In History, Today on October 12

The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Annie Ernaux for the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers the roots, estrangements, and collective restraints of personal memory.

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.

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.

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 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 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.

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

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

Aero Flight 217, a DC-4 operated by Aeroflot, crashes into Lake Servozero near Murmansk, Soviet Union, during approach, killing all 13 onboard.

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

The Soviet Union launches Voskhod 1 into Earth orbit as the first spacecraft to carry a multi-person crew and to go without space suits.

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.

Eugenie Anderson became the first woman appointed to be a U.S. ambassador, serving in Denmark.

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

The United States Army Disciplinary Barracks on Alcatraz Island was acquired by the United States Department of Justice and converted into a federal prison.

An iron lung respirator was used for the first time at the Boston Children's Hospital to assist a child suffering from diphtheria.

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

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

President Ulysses S. Grant condemns the activities of the Ku Klux Klan and deploys the U.S. military to suppress its activities in South Carolina, marking a significant step in the enforcement of civil rights during Reconstruction.

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

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

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

America's first insane asylum, the Public Hospital for Persons of Insane and Disordered Minds, opens in Williamsburg, Virginia. This institution was the first devoted solely to the care and treatment of the mentally ill.

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

The Gregorian calendar is introduced in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as the day after October 4 is counted as October 15 to adjust the discrepancy in the Julian calendar.

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 Treaty of Bastia was completed, whereby Vanozza Cominella ceded Corsican cities to Genoa.

The annals recorded that on this date, the Arab-Byzantine conflict saw a significant turn when the Arabs conquered Antioch. This event marked a crucial phase in the early Islamic conquests which spread the influence of the Rashidun Caliphate across the Byzantine territories.

Cyrus the Great of Persia captured Babylon, marking the end of the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the beginning of the Achaemenid Empire's dominance in the region.