On this day in history

Welcome to a new blog segment that will hopefully gain notoriety and become a staple of your regular blog reading. Or whatever.

January 9th

1349- The Swiss, known for their peaceful neutrality in 20th century war, fine chocolate and noteworthy skiing, set a precedent for genocide on this day in history when the citizens of Basel, Switzerland gathered all the Jews in the city and incinerated them, citing them as the cause of the bubonic plague. God, angered by the whole incident, destroys the village with a massive earthquake in 1356.

1861- Soldiers from the Citadel, Charleston, SC fire on the Star of the West, a trade ship coming to resupply troops at Ft. Sumter, SC. These are generally considered to be the first shots of the American Civil War. The United States divorce shortly after, citing "irreconcilable differences".

Notable Births:

1929- Dorthea Puente- Convicted American serial killer, who married, killed and then collected the pension checks of retired men. She was shocked to later find out this profitable business was illegal.
1967- Dave Matthews- South African singer and musician; noted for skills and moaning and incoherent mumbling while playing the guitar.

Notable Deaths:

1920- Napoleon III of France- Nephew of Napoleon I, used his position as titular (stop giggling) president of France to become Emperor for the next 18 years, until he doomed France for decades by starting the Franco-Prussian war in 1870. This war gave birth to the German Empire, which, as two of you know, really didn't like France. He spent the remainder of his life in a British hotel, where he died of a bladder stone/kidney failure. He is sometimes referred to as "Napoleon the Small", in comparison to his uncle. Their respective endowments cannot be verified.