A Brief History On May 30, 1431, Joan of Arc (Jeanne d’Arc) was put to death by being burned alive at the stake for the alleged crime of heresy. Probably the most famous person to be burned to death, Saint Joan joins four other famous people on this list that died in this horrible fashion.  Digging Deeper 1.  Joan of Arc. Only 19 when she was executed, Joan had fought for the French against the English during the Hundred Years War, gaining fame and a mythical legendary status.  For her efforts, she was later canonized by the Catholic Church as…

A Brief History On May 29, 1733, the colonial government of New France located in Quebec City reaffirmed the right of Canadians (meaning European Canadians, citizens of New France) to own and keep slaves. Digging Deeper Slavery in Canada is a subject often ignored, especially when the topic of escaped slaves from the United States fleeing to Canada is discussed. (No mention of Canadian slavery ever came up when I went to school.) In fact, New France allowed the practice of slavery for 2 centuries, from 1632 to 1834. This area includes New France in what is now the independent…

A Brief History On May 28, 1802, 400 former slaves revolting against the reinstatement of slavery by the French under Napoleon Bonaparte in the Caribbean department of Guadalupe blew themselves up rather than surrender to the French. Digging Deeper Revolutionary France had abolished slavery, but after Napoleon Bonaparte took control of the country his wife, Josephine, herself a native of Martinique, talked the Emperor into reinstating slavery in the West Indies, as slaves were vital to the plantation way of life for the rich French overseers. Resistance to the French authorities was led by Louis Delgres, a mulatto (half white,…

A Brief History On May 27, 1907, in the aftermath of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the city by the bay came down with an epidemic of Bubonic Plague, the same plague responsible for the infamous “Black Death” in earlier centuries. Digging Deeper San Francisco had its first bout with Bubonic Plague from 1900 to 1904, initially covered up by the Governor of California who did not want to scare off investors and people from moving to the area.  (Note: Governments lie, and lie and lie!)  When the crisis was made public, Chinese immigrants were initially blamed, another step in…

A Brief History On May 26, 1868, US President Andrew Johnson was acquitted at his impeachment trial by the narrowest of margins, one single vote. Johnson had been charged with 11 counts of “high crimes and misdemeanors” by the US House of Representatives and tried by the US Senate, the first time any US President had been impeached. Digging Deeper The next time a US President was impeached was when President Bill Clinton made the blunder of lying to Congress about his sexual relationship with intern, Monica Lewinsky. President Clinton was charged by the House of Representatives with 2 counts…