On This Day – Historical Events

On this day in 1509 Henry VII died of tuberculoses and is succeeded by his son King Henry VIII of England.  Henry VIII is one of the most famous Kings of England and he would also become King of Wales after the legal union through the Laws in Wales acts of 1535 and 1542. He is famous for having six wives and the creation of the Church of England which made it possible. He reined as King until his death on the 28^th of January 1547 and on that day his son Edward VI succeeded to the throne.

On this day in 1934 the famous picture of the Loch Ness Monster was first published on the cover of news papers after Dr Robert Kenneth Wilson claimed the image was genuine. Dr Wilson requested not to be affiliated with the photo when it went to print leading to its nickname as the ‘surgeon’s photo’. This image was later proven to be a hoax.

On this day in 1945 Russian forces reach the outskirts of Berlin from three fronts, North, East and South-East. The day before Hitler celebrated his 56^th birthday with high ranking Nazi officers in the confines of his underground bunker. It was obvious to all there that the Russians would soon be at their door and many tried to convince the Fuhrer to escape to the safety of his mountain top fortress. But Hitler feared the risk of being captured on route and would not leave his bunker or Berlin. He did however give permission for the other officers to leave if they so wished. Many did escape including Hermann Göring and Heinrich Himmler, but a few of Hitler’s personal staff would remain with him till the end. When the Russian forces reached the outskirts of Berlin on this day in 1945 the majority of the German troops were made up of the Hitler Youth and older veterans. The race was on for each of the Russian forces to be the one to take control of Berlin and due to this many Russian soldiers took risks and live were needlessly lost. It is believed that 70,000 Russian soldiers died in taking the Capital and in seeking revenge for the destruction of Russia by the previous German invasions, the Russians killed 50,000 German soldiers and civilians. Herman Goring sent a telegram to Hitler suggesting that as Hitler’s designated successor and with Hitler surrounded that he should take control of the German forces. Hitler was furious and he replied via telegram to say that he considered this an act of high treason but he would spare Goring if he resigned and Goring Promptly obeyed. Himmler on the other hand attempted to broker a deal of surrender of the German forces to Western powers on the understanding that he would remain in control of Germany after the war. His offer was not accepted especially because the acts of mass murder committed at Himmler’s command. On the 28^th of April news of Himmler’s failed surrender attempt was released on the BBC. The message was intercepted by German intelligence and when Hitler heard he was heartbroken. He also received news of the execution of Long term friend and Italian Dictator Mussolini, whose body was left in the gutter to rot. To avoid capture and a similar fait, Hitler committed suicide on the 30^th of April with his revolver while his wife of one day took a cyanide capsule.