On This Day
1858 - A French girl, Bernadette Soubirous, claimed to have seen a vision of the Virgin Mary near Lourdes.
1929 - The Lateran Treaty was signed. Italy now recognized the independence and sovereignty of Vatican City.
1979 - Nine days after the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned to Iran (after 15 years in exile) power was seized by his followers.
1990 - Nelson Mandela was freed after 27 years in captivity. (click image for more information)
2000 - Great Britain suspended self-rule in Northern Ireland after the Irish Republican Army (IRA) failed to begin decommissioning (disarming) by a February deadline.
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