Friday, February 19, 2010

20 FEBRUARY

1899 - The town of Manduriao, Iloilo, in the Philippines falls to the colonizing American forces despite the valiant resistance of Ilongo soldiers under General Martin Delgado; following the occupation of Iloilo by the imperialist forces, Delgado as  politico-military governor of the province and army's general-in-chief will engage in efforts aimed at harassing the invaders with the support of combatants and non-combatants alike.

1472 - Orkney and Shetland, Old Norse holdovers, are annexed to Scotland as its security for the dowry of Danish Princess Margaret who married Scottish King James III in 1469.

1943 - The initial formation of Mt. Paricutin in Mexico is witnessed by a Mexican boy who saw smoke rising up from a newly plowed field [and soon] hot ashes had pushed the earth away around a hole 80 feet long, spewing ash and hot rocks; in one year's time, it rose from a mound to a hill to a volcano rising 1,353 feet high.

1986 - The Soviet Union launches the space station Mir, opening a new era in space exploration; Mir will considerably contribute in the science of making astronauts survive longer in space.

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