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8th September

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1941: Siege of Leningrad begins


Nazi Germany’s siege of Leningrad begins with the encirclement of the Soviet city on 8th September 1941. It lasted slightly less than 900 days. As food and fuel ran out, some citizens were forced to subsist on bread made with sawdust while others worked through the winter in makeshift military factories without heat. Although many perished from starvation, bombings and the bitter cold, the citizens’ determined resistance held the German troops at bay and helped turn the tide of the Second World War. In January 1944, a Soviet offensive drove the Germans from the city’s outskirts and the siege was lifted. An estimated 650,000 residents of Leningrad had perished. The Soviet government awarded the Order of Lenin to the people of Leningrad in 1945, paying tribute to their endurance during the gruelling siege.

2000

As the fuel prices increase protests take place across Britain, with lorries driving slowly on motorways and petrol refineries being blocked.

1998

In Northern Ireland, The Real IRA announces a ceasefire, although it is thought that they continued to carry out illegal activities even after the declaration.  

1991

The Republic of Macedonia gains independence from Yugoslavia.

1986

Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet survives an assassination attempt when left-wing opponents ambush his motorcade.

1974

U.S. President Gerald Ford grants former President Richard Nixon a full pardon for his alleged part in the Watergate Affair.

1966

Queen Elizabeth II officially opens The Severn Bridge linking South Wales with southwest England.

1954

The anti-communist alliance, The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) is established.

1951

The Treaty of Peace with Japan is signed by 49 nations in San Francisco, America.

1945

U.S. troops land in Korea to begin their post-war occupation of the southern part of the nation.

1943

The Second World War: American General Dwight Eisenhower announces the unconditional surrender of Italy.

1915

The First World War: A German Zeppelin commanded by Heinrich Mathy, one of the great airship commanders of the war, hits Aldersgate in London, killing 22 people.

1888

The first official Football League matches are played in England.

1888

In London, police suspect a serial killer is at large when the disembowelled body of Annie Chapman is found and presumed to be the second victim of “Jack The Ripper.”

1664

The Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam is seized by the English and renamed New York in honour of the Duke of York, who organised the mission.

1504

Italian sculptor, painter and poet Michelangelo unveils his Statue of David in Florence.

1932

American country & western singer Patsy Cline, dies in a plane crash in Tennesse in1963.

1925

Actor and comedian Peter Sellers born in Hampshire. Originally a stand-up comic and impressionist, he and Spike Milligan are the inspirations for the hit BBC radio comedy programme 'The Goon Show'. He also develops a film career - 'The Ladykillers' (1955) and 'Dr Strangelove' (1963) and portrays the incompetent French detective 'Inspector Clouseau' in a series of films which begin with 'The Pink Panther' in 1963. Dies in 1980.

1921

British singer and comedian Harry Secombe. Becomes famous as a member of the BBC radio comedy programme 'The Goon Show' in the 1950s along with Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan and Michael Bentine.

1886

English poet and novelist Siegfried Sassoon born at Brenchley in Kent. His experiences in World War I made him detest war and many of his better-known poems reflect the futility,violence and brutality of battle. Dies in 1967 aged 81.

1841

Czech composer Antonin Dvorak. Most successful composition is his Nineth Symphony - the New World Symphony.

1157

King Richard I of England is born in Oxford - the third son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitane and later becomes known as Richard the Lionheart.

1979

American-born actress Jean Seberg is found dead in her car in Paris.

1949

German composer Richard Strauss aged 85.

1935

In America, Louisiana Senator Huey P.Long is shot and fatally wounded while at a session of the House of Representatives in Baton Rouge.