Discover What Happened Today in History
George Washington was inaugurated as the first President of the United States on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York City. This event established many of the traditions for the peaceful transfer of executive power.
The United States and France signed the Louisiana Purchase treaty, whereby the U.S. acquired approximately 827,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million. This doubled the size of the young nation.
Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany, committed suicide by gunshot in his FΓΌhrerbunker in Berlin as Soviet forces closed in on the city. His death marked a symbolic end to the European theater of World War II.
CERN, the European research organization, announced that the World Wide Web technology would be free for anyone to use, with no fees or restrictions. This decision was crucial for the explosive growth and accessibility of the internet.
North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, leading to the unconditional surrender of the South Vietnamese government. This event marked the end of the Vietnam War and the reunification of Vietnam under communist rule.