Today in History for 31st March 2024

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Historical Events

1146 - Bernard of Clairvaux preaches his famous sermon in a field at Vézelay, urging the necessity of a Second Crusade. Louis VII and Eleanor of Aquitaine are present and join the Crusade.
1917 - The Danish West Indies are officially ceded to the US for $25 million and renamed the Virgin Islands
1958 - USSR suspends nuclear weapons tests, and urges US and Britain to do same
1970 - Explorer 1 re-enters the Earth's atmosphere after 12 years in orbit
1984 - Mike Bossy becomes first player in NHL history to record 7 straight 50 goal seasons; scores 50th and 51st of the year in a 3-1 New York Islanders' win at Washington
1988 - Pulitzer prize awarded to Toni Morrison for her novel "Beloved"

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Famous Birthdays

1360 - Philippa of Lancaster, Queen of Portugal as wife of King John I (1387-1415), born in Leicester Castle, Leicester, England (d. 1415)
1536 - Ashikaga Yoshiteru, Japanese 13th shōgun of the Ashikaga shogunate (1546-65), born in Nanzen-ji Temple, Kyoto, Japan (d. 1565)
1651 - Karl II, Elector Palatine (d. 1685)
1960 - Anne Howard, American actress (Nicole Love-Another World), born in San Diego, California
1964 - Erik Turner, American rock guitarist (Warrant - "Cherry Pie"), born in Omaha, Nebraska
1975 - Adam Green, American film director

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Famous Deaths

1928 - Medardo Rosso, Italian sculptor (portraits), dies at 69
2003 - Tommy Seebach, Danish rock keyboardist, singer (Sir Henry and His Butlers), and songwriter (Eurovision), dies at 53
2005 - Terri Schiavo, American figure in right to die case (b. 1963)
2008 - William L. Dickinson, American politician (Rep-R-AL, 1965-93), dies at 82
2014 - Charles Keating, American district attorney (Los Angeles California), dies at 90
2016 - Hans-Dietrich Genscher, German Minister of Foreign Affairs (FDP), worked to re-unify Germany, dies at 89

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