A Brief History On February 6, 1862, Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant led American Union forces to victory in the Battle of Fort Henry in Tennessee, in what was arguably the first battle of significance won by the Union Army in the US Civil War.  Grant became known as a Union general that could win battles and rode that success to leadership of the US Army and later to the White House as President of the US. Digging Deeper Union forces got off to a bad start in the Civil War, losing at Fort Sumter and then at the First…

A Brief History On February 5, 2024, Royal spokespersons released information that the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, King Charles III, had been diagnosed and is under treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer. Digging Deeper King Charles, age 75, has been receiving treatment for an enlarged prostate gland which resulted in the cancer being discovered.  While not specifically naming the nature of the cancer, it was reported to not be prostate cancer. No prognosis has been released, and the King is being treated on an outpatient basis. He is expected to resume…

A Brief History On February 5, 1985, a war that started in 149 BC was finally put to rest when the Mayor of Rome, Ugo Vetere, went to Tunisia to meet with Chedli Klibi, the Mayor of Carthage, to sign a treaty of peace and friendship, officially ending the Third Punic War 2,131 years after it began. Digging Deeper The Punic Wars, fought between Rome and Carthage for supremacy in the Mediterranean, started in 264 BC and went through three iterations.  The conflict started as Rome was on the rise and sought to establish itself as a naval power, trying…

A Brief History On February 4, 1899, a war broke out between the First Philippine Republic and the US, called the Tagalog Insurgency, the Filipino-American War, and other names, that lasted until July of 1902, and continued as the Moro Rebellion until 1913.  Despite the length of the conflict and the significant casualties suffered by the US, the war remains largely forgotten by many Americans. Digging Deeper A Spanish colonial possession, the Philippines revolted against Spain in 1896, and then in 1898 the Spanish-American War was fought, including the famous naval battle at Manila Bay.  Part of the settlement of…

A Brief History On February 3, 1998, a bizarre aircraft accident occurred on the ski slopes of Italy when a USMC EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare jet flew below allowable altitude and cut the cable to a cable car carrying skiers. Digging Deeper The cable car was carrying an operator and 19 passengers, all of whom were killed as the car fell 300 feet from the severed cable.  The pilot and navigator of the jet were uninjured, and the damaged jet made a safe landing. The accident happened in the Dolomite mountains at Cavalese, and of course, the Italian public and…