April 18th Through History

Explanation: The 1906 San Francisco earthquake remains one of the greatest natural disasters in American history. With an estimated magnitude of 7.9 according to modern estimates, it destroyed approximately 28,000 buildings. The fires caused by the rupture of gas pipelines were even deadlier than the earthquake itself, burning for several days.

Explanation: Roland Garros had invented a device that allowed a machine gun to fire through the propeller arc of his plane, thus revolutionizing aerial combat. Captured after his forced landing in Germany, he escaped in 1918. He died in combat on October 5, 1918, just weeks before the armistice. The Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, which hosts the French Open tennis tournament, pays tribute to him.

Explanation: The Doolittle Raid, named after Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle who led it, was the first bombing of Japanese territory by the United States. Sixteen B-25 bombers took off from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet. Although material damage was limited, the raid had a considerable psychological impact on both sides of the Pacific, proving that Japan was not invulnerable.

Explanation: The Book of Spirits is the first work of Allan Kardec, pseudonym of the Lyon educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail. This book, which presents the spiritist doctrine in the form of questions and answers dictated by spirits, was the starting point of a movement that still has millions of followers today, particularly in Brazil where Kardecist Spiritism is particularly established.

Explanation: The 1951 Treaty of Paris was the first founding text of European construction. The ECSC brought together six countries: France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Its main objective was to make impossible, through economic interdependence, future wars between France and Germany. The ECSC expired in 2002, after 50 years of existence.

Explanation: Grace Kelly, Hollywood actress and Oscar winner notably for "The Country Girl" (1954), married Prince Rainier III of Monaco in a civil ceremony on April 18, 1956, followed by a religious ceremony the next day. She thus became Princess Grace of Monaco and abandoned her film career. She died tragically in a car accident in 1982. This wedding was one of the most publicized society events of the 20th century.

Explanation: Élisabeth Borne was appointed Prime Minister on May 16, 2022 by President Emmanuel Macron, becoming the second woman to hold the position after Édith Cresson in 1991. Former Minister of Transport and Ecological Transition, she is also known for having led the controversial 2023 pension reform. She was replaced by Gabriel Attal in January 2024.

Explanation: The Bandung Conference (April 18-24, 1955) brought together 29 countries from Asia and Africa and laid the foundations of the Non-Aligned Movement. It marked the emergence of the Third World as a political actor on the international scene, in opposition to the two blocs of the Cold War. Among the key figures present were Nehru (India), Sukarno (Indonesia) and Gamal Abdel Nasser (Egypt).

Explanation: The ECSC (European Coal and Steel Community), founded by the Treaty of Paris on April 18, 1951, was the first European supranational organization. It prefigured the EEC created by the Treaties of Rome in 1957. The idea of the ECSC was proposed by Robert Schuman in his famous declaration of May 9, 1950, today celebrated as Europe Day.

Explanation: Jean Jaurès founded L'Humanité as the newspaper of the French socialist movement. After his assassination in 1914, the newspaper progressively became the official organ of the French Communist Party from 1920, during the Tours Congress which split the socialist movement. L'Humanité is today an independent daily newspaper that organizes each year the Fête de l'Humanité, one of the largest political and cultural festivals in Europe.