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Posted on 11/15/23 at 5:42 am

Posted by Armymann50

Playing with my

Member since Sep 2011

17047 posts

Posted on 11/15/23 at 5:42 am

Today in History: November 15

1315
Swiss soldiers ambush and slaughter invading Austrians in the battle of Morgarten.

1777
The Articles of Confederation, instituting perpetual union of the United States of America, are adopted by Congress.

1805
Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and their party reach the mouth of the Columbia River, completing their trek to the Pacific.

1806
Explorer Zebulon Pike discovers the Colorado Peak that bears his name, despite the fact that he didn't climb it.

1864
Union Major General William T. Sherman's troops set fires that destroy much of Atlanta's industrial district prior to beginning Sherman's March to the Sea.

1937
Eighteen lawsuits are brought against the Tennessee Valley Authority, calling for its dissolution.

1957
Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev asserts Soviet superiority in missiles, challenging the United States to a rocket-range shooting match.

1960
The first submarine with nuclear missiles, USS George Washington, takes to sea from Charleston, South Carolina.

1962
Cuba threatens to down U.S. planes on reconnaissance flights over its territory.

1963
Argentina voids all foreign oil contracts.

1965
In the second day of combat, regiments of the 1st Cavalry Division battle on Landing Zones X-Ray against North Vietnamese forces in the Ia Drang Valley.

1969
A quarter of a million anti-Vietnam War demonstrators march in Washington, D.C.

1988
Palestinian National Council proclaims an independent State of Palestine.

2004
Maria Sharapova becomes the first Russian to win the tennis season-ending WTA Tour Championship; beats American Serena Williams 4–6, 6–2, 6–4 at the Staples Center, Los Angeles

2020
World-record price for a Belgian racing pigeon called New Kim sold for €1.6m (£1.4m) at auction

2021
US President Joe Biden signs a 'once in a generation' $1 trillion infrastructure bill into law

Today in History: Born on November 15

1891
Erwin Rommel, German field marshal in World War II.

1907
Claus von Stauffenberg, German army officer; a leader in the failed July 20, 1944, assassination attempt against Adolf Hitler.

1940
Sam Waterston, actor, producer, director (The Killing Fields; TV movie Lincoln; Jack McCoy, Law & Order TV series).

JOTD

My wife asked me which of her friends I would like to have a threesome with.

Apparently I’m not supposed to pick two of them.

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Posted by kywildcatfanone

Wildcat Country!

Member since Oct 2012

118984 posts

Posted on 11/15/23 at 6:33 am to Armymann50

Morning Armymann50 and all

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Posted by Arksulli

Fayetteville

Member since Aug 2014

25179 posts

Posted on 11/15/23 at 7:48 am to Armymann50

quote:
1315
Swiss soldiers ambush and slaughter invading Austrians in the battle of Morgarten.

The Swiss are famously neutral and have been neutral longer than any other European nation (not counting micronations like Vatican City). But a year ago that wasn't the case.

In the early 1500s Switzerland had neutrality imposed upon them because the Swiss were vicious bastards when it came to warfare and everyone wanted to keep them bottled up in Switzerland. So a 500 year run of neutrality right?

Not so fast. Napoleon conquered Switzerland at the height of his Continental Empire and forced them into his Grand Army. It wasn't until 1815 in one of the dozen or so Treaties of Paris that it regained neutrality. This time, it should be noted, Switzerland went with armed neutrality, which is why it survived WWII intact.

Until last year Sweden was the European country that enjoyed the longest run of neutrality. In the not too creatively named "The Policy of 1812" Sweden, which had lost a third of its country already in the Napoleonic wars, declared its steadfast neutrality. And they would stick to that policy for 210 years until the Russo-Ukrainian War nudged them into NATO.

If you want to be real nit picky though... the Swiss have violated their own policy of neutrality three times in just the last 50 years. All three times invading their much smaller (and utterly dependent) neighbor Lichtenstein. Granted, two of those times were troops on training missions getting lost and crossing the Lichtenstein border and the other was an artillery training mission accidentally hitting a forest a kilometer across the border.

Lichtenstein, a country that dissolved its army in 1865, was a good sport about all three incidents, though they did make the Swiss pay out the wazoo to repair the area bombarded.

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Posted by paperwasp