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Explore the historical events that shaped our world on April 8th. From major milestones to cultural achievements, see what happened on this day in history. Dates for earlier events may be approximate.
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Japan celebrates Buddha’s (Siddhartha Gautama) birthday, known as Hana Matsuri (Flower Festival) on April 8th. Japan uses the Gregorian calendar for this celebration. Other East Asian countries t follow the lunar calendar. Some smaller local may vary, with some holding celebrations on May 8th.
Francesco Petrarca, commonly known as Petrarch, is crowned poet laureate on April 8, 1341 on Rome’s Capitoline Hill, marking the revival of the ancient Roman tradition.
The Venus de Milo was discovered on April 8, 1820, on the Aegean island of Melos (now Milos) in Greece by a farmer named Yorgos Kentrotas. The statue was found in several pieces within a niche in an ancient wall ruins. It was later acquired by the French and presented to King Louis XVIII, reconstructed, and put on display in the Louvre in Paris in 1821.
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The Ancient Greek sculpture from the Hellenistic period (ca. 100-130 BC), also known as the Aphrodite of Milos, representing the goddess Aphrodite (Venus), is made of Parian marble. It was found in two main pieces (torso and lower body) with missing arms which have never been found. Fragments of an arm and a hand holding an apple were found nearby but were never reattached, and their original position is still a mystery. The sculpture, stands slightly larger than life at approximately 6 feet 8 inches (203–204 cm) tall. An exact replica of the Venus de Milo is on display at the Archaeological Museum of Milos in Greece.
President Abraham Lincoln signed the Enabling Act legislation, on April 8, 1864, establishing the world's first institution of higher education for deaf and hard of hearing students. the National Deaf-Mute College, known today as Gallaudet University.
The law provided federal funding for the education of deaf individuals, enabling the institution, located in Washington D.C. to offer university-level liberal arts and sciences degrees.The Institution had been originally incorporated in 1857, the Enabling Act, allowed it to expand, adding the collegiate division in 1864 which was renamed in 1894, as Gallaudet College in honor of Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, founder of the first permanent U.S. school for the Deaf. It is now a world-renowned university.
The Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution establishing the direct election of U.S. Senators in each state was ratified on April 8, 1913. The amendment superseded Article I, Section 3, Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution, under which senators were appointed by state legislatures.
It also modified the procedure for filling vacancies in the Senate, allowing temporary appointments until a special election can be held. The amendment was proposed by Congress in 1912 and became part of the Constitution upon ratification by three quarters (36) of the state legislatures: on April 8, 1913. Sitting senators were not affected until their existing terms expired.
The 6.5 magnitude, Los Angeles - Borrego Mountain Earthquake shook the area on April 8, 1968 at 18:28. It was the largest and most damaging quake to have hit southern California since the Kern County earthquake, 16 years earlier. It was felt as far away as Las Vegas, Fresno, and even Yosemite Valley. More
Hank Aaron, Atlanta Braves outfielder, hit his 715th career home run, on April 8, 1974, breaking Babe Ruth's home run record in Major League Baseball. The record breaking homerun occurred in the 4th inning against a Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher.
The Danish/U.S. cargo ship Maersk Alabama, sailing under the U.S. flag, is hijacked on April 8, 2009 ,by pirates in the Somali Basin at a distance of 240 nautical miles of the Somalia coast. The siege ended after a rescue effort by the United States Navy on April 12.
It was the sixth vessel in a week to be attacked by pirates, who had previously extorted significant ransoms. No successful pirate seizure of a ship traveling under the U.S. flag had taken place since the early 19th century.
A total solar eclipse moved across North America, on April 8, 2024, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun and the sky darkens as if it were dawn or dusk. It was the second North America's total solar eclipse in seven years.
