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Historical Moments On this day

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Anniversary.

On 11 October, 2008 Luc Costermans from Belgium set a new world speed record for blind drivers of 192 mph. He set the record in a borrowed Lamborghini Gallardo at an airstrip near Marseilles, accompanied by a co-pilot.(y)

In jest there is every hope that Sexpert and his lady wife will not indulge in such activities with their new car !:unsure:
 

SnafuSmite

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Anniversary.

On 11 October, 2008 Luc Costermans from Belgium set a new world speed record for blind drivers of 192 mph. He set the record in a borrowed Lamborghini Gallardo at an airstrip near Marseilles, accompanied by a co-pilot.(y)

In jest there is every hope that Sexpert and his lady wife will not indulge in such activities with their new car !:unsure:
I dont think a Picanto can get even close to 90mph;)
 

dusaboss

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He set the record in a borrowed Lamborghini Gallardo at an airstrip near Marseilles, accompanied by a co-pilot.(y)

They need to reward guy who gave him Lambo too. Imagine if blind man ask you for your new Lamborghini to drive it 310 km/h. :)
 
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On 12 October, 1810 Bavaria's Crown Prince Louis, later King Louis 1 lays the foundations of the modern Octoberfest, when he marries Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen and invites the citizens of Munich to attend the festivities on the fields in front of the city gates.(y)

You have to be ancient to know this sort of thing.:)
 

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14 Oct 1066 Battle of Hastings

In the early morning of 14 October 1066, two great armies prepared to fight for the throne of England. On a hilltop 7 miles from Hastings were the forces of Harold, who had been crowned king nine months earlier. Facing them on the far side of the valley below were the troops of Duke William of Normandy, who believed he was the rightful king. By the end of the day, thousands lay dead on the battlefield, and the victorious William was one step nearer to seizing the throne.

1539482611384.png Part of the Bayeux tapestry 70m long ! and 50 cm high

14 October 1322 Battle of Old Byland

Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats King Edward II of England at Old Byland, forcing Edward to accept Scotland's independence:
King Robert the Bruce I was born at Lochmaben Castle in 1274. He was Knight and Overlord of Annandale. In 1306 he was crowned King of Scotland and henceforth tried to free Scotland from the English enemy.

After being defeated at a battle, Bruce escaped and found a hideout in a cave. Hiding in a cave for three months, Bruce was at the lowest point of his life. He thought about leaving the country and never coming back.

While waiting, he watched a spider building a web in the cave's entrance. The spider fell down time after time, but finally he succeeded with his web. So Bruce decided also to retry his fight and told his men: "If at first you don't succeed, try try and try again".
Old legend.


1933 Nazi Germany announces its withdrawal from the League of Nations

 
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On 15 October, 1863 during the American Civil War; the Huntley a 40 ft submarine, based on a cylinder boiler sunk during a test, killing its inventor and 7 man crew. It was subsequently retrieved and later became the world's first successful combat submarine.
 

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National Geographic made a documentary on the subsequent raising and salvaging. Called "Raising the Hunley." One can only imagine the courage of those men who's "torpedo" was attaching a barrel of explosive on the tip of a long pole, steer into a ship and detonate. They achieved their mission though sinking the Union Ship USS Housatonic, sank with all hands. 24 men were killed in the testing and deployment of the HL Hunley during its short life span.
 

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50 years ago, today. .the sprinters Américain, Tommie Smith and John Carlos ...raised their black gloved fist in sign of protestation at the Olympique Games in Mexico
 
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Tuesday, 17th October1961. French police kill 200 Algerians marching in Paris in support of peace talks to end their country's war of independence against France. Tensions were high with Algerian terrorists setting off bombs and killing police.
 

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For those of you who are convinced that the REP were the ones to have made the first parachute jump :
(I missed this yesterday because of the storms the internet was down most of the day.)

October 22 1797

André-Jacques Garnerin made the first documented parachute jump on this day, landing safely after exiting a balloon 3,000ft above a park in Paris.


It is said that he came up with the idea while serving in the French army and spending two years as a prisoner after being captured during hostilities against England. He was confined at a prison in Hungary where the high ramparts mocked the notion of any escape attempt but could have sparked the idea of a parachute in Garnerin's brain.

Born in Paris in 1769, Garnerin studied physics as a young man and was a student of Jacques Charles, a French inventor, mathematician, and ballooning pioneer who launched the world’s first unmanned hydrogen balloon in August 1783.

Garnerin had a fascination for ballooning and recommended its use for military purposes.

But in 1797 he found a new use for it and crowds gathered at the Parc Monceau in Paris to witness the first-ever parachute jump.

