History

on July 21, 2021 at 10:30 pm

FORWARDS: Ramadan Sobhi (Pyramids), Ibrahim Adel (Pyramids), Abdel Rahman Magdy (Ismaily), Taher Mohamed (Al Ahly), Salah Mohsen (Al Ahly), ...

on July 21, 2021 at 5:26 pm

Liverpool was named a World Heritage site by Unesco in 2004, joining places including the Taj Mahal, Egypt's Pyramids and Edinburgh New and Old ...

by History.com Editors on July 21, 2021 at 4:18 pm

95 years after women were first granted the right to vote, on July 28, 2016, former Secretary of State, Senator and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton makes history by accepting the Democratic Party's […]

by History.com Editors on July 20, 2021 at 4:24 pm

On August 19, 1791, the accomplished American mathematician and astronomer Benjamin Banneker pens a letter to then-Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson corresponds prolifically with […]

by Becky Little on July 20, 2021 at 3:44 pm

In the colonial era, the most prestigious jobs were reserved for well-off white men, who secured appointments as colonial governors and military leaders. But there were many other types of jobs in […]

on July 20, 2021 at 4:30 am

It’s an iconic image for the citizens of the United States of America: their flag, planted on the moon and waving gently in the breeze. Only, there is no breeze on the moon, meaning there is no […]

on July 19, 2021 at 11:30 pm

The Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969 was one of the most astonishing achievements in human history. That day, an estimated 530 million TV viewers watched U.S. astronauts Neil Armstrong and...

on July 19, 2021 at 6:07 pm

A Moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon.This includes both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2, […]

by History.com Editors on July 19, 2021 at 5:22 pm

Modern Olympic history is full of heart-thumping victories and painful defeats. But a look back at the 28 Summer Games that have taken place since 1896 also offer a snapshot of geopolitics, a shift […]

on July 19, 2021 at 9:03 am

Origins: In November 2014, the Huzlers web site published an article recycling the old conspiracy theory that the moon landings were fake events staged on movie sets, claiming Apollo 11 astronaut ...

on July 19, 2021 at 7:16 am

So, in honor of the Moon landings, which may or may not have happened (please hold your judgments until the end) here is the most compelling evidence, obviously compiled by an expert, that the ...

on July 18, 2021 at 6:59 pm

Across the nation, in Anaheim, Calif., 80 members of the Soviet Union s track and field team saw the moon landing on Disneyland TV screen. In Burbank, Calif., an ice cream company, moments after Neil […]

on July 18, 2021 at 2:12 pm

On July 20, 1969, American astronauts Neil Armstrong (1930-2012) and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin (1930-) became the first humans ever to land on the moon. About six-and-a-half hours later, Armstrong became...

on July 18, 2021 at 10:09 am

The Moon Landing The historic event captivated the world—and helped people look to the future. On July 20, 1969, millions of people gathered around their televisions to watch two U.S. […]

on July 17, 2021 at 6:46 pm

1969 Man's First Landing on the Moon stamped envelope, 1969 first day of issue. Good condition. Upper left corner has fold

on July 17, 2021 at 11:00 am

It is only seven months since NASA's made a bold decision to send Apollo 8 all the way to the moon on the first manned flight of the massive Saturn V rocket. Now, on the morning of July 16, Apollo 11 […]

by Iván Román on July 16, 2021 at 8:37 pm

When television flickered into America's living rooms in the years after World War II, it took less than a decade for it to overtake radio as the nation's dominant entertainment medium. Between 1948 […]

on July 15, 2021 at 4:46 pm

These nine weapons bring pain in the most severe way. From razor-sharp steel whips to spiked necklaces and harmonica guns, uncover more in this episode of History Countdown.Continue reading

by Dave Roos on July 15, 2021 at 3:44 pm

The most recent ice age peaked between 24,000 and 21,000 years ago, when vast ice sheets covered North America and northern Europe, and mountain ranges like Africa's Mt. Kilimanjaro and South […]

by History.com Editors on July 14, 2021 at 5:29 pm

Eid al-Adha, or the “Feast of Sacrifice,” signifies the willingness of the Prophet Ibrahim, known as Abraham in Christianity and Judaisim, to sacrifice his son, Ismail as ordered by […]

