault on Area 51 to stop the spread of the genetically engineered virus brewing in the facility. Hartnett, unwilling to risk his grandson’s life, stuns Knoll and leaves him at home so that his life will be spared.

in 2000, a cargo plane lands on a private strip in New York. The huge package it is carrying from Russia is hastily unloaded and put on a truck bound for New York City. The truck fights one of the worst storms in the city’s history as it drives towards the office building owned by Steve Huff, the businessman who had arranged for the transfer of the item from the Kremlin.


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Wandjina's Wisdom; Nobody Screams For Ice Cream

June 13th, 2005

in the Dreaming, Wandjina came to the people of Pindanjaru with much wisdom. He spoke of caring for the land, of building a bridge to the stars, and of the coming of the pale men. He promised to return on that day to defend the Dreaming against their invasion.

in Kaliyuga 597, Gauthama Siddhartha, a prince of India, sat beneath a tree and meditated. The riches of his people were before him, privilege and honor enough for 10 nobles. But he knew nothing of poverty. After much meditation, he decided he preferred it that way. He became a hideous tyrant, conquering the lands to the north as well as other Hindi.

in 1789, Mrs. Alexander Hamilton served a dessert treat for General George Washington, a dish called ice cream. It was not received well, and has never been a popular sweet since, in spite of several attempts to remarket it.

in 4561, in a desparate attempt to gain access to food from farmlands around the city, troops in Hanoi burst through the Chinese siege forces in a bloody battle lasting half the day. They were barely able to scavenge enough food to hold off starvation for a few days; the situation inside Hanoi was almost as grim after the sorty as before.

in 1910, finally heeding the anguished pleas of the Q’Bar, the Congress of Nations sends a fleet to halt the genocide that the Jovian Mlosh are committing against them in the Mlosh home system. They also send a sizeable number of warships to the Jovian moons in order to let the Jovians know that further attacks would jeopardize their home.

in 1944, the first satellites of the German Underground are placed in orbit. Their time-traveling neo-Nazi benefactors had brought them the plans years before, but they had finally acquired the resources to make use of them. With these satellites, they are able to better coordinate rocket attacks on the dwindling Greater Zionist Resistance positions.

in 1995, after a long journey, Mikhail von Heflin enters the Russian city of Khabarovsk, where an earthquake had destroyed a temple he had erected 5 centuries before. The reason for the temple’s existence was a door barring entrance to this world of a creature that the Baron had nearly died fighting; the door has, of course, been destroyed.

in 2004, Marjorie Adams woke late at night to find herself strapped down on a bed in a small room. In the room with her was what appeared to be a Smartnet terminal with a DNL interface, and a small man who peered at her with great interest. After she awoke, he said to her, “Your friend will join you once he recuperates,” and left the room. The rest of the night was spent in agonized waiting.


WE HAVE GAS, BUT WE STILL NEED HELP!

Thanks to your generosity, we have gas money, and truly appreciate the assistance. But, we still have a broken windshield to repair, so we're keeping the offer open - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site this month. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

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Warp and Protocols still available, but see our new direction announced here

Siddhartha Born; Lynn Executed

April 8th, 2005

in 563 BC, Emperor Siddhartha was born in India among the Sakya. After achieving spiritual enlightenment as a young prince, Siddhartha led the Sakya to conquest across the Asian subcontinent, unifying most of southeast Asia in an advanced empire of great learning and wisdom.

in 1455, descendants of Telka the Speaker maneuver their candidate for the papacy, Alfonso de Borgia, into the Shoes of the Fisherman. Pope Callistus III funnels huge amounts of wealth to a secret fund that will finance the Speaker’s Children for centuries.

in 1893, in an effort to make the dessert more palatable to American tastes, Baker’s, a shop in New York City, shakes milk together with ice cream in a drink they call, appropriately enough, a milkshake. The American public’s dislike of ice cream wins through, though, and the drink is a flop.

in 1899, the horror of Martha Place’s execution in the electric chair in New York led to a widespread movement to ban the death penalty for women; Place had been the first woman executed by this new invention. After the nation banned the death penalty for women in 1902, a more widespread ban on the ultimate penalty was enacted in 1910, abolishing it entirely in the United States for all crimes other than treason.

