August 30th

Today's Highlight in History:
On August 30th, 1862, Union forces were defeated by the Confederates at the Second Battle of Bull Run in Manassas, Virginia.

On this date:
In 30 B.C. (on August 30th, by some estimates), the seventh and most famous queen of ancient Egypt known as "Cleopatra" committed suicide.

In 1861, Union General John C. Fremont instituted martial law in Missouri and declared slaves there to be free. (However, Fremont's order was countermanded a few days later by President Lincoln).

In 1905, Ty Cobb made his major league batting debut, playing for the Detroit Tigers.

In 1941, the World War Two siege of Leningrad began as Nazi forces took Mga.

In 1945, General Douglas MacArthur arrived in Japan, and set up Allied occupation headquarters.

In 1963, the "Hot Line" communications link between Washington and Moscow went into operation.

In 1967, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Thurgood Marshall as the first black justice on the Supreme Court.

In 1983, Guion S. Bluford Junior became the first black American astronaut to travel in space, blasting off aboard the "Challenger."

In 1986, Soviet authorities arrested Nicholas Daniloff, the Moscow correspondent for US News and World Report. (He was later released.)

In 1997 came word of the car crash in Paris that claimed the lives of Princess Diana, Dodi Fayed and their driver, Henri Paul. (Because of the time difference, it was August 31st where the crash occurred.)

Ten years ago: UN Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar arrived in Jordan to try to mediate the Persian Gulf crisis. President Bush told a news conference that a "new world order" could emerge from the Gulf crisis.

Five years ago: The West pounded the Bosnian Serbs with artillery and air attacks in hopes of bludgeoning them into serious peace talks. At a lavish opening ceremony in Beijing, organizers of a major women's conference vowed to fight for empowerment and equality.

One year ago: Residents of East Timor voted for independence from Indonesia in a UN-sponsored ballot. (Afterward, pro-Indonesia militiamen reacted by going on a violent rampage that ended when international forces were sent in.)

"Whom the gods wish to destroy they first call promising."

-- Cyril Connolly, British journalist-writer (1903-1974).