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Arizona Diamondbacks, Canyon de Chelly, and April Fool: March 26-April 1 Week in History



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This week in history focuses on the first season of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Canyon de Chelly National Monument establishment, and April Fools!

Arizona Diamondbacks, Canyon de Chelly, April Fools, A week in history, Cleopatra, Egypt, Israel-Egypt,

Cleopatra reinstated as queen of Egypt

This week in the year 47 B.C., Cleopatra was reinstated as queen of Egypt. Deposed by her brother, Cleopatra sided with Julius Caesar, had his child, and fought for his return as Emperor of Rome. He returned the favor and helped her retake the thrown of Egypt. Years later, during the Roman civil war, she sided with Marc Antony against Octavian. When Octavian prevailed, Cleopatra committed suicide rather than surrendering. After her death, the Egyptian Empire was formally folded into the Roman Empire.

Today Cleopatra and her reign are the stuff of legends. She ruled for nearly twenty years over a fertile kingdom encompassing most of the eastern Mediterranean. She commanded armies, regulated the economy, created her own currency, negotiated with foreign powers, saw her people through plagues and famines, and bore the children of both Julius Caesar and Marc Antony.

March 26, 1979: Signing of Israel-Egypt peace treaty

Arizona Diamondbacks, Canyon de Chelly, April Fools, A week in history, Cleopatra, Egypt, Israel-Egypt,

On March 26, 1979, President Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Begin of Israel signed a peace treaty between their two countries. President Jimmy Carter helped broker the deal and the signing took place at Camp David in the United States.

The peace accords ended decades of war between