In History, Today on April 7

A suspected chemical attack occurred in Douma, Syria, leading to international condemnation and subsequent military responses from Western nations.

The United States launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian airbase in response to a chemical weapons attack in Khan Shaykhun.

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev was ousted from power following a violent uprising in the capital, Bishkek.

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck L'Aquila in central Italy, resulting in significant destruction and loss of life.

U.S. troops captured Baghdad, leading to the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq.

Mars Odyssey was launched by NASA to search for evidence of past or present water and volcanic activity on Mars.

The Rwandan genocide begins, leading to the mass slaughter of Tutsi by Hutu extremists over the next 100 days.

The Internet's symbolic birth date: the publication of RFC 1.

IBM announces the System/360, a new family of computers that revolutionized the computer industry.

U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower gives his "domino theory" speech during a news conference, explaining why the United States should continue to support French Indochina.

Dag Hammarskjöld is elected as the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is established by the United Nations to coordinate international health activities and to help governments improve health services.

The Prohibition of alcohol in the United States is effectively ended when the Cullen-Harrison Act becomes law, allowing the sale of beer and wine with a low alcohol content.

The first long-distance public television broadcast is made from Washington, D.C., to New York City, displaying the image of Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover.

Mount Vesuvius erupts and devastates Naples, Italy.

The Battle of Shiloh, a major battle in the American Civil War, concludes on this day. The Union Army, under General Ulysses S. Grant, manages to secure a victory against the Confederate forces led by General Albert Sidney Johnston, who was killed during the battle, and General P.G.T. Beauregard.

John Walker, an English chemist, sold the first friction match, known as the 'lucifer match'.

Lewis & Clark Expedition: The Lewis and Clark expedition (Corps of Discovery) began the journey west of the Mississippi River, setting out from Fort Mandan after spending the winter there.

American pioneers establish the town of Marietta, Ohio, the first permanent settlement of the new United States in the Northwest Territory.

Captain John Barry and the USS Lexington captured the British tender Edward, marking the first American naval victory during the Revolutionary War.

The premiere of Johann Sebastian Bach's Johannes-Passion (St. John Passion) BWV 245 took place in Leipzig.

Ferdinand Magellan arrives at Cebu in the Philippines during his circumnavigation of the globe.

Charles University in Prague, the first university in Central Europe, is founded by Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia.

The Corpus Juris Civilis, also known as the Code of Justinian, is issued by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, laying the foundation for modern civil law.

Attila the Hun invades Gaul, marking a significant moment in the Hunnic invasions of Europe.