37 On March 18, 37 AD Caligula became the Roman emperor after the assassination of his predecessor, Tiberius. On becoming Emperor, Caligula ordered a temporary floating bridge to be built using ships as pontoons, stretching for over two miles from Baiae to Puteoli. He then rode his horse across, wearing the breastplate of Alexander the Great. This act was in defiance of an astrologer's prediction that he had "no more chance of becoming Emperor than of riding a horse across the Gulf of Baiae".
1229 Frederick II, The Holy Roman Emperor, recovered Jerusalem, Nazareth, Bethlehem, and a small coastal strip from the Muslims after negotiation with the Ayyubid sultan during the Sixth Crusade. On March 18, 1229, Frederick II crowned himself king of Jerusalem in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Frederick's seeming bloodless victory in recovering Jerusalem for the cross brought him great prestige in Europe.
1241 The first Mongol invasion of Poland started on March 18, 1241. The Mongols overwhelmed the Polish armies of Sandomierz and Kraków provinces in the Battle of Chmielnik and plundered the abandoned city of Kraków. The Mongols withdrew from Poland later that year after the death of their leader, Ögedei Khan, and their defeat in the Battle of Legnica.
1325 According to legend, Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire, was founded on March 18, 1325. In 1521 after four months of siege the Spanish conquistador Cortés captured the flower-covered Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan which was five times larger than London at the time. Cortés replaced it with Mexico City.
1554 Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth I of England) was imprisoned in the Tower of London by her sister Queen Mary and interrogated about a Protestant conspiracy. The terrified princess entered the Tower of London on March 18, 1554 via Traitors Gate, beneath St Thomas's Tower, believing that she was going to die in the fortress. Two months later, Elizabeth was moved from the Tower to Woodstock, where she was to spend almost a year under house arrest.
1745 The health of Robert Walpole, Britain's first prime minister, was never good and it deteriorated rapidly toward the end of 1744. By 1745 the pain caused by a laceration of his bladder was so acute that Walpole was drenched with opium and for six weeks was in a state of stupefaction. Walpole died of exhaustion on March 18, 1745 at the age of 68. He was buried March 25, 1745 in the parish church of St Martin in Houghton, Norfolk.
1789 Counterfeiter Catherine Murphy was the last woman in England to be officially burned at the stake on March 18, 1789. Catherine and her husband, Hugh Murphy, were convicted for coining at the Old Bailey in London and sentenced to death. She and her husband were executed on the morning of March 18, 1789 at Newgate prison along with seven other men who had been convicted of various offences.
1793 The first democratic republic in Germany, the Republic of Mainz, was declared by Andreas Joseph Hofmann on March 18, 1793. A product of the French Revolutionary Wars, it lasted to July 23, 1793 when a coalition of Prussia, Austria, and other German states besieged and captured Mainz from the revolutionary French forces.
1834 On March 18, 1834 the Tolpuddle Martyrs were convicted at crown court by a jury of farmers and sentenced to seven years in an Australian penal colony for swearing an illegal oath to join their friendly society. The sentence caused public outrage and up to 100,000 people attended a demonstration in London. Over 800,000 signed petitions demanding their release and in 1836 the British government granted all six a full pardon.
1837 Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th President of the United States was born on March 18, 1837.
His father Richard Falley Cleveland was a Presbyterian minister and his mother the daughter of a bookseller. Cleveland was the winner of the popular vote for president three times—in 1884, 1888, and 1892—and was one of the two Democrats (alongside Woodrow Wilson) elected to the presidency in the era of Republican political domination dating from 1861 to 1933.
1845 John “Johnny Appleseed” Chapman became a frontier missionary and pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to the Great Lakes area. After collecting apple seeds from cider presses in western Pennsylvania he embarked on a long trek westward, walking barefoot, planting a series of apple nurseries from Pennsylvania to central Ohio and beyond. He passed away in Fort Wayne, Indiana on March 18, 1845, having sown the seeds of thousands of apple trees.
1850 American Express was founded by Henry Wells and William Fargo on March 18, 1850. It started as an express mail business in Buffalo, New York. For years it enjoyed a virtual monopoly on the movement of express shipments (goods, securities, currency, etc.) throughout New York State.
American Express launched their first charge card on October 1, 1958 with an annual fee of $6.
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| Emperor Caligula, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. By Louis le Grand Wikipedia |
1229 Frederick II, The Holy Roman Emperor, recovered Jerusalem, Nazareth, Bethlehem, and a small coastal strip from the Muslims after negotiation with the Ayyubid sultan during the Sixth Crusade. On March 18, 1229, Frederick II crowned himself king of Jerusalem in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Frederick's seeming bloodless victory in recovering Jerusalem for the cross brought him great prestige in Europe.
