Today's featured article
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There was considerable Axis naval activity in Australian waters during World War II. A total of 54 German and Japanese warships and submarines entered Australian waters between 1940 and 1945 and attacked ships, ports and other targets. Among the best-known attacks are the sinking of HMAS Sydney by a German raider in November 1941, the bombing of Darwin by Japanese naval aircraft in February 1942, and the Japanese midget submarine attack on Sydney Harbour in May 1942. In addition, many Allied merchant ships were damaged or sunk off the Australian coast by submarines and mines. The level of Axis naval activity peaked in the first half of 1942 when Japanese submarines conducted anti-shipping patrols off Australia's coast and Japanese naval aviation attacked several towns in northern Australia. The Japanese submarine offensive against Australia was renewed in the first half of 1943 but was broken off as the Allies pushed the Japanese onto the defensive. Few Axis naval vessels operated in Australian waters in 1944 and 1945 and those that did had only a limited impact. Due to the episodic nature of the Axis attacks and the relatively small number of ships and submarines committed, Germany and Japan were not successful in disrupting Australian shipping. (more...)
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Did you know...
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From Wikipedia's newest articles:
- ...that Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington all visited the Yelverton Inn (pictured) in Chester, New York?
- ...that John Duncan, a Scottish Presbyterian theologian and missionary, was affectionately known as "Rabbi", due to his knowledge of Hebrew and his passion for the Jewish people?
- ...that softball pitcher Vicki Morrow was named Big Ten Player of the Year in 1987 after winning 26 games, including 18 shutouts, and striking out 446 batters?
- ...that the 1945 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours included peerages for the heads of the British armed services of World War II and the first awards of the newly inaugurated Defence Medal?
- ...that that The Monkees' 1967 hit "Pleasant Valley Sunday" was named for a street in West Orange, New Jersey, where the song's authors, Gerry Goffin and Carole King, lived?
- ...that a study by the University of Salford concluded that the high density of high-rise buildings in Salford has "a dramatic influence on the region's weather patterns", in particular by encouraging drizzle?
- ...that the February 9, 1918 Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty between the Ukrainian People's Republic and the Central Powers that helped clear Bolshevik forces from Ukraine?
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On this day...
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February 27: Arba'een in Shi'a Islam (2008); Independence Day in the Dominican Republic.
- 1594 – The King of Navarre was crowned King Henry IV of France at the Cathedral of Chartres near Paris, beginning the Bourbon dynasty.
- 1801 – Washington, D.C., a new planned city and capital of the United States, was placed under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress.
- 1933 – The Reichstag building in Berlin, the assembly location of the German Parliament, was set on fire (pictured), a pivotal event in the establishment of the Nazi regime in Germany.
- 1940 – American biochemists Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discovered the radioactive isotope carbon-14, which today is used extensively as the basis of the radiocarbon dating method to date archaeological, geological, and hydrogeological samples.
- 1976 – The rebel movement Polisario Front proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic in Western Sahara.
More events on this day...
Recent days: February 26 – February 25 – February 24
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