This Day in History- April 16

1705: Queen Anne of England knights Isaac Newton 

On April 16th, 1705, the Queen of England knighted Isaac Newton, the famous scientist at Trinity College, Cambridge as a recognition of his scientific contributions and work throughout his life.

1746: The Battle of Culloden 

The Battle of Culldone was fought between the Jacobites and the British Hanoverian. It was the final confrontation between the two forces during the Jacobite rising of 1745.

1780 The University of Münster founded 

The public university of Munter was founded in 1970 on 16th April in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the fifth-largest university in Germany offering a plethora of courses and programmes.

1818: Rush- Bagot Treaty

The Rush-Bagot treaty to limit the naval armaments was agreed upon by United States and Great Britain and later the Senate ratified the Rush-Bagot amendment (unarmed US-Canada border) on April 16th, 1818.

1854: San Salvador destroyed by an earthquake

San Salvador is the capital of El Salvador and the city has a history of earthquakes. The 1854 earthquake on April 16th ravaged the city and left thousands distraught.

1862 Slavery ended in District of Columbia

In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln ratified a law that led to the abolishment of slavery in the district of Columbia. The historic law was ratified on April 16 and ended the system of slavery. 

1921: Liberal State Party was founded 

The Liberal State Party was also known as the Liberal Freedom League, was formed in Hague, Netherlands, is an important dutch political party.

1922: Annie Oakley shot 100 clay

Annie Oakley, the American shooter at the age of 62 shot 100 clays and broke the women’s record of shooting maximum targets in one row on this glorious day in history. 

1922 Treaty of Rapallo was signed

The treaty of Rapallo was signed on April 16, 1922 between the German Republic and the Soviet Union in Italy. The two renounced all financial claims incurred during the first World War and set forth to normalise diplomatic relations. 

1945: Battle of Berlin

 The Battle of Berlin began on this historic day in history. It was the biggest offensive launched by the Soviet Union in European History. The Red Army began a series of attacks on the capital of Nazi Germany.

1972 Apollo 16 launched

On April 16, Apollo 16 mission to the moon was launched in the United States. It was the second mission to land in the lunar highlands.

1980 Arthur Ashe retires

Arthur Ashe, the famous tennis player, retired from professional tennis on April 16th, 1980. The sportsman was also an activist who educated thousands of people about diseases like AIDS and HIV.  

2003: Treaty of Accession signed

The treaty of Accession was signed on April 16, 2003 in Athens, Greece between the members of the European Union and the 10 Eastern European countries admitting them into EU.

2007 Virginia Tech massacre

Virginia Tech shooting was one of the deadliest shooting in US. The gunman, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people in the state of Virginia before committing suicide on April 16, 2007.

2017: Erdoğan won the referendum 

2018: Lamar won Pulitzer Prize

Kendrick Lamar became the first rapper and musician to have won the Pulitzer Prize for his album “Damn” on April 16th, 2018.

2020: State of Emergency in Japan

A state of emergency was declared in the country of Japan due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus on April 16, 2020. The emergency was declared till 6th May 2020 to contain the pandemic. 

2020: 22 million Americans filed for unemployment 

The pandemic 2020 led to a major economic loss as 22 million people filed for unemployment on 16th April 2020.