1241 The first Mongol invasion of Poland started on March 18, 1241. The Mongols overwhelmed the Polish armies of Sandomierz and Kraków provinces in the Battle of Chmielnik and plundered the abandoned city of Kraków. The Mongols withdrew from Poland later that year after the death of their leader, Ögedei Khan, and their defeat in the Battle of Legnica.
1325 According to legend, Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire, was founded on March 18, 1325. In 1521 after four months of siege the Spanish conquistador Cortés captured the flower-covered Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan which was five times larger than London at the time. Cortés replaced it with Mexico City.
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| Fundación de México – Tenochtitlán by Roberto Cueva del Río |
1554 Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth I of England) was imprisoned in the Tower of London by her sister Queen Mary and interrogated about a Protestant conspiracy. The terrified princess entered the Tower of London on March 18, 1554 via Traitors Gate, beneath St Thomas's Tower, believing that she was going to die in the fortress. Two months later, Elizabeth was moved from the Tower to Woodstock, where she was to spend almost a year under house arrest.
1745 The health of Robert Walpole, Britain's first prime minister, was never good and it deteriorated rapidly toward the end of 1744. By 1745 the pain caused by a laceration of his bladder was so acute that Walpole was drenched with opium and for six weeks was in a state of stupefaction. Walpole died of exhaustion on March 18, 1745 at the age of 68. He was buried March 25, 1745 in the parish church of St Martin in Houghton, Norfolk.
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| Portrait of Robert Walpole (1676–1745) |
1789 Counterfeiter Catherine Murphy was the last woman in England to be officially burned at the stake on March 18, 1789. Catherine and her husband, Hugh Murphy, were convicted for coining at the Old Bailey in London and sentenced to death. She and her husband were executed on the morning of March 18, 1789 at Newgate prison along with seven other men who had been convicted of various offences.
1793 The first democratic republic in Germany, the Republic of Mainz, was declared by Andreas Joseph Hofmann on March 18, 1793. A product of the French Revolutionary Wars, it lasted to July 23, 1793 when a coalition of Prussia, Austria, and other German states besieged and captured Mainz from the revolutionary French forces.
1834 On March 18, 1834 the Tolpuddle Martyrs were convicted at crown court by a jury of farmers and sentenced to seven years in an Australian penal colony for swearing an illegal oath to join their friendly society. The sentence caused public outrage and up to 100,000 people attended a demonstration in London. Over 800,000 signed petitions demanding their release and in 1836 the British government granted all six a full pardon.
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| By Adam Bishop - Wikipedia |
1837 Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th President of the United States was born on March 18, 1837.
His father Richard Falley Cleveland was a Presbyterian minister and his mother the daughter of a bookseller. Cleveland was the winner of the popular vote for president three times—in 1884, 1888, and 1892—and was one of the two Democrats (alongside Woodrow Wilson) elected to the presidency in the era of Republican political domination dating from 1861 to 1933.
1845 John “Johnny Appleseed” Chapman became a frontier missionary and pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to the Great Lakes area. After collecting apple seeds from cider presses in western Pennsylvania he embarked on a long trek westward, walking barefoot, planting a series of apple nurseries from Pennsylvania to central Ohio and beyond. He passed away in Fort Wayne, Indiana on March 18, 1845, having sown the seeds of thousands of apple trees.
1850 American Express was founded by Henry Wells and William Fargo on March 18, 1850. It started as an express mail business in Buffalo, New York. For years it enjoyed a virtual monopoly on the movement of express shipments (goods, securities, currency, etc.) throughout New York State.
American Express launched their first charge card on October 1, 1958 with an annual fee of $6.
1858 German inventor and mechanical engineer, Rudolf Diesel was born on March 18, 1858. The name diesel is given to an engine invented by Rudolf Diesel in the late 19th century. He is best known for inventing the diesel engine, which is named after him. The diesel engine revolutionized transportation and industry, and it remains an important power source today.
1869 Neville Chamberlain, British Prime Minister (1937-40), was born in Birmingham on March 18, 1869. He was the son of Joseph Chamberlain, a Member of Parliament from 1876 to 1914, and Colonial Secretary from 1895 to 1903. At 21 Chamberlain's father sent him to manage a sisal plantation in the Bahamas to try to recoup diminished family fortunes. He didn’t become an MP until the age of 49.
1871 French President Adolphe Thiers ordered the evacuation of Paris on March 18, 1871 after an uprising broke out as the result of France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. It led to the establishment of the Paris Commune government. The Commune held power for two months, until it was harshly suppressed by the French army during the "Bloody Week" at the end of May 1871.
