Wikipedia:Main Page history/2023 January 23
From today's featured article
The siege of Thessalonica (1422–1430) was a successful campaign to capture the city by the Ottoman Empire under Sultan Murad II. It remained in Ottoman hands until 1912, when it became part of the Kingdom of Greece. Thessalonica had already been under Ottoman control from 1387 to 1403 before returning to Byzantine rule in the aftermath of the Battle of Ankara. In 1422 Murad attacked the city. Its ruler, Andronikos Palaiologos, was unable to provide manpower or resources for the city's defense, and handed it over to the Republic of Venice in September 1423. The Ottomans blockaded the city and attacked it by land. The blockade reduced the inhabitants to near starvation, and many fled the city. In 1429 Venice declared war on the Ottomans, and on 29 March 1430 Murad's forces took the city. The siege and the subsequent sack reduced the city to a shadow of its former self, from perhaps as many as 40,000 inhabitants to around 2,000. (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that the Tomb of Aegisthus (pictured) helped to settle the 'Helladic Heresy' over the relationship between Minoan and Mycenaean civilisation?
- ... that Marlis Rahman was sworn in as Governor of West Sumatra in a garage?
- ... that John Lennon believed that the Rolling Stones' 1978 hit "Miss You" was based on a sped-up version of his 1974 song "Scared"?
- ... that Philip Wodehouse spent four months chasing after HMS Peterel across the Mediterranean before catching up with the ship and taking over command from Bartholomew James?
- ... that American first lady Lou Henry Hoover secretly sent money to families in need during the Great Depression?
- ... that the novel Anon Pls. is based on the author's real-life experience going viral on Instagram?
- ... that the Iowa Colored Cowboys played softball for audiences of over a thousand people, in an atmosphere similar to a Harlem Globetrotters show?
- ... that Vice-Admiral Gerald Marescaux was reprimanded for wearing pyjamas?
In the news
- Chris Hipkins (pictured) is chosen to succeed Jacinda Ardern as prime minister of New Zealand and leader of the New Zealand Labour Party.
- A helicopter crashes near Kyiv, killing fourteen people, including Ukrainian interior minister Denys Monastyrsky.
- In the Antiguan general election, the Labour Party retains its majority in the House of Representatives.
- A plane crash in Pokhara, Nepal, kills all 72 people on board.
- In the elections to the parliament of Benin, the Progressive Union for Renewal–Republican Bloc alliance retains a majority, but the opposition Democrats win back parliamentary representation.
On this day
- 1556 – One of the deadliest earthquakes in history struck Shaanxi, China, resulting in at least 100,000 direct deaths.
- 1849 – Elizabeth Blackwell (pictured) graduated from Geneva Medical College in New York, making her the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States.
- 1909 – Two men committed an armed robbery in Tottenham, London, and led police on a two-hour chase, partially by tram, that ended in the perpetrators' suicides.
- 1942 – World War II: Japan began an invasion of the island of New Britain in the Australian Territory of New Guinea.
- 1993 – The first version of Mosaic, created by Marc Andreessen and Eric Bina, was released, becoming the first popular web browser.
- Mary Ward (b. 1585)
- Ernst Abbe (b. 1840)
- Louisa Cadamuro (b. 1987)
From today's featured list
The recording career of Muddy Waters, an American blues artist, lasted from 1941 to 1981. Muddy Waters, widely considered to be one of the most important figures in post–World War II Chicago blues, popularized several early Delta blues songs, such as "Rollin' and Tumblin'", Walkin' Blues", and "Baby, Please Don't Go", and recorded songs that went on to become blues standards. He recorded primarily for two record companies, Aristocrat/Chess and Blue Sky; they issued 62 singles and 13 studio albums. While he was living in Mississippi, Waters was recorded by Alan Lomax in 1941 for a U.S. Library of Congress folk music project. After moving to Chicago, he recorded for Leonard Chess and Aristocrat issued Waters's first single in 1947. In 1950, Chess bought out his label partners and formed Chess Records. From 1950 to 1958, Chess issued 15 singles that reached the top ten of Billboard's R&B chart. After Chess went out of business in 1975, Waters recorded several successful albums for Blue Sky. (Full list...)
Today's featured picture
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"Daisy" is an American political advertisement that aired on television as part of Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 presidential campaign against Barry Goldwater. Though officially aired only once, on September 7, 1964, it is considered a turning point in political and advertising history. It was designed to broadcast Johnson's anti-nuclear positions, contrary to Goldwater's stance. The commercial begins with Monique Corzilius, a three-year-old girl, picking the petals of a daisy while counting from one to ten incorrectly. After she reaches "nine", a booming male voice is heard counting the numbers backward from "ten", similar to the start of a missile-launch countdown. The scene is replaced by a nuclear explosion, with Johnson's voice-over stating: "We must either love each other, or we must die." Although the Johnson campaign was criticized for frightening voters by implying that Goldwater would wage a nuclear war, various other campaigns since have adopted and used the "Daisy" advertisement. Advertisement credit: Lyndon B. Johnson 1964 presidential campaign
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