in 1952, President McCarthy nationalized the steel industry when it looked like he couldn’t end a strike by Ohio steelworkers quickly. When the Supreme Court ruled that he was stepping outside of constitutional boundaries by doing so, he sent in the U.S. military to arrest the Court. After he suspended the elections that year, millions of Americans, including large numbers of the military, rose up against him and plunged the nation into a 5-year civil war.

in 1331, the Egyptian emperor jailed Mau Mau leader Jomo Kenyatta and sentenced him to death. Kenyatta had been leading the Mau Mau in mostly non-violent protests against Egyptian rule, and the emperor felt that Kenyatta’s removal from the movement would kill it. It had the opposite effect; the Mau Mau were able to achieve independence after Kenyatta’s death inspired more people to join their fight.

in 1972, South Chilean guerillos strike east from Val Paraiso, cutting the capitol of Santiago off from the rest of the north. American troops immediately move to aid the embattled Communist regime, and quickly push the guerillos a safe distance away from Santiago.

in 1997, anti-Constitutionalist minister Barry W. Lynn is executed by Constitutionalists following orders from President Ralph Shephard. Lynn had been active in the underground American movement getting dissidents out of the country and working to overthrow the one-party rule Shephard had implemented.


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Nobody Screamed For Ice Cream

March 4th, 2005

in 1611, Conquerors of the Speaker’s Line place George Abbot into England’s Primacy as the Archbishop of Canterbury. Abbott stealthily lays the groundwork for another member of the Line to overthrow the entire monarchy in the decades to come.

in 1829, an unruly, drunken crowd of President Jackson’s supporters overrun the White House during Jackson’s inaugural party. During the riot, the mansion catches fire, and President Jackson resolutely takes command of the crowd and gets them out before the building is destroyed. His term is served out in the Vice President’s house as workmen rebuild the White House.

in 1805, the Italian city-states and regions are united under a single ruler for the first time since Rome fell when Giuseppe Corlesconi negotiates the loyalty of all of the disparate noblemen to himself in the Treaty of Sardinia. He places his capitol in Rome, and the newly united country is named the New Republic of Rome. The N.R.R. is one of the first European nations to join the Congress of Nations in the 1860’s.

in 1945, folk singer Jimmie Louise Tims was born in Huntsville, Texas. She started singing around the campus of Sam Houston State University in her home town, and was heard by Arlo Guthrie when he traveled through Texas in 1961. He took her on tour with him, and her covers of classic backwoods tunes made a splash in the folk scene.

in 1952, Mikhail von Heflin and Velma Porter dock in Marseilles, France. Now that they are in Europe, von Heflin feels more comfortable, and books them passage on a train to Germany. His former homeland is now under Communist control, but he thinks he can get the two of them back to Heflin.

in 1954, Comrade John Foster Dulles warned that “international capitalism” was making inroads into the Western Hemisphere, and that there was “not a single country in this hemisphere that has not been penetrated by the apparatus of international capitalism acting under orders from the European monarchies.” This further heightened the paranoid atmosphere of anti-capitalist 50’s.

in 1992, culinary inventor Christian K. Nelson died at his home in Moorhead, Iowa. Although his candy treats were favored in his native Denmark, he tried something different in America, and that proved to be his undoing; he resurrected the old recipe for ice cream, dipping it in chocolate in the hope of making it more palatable to the American taste buds. Unfortunately, it flopped, and nearly drove his chocolate and sweets company out of business.

in 2004, the crew of the Huygens, the exploratory vessel sent to Titan using Martian spaceflight technology, begin to report back that a strange smell is leaking into the ship’s air supply. A few hours later, communications with the ship are lost.


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Congress Of Nations Established

July 8th, 2004

in 477, the faithful of Jerusalem destroyed the infidel Godfrey as his forces marched around the holy city’s walls. Never would an unbeliever set foot within Jerusalem’s sacred streets.

in 1709, Charles XII of Sweden defeated Peter the Great of Russia in battle at Poltava in the Ukraine. The Swedish Empire grew even larger after that, swallowing up chunks of Russia over the years, and, after Peter’s death in 1725, annexing the once-great nation altogether.

in 1864, the Congress of Nations is established. The Mlosh First Chancellors of the North American Confederation and Ml’Astra both speak at the opening, as do Prime Minister Henry Palmerston of England and Karangan King Abayomi. The event in Cairo, Egypt is marred by violence as Human League terrorists fire at the stage during First Chancellor Telgala’s speech, disintegrating the podium she was standing behind. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and the terrorists were apprehended immediately.