1892 On March 18, 1892 former Governor General Lord Stanley pledged to donate a silver challenge cup, as an award for the best ice hockey team in Canada. Now known as the Stanley Cup, it is the oldest professional sports trophy in North America. Originally presented to amateur champions, the Stanley Cup was first awarded to Montreal AAA in 1893. It has been awarded to the top pro team since 1910, and since 1926, only to National Hockey League teams.
1906 Romanian inventor Traian Vuia was the first person to fly a heavier-than-air craft with an unassisted takeoff. He demonstrated that a flying apparatus could rise into the air by running upon wheels upon an ordinary road on March 18, 1906. Vuia is credited with a powered flight of 11 metres (36 feet) made on that day in his tractor configuration monoplane and he later claimed a powered hop of 24 metres (79 feet).
1910 In 1909, Harry Houdini became fascinated with aviation. He purchased a French Voisin biplane for $5000 and hired a full-time mechanic, Antonio Brassac. Houdini had his plane dismantled and shipped to Australia, where he planned an extended tour. On March 18, 1910 he made three flights at Diggers Rest, Victoria, near Melbourne. It was reported at the time that this was the first aerial flight in Australia, but this is disputed now.
1915 Wenseslao Moguel (c. 1890 – c. 1975) was captured on March 18, 1915, suspected of taking part in the Mexican Revolution. He was sentenced to death without a trial, and was shot 8–9 times by a firing squad in the body, and received one final shot to the head point-blank range to ensure death. He survived his execution, (stories differ as to how he survived) and lived to the age of 85.
1925 The Tri-State Tornado of Wednesday, March 18, 1925 was the deadliest tornado in United States history inflicting 695 fatalities. The 151 to 235 mi (243 to 378 km) track left by the tornado was the longest ever recorded in the world as it crossed from southeastern Missouri, through southern Illinois, then into southwestern Indiana.
1931 After more than a decade experimenting, Colonel Jacob Schick devised an electric razor. Introduced in 1929, the two-handed Schick dry razor required the use of two hands, one to hold the bulky engine, while the other held the whirling razor attached to the motor by a dangling cord. Sales were sluggish but the following year Schick came up with a one-handed model. His one-handed dry electric razor made its debut in America on March 18, 1931.
1944 The most recent eruption of Mount Vesuvius was on March 18, 1944. From March 13, 1944, activity was confined within the rim. Finally, on 18 March 1944, lava overflowed the rim and destroyed nearby villages. In the days that followed, from March 19 to March 22, 1944, the lava flows continued and caused significant damage to the villages of San Sebastiano al Vesuvio, Massa di Somma, Ottaviano, and others.
1869 Neville Chamberlain, British Prime Minister (1937-40), was born in Birmingham on March 18, 1869. He was the son of Joseph Chamberlain, a Member of Parliament from 1876 to 1914, and Colonial Secretary from 1895 to 1903. At 21 Chamberlain's father sent him to manage a sisal plantation in the Bahamas to try to recoup diminished family fortunes. He didn’t become an MP until the age of 49.
1871 French President Adolphe Thiers ordered the evacuation of Paris on March 18, 1871 after an uprising broke out as the result of France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. It led to the establishment of the Paris Commune government. The Commune held power for two months, until it was harshly suppressed by the French army during the "Bloody Week" at the end of May 1871.
1892 On March 18, 1892 former Governor General Lord Stanley pledged to donate a silver challenge cup, as an award for the best ice hockey team in Canada. Now known as the Stanley Cup, it is the oldest professional sports trophy in North America. Originally presented to amateur champions, the Stanley Cup was first awarded to Montreal AAA in 1893. It has been awarded to the top pro team since 1910, and since 1926, only to National Hockey League teams.
1906 Romanian inventor Traian Vuia was the first person to fly a heavier-than-air craft with an unassisted takeoff. He demonstrated that a flying apparatus could rise into the air by running upon wheels upon an ordinary road on March 18, 1906. Vuia is credited with a powered flight of 11 metres (36 feet) made on that day in his tractor configuration monoplane and he later claimed a powered hop of 24 metres (79 feet).
1910 In 1909, Harry Houdini became fascinated with aviation. He purchased a French Voisin biplane for $5000 and hired a full-time mechanic, Antonio Brassac. Houdini had his plane dismantled and shipped to Australia, where he planned an extended tour. On March 18, 1910 he made three flights at Diggers Rest, Victoria, near Melbourne. It was reported at the time that this was the first aerial flight in Australia, but this is disputed now.
1915 Wenseslao Moguel (c. 1890 – c. 1975) was captured on March 18, 1915, suspected of taking part in the Mexican Revolution. He was sentenced to death without a trial, and was shot 8–9 times by a firing squad in the body, and received one final shot to the head point-blank range to ensure death. He survived his execution, (stories differ as to how he survived) and lived to the age of 85.
