A Brief History On February 7, 1863, the waters off New Zealand witnessed the worst maritime disaster in that country’s history when the Royal Navy corvette, HMS Orpheus went aground and sank while trying to enter Manukau Harbour, leaving 189 of the 259 man crew dead. We have discussed numerous naval and maritime “oops moments” in which blunders have sunk or heavily damaged ships, often with the cost of many lives. Digging Deeper The Orpheus was fitted out as a “full rigged ship,” although she also had a steam engine that powered a single screw drive (propeller). Classed as a…
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A Brief History On February 7, 1992, signatories from the 12 member states of the European Economic Community signed the Maastricht Treaty, so named after the city in which it was signed, Maastricht, The Netherlands, which more or less created a modern United States of Europe, although it is actually called The European Union. The European Union, or EU, now has a total of 28 nations aligned with each other to a common purpose of open travel and trade and economic unity. Boasting about a quarter of the entire world’s wealth, the EU is collectively the only other serious economic…
A Brief History On February 7, 1795, the 12th state needed to ratify the 11th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States (North Carolina) voted to ratify the Amendment, thus making it part of the law of the land. The 11th Amendment was the first Amendment to be ratified since the adoption of the Bill of Rights (Amendments 1-10). Digging Deeper The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of our nation, and all other laws and court decisions must be in accordance with the Constitution. It is the job of the Supreme Court of the US…
A Brief History On February 7, 1497, the followers of Dominican priest Girolamo Savonarola of Florence, Italy, gathered and burned a large quantity of objects they referred to as “vanities,” objects such as cosmetics, books, artwork, mirrors, fancy clothes, playing cards, and musical instruments, any objects these religious zealots thought could lead people to sin. Digging Deeper Misguided people have engaged in burning books and other articles that they have seen as contrary to their view of what is “proper,” “right,” or “moral” throughout history, and of course the Florence incident was not the first or largest of these burnings,…
A Brief History On February 7, 1885, one of the first great industrialists to bring Japan from a backwater third world nation to a modern industrial giant died of stomach cancer. The founder of the giant Mitsubishi Company, Iwasaki Yataro left the company in the hands of his brother. Digging Deeper Born in 1835, Yataro had humble roots, and his education was cut short when he was sent to prison at age 19 for accusing a local government official of corruption concerning a dispute with Yataro’s father. After serving a 7 month prison term, Yataro found it hard to find…