October 9 Through History

Explanation: Clément Ader's Éole (or Avion I) rose 20 centimeters off the ground over 50 meters. Although the credit for the first powered flight is often attributed to the Wright brothers in 1903, Ader's feat remains subject to debate as no formal independent evidence corroborates it. The very word "avion" (plane) was coined by Clément Ader.

Explanation: Lugdunum, present-day Lyon, was founded at the confluence of the Rhône and the Saône. It quickly became the capital of Gaul and one of the most important cities in the Roman Empire. Lucius Munatius Plancus is also known for having proposed the title of "Augustus" to Octavian, the future first Roman emperor.

Explanation: It was Robert Badinter, then Minister of Justice under François Mitterrand, who brought this reform before the National Assembly. The guillotine, used since the French Revolution, was thus abandoned. France was one of the last countries in Western Europe to maintain this penalty.

Explanation: John Lennon, co-founder of the Beatles, was born on October 9, 1940. A remarkable fact: his son Sean Lennon was also born on October 9, in 1975. John Lennon was assassinated on December 8, 1980, in New York, in front of his apartment at the Dakota building.

Explanation: The École nationale d'administration (ENA) was founded on October 9, 1945, at the initiative of General de Gaulle and Michel Debré. It trained generations of senior French civil servants and politicians. The ENA was replaced in 2022 by the Institut national du service public (INSP).

Explanation: Sakharov was a Soviet nuclear physicist who had contributed to the development of the Soviet hydrogen bomb, before becoming an ardent defender of human rights and disarmament. Soviet authorities prevented him from traveling to Oslo to receive his prize. He was later exiled to Gorky from 1980 to 1986.

Explanation: Uganda, a former British colony, proclaimed its independence on October 9, 1962, with Milton Obote as Prime Minister. This East African country would become sadly notorious under the dictatorship of Idi Amin Dada in the 1970s. Kampala is its capital.

Explanation: Madame de Maintenon, born Françoise d'Aubigné, was first the governess of the king's illegitimate children before becoming his favourite and then his morganatic wife. This secret marriage was celebrated after the death of Marie-Thérèse d'Autriche. She later founded the Maison royale de Saint-Louis at Saint-Cyr for the education of young noblewomen.

Explanation: The General Postal Union, founded on October 9, 1874 in Berne, became the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in 1878. It is one of the oldest international organizations still in operation and currently has 192 member countries. October 9 is celebrated every year as World Post Day.

Explanation: The Carnival of the Animals, composed in 1886, is without doubt Saint-Saëns's most popular work. However, he kept it secret during his lifetime, considering it too lightweight. He also wrote Symphony No. 3, known as the "Organ" Symphony, and Danse macabre. Saint-Saëns was a child prodigy, giving his first recital at age ten.