International Juggler's Day

International Juggler’s Day is observed on April 18 every year. The day honours the art of juggling and its many accomplished practitioners. If you’re looking for a way to have fun with various things, you might consider learning how to juggle them. Toss juggling is the most well-known kind of juggling. Juggling may be done with one or more hands, and one can do it with one or several items at a time. Many jugglers refer to the things they juggle as ‘props.’ Props like balls, clubs, and rings are quite prevalent. Knives, flaming torches, and chainsaws are some of the most dramatic props used by jugglers.

Zimbabwe Independence Day

 

Zimbabwe Independence Day

Zimbabwe Independence Day is celebrated annually on 18 April. This holiday marks independence from the United Kingdom on this day in 1980 and is the National Day of Zimbabwe.

History of Zimbabwean Independence Day

Zimbabwe was first influenced by Europeans with the arrival of The British South Africa Company in the 1890s. The company had been founded by Cecil Rhodes in 1889 to colonise the region.

The area became known as Southern Rhodesia (in honour of Cecil Rhodes) in 1895 and was governed by the British South Africa Company until 1922 when the European settlers voted to become a British Colony.

In 1953, Britain created the Central African Federation, made up of Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) and Nyasaland (Malawi).

Following the breakup of the Federation in 1964, when Zambia and Malawi gained independence, Ian Smith became Prime Minister of the country (now called Rhodesia). Smith began a campaign for independence from Britain, with the government being run by the white minority. Independence was declared in 1965, but was not recognised internationally and led to sanctions against the country. This also led to an extensive campaign of guerilla warfare within Rhodesia and the rise of the Zanu and Zapu organisations.

Under this pressure, the white minority finally consented to multiracial elections in 1980. Robert Mugabe and his Zanu party won the independence elections, with Mugabe becoming Prime Minister and Zimbabwe's independence being formally recognised on 18 April 1980.

 

 

 

 

Tantia Tope's was executed in 1859

Tantia Tope, executed on 18 April 1859, aged 45, was a leader of the Indian Mutiny of 1857–58. Although he had no formal military training, he was probably the best and most effective of the rebels’ generals.

Tantia Tope was a Maratha Brahman in the service of the former peshwa  (ruler) of the Maratha confederacy, Baji Rao, and of his adopted son Nana Sahib, who was also prominent in the mutiny. He was present at Nana Sahib’s massacre of the British colony in Kanpur; in early November 1857 he had taken command of the rebel forces of the state of Gwalior and driven Gen. C.A. Windham into his entrenchments at Kanpur on November 27–28. Tantia Tope was defeated by Sir Colin Campbell (later Baron Clyde) on December 6 but remained at Kalpi, the scene of his defeat. In March 1858 he moved to the relief of Jhansi, whose rani (queen) Lakshmi Bai was besieged by British forces. Again defeated, he welcomed the escaping rani at Kalpi and then made a successful dash to Gwalior on June 1. His forces were broken up on June 19, but he continued resistance as a guerrilla fighter in the jungle until he was betrayed the following April. He was tried and executed at Shivpuri. 

 

Albert Einstein's Death Anniverary

 

Albert Einstein, who passed away on 18 March 1955, aged 76, was a German theoretical physicist, whose profound contributions to science made him one of the most renowned scientists in history. His theory of relativity and the famous equation E=mc^2 are landmarks in the field of physics.

Einstein’s pioneering work on the photoelectric effect earned him the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics and laid a key foundation for quantum theory. Notably, a poll conducted by Physics World named him the greatest physicist of all time.

Albert Einstein was born in 1879 in the German Empire. His parents, Hermann Einstein and Pauline Koch, were secular Ashkenazi Jews. The following year, the Einstein family relocated to Munich, where Hermann and his brother established an electrical equipment manufacturing company.

Einstein's formal education began at a Catholic elementary school and continued at the Luitpold Gymnasium. After his father’s business failed, in 1894 the Einsteins moved to Italy. His talent for mathematics and physics was evident from a young age, with the youth avidly self-studying in these subjects.

Completing his secondary schooling in Aarau, Switzerland, he renounced his German citizenship in 1896 and enrolled at the Swiss Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich. It was there that he met his future wife, Mileva Marić. After graduating in 1900, he gained Swiss citizenship the following year.

Einstein commenced his professional career in 1902 when he took up a job at the Swiss Patent Office in Bern. While working here, he simultaneously conducted his own research. This dual engagement bore fruit in 1905 when he published four influential papers in the journal Annalen der Physik.

These papers, which included expositions on the photoelectric effect, Brownian motion, special relativity, and mass-energy equivalence, had a monumental impact on modern physics. Building on this success, in 1915, Einstein formulated the general theory of relativity, integrating gravitation with the principles of mechanics.

With a move to Berlin in 1914 to join the Prussian Academy of Sciences and the Humboldt University, he solidified his academic standing. The rise of Adolf Hitler in 1933, however, prompted Einstein, a Jewish intellectual, to remain in the United States during a visit. By 1940, he had accepted American citizenship.

Despite his achievements, later in his career Einstein pursued a unified field theory without success and expressed his dissatisfaction with the inherent randomness of quantum mechanics. During this period he frequently clashed with Niels Bohr over the Copenhagen interpretation, famously claiming that God "does not throw dice."

In his personal life, Einstein had various complex relationships. He married Mileva Marić in 1903, with whom he had two sons, but they divorced in 1919. That same year, he married his cousin Elsa Löwenthal, and they stayed married until her death in 1936. His passion for music, especially for Mozart's compositions, was a significant part of his life.

 

 

 

World Heritage Day

 

Our cultural heritage is a significant part of our identity as a nation and a culture. It also bears a lot of historical importance and helps us to connect with our rich traditions and history. However, heritage buildings and monuments need preservation and protection. It is important to create awareness about their significance and urge people to come together in safeguarding the heritage properties of the world. We connect with our history through the heritage we have.

World Heritage Day, also monikered as the International Day for Monuments and Sites (IDMS), is observed on April 18 every year to honour and protect our cultural legacy.

History:

In 1982, The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) proposed the idea of observing World Heritage Day on April 18 every year. The following year, the proposal was approved at UNESCO's General Conference. Since then, the special day is observed every year on April 18. Heritage monuments and sites are often victim to human activities, natural disasters and urbanisation. The day reinstates the importance of protecting and preserving them.

Significance:

World Heritage Day is celebrated to encourage local communities to recognise the importance of keeping our cultural heritage safe. Various events bring together people from different regions and backgrounds, which allows them to share information about their history and traditions. ICOMOS also celebrates the day by collaborating with UNESCO worldwide, attracting travel and history lovers to such events.