TODAY IN HISTORY | April 29

TODAY’S TOPICS

• 1429 - Joan of Arc Arrives In Orleans

• 1974 - The Watergate Tapes

  Extras

  The Olmec Heads🗿

  1 Samurai vs 1,000 Enemies⚔️

  Ned Kelley’s Bulletproof Vest🔫

  Marrying The Dead💍

1429 Joan of Arc Arrives In Orleans

In 1429, France was deep in the Hundred Years’ War against England, and much of northern France was under English or Burgundian control. Joan of Arc, a young peasant girl from Domrémy, had come to believe that she was divinely instructed to help Charles VII reclaim his throne. After convincing local officials and eventually gaining an audience with Charles, she was allowed to accompany a relief army to the besieged city of Orléans. Her presence brought a morale boost to the French forces, who had been struggling against English domination.

Once at Orléans, Joan participated actively in military operations. Although she was not officially a commander, she inspired troops and urged bold attacks against English positions. Throughout late April and early May of 1429, the French forces, encouraged by Joan’s leadership, launched a series of assaults that gradually pushed the English back. Joan herself was wounded by an arrow but returned to the fight. By May 8, the English lifted their siege and retreated, marking a major turning point in the war for the French.

Following the victory at Orléans, Joan continued to play a central role in the campaign to restore Charles VII’s authority. She urged the French army to pursue further victories and helped secure the path for Charles’s coronation. On July 17, 1429, Charles was officially crowned King of France in Reims Cathedral, largely due to the momentum created by Joan’s successes. Her involvement shifted the psychological and political landscape of the conflict, giving new legitimacy to the French cause at a time when it had been faltering.

Although her greatest military successes came in 1429, Joan’s fortunes later declined. In 1430, she was captured by Burgundian forces, sold to the English, and put on trial for charges including heresy and witchcraft. She was eventually convicted and burned at the stake in 1431. However, her actions in 1429 secured her place in history as a national heroine of France and a symbol of resistance and faith.

🤖 Ai Depiction of Event

1974 The Watergate Tapes

In the early 1970s, President Richard Nixon’s administration became involved in a major political scandal known as Watergate. The scandal began after a group of men linked to Nixon’s re-election campaign broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., in 1972. Investigators soon uncovered evidence that people inside Nixon’s administration had tried to cover up the crime. As the investigation expanded, questions grew about how much Nixon himself knew and whether he had helped block the investigation.

On April 29th, 1974, under increasing pressure from Congress, the courts, and the public, Nixon announced that he would release edited transcripts of conversations recorded in the White House. These conversations had been secretly taped by a recording system Nixon had installed. Instead of handing over the actual tapes as investigators had demanded, Nixon chose to provide typed-up versions that he claimed would prove he had done nothing wrong. He argued that this approach would protect national security while still being transparent.

The release of only transcripts, instead of the original tapes, caused immediate backlash. Many people suspected that the transcripts were incomplete or edited in a way that protected Nixon. Some parts of the conversations were missing entirely, including a now-famous gap of about 18 and a half minutes. These omissions led to even greater public distrust. Instead of calming the situation, Nixon’s actions increased calls for his impeachment by members of both political parties.

The situation worsened when, later that summer, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Nixon must hand over the full, unedited tapes. When the tapes were finally released, they showed that Nixon had been involved in efforts to cover up the break-in shortly after it happened. With support collapsing and impeachment almost certain, Nixon resigned from the presidency on August 8, 1974. His resignation marked the first time in American history that a sitting president had stepped down from office.

🤖 Ai Depiction of Event

The Olmec Heads🗿
The Olmecs, one of the earliest and most influential civilizations in Mesoamerica (around 1200–400 BCE), are famous for creating massive stone heads — some weighing up to 20 tons. Carved from huge basalt boulders, these colossal heads can stand over 10 feet tall and are thought to represent Olmec rulers or important figures, decked out in what looks like early helmets or ceremonial headgear. What’s wild is they hauled these stones — sometimes from quarries dozens of miles away — without wheels, metal tools, or beasts of burden. Just sheer human muscle, ropes, sleds, and brainpower. The purpose of the heads is still a bit of a mystery, but one thing’s clear: the Olmecs knew how to make a statement you could not miss.🗿👑🔥

1 Samurai vs 1,000 Enemies⚔️
In the late 16th century, a samurai named Torii Sune'emon pulled off one of the most legendary stunts in samurai history: he defended a castle armed with just a sword against roughly 1,000 enemy soldiers — and survived. During the Siege of Nagashino, Sune'emon was part of a tiny garrison trapped in a castle by the much larger forces of the Takeda clan. When things got desperate, Sune'emon volunteered to sneak through enemy lines and call for reinforcements. Not only did he successfully slip through, but when he got back, he was spotted by the enemy — and instead of surrendering, he fought like a man possessed, cutting his way through soldiers with nothing but his katana. Against all odds, he survived the encounter and returned to his comrades. In classic samurai fashion, it wasn't just about living — it was about honor, loyalty, and making sure your enemies had one very bad day.⚔️🏯🔥

Ned Kelly’s Bulletproof Armor🔫
In late 19th-century Australia, outlaw Ned Kelly wasn’t just robbing banks and stirring up trouble — he was also building homemade bulletproof armor out of plow parts. Facing off against the police, Kelly and his gang hammered old farm equipment into heavy iron suits, complete with chest plates, back plates, helmets, and arm guards. The gear weighed up to 90 pounds, but it could stop bullets, especially at longer ranges. In 1880, during his final shootout at Glenrowan, Kelly strutted out in his iron getup, guns blazing. The police were stunned — bullets bounced off him like raindrops. Eventually, though, they figured out the obvious weak spot: his legs, which were unarmored. After taking several shots to the limbs, Kelly was captured and later hanged. Still, in terms of outlaw fashion statements, bulletproof farm armor is pretty hard to beat. 🤠🛡️🔥

Marrying The Dead💍
Believe it or not, in medieval (and even modern) France, there was — and still is — a legal way to marry a corpse with government approval. It’s called posthumous marriage (mariage posthume), and while it’s incredibly rare, it’s a real thing. The practice became formally recognized much later, but it was rooted in older traditions where engagements were considered binding enough that if a fiancé died, the surviving partner could petition to have the marriage completed retroactively. You still needed government approval (because even France has paperwork standards), and it was usually only granted if you could prove you had plans to marry before the death. Today, posthumous marriage is mainly tied to specific cases — like soldiers dying in service — rather than everyday medieval drama. 💀💍🖋️

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