by History.com Editors on July 13, 2021 at 4:38 pm

English soldier and explorer Captain John Smith played a key role in the founding of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in North America, in 1607. Early Life and Military ExploitsBorn […]

by History.com Editors on July 13, 2021 at 4:09 pm

In September 1980, Iraqi forces launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Iran, beginning the Iran-Iraq War. Fueled by territorial, religious and political disputes between the two nations, the […]

by Patrick J. Kiger on July 12, 2021 at 8:07 pm

When the Greek historian Herodotus wrote that the ancient Egyptians' land was "given them by the river," he was referring to the Nile, whose waters were essential to the rise of one of the […]

by Lesley Kennedy on July 12, 2021 at 3:49 pm

Minutes after its take off from New York’s Kennedy International Airport, a Boeing 747 headed for Paris exploded midair over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Long Island on July 17, 1996, […]

by Aaron Randle on July 9, 2021 at 3:15 pm

For thousands of years, humans have dreamed of taking to the skies. The quest has led from kite flying in ancient China to hydrogen-powered hot-air balloons in 18th-century France to contemporary […]

by History.com Editors on July 9, 2021 at 2:57 pm

On August 29, 1987, the home of the Ray brothers—three HIV-positive Florida boys—burns down in what was almost certainly a case of arson. The three brothers, who are not in the house at […]

by History.com Editors on July 9, 2021 at 2:52 pm

At an NFL preseason game on August 26, 2016, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick remains seated as other players stand to observe the national anthem. This simple action, which […]

by Becky Little on July 8, 2021 at 7:44 pm

The filibuster, a method of delaying or halting the progress of a bill through prolonged speeches, developed in both chambers of the U.S. Congress in the 19th century. The U.S. House of […]

on July 8, 2021 at 3:05 pm

From naked athletes to foot-only races, these are 10 surprising facts you didn’t know about the ancient Olympics, in this History Countdown episode.Continue reading

on July 7, 2021 at 5:12 pm

From crazy explosions to fast striking asteroids and even massive ice ages, planet Earth has had its life flash before its eyes a few times, see more in this episode of History Countdown.Continue […]

by Dave Roos on July 7, 2021 at 4:26 pm

For 75 years, active-duty members of the British military have served as stewards at Wimbledon, the annual tennis “Championships” held at the storied All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet […]

by Ratha Tep on July 7, 2021 at 4:25 pm

In the words of Gussie Van Buren, one-half of the sister duo that first traversed America by motorcycle, “woman can if she will.” Here’s a look at some of the most inspiring women […]

by Sarah Pruitt on June 29, 2021 at 5:39 pm

The way people watch television has changed dramatically since the medium first burst onto the scene in the 1940s and ‘50s and forever transformed American life. Decade after decade, TV […]

by History.com Editors on June 29, 2021 at 4:31 pm

Sam Houston was a Tennessee-born lawyer, soldier and politician who gained enduring fame as a leader of the Texas Revolution. After commanding Texan troops to victory over Mexican forces in the […]

by History.com Editors on June 29, 2021 at 4:10 pm

The Bank War was the political struggle that ensued over the fate of the Second Bank of the United States during the presidency of Andrew Jackson. In 1832, Jackson vetoed a bill to recharter the […]

by History.com Editors on June 29, 2021 at 3:59 pm

Jefferson Finis Davis, the first and only president of the Confederate States of America, was a Southern planter, Democratic politician and hero of the Mexican War who had represented […]

by Patrick J. Kiger on June 28, 2021 at 4:06 pm

Even after armed hostilities broke out between the American colonists and British forces in 1775, many prominent colonists seemed reluctant to consider the idea of actually breaking away from […]

by Greg Daugherty on June 28, 2021 at 3:41 pm

If there’s one image of Henry VIII that lives on in the popular imagination it’s of a portly ruler with a bushy red beard, covered in furs and jewels and chowing down on a king-size […]

by Thad Morgan on June 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm

In the early 1970s, Black and Latinx gay, trans and queer people developed a thriving subculture in house balls, where they could express themselves freely and find acceptance within a marginalized […]

on June 25, 2021 at 3:08 pm

Believe it or not, some books just didn’t make the cut to be in the Bible. Watch as we countdown the top 10 rejected books of the Bible, in this History Countdown episode.Continue reading

by Dave Roos on June 25, 2021 at 1:30 pm

There have been two epic battles at the place known as Tannenberg. The first, in 1410, saw the defeat of a German religious order called the Teutonic Knights at the hands of Slavs and Lithuanians. […]

by Sarah Pruitt on June 24, 2021 at 9:49 pm

In early 1962, Attorney General Robert Kennedy approved a request from FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover to install wiretaps on the home and office of a New York City-based lawyer named Stanley David […]

by Becky Little on June 23, 2021 at 4:55 pm

Many famous naval disasters happen far out at sea, but on January 13, 2012, the Costa Concordia wrecked just off the coast of an Italian island in relatively shallow water. The avoidable disaster […]

by History.com Editors on June 21, 2021 at 1:39 pm

On June 26, 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down Texas’ sodomy laws, along with similar laws in 13 other states. The decision in Lawrence v. Texas is a landmark one, reaffirming the […]

by Christopher Klein on June 17, 2021 at 10:58 pm

Although bridges are among history’s greatest feats of engineering, in rare cases they have unexpectedly and catastrophically failed due to structural deficiencies, weather conditions or too […]

by Farrell Evans on June 17, 2021 at 7:31 pm

During the summer of 1967, 158 riots erupted in urban communities across America. Most shared the same triggering event: a dispute between Black citizens and white police officers that escalated to […]

on June 17, 2021 at 2:07 pm

It turns out a lot of what we learned about the founding fathers wasn’t true. Find out the top 10 biggest myths about the founding fathers in this History Countdown episode.Continue reading

by Becky Little on June 16, 2021 at 4:18 pm

Women’s gymnastics has been an official sport in the Summer Olympics since 1928, when the first female Olympic gymnasts competed in Amsterdam. Since then, it has become one of the most popular […]

by History.com Editors on June 16, 2021 at 2:49 pm

On June 19, 1968, a long-term anti-poverty demonstration known as Resurrection City reaches its high-water mark. On “Solidarity Day,” over 50,000 people flock to the Lincoln Memorial in […]

by Nadra Kareem Nittle on June 15, 2021 at 4:26 pm

They began arriving by the busloads on May 12, 1968 to demand economic justice. The Poor People’s Campaign, the brainchild of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his Southern Christian Leadership […]

by History.com Editors on June 14, 2021 at 8:05 pm

Even before the U.S. Constitution was created, its framers understood that it would have to be amended to confront future challenges and adapt and grow alongside the new nation. In creating the […]

by History.com Editors on June 14, 2021 at 3:36 pm

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, a virus that had previously appeared sporadically around the world began to spread throughout the United States. Originally identified as a “gay […]

by History.com Editors on June 14, 2021 at 1:58 pm

From August to October of 1858, Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate from Illinois, took on the incumbent Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas in a series of seven debates. […]

by Sarah Pruitt on June 11, 2021 at 4:57 pm

Title IX, the landmark gender equity law passed as part of the Education Amendments of 1972, banned sex discrimination in federally funded education programs. Its protections would open doors for […]

by Sara Kettler on June 10, 2021 at 7:56 pm

Horse racing has been called the "Sport of Kings," and, just like royalty, racing has a scandal-filled history. Some misconduct has been about manipulating races, whether by influencing jockeys or […]

on June 10, 2021 at 4:14 pm

From chariots to tanks and everything in-between, these pieces of battle tech have changed the way we operate in our everyday lives and on the battlefield, in this episode of History […]

by Amanda Onion on June 10, 2021 at 3:52 pm

Greg Louganis knew something was off as soon as his feet left the springboard. It was September 19, 1988, and the U.S. diver who had won two golds at the previous Olympics, was competing in the […]

by Tim Ott on June 10, 2021 at 1:54 pm

In 1933, shortly after assuming power as chancellor of Germany, Adolf Hitler moved forward with plans to turn the 1936 Summer and Winter Olympics into showcases for his regime. He ordered the […]

by Becky Little on June 9, 2021 at 5:21 pm

When the United States entered World War II, Franklin D. Roosevelt made it clear that he thought Major League Baseball should continue. But as thousands of minor league players and over 500 major […]

by Steven M. Gillon on June 7, 2021 at 5:26 pm

On June 8, 1968, a 21-car train carried the body of slain New York senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy from New York’s Penn Station to Washington D.C.’s Union Station. […]

by Dave Roos on June 4, 2021 at 10:47 pm

There are two layers to every water polo match: the graceful athleticism above the water, and the rough play and cheap shots hidden beneath the surface. The 1956 Melbourne Olympics were a lot like a […]

by Becky Little on June 4, 2021 at 10:46 pm

Henry Ford revolutionized American manufacturing, bringing automobiles to the masses and creating a foundation for America’s middle class by pioneering liveable factory wages. But his […]

by Rachel Chang on June 3, 2021 at 7:58 pm

Whether long-time American legend Serena Williams, Japanese hotshot Naomi Osaka or Canadian sensation Bianca Andreesu captures the title at a tennis Grand Slam tournament these days, one […]

on June 3, 2021 at 3:18 pm

History Countdown: From goggles to kayaks and much more, these are eight inventions of American Indigenous people that will never be forgotten.Continue reading

by Alexis Clark on June 3, 2021 at 1:17 pm

After Allied Forces defeated Germany in World War II, the United States began its occupation of West Germany from 1945 to 1955. Although American soldiers were tasked with promoting democracy to a […]

by David Montalvo on June 2, 2021 at 10:49 pm

As the AIDS crisis took hold in the 1980s, killing thousands of Americans and ravaging gay communities, the deadly epidemic went unaddressed by U.S. public health agencies—and unacknowledged by […]

by Kieran Mulvaney on June 2, 2021 at 8:24 pm

Joe Louis wanted redemption, to remain the heavyweight boxing champion of the world and to avenge his sole defeat. Max Schmeling wanted repetition, the chance to regain the title he had lost and to […]

by Kieran Mulvaney on June 2, 2021 at 8:24 pm

Joe Louis wanted redemption, to remain the heavyweight boxing champion of the world and to avenge his sole defeat. Max Schmeling wanted repetition, the chance to regain the title he had lost and to […]

by History.com Editors on June 2, 2021 at 8:23 pm

On June 5, 1981, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publishes an article in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report describing five cases of a rare lung infection, PCP, in young, […]

by Dave Roos on June 1, 2021 at 2:29 pm

The Soviet hockey team, led by an iron curtain of a goaltender named Vladislav Tretiak, was the clear favorite to bring home the gold at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. The Soviets […]

by Olivia Campbell on June 1, 2021 at 1:20 pm

In the mid-19th century, Sophia Jex-Blake struggled against constant roadblocks as a woman trying to earn a medical degree—so she decided to establish a school of her own. Founded in 1874, the […]

by History.com Editors on May 30, 2021 at 2:39 pm

The Tulsa Race Massacre stands out as one of the worst acts of racial violence in American history—and, for decades, it remained one of the least known. Over the course of 18 hours, from May 31 […]

on May 27, 2021 at 2:38 pm

Discover the true story of ancient, but lesser known, civilizations like Nineveh, Catalhoyuk, and Tiwanaku, in this episode of History Countdown.Continue reading

by Sara Kettler on May 26, 2021 at 6:45 pm

Throughout history, athletes have been willing to ingest just about anything to improve their performance on the field. Some ancient Greeks turned to figs, while others used mushrooms, and ancient […]

by Nadra Kareem Nittle on May 25, 2021 at 2:16 pm

Wearing beads and scarves to oppose lynchings and black socks with no shoes to highlight poverty, African American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos took to the podium during the October 16, […]

by History.com Editors on May 24, 2021 at 8:38 pm

In what became known as the Munich Massacre, eight terrorists wearing tracksuits and carrying gym bags filled with grenades and assault rifles, breached the Olympic Village at the Summer Games in […]

on May 24, 2021 at 8:04 pm

Many inventions that we use today were invented by the military—from zippers to Super Glue and even computers. Continue reading

by Joseph Bennington-Castro on May 24, 2021 at 4:39 pm

First imagined by gay rights activist Cleve Jones in 1985, the AIDS Memorial Quilt—with 1,920 individual panels, each inscribed with the name of a person lost to AIDS—was displayed for […]

by Martin Stezano on May 24, 2021 at 4:27 pm

Jackie Robinson wasn’t the only Black baseball player to suit up in the big leagues in 1947. After he broke the color line and became the first Black baseball player to play in the […]

by History.com Editors on May 24, 2021 at 4:21 pm

On the evening of May 25, 2020, white Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kills George Floyd, a Black man, by kneeling on his neck for almost 10 minutes. The death, recorded by bystanders, […]

by Missy Sullivan on May 24, 2021 at 1:00 pm

At the turn of the 20th century, African Americans founded and developed the Greenwood district in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Built on what had formerly been Indian Territory, the community grew and […]

by Lakshmi Gandhi on May 21, 2021 at 10:30 am

Long before women revolutionaries like Joan of Arc and Catherine of Aragon, two high-born Vietnamese sisters rallied their people in order to fight against oppression. Known simply as the Trung […]

by Dave Roos on May 20, 2021 at 2:45 pm

There are roughly 180 known impact craters worldwide and fully a third of them—including some of the biggest—are located in North America. These massive blast zones were formed by […]

by Karen Juanita Carrillo on May 20, 2021 at 2:30 pm

The Aztec Empire, Mesoamerica’s dominant power in the 15th and early 16th centuries, controlled a capital city that was one of the largest in the world. Itzcoatl, named leader of the […]

by Sarah Pruitt on May 19, 2021 at 10:52 pm

On May 18, 1933, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Tennessee Valley Authority Act, he took what he saw as a vital step toward fulfilling his promise of a “New Deal” for the […]

by Christopher Klein on May 19, 2021 at 9:36 pm

The history of anti-war protests in the United States is as old as the country itself. Every war in American history—even the one that spawned the country—generated internal dissent from […]

by Dave Roos on May 19, 2021 at 4:05 pm

In the spring of 1749, the billions-strong swarm of cicadas known today as Brood X emerged from the ground in rural Maryland, much to the fascination (and horror) of a 17-year-old Black tobacco […]

by Dave Roos on May 18, 2021 at 8:37 pm

Few animals command as much respect and instill as much healthy fear as bears. While fatal bear attacks are rare—there have only been around 180 deaths from bear attacks in North America since […]

by History.com Editors on May 18, 2021 at 6:42 pm

New York City’s Chinatown is almost entirely shut down on May 19, 1975, with shuttered stores displaying signs reading “Closed to Protest Police Brutality.” The demonstration is a […]

by History.com Editors on May 18, 2021 at 4:21 pm

The leaders of the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union—the Big Three powers who had defeated Nazi Germany—met at the Potsdam Conference near Berlin from July 17 to August 2, […]

by Farrell Evans on May 17, 2021 at 8:35 pm

During the height of World War II between 1942 and 1945, the U.S. government’s top-secret program to build an atomic bomb, code-named the Manhattan Project, cumulatively employed some 600,000 […]

by Dave Roos on May 17, 2021 at 3:18 pm

At the dawn of the 20th century, the world’s military powers worried that future wars would be decided by chemistry as much as artillery, so they signed a pact at the Hague Convention of 1899 […]

on May 14, 2021 at 5:18 pm

Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan previously served on the other side of the bench as the 45th Solicitor General of the United States under the Obama administration.Continue reading

on May 14, 2021 at 3:31 pm

Harry Houdini is still known today as history's most famous magician, but there was a time when his act needed to be rescued from the dead.Continue reading

on May 14, 2021 at 3:22 pm

Mary Edwards Walker was the first woman to receive the Medal of Honor, but her fight for recognition extended well beyond the war.Continue reading

on May 14, 2021 at 3:07 pm

While Valentine's Day is shared by lovers sharing time together, one of the first Valentine cards was sent from an enemy prison.Continue reading

on May 14, 2021 at 2:36 pm

Of all the horrific days throughout the Holocaust, the day many choose to remember it by is the anniversary of a liberation.Continue reading

by Alexis Clark on May 14, 2021 at 2:09 pm

As more is learned about the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, including the discovery of mass graves, the stories of the African Americans who turned the city’s Greenwood district into “Black […]

on May 13, 2021 at 8:27 pm

Filibustering is a long and strange tradition, and its record-setting moment came to deny a large portion of Americans their constitutional rights.Continue reading

on May 13, 2021 at 8:23 pm

Gerrymandering is almost as old as the United States itself, named for a governor looking for power.Continue reading