He was trusting his life to a canopy 23ft in diameter that had no rigid frame and was attached to a basket with suspension ropes.

Garnerin attached the "parachute" to a hydrogen balloon and ascended to an altitude of 3,200 feet before starting to cut the rope that connected his contraption to the balloon.

He later recalled the enormity of this moment: “I was on the point of cutting the cord that suspended me between heaven and earth and measured with my eye the vast space that separated me from the rest of the human race.”

After cutting the "parachute" loose, it inflated and all seemed well – but then it began to oscillate violently, which terrified many spectators below. Garnerin landed shaken but unhurt half a mile from the balloon's takeoff site.

This problem of wild swings on descent was solved in 1804 by French scientist Joseph Lelandes who introduced a vent in the centre of the canopy to eliminate violent oscillations.

Meanwhile, Garnerin pressed ahead with his daring pursuits and – ever the showman – announced in 1798 that on his next flight he would take with him a woman passenger. This caused much excitement in the press but outrage among officials of the Central Bureau of Police who issued an injunction against him forbidding the plan.

It seems they were worried about the effect that reduced air pressure might have on a female body, which they described as "delicate." Why, she might even become unconscious while alone up there in the basket with Garnerin. And that, of course raised all sorts of questions besides the moral implications of the two flying in such close proximity in the first place.

Garnerin appealed to the Minister of the Interior and to the Minister of Police. They decided that the ban should be lifted on the grounds that "there was no more scandal in seeing two people of different gender ascend in a balloon than it is to see them jump into a carriage."

All went well and Garnerin became a celebrity demonstrating his parachuting skills across Europe. A popular rhyme at the time went:

Bold Garnerin went up
Which increased his Repute
And came safe to earth
In his Grand Parachute.

His future wife Jeanne Geneviève Labrosse became the first female parachutist without a guide. In 1815 Garnerin’s niece Élise began a career as a parachutist and went on to perform 39 parachute jumps.

Passionate to the last about his hobby, Garnerin was killed in 1823 when he was hit by a beam while working on his balloon equipment. He was only 54 years old.
 

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I hope the parachute was big enough to hold those giant cast iron balls that man had to be the first to jump out of a hot air balloon with a homemade parachute!
 
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Beirut,

23rd October, 1983. Suicide bomber drives truck into USMC barracks killing 241 personnel.

The same day 58 French soldiers were killed in their barracks 2 miles away in a separate suicide attack.

May all RIP.
 

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Joseph Cosgrove

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on this day 25 October 1854
The charge of the light brigade.

The Charge of the Light Brigade
BY ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON
I
Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
“Forward, the Light Brigade!
Charge for the guns!” he said.
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

II
“Forward, the Light Brigade!”
Was there a man dismayed?
Not though the soldier knew
Someone had blundered.
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die.
Into the valley of Death

Rode the six hundred.

III
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of hell
Rode the six hundred.

IV
Flashed all their sabres bare,
Flashed as they turned in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wondered.
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right through the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reeled from the sabre stroke
Shattered and sundered.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

V
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell.
They that had fought so well
Came through the jaws of Death,
Back from the mouth of hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

VI
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!
n/a
 

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On this day 1962 the Legion officially left Sidi Bel Abbes, Algeria. A garrison town since 1840 and later the Legion Headquarters. Photo of the ceremony below.
43025517_1700755390035516_2155871684769349632_n.jpg
 

Joseph Cosgrove

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Actually Ossie O sent me some photos of the building of the base of the Monument. At the time the marble, Oryx marble. which on arrival at Aubagne had completely shattered. they then had to carve out new slabs. photo 2 (1).jpgphoto 3 (1).jpg -----photo 4 (1).jpg ----photo 5.jpg-----photo 2 (2).jpg

Another souvenir that the legion also brought back with them were the weapons captured from the enemy. The minister of war agreed that they could keep them as long as the were demilitarized. This would have cost a fortune (it doesn't only mean taking out the firing pin :cool:) Impossible because of the costs. So they set fire to them and collected all the metal and used it to lay down the foundations of the monument, which is placed over a stream.
For info:
to DeM a weapon, at least in those days. You would take a ball the size of the caliber of the weapon, example 7.5 heat it up until it was red hot and place it down the canon. as it cooled it expanded.
 
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On this day, October 25th, 1944, during the battle of Leyte Gulf WW2, the Japanese deployed Kamikaze (Divine Wind) suicide bombers against US warships for the first time.

The US escort carrier St.Lo was hit and sunk killing 100 Americans. May they RIP.
 
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