This Day In History, August 4th.

Five Historical Events That Happened on August 4th

• In 1735, John Peter Zenger was jailed for printing articles critical of New York's governor, marking a watershed moment in the history of press freedom in the United States.

• When Germany declared war on Belgium in 1914, World War I officially began. This was the start of one of the bloodiest battles in human history.

• Nazi officials discovered Anne Frank and her family in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in 1944. The family was later seized and detained in concentration camps, where Anne Frank wrote her famous diary.

• The remains of three civil rights activists (James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner) were discovered buried in Mississippi in 1964, sparking the American Civil Rights Movement.

• The Great Flood of 1993, one of the most destructive floods in US history, reached its apex in 1993, when the Mississippi River rose to record levels, wreaking severe devastation and driving thousands of people to flee their homes.

In 1735, John Peter Zenger was arrested for printing articles critical of the governor of New York, marking a significant milestone in the history of freedom of the press in the United States.

In 1735, John Peter Zenger, a German-American printer and journalist, was jailed for printing pieces critical of New York's colonial ruler. His trial, known as the Zenger trial, constituted a watershed moment in the history of press freedom in the United States.

The colonial administration had severe rules in place at the time that forbade the publication of any critiques of the government, even if they were genuine. Zenger, on the other hand, published a series of essays accusing the governor of corruption and misuse of authority.

Zenger was arrested and accused with seditious libel, but his trial turned into a rallying cry for press freedom. His defense attorney claimed that the truth should be used as a defense against libel accusations, and Zenger was finally acquitted on all counts.

The Zenger trial constituted a watershed moment in American journalism history, helping to establish the notion of press freedom in the United States. It established the precedent that publications could not be punished for publishing the truth, even if the information was unflattering to the government.

In 1914, World War I officially began when Germany declared war on Belgium. This event marked the beginning of one of the deadliest conflicts in human history.

Germany declared war on Belgium on August 4, 1914, kicking off World War I. The war, which lasted from 1914 to 1918, involved several of the world's major countries. With an estimated 8.5 million military casualties and 13 million civilian deaths, it was one of the worst battles in human history.

The war began in June 1914, with the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. This started a sequence of alliances and diplomatic intrigues that eventually led to war. The Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire) were opposed against the Allied Powers (Great Britain, France, Russia, and, finally, the United States).

The employment of chemical weapons, trench warfare, and the introduction of new technology including as tanks and airplanes contributed to unprecedented amounts of damage during the conflict. It also had far-reaching political and social ramifications, including the fall of many major empires and the development of communism in Russia.

The war concluded in 1919 with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, which imposed enormous reparations on Germany and helped pave the way for Nazi Germany's rise and World War II.

In 1944, Anne Frank and her family were discovered by Nazi officials in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The family was subsequently arrested and sent to concentration camps, where Anne Frank would later write her famous diary.

Anne Frank was a Jewish girl who went into hiding with her family in Amsterdam when the Nazis conquered the Netherlands during World War II. They resided in a hidden annex in the building where Anne's father worked until they were found on August 4, 1944, by the Gestapo, the German secret police.

The family was apprehended and detained in detention camps. Anne and her sister Margot were then sent to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany, where they both died of typhus just weeks before the camp was liberated by British forces in 1945.

During her time in concealment, Anne wrote a diary, which her father eventually published as "The Diary of a Young Girl." The journal is a first-hand account of the experiences of Jews in hiding during the Holocaust, and it has come to represent hope and tenacity in the face of tragedy.

The discovery and subsequent incarceration of Anne and her family is a terrible reminder of the Holocaust's atrocities and the catastrophic impact of Nazi persecution on the lives of many innocent people.

In 1964, the bodies of three civil rights workers (James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner) were discovered buried in Mississippi, a brutal crime that helped galvanize the Civil Rights Movement in the United States.

During her time in concealment, Anne wrote a diary, which her father eventually published as "The Diary of a Young Girl." The journal is a first-hand account of the experiences of Jews in hiding during the Holocaust, and it has come to represent hope and tenacity in the face of tragedy.

The discovery and subsequent incarceration of Anne and her family is a terrible reminder of the Holocaust's atrocities and the catastrophic impact of Nazi persecution on the lives of many innocent people.

The FBI investigated the murders, and seven persons, including a deputy sheriff, were convicted in 1967 of violating the civil rights of the three young men. The "Mississippi Burning" case became well-known, and it was one of the most high-profile civil rights cases in American history.

The assassinations of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner galvanized the civil rights movement, resulting in increasing national attention and support for the cause of racial equality. The incident also resulted in the passing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which abolished many of the voting hurdles used to disenfranchise African Americans.

In 1993, the Great Flood of 1993, one of the most devastating floods in US history, reached its peak as the Mississippi River surged to record levels, causing widespread damage and forcing thousands of people to evacuate their homes.

Yes, that's right. The Great Flood of 1993 was a devastating flood event that occurred in the central United States, specifically along the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. It was one of the country's most severe and disastrous floods.

The flood was caused by an unusually large quantity of rain over a long period of time, which saturated the land and overpowered the rivers' ability to retain the water. The floodwaters peaked in the summer of 1993, devastating North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Kansas, Nebraska, and sections of Mississippi and Louisiana.

The Mississippi River, in particular, reached record highs, causing extensive flooding in several places along its course. Thousands of houses, businesses, and farmlands were destroyed or seriously damaged, while infrastructure such as bridges and levees were severely damaged or destroyed. In the impacted areas, flooding hindered transportation, agriculture, and commerce.

The Great Flood of 1993 resulted in a tremendous effort by federal, state, and local authorities, as well as individuals, to rescue trapped citizens, offer emergency help, and aid in recovery and rebuilding efforts. It also emphasized the significance of better flood control and management methods.

The 1993 Great Flood acted as a wake-up call for improved floodplain management, flood control infrastructure, and disaster response tactics. It had a long-term impact on the towns impacted and resulted in substantial modifications in flood risk assessment and management procedures across the United States.