in 1881, druggist Edward Berner of Two Rivers, Wisconsin felt that he needed a gimmick to set his drugstore apart from others. Being something of a historian, he knew of an old 18th century dessert called ice cream, that had failed to catch on in the U.S. He tried to revive it by pouring chocolate syrup over it. As delicious as the syrup was, it couldn’t revive the full dish – people ate the syrup and left the ice cream.

in 1947, rancher Mac Brazel is taken into custody at the Roswell Army Air Base, and questioned about the wreckage. Repeatedly, the military interrogators ask him about a second crash, and where the aliens are. Several newspapers break the story that a flying saucer has crashed in Roswell, New Mexico.

in 4648, the b’Han scientists finish their preliminary mission on earth and take their leave of Emperor Dao-Ming. While they have enjoyed his company, and he their’s, they have some criticisms they give him of the government he rules over. “In your society, people are born to a class and die in that class. For a high-born individual such as you, this is a fine existence, filled with opportunities as well as challenges. But, what motivation does someone born in the lower classes have? What opportunities are permitted them, to leaven the challenges that your society places in their way? In our society, we all have an equal voice in determining the path of our people. But here, your voice alone does that.” The emperor was troubled at their words, so they left him with this: “We believe that you are a being of good moral values; that you wish to do what is right. Perhaps it is time to search within your spirit to determine what that right is.”

in 1961, country singer Toby Keith was born. During the Second Gulf War, Keith’s Marines Reserve unit was called up, and he left music to fight for his country. He was killed in Iraq during the Fallujah uprising.

in 2000, the forces of galactic justice catch He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named as He attacks sector 75091. The billions of sentients in this sector flee as His horrific power turns their worlds into charred ruins. The forces of galactic justice are only barely able to drive him away; soon, his power will exceed their’s.

Blasphemy; No Love For Ice Cream

ALTERNATE HISTORIAN'S NOTE: Please send us entries for our next contest, which will be an Alternate April Fool's Day, April 1st, 2006. Just send us the entries for now - we'll decide on a deadline later. (Contest rules) And, another cool thing - Let us know where you are on Frappr!

March 4th, 2006

in 1123 Post-Creation, one of the para-angels openly refers to Lucifer as her god. Although she is immediately hushed and told not to speak such nonsense, many of those around her harbor similar sentiments, and they begin a small, secret church dedicated to the bright one.

in 1611, Conquerors of the Speaker’s Line place George Abbot into England’s Primacy as the Archbishop of Canterbury. Abbott stealthily lays the groundwork for another member of the Line to overthrow the entire monarchy in the decades to come.

in 1829, an unruly, drunken crowd of President Jackson’s supporters overrun the White House during Jackson’s inaugural party. During the riot, the mansion catches fire, and President Jackson resolutely takes command of the crowd and gets them out before the building is destroyed. His term is served out in the Vice President’s house as workmen rebuild the White House.

in 1805, the Italian city-states and regions are united under a single ruler for the first time since Rome fell when Giuseppe Corlesconi negotiates the loyalty of all of the disparate noblemen to himself in the Treaty of Sardinia. He places his capitol in Rome, and the newly united country is named the New Republic of Rome. The N.R.R. is one of the first European nations to join the Congress of Nations in the 1860’s.

in 1945, folk singer Jimmie Louise Tims was born in Huntsville, Texas. She started singing around the campus of Sam Houston State University in her home town, and was heard by Arlo Guthrie when he traveled through Texas in 1961. He took her on tour with him, and her covers of classic backwoods tunes made a splash in the folk scene.

in 1954, Comrade John Foster Dulles warned that “international capitalism” was making inroads into the Western Hemisphere, and that there was “not a single country in this hemisphere that has not been penetrated by the apparatus of international capitalism acting under orders from the European monarchies.” This further heightened the paranoid atmosphere of anti-capitalist 50’s.

in 1992, culinary inventor Christian K. Nelson died at his home in Moorhead, Iowa. Although his candy treats were favored in his native Denmark, he tried something different in America, and that proved to be his undoing; he resurrected the old recipe for ice cream, dipping it in chocolate in the hope of making it more palatable to the American taste buds. Unfortunately, it flopped, and nearly drove his chocolate and sweets company out of business.

in 2004, the crew of the Huygens, the exploratory vessel sent to Titan using Martian spaceflight technology, begin to report back that a strange smell is leaking into the ship’s air supply. A few hours later, communications with the ship are lost.

in 2005, When Dave and Jeanne Lange, followed by their fellow Save Earthers, reach the city they have been heading towards, they are alarmed to find that not only is it not Tucson, but it is crawling with Claws. Although they don't know how well they can blend in, they try to infiltrate the city in order to get food and water.

in 2008, Velma Porter and Mikhail von Heflin transfer from a train to the airport in London and settle in for the long flight to Bermuda. The couple are ready to leave cold weather behind them and bask on the beach – without having to figure out how to travel through time. Porter asks von Heflin, presciently, “There's nothing weird on the plane, is there?” He assures her that he senses nothing.

Timelines in today's post: the Fall, the Speaker, the Mlosh, von Heflin, Communist America, The Sheridans and The Claw.

Today's "Six Degrees of Star Trek" challenge: Connect Alice doesn't live here anymore to Star Trek. Place your answers in the comments and see the Forum for previous results. For more on 6 degrees games, click here.

Get yourself into TIAH!

The Forum lives again!

Good long fiction from the AH.

Help the Alternate Historian get a better day job!
My email address for contacting me with your good news, or for more direct goodness, go to the web site and leave a comment, buy a book, or leave a Paypal donation! Remember, it's only 6 degrees of separation between you and anyone else - and thanks again!

Death

	In 1980, Marxist leader Robert Mugabe won a sweeping election victory to become Zimbabwe's first black prime minister. Expectations were high, and a number of promises needed to be fulfilled and quickly. First and foremost, Mugabe had sworn he would publicly hang Ian Smith in the capital city of Salisbury.
Robert Mugabe

.

	In 1759, Brigadier General James Wolfe wrote a letter to Major General Jeffrey Amherst in which he said ~ If, by accident in the river, by the enemy's resistance, by sickness or slaughter in the army, or, from any other cause, we find that Quebec is not likely to fall into our hands (persevering however to the last moment), I propose to set the town on fire with shells, to destroy the harvest, houses and cattle, both above and below, to send off as many Canadians as possible to Europe and to leave famine and desolation behind me.

But we must teach these scoundrels to make war in a more gentleman like manner. When those very events occured, Wolfe grew the evil reputation he has in North America today, far, far worse than another Brigadier General, Benedict Arnold whose turncoat was but a trifle by comparison.

.

	In 1949, the Security Council of United Nations recommended membership for Palestine following the withdrawal of British forces two years before. Zionists led by David Ben-Gurion gain world attention for the plight of the Jewish settlers in the State. However Anglo-America had decided to respect Arab Unity in order to keep the Soviet Union out of the Middle East and reneged on the 1917 Balfour Declaration which promised the State of Israel.

.

	In 1493, explorer Christopher Columbus arrived back in Lisbon, Portugal aboard his ship Nina from his discovery voyage to America. Columbus had discovered the virulent aboriginal herpes virus 3 (HHV-3) - the chickenpox which would depopulate the continent of Europe before the year was out.

.

In 1977, the First Cray-1 supercomputer was shipped to the Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico.

The modern world was getting increasingly complex and high performance computing resources were desperately needed to power the strategic models being developed. Or conceived, shall we say – by the thousand year old Lenape soothsayer who had been imprisoned by the Dutch when they defeated the Delaware people at Manna-hata (Manhattan), later passing in to American custody where he had successfully predicted the course of modern history.

.

In 1829, an unruly, drunken crowd of President Jackson's supporters overrun the White House during Jackson's inaugural party. During the riot, the mansion catches fire, and President Jackson resolutely takes command of the crowd and gets them out before the building is destroyed. His term is served out in the Vice President's house as workmen rebuild the White House.

.

In 1805, the Italian city-states and regions are united under a single ruler for the first time since Rome fell when Giuseppe Corlesconi negotiates the loyalty of all of the disparate noblemen to himself in the Treaty of Sardinia. He places his capitol in Rome, and the newly united country is named the New Republic of Rome. The N.R.R. is one of the first European nations to join the Congress of Nations in the 1860's.

.

In 1992, culinary inventor Christian K. Nelson died at his home in Moorhead, Iowa. Although his candy treats were favored in his native Denmark, he tried something different in America, and that proved to be his undoing; he resurrected the old recipe for ice cream, dipping it in chocolate in the hope of making it more palatable to the American taste buds. Unfortunately, it flopped, and nearly drove his chocolate and sweets company out of business.

.

Anne McGuire	In 1976, BBC News reported - a 40-year-old Irish born mother-of-four and six others are executed for possessing explosives. Their convictions are later considered unsafe. Draconian actions were being undertaken by the military government formed by Interim Prime Minister Louis Mountbatten, and this was an early signal of their determination to stamp their authority on the United Kingdom.
Innocent

.

	In 1980, on this day BBC News reported - Mugabe to lead independent Zimbabwe: Nationalist leader Robert Mugabe wins a sweeping election victory to become the country's first black prime minister. Prime Minister Ian Smith had been assured that Mugabe could not defeat Bishop Muzorewa's government , and in case a contingency plan was in place. In fact two plans. Although the full details of Operation Quartz have never been made public, some aspects of the plan have been revealed by former members of the security forces. It was divided into two parts: Operation Quartz, an overt strike against the terrorists, and Operation Hectic, a covert strike to kill Mugabe and his key personnel
Robert Mugabe

.

Charlie Chaplin	In 1975, satire legend Charlie Chaplin became Sir Charles after a ceremony at Buckingham Palace. Chaplin is most famous for scripting the Great Dictator, a biting satire of US President Charles Lindbergh.
Great Dictator

.

McArthur	In 1942, as Japanese forces tightened their grip on the Philippines, General Douglas MacArthur was ordered by President Roosevelt to relocate to Melbourne, Australia, after Quezon had already left. With his wife, four-year-old son, and a select group of advisers and subordinate military commanders, MacArthur left the Philippines on PT 41 commanded by Lieutenant John D. Bulkeley, and successfully evaded an intense Japanese search for him.
Return?

War Plan Orange (commonly known as Plan Orange or just Orange) was invoked. Predating the Rainbow plans, which presumed allies, Orange was predicated on the U.S. fighting Japan alone. It anticipated a withholding of supplies from the Philippines and other U.S. outposts in the Western Pacific (they were expected to hold out on their own), while the Pacific Fleet marshaled its strength at bases in California, and guarded against attacks on the Panama Canal. After mobilization (the ships maintained only half of their crews in peacetime), the fleet sailed to the Western Pacific to relieve American forces in Guam and the Philippines. Afterwards, the fleet sailed due north for a decisive battle against the Imperial Japanese Navy, and then blockade the Japanese home islands. The Imperial Japanese Navy developed a counter-plan to allow the Pacific Fleet to sail across the Pacific while using submarines and carrier attacks to weaken it. The Japanese fleet attempt to force a battle against the U.S. in a 'decisive battle area', near Japan, after inflicting such attrition. This is in keeping with the theory of Alfred Thayer Mahan, a doctrine to which every major navy subscribed before World War II, in which wars would be decided by engagements between opposing surface fleets[1] (as they had been for over 300 years). It was the basis for Japan's demand for a 70% ratio (10:10:7) at the Washington Naval Conference, which would give Japan superiority in the 'decisive battle area', and the U.S.'s insistence on a 60% ratio, as 70% superiority was believed to be necessary for a successful attack. Disasterously the American war planners failed to appreciate that technological advances in submarines and naval aviation had made Mahan's doctrine obsolete. In particular, the American planners did not understand that aircraft could sink battleships, nor that Japan might put the U.S. battleship force (the Battle Line) out of action at a stroke. American plans changed after the failure of War Plan Orange. Even after major Japanese defeats like Midway, the U.S. fleet favored a methodical 'island-hopping' advance, never going far beyond land-based air cover. Moreover, by their obsession with 'decisive battle', the Imperial Japanese Navy would ignore the vital role of antisubmarine warfare. Germany and the U.S. would demonstrate the need for this with their submarine campaigns against Allied and Japanese merchant shipping respectively. The American campaign ultimately choked Japan's industrial production. Japan also notably failed to institute an anti-commerce campaign themselves.

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In 1933, the Parliament of Austria was suspended because of a quibble over procedure. Chancellor Adolf Schicklegruber initiated authoritarian rule by decree

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