December 12

in History

Near Mosul, IraqMedieval

627

Battle of Nineveh

Byzantium's hammer shatters Persian power

Near the ancient ruins of Nineveh in modern-day Iraq, Emperor Heraclius led the Byzantine army to a climactic victory over the Sasanian Persian forces commanded by Rhahzadh. The battle was the decisive blow in a war that had raged for over two decades. Heraclius's triumph shattered Persian military power and restored Byzantine control over the Holy Land, though new threats loomed on the Arabian horizon.

627 AD

First Transatlantic Radio Signal — Three dots cross an ocean of impossibility

St. John's, Newfoundland, CanadaEarly 20th Century

1901

First Transatlantic Radio Signal

Three dots cross an ocean of impossibility

At Signal Hill in St. John's, Newfoundland, Guglielmo Marconi received the letter 'S' in Morse code, transmitted wirelessly across the Atlantic Ocean from Cornwall, England. The three faint dots proved that radio waves could follow the curve of the Earth, demolishing the skeptics who said it was impossible. Wireless communication, and the modern world it would create, had been born.

1901 AD

World War II — World War II: Fifty-four Japanese A6M Zero fighters raid Batangas Field, Philippines.

1939–1945 global conflictEarly 20th Century

1941

World War II

World War II: Fifty-four Japanese A6M Zero fighters raid Batangas Field, Philippines.

World War II or the Second World War was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, the latter enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the only nuclear weapons used in war. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 60 to 75 million people.

1941 AD