#TodayInHistory – March 2
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March 2 – Some Important Events on this day
1498 ππΌ Explorer Vasco da Gama’s fleet visits Mozambique Island
1791 ππΌ Long-distance communication speeds up with the unveiling of a semaphore machine in Paris π«π·
1796 ππΌ NapolΓ©on Bonaparte is appointed Commander-in-Chief of the French Army in Italy
1882 ππΌ Queen Victoria narrowly escapes assassination when Roderick Maclean shoots at her while boarding a train in Windsor π«
1888 ππΌ The Convention of Constantinople signed, guaranteeing free maritime passage through the Suez Canal during war and peace π’
1956 ππΌ Morocco tears up the Treaty of Fez, declaring independence from France π²π¦
1933 ππΌ “King Kong” film directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, starring Fay Wray premieres at Radio City Music Hall and RKO Roxy in NYC πΏ
1972 ππΌ Jean-BΓ©del Bokassa appoints himself President for life of Central African Republic. For ten years he had reigned with an iron fist in the Central African Republic, having ousted his distant cousin from office when he was the head of the armed forces. Attempting to emulate his idol, Napoleon Bonaparte, Bokassa had himself declared the Emperor of the Central African Republic. His coronation was unbelievably decadent: he spent some $20 million US dollars, more than a third of the country’s national income, on the occasion. No foreign leaders attended, and he was considered a laughing stock by much of the world.
The Central African Empire lasted only three years before Bokassa was himself overthrown in an operation by the French military. He was exiled to France and tried in absentia, though later returned and was tried again. He served six years of a life sentence before being released in 1993, dying three years later.
1998 ππΌ The film βTitanicβ became the first ever movie to earn 1 billion US dollars at the box π½
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2016 ππΌ Longest non-stop scheduled commercial flight by distance, Emirates A380 flies 14,200km (8,824 miles) Dubai to Auckland in 17 hours, 15 minutes