Browsing: Politics

A Brief History In 1529, an ecclesiastical, legatine court, presided over by a representative of the Pope, had been created to try the validity of the marriage between Henry VIII and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. The trial was held at Blackfriars Priory in London, and on June 18, both Henry and Catherine were summoned to appear before the court. Digging Deeper By this point in time, Henry and Catherine, his brother’s widow, had been married for 20 years. Though they had been happy for the majority of their marriage, Catherine had been unable to provide a son who…

A Brief History On June 13, 1893, President Grover Cleveland was only a few months into his second term when he went to his doctor to complain of soreness and a rough patch in his mouth.  The doctor determined the President had a tumor in his mouth and removal of the tumor would be the appropriate medical action. Digging Deeper Removal of the tumor would entail removing a large piece of Cleveland’s upper jaw, but secrecy was the word of the day and the surgery took place on a yacht sailing off Long Island to keep it from the public. …

A Brief History On June 11, 1939, a picnic at which hot dogs were served helped re-establish the political closeness between the United States and Great Britain and introduced the traditionally American food to an international public. Digging Deeper With the threat of war and invasion looming, the British monarch, George VI of “The King’s Speech” fame and his wife, Queen Elizabeth, later known as the Queen Mother, or affectionately as Queen Mum, embarked on a tour to visit their dominion of Canada, the first time a reigning British monarch had visited the North American continent. Upon hearing of the intended trip, American President, Franklin…

A  Brief History On May 13, 1998, Jakarta (or Djakarta) Indonesia experienced race riots directed against the ethnic Chinese minority. These Indonesians of Chinese descent owned many of the shops and stores, creating jealousy and ill will, resulting in looting and rape. Many countries have minorities that are discriminated against, either officially by law or by common practice. Here in the US we are most familiar with discrimination against African-Americans, but here and around the world there is much more than that. Here are 10 examples of minority groups struggling against such oppression. What groups would you add to this…

A Brief History From 1945 to 1991, two superpowers (the capitalist United States of America versus the communist Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) challenged each other for dominance on the world stage.  This article presents a chronological timeline of some of the more bizarre events of the Cold War! Digging Deeper On March 5, 1946, while speaking at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, former British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, uttered the term “Iron Curtain” in reference to the divide between the Soviet led Communist Bloc and the democratic/capitalist Western group of nations led by the United States. On May 10,…