5 June through History
June 5th Unraveling the Past: Significant Events That Occurred
Today, we'll dive into some of the most intriguing events that happened on this day throughout history. From the brutality of St Boniface's murder to the tragic assassination of Robert Kennedy, here's what went down on 5 June:
5 June 754
During a mission to convert the Netherlands to Christianity, the Anglo-Saxon missionary St Boniface was met with a gruesome death at the hands of Frisian armed robbers.
5 June 1762
On this date, John Wilkes, a radical British politician, established the weekly newspaper North Briton. The publication served as a counterpoint to Tobias Smollett's pro-government paper, the Briton.
5 June 1832: A Turning Point for Victor Hugo
The June Rebellion, a working-class insurrection, became the inspiration for Victor Hugo's greatest work, Les Misérables. A young Hugo watched the army fire on republican rebels in Paris, an event he would later incorporate into the book. While the uprising was eventually suppressed, it left a lasting impact on Hugo and shaped his vision of Paris during tumultuous times.
Fact bits:
- The insurrection was triggered by food shortages, a deadly cholera epidemic, and the death of popular general Jean Lamarque.
- The rebellion occurred during the July Monarchy under King Louis-Philippe.
- The June Rebellion is famously portrayed in Les Misérables, but it took place 13 years before the novel's inception.
5 June 1883
The Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits' Express d'Orient service commenced, with the first train leaving Paris's Gare de l'Est for Giurgiu in Romania via Vienna.
5 June 1900
It all came down to a message from God for Carrie Nation, the anti-alcohol campaigner, when she smashed up saloons in Kiowa, Kansas, based on a divine intervention she experienced two days earlier.
5 June 1968: The Tragic Assassination of Robert Kennedy
Senator Robert Kennedy, a key contender in the Democratic presidential race, was brutally gunned down by Palestinian gunman Sirhan Sirhan in Los Angeles. The incident came after Kennedy won the California and South Dakota primaries, narrowly defeating his rival anti-war senator, Eugene McCarthy.
5 June 1981
In California, the US Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report first recognized five cases of a rare form of pneumonia. These mysterious cases turned out to be the initial recognized cases of AIDS.
- The progression of science and health-and-wellness throughout history is evident in the story of Victor Hugo, whose greatest work, Les Misérables, was inspired by the June Rebellion in 1832.
- In the realm of technology, the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits' Express d'Orient service commenced on 5 June 1883, marking a significant event in transportation history.
- Regarding politics, war-and-conflicts, and crime-and-justice, the tragic assassination of Robert Kennedy occurred on 5 June 1968, a event that shook the democratic presidential race and the world.
