Today in News History

On June 29, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1374, Jan Milíč of Kroměříž, Czech priest and reformer passed away. In 1906, Ivan Chernyakhovsky, Ukrainian general (died 1945) was born. In 1922, France grants "one square kilometer" at Vimy Ridge "freely, and for all time, to the Government of Canada, the free use of the land exempt from all taxes". In 1941, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Polish pianist, composer, and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Poland (born 1860) passed away. In 1945, The Soviet Union annexes the Czechoslovak province of Carpathian Ruthenia. In 1956, Pyotr Vasilevsky, Belarusian footballer and manager (died 2012) was born. In 1972, The United States Supreme Court rules in the case Furman v. Georgia that arbitrary and inconsistent imposition of the death penalty violates the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments and constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. In 1974, Mikhail Baryshnikov defects from the Soviet Union to Canada while on tour with the Kirov Ballet. In 2006, Hamdan v. Rumsfeld: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that President George W. Bush's plan to try Guantanamo Bay detainees in military tribunals violates U.S. and international law. In 2012, Vincent Ostrom, American political scientist and academic (born 1919) passed away. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.