1898: Death of Otto von Bismarck
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Otto von Bismarck—who, as prime minister of Prussia (1862–73, 1873–90), used ruthlessness and moderation to unify Germany, founding the German Empire (1871) and serving as its first chancellor (1871–90)—died this day in 1898.
1900: London Underground’s Central Line was opened by the Prince of Wales, with a two-pence (tuppence) fare for all destinations.
1956: President Eisenhower signs “In God We Trust” into law. On July 30, 1956, two years after pushing to have the phrase “under God” inserted into the pledge of allegiance, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a law officially declaring “In God We Trust” to be the nation’s official motto. The law, P.L. 84-140, also mandated that the phrase be printed on all American paper currency. The phrase had been placed on U.S. coins since the Civil War when, according to the historical association of the United States Treasury, religious sentiment reached a peak. Eisenhower’s treasury secretary, George Humphrey, had suggested adding the phrase to paper currency as well.
1958: Daley Thompson, a British athlete was born. He won the decathlon gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984 and broke the world record for the event four times. With four world records, two Olympic gold medals, three Commonwealth titles, and wins in the World and European Championships, Thompson is considered by many to be the greatest decathlete of all time.
1965: President Johnson signs Medicare into law. On July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Medicare, a health insurance program for elderly Americans, into law. At the bill-signing ceremony, which took place at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, former President Harry Truman was enrolled as Medicare’s first beneficiary and received the first Medicare card.
2014: Bomb explosions at Kano state targeting Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and an Islamic cleric, Sheik Dahiru Bauchi, killed over 40 people and injured 37 others.
1974: Under subpoena, Nixon surrenders Watergate tapes. Under coercion from the U.S. Supreme Court, President Richard M. Nixon releases subpoenaed White House recordings—suspected to prove his guilt in the Watergate scandal—to special prosecutor Leon Jaworski. The same day, the House Judiciary Committee voted a third article of impeachment against the president: contempt of Congress in hindering the impeachment process. The previous two impeachment articles voted against Nixon by the committee were obstruction of justice and abuse of presidential powers.
2003: The last classic VW Beetle rolls off the line.
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY: July 30
Emily Brontë (July 30, 1818 – December 19, 1848)
Emily Brontë was an English novelist and poet who was born on July 30, 1818, and best known for her only novel, Wuthering Heights (1847), a dark and passionate tale of love and revenge on the Yorkshire moors. The novel, initially met with mixed reviews for its stark depiction of mental and physical cruelty, has since become a classic of English literature and is revered for its innovative structure and its examination of the complexities of social class, gender, and morality.
Emily penned her works under the male pseudonym Ellis Bell. This was a common practice at the time, given the prevailing biases against female authors.
Living a life that was largely secluded, Emily drew much of her inspiration from the Yorkshire landscapes and her own experiences. Despite her literary success, her life was marked by tragedy, including the early deaths of many of her family members. She died at the age of 30.