1925 The Tri-State Tornado of Wednesday, March 18, 1925 was the deadliest tornado in United States history inflicting 695 fatalities. The 151 to 235 mi (243 to 378 km) track left by the tornado was the longest ever recorded in the world as it crossed from southeastern Missouri, through southern Illinois, then into southwestern Indiana.
1931 After more than a decade experimenting, Colonel Jacob Schick devised an electric razor. Introduced in 1929, the two-handed Schick dry razor required the use of two hands, one to hold the bulky engine, while the other held the whirling razor attached to the motor by a dangling cord. Sales were sluggish but the following year Schick came up with a one-handed model. His one-handed dry electric razor made its debut in America on March 18, 1931.
1944 The most recent eruption of Mount Vesuvius was on March 18, 1944. From March 13, 1944, activity was confined within the rim. Finally, on 18 March 1944, lava overflowed the rim and destroyed nearby villages. In the days that followed, from March 19 to March 22, 1944, the lava flows continued and caused significant damage to the villages of San Sebastiano al Vesuvio, Massa di Somma, Ottaviano, and others.
1965 On March 18, 1965 Russian cosmonaut Alexey Leonov became the first person to walk in space. Leonov went outside the Soviet spacecraft Voskhod 2 for 12 minutes. He was tethered to the airlock with a 5m-long “umbilical cord” that prevented him from drifting into space. During his space walk, Alexei Leonov perspired so much that the sweat was sloshing around in his suit. Leonov said of the first space walk in human history: "My feeling was that I was a grain of sand."
1967 The March 18, 1967 Torrey Canyon oil spill off the south-west coast of the United Kingdom, was at the time the world's worst oil spill. The estimated 25–36 million gallons (94–164 million litres) of crude oil that spilled into the ocean gave lift to the emerging environmental movement.
1985 The first episode of the Australian soap opera Neighbours was broadcast on the Seven Network on March 18, 1985, eventually becoming the longest-running drama in Australian television history. The show has also been successful internationally, airing in more than 60 countries and launching the careers of many Australian actors, including Kylie Minogue, Guy Pearce, and Margot Robbie.
1990 The largest art theft in US history took place on March 18, 1990 at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, totaling 13 paintings worth $500,000,000. All of the empty frames are still hanging, acting as placeholders until the pieces are returned.
2003 On March 18, 2003, just before the US invasion of Iraq, just under $1 billion was taken from the Central Bank of Iraq. Eyewitnesses say Qusay Hussein, the son of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, oversaw the operation. At the time, this was considered the largest bank robbery in history. However, that record was broken in 2011.
2010 According to Guinness World Records, the longest nose on a living person was that of the Turk Mehmet Özyürek, which measures 8.8cm (3.46in) from the bridge to the tip. Mehmet Özyürek was officially confirmed as the record holder on March 18, 2010. Sadly, he passed away in May 2023.
2017 Rock and roll legend Chuck Berry was found dead at his house in St. Charles County, Missouri on March 18, 2017. He was aged 90. Though Berry wrote many rock and roll classics, the novelty song, "My Ding A Ling" was Berry's biggest selling song and only #1 hit.
2017 The world record for the fastest time to break 16 concrete blocks on the body belongs to Ali Bahçetepe from Turkey. He achieved this feat in just 4.75 seconds on March 18, 2017, in Milas Cumhuriyet Square, Muğla, Turkey. Interestingly, this accomplishment also bested his own previous record of 6.33 seconds achieved exactly three years earlier.
2017 Rock and roll legend Chuck Berry was found dead at his house in St. Charles County, Missouri on March 18, 2017. He was aged 90. Though Berry wrote many rock and roll classics, the novelty song, "My Ding A Ling" was Berry's biggest selling song and only #1 hit.
2017 The world record for the fastest time to break 16 concrete blocks on the body belongs to Ali Bahçetepe from Turkey. He achieved this feat in just 4.75 seconds on March 18, 2017, in Milas Cumhuriyet Square, Muğla, Turkey. Interestingly, this accomplishment also bested his own previous record of 6.33 seconds achieved exactly three years earlier.
2020 Cooper, a North American porcupine, resided at the Museum of Science in Boston and held the title of the world's oldest rodent. He passed away in 2020, but not before reaching the impressive age of 32 years old on March 18, 2020. This far surpasses the typical lifespan of a porcupine, which is generally around 20-22 years.
2022 The 1915 Çanakkale Bridge officially opened for traffic on March 18, 2022, following a roughly five-year construction period. It holds the distinction of being the world's longest suspension bridge, with a central span measuring an impressive 2,023 meters (6,637 feet). The bridge serves a critical role in Turkish infrastructure, providing a vital link between the European and Asian sides of the country across the Dardanelles strait.
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