This Day In History, December 6th.
Five Historical Events That Happened on December 6th
The Anglo-Irish Treaty, which established the Irish Free State as a self-governing province within the British Empire, was signed in 1921.
After Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus to a white person, the Montgomery Bus Boycott began in Alabama, United States, in 1956.
In what is known as the Montreal Massacre, a shooter opened fire at the École Polytechnique in Montreal, Canada, killing 14 women and wounding ten more.
Hindu nationalists razed the Babri Masjid, a mosque in Ayodhya, India, in 1992, sparking massive religious violence between Hindus and Muslims.
After a seven-month journey from Earth, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter successfully entered orbit around Mars in 2006.
In 1921, the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed, which established the Irish Free State as a self-governing dominion within the British Empire.
On December 6, 1921, officials of the British government and the Irish Republic signed the Anglo-Irish Treaty in London, England. The treaty effectively ended the Irish War of Independence and created the Irish Free State as an independent dominion within the British Empire. It did, however, create a schism between Northern Ireland, which remained a part of the United Kingdom, and the rest of Ireland, which became the Irish Free State. The pact was a contentious agreement that exacerbated political unrest and bloodshed in Ireland.
In 1956, the Montgomery Bus Boycott began in Alabama, United States, after Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus to a white person.
Rosa Parks, a civil rights leader, was arrested on December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus to a white individual. Her arrest provoked a bus boycott by African Americans, who made up the bulk of bus riders. Martin Luther King Jr. spearheaded the boycott, which lasted 381 days until a federal court declared that Montgomery's segregation laws were unconstitutional. The Montgomery Bus Boycott is seen as a watershed point in the United States' civil rights struggle.
In 1989, a gunman opened fire at the École Polytechnique in Montreal, Canada, killing 14 women and injuring 10 others in what is known as the Montreal Massacre.
On December 6, 1989, a shooter entered Montreal's École Polytechnique and started fire on students and instructors, primarily women. During the roughly 20-minute attack, the gunman killed 14 women and injured ten others before taking his own life. The Montreal Massacre, as it is now known, was a stunning act of violence that triggered a national discourse in Canada about sexism, violence against women, and gun regulation. It also resulted in the creation of the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, which is marked on December 6th.
In 1992, the Babri Masjid, a mosque in Ayodhya, India, was demolished by Hindu nationalists, leading to widespread religious violence between Hindus and Muslims.
A mob of Hindu nationalists razed the Babri Masjid, a mosque in the Indian city of Ayodhya, on December 6, 1992, claiming it was erected on the site of a Hindu temple. The mosque's destruction sparked widespread religious rioting in India between Hindus and Muslims, resulting in the deaths of around 2,000 individuals. The act also had political ramifications, as the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rose to prominence and finally won control of the Indian government. The Babri Masjid debate is still a source of contention in India today.
In 2006, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter successfully entered into orbit around Mars after a seven-month journey from Earth.
After a seven-month journey from Earth, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) successfully entered orbit around Mars on December 6, 2006. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) was a spacecraft meant to examine the geology, temperature, and atmosphere of Mars with a range of scientific equipment such as cameras, spectrometers, and radar. Scientists have received a lot of data and photographs from the MRO project, including evidence of historical water activity on Mars and precise mapping of its surface characteristics. The MRO is still operational and sending data back to Earth, making it one of the most successful Mars missions to date.