Today in News History

On June 17, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1400, Jan of Jenštejn, archbishop of Prague (born 1348) passed away. In 1734, Claude Louis Hector de Villars, French general and politician, French Secretary of State for War (born 1653) passed away. In 1932, Bonus Army: Around a thousand World War I veterans amass at the United States Capitol as the U.S. Senate considers a bill that would give them certain benefits. In 1940, The three Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania fall under the occupation of the Soviet Union. In 1940, George Akerlof, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate was born. In 1955, Mati Laur, Estonian historian, author, and academic was born. In 1966, Mohammed Ghazy Al-Akhras, Iraqi journalist and author was born. In 1967, Nuclear weapons testing: China announces a successful test of its first thermonuclear weapon. In 1992, A "joint understanding" agreement on arms reduction is signed by U.S. President George Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin (this would be later codified in START II). In 2017, A series of wildfires in central Portugal kill at least 64 people and injure 204 others. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.