Today's featured article
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The 1910 London to Manchester air race took place between two aviators, Claude Grahame-White (pictured) and Louis Paulhan, who each attempted to win a £10,000 prize for flying from London to Manchester in under 24 hours. Grahame-White was the first to make the attempt, on 23 April 1910, but engine trouble forced him to land near Lichfield, where he had to give up because of inclement weather. Several days later Paulhan began his flight, with Graham-White, his aeroplane only just repaired, following several hours behind. Despite Graham-White's best efforts, Paulhan arrived in Manchester on 28 April, and won the prize. The event marked the first long-distance aeroplane race in England, the first take-off by a heavier-than-air machine at night, and the first powered flight into Manchester from outside the city. (more...)
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March 9
- 1776 – The Wealth of Nations by Scottish political economist Adam Smith (bust pictured) was first published, becoming the first modern work in the field of economics.
- 1925 – The British Royal Air Force began Pink's War, an air-to-ground bombardment against the mountain strongholds of Mahsud tribesmen in South Waziristan, British Raj, without the support of the British Army.
- 1932 – Éamon de Valera, one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, became President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State.
- 1945 – World War II: A bomb raid on Tokyo by American B-29 heavy bombers started a firestorm, killing over 100,000 people.
- 1977 – Twelve gunmen seized three buildings in Washington, D.C., and took 149 hostages in a 39-hour standoff that ended in only two deaths.
More anniversaries: March 8 – March 9 – March 10
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