In History, Today on March 31

The Alhambra Decree was issued by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, ordering the expulsion of practicing Jews from the Kingdoms of Castile and Aragon and its territories by July 31, 1492.

The Eiffel Tower was officially completed in Paris, France. It was designed by Gustave Eiffel and became a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world.

The United States took possession of the Danish West Indies after paying $25 million to Denmark, renaming the territory the United States Virgin Islands.

The Soviet Union launched Luna 10, which later became the first spacecraft to orbit the Moon.

Jimi Hendrix set fire to his guitar on stage for the first time at the Astoria Theatre in London, an iconic moment in rock music history.

The Warsaw Pact, a collective defense treaty established by the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republics in Central and Eastern Europe during the Cold War, was formally dissolved.

Four American private military contractors were ambushed and killed in Fallujah, Iraq, leading to the First Battle of Fallujah.

Terri Schiavo, a woman in a persistent vegetative state, died after a lengthy legal battle over her right to die.

President Barack Obama announced plans to open up large areas of the U.S. East Coast to offshore oil and gas drilling.

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia sentenced Radovan Karadžić to 40 years in prison for genocide and war crimes.

The United Kingdom formally triggered Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, beginning the process of Brexit.

The 'March for Our Lives' rallies took place across the United States and around the world, organized by student survivors of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting to advocate for gun control legislation.

Ukraine held the first round of its presidential election, with comedian Volodymyr Zelensky winning the most votes.

The World Health Organization reported that the global number of confirmed COVID-19 cases surpassed 750,000, as countries around the world implemented lockdowns and other measures to curb the pandemic.