Today In History
In 1542: The fifth wife of England’s King Henry VIII, Catherine Howard, was executed for adultery.
In 1920: The League of Nations recognized the perpetual neutrality of Switzerland.
In 1935: A jury in Flemington, N.J., found Bruno Richard Hauptmann guilty of first-degree murder in the kidnap-death of the infant son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh. Hauptmann was later executed.
In 1945: During World War II, the Soviets captured Budapest, Hungary, from the Germans.
In 1945: Allied planes began bombing the German city of Dresden.
In 1960: France exploded its first atomic bomb.
In 1980: The 13th Winter Olympics opening ceremonies were held in Lake Placid, N.Y.
In 1988: the 15th Winter Olympics opened in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.