In History, Today on October 12

Christopher Columbus made landfall in the Bahamas, marking the first European encounter with the Americas in what is now known as the Age of Exploration.

The Salem witch trials are ended by a letter from Massachusetts Governor William Phips.

The first celebration of Columbus Day in the United States is held in New York City.

The first Oktoberfest was held in Munich, Germany, to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen.

Brazil was formally declared independent from Portugal, with Dom Pedro I becoming the first Emperor of Brazil.

The Pledge of Allegiance is first recited in American schools, coinciding with the 400th anniversary of Columbus's arrival in the Americas.

British nurse Edith Cavell was executed by a German firing squad for helping Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium during World War I.

Conscientious objector Desmond Doss receives the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Okinawa in World War II.

Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev famously pounded his shoe on a desk at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, expressing his discontent with the proceedings.

Equatorial Guinea gained independence from Spain, becoming a sovereign nation.

The first national march on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights took place, advocating for equal rights and protections for LGBTQ+ individuals.

Pervez Musharraf takes power in Pakistan through a military coup, ousting Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The USS Cole, a United States Navy destroyer, was attacked by suicide bombers in a small boat laden with explosives while it was refueling in the Yemeni port of Aden. The attack killed 17 American sailors and injured 39 others.

The Bali bombings occurred in Kuta, Bali, Indonesia, when a series of coordinated bomb attacks killed 202 people and injured over 200 others. The attacks were attributed to the Islamist militant group Jemaah Islamiyah.

The first of the 33 trapped Chilean miners was rescued after spending 69 days underground following the collapse of the San José copper-gold mine in northern Chile. The rescue operation was a major international news event.

The United States announced its withdrawal from UNESCO, citing anti-Israel bias and the need for fundamental reform in the organization. The decision was part of a broader trend of the U.S. pulling back from international organizations under the Trump administration.

Eliud Kipchoge, a Kenyan long-distance runner, became the first person to run a marathon in under two hours, completing the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, Austria, with a time of 1:59:40. Although not an official world record due to the event's special conditions, it was a historic achievement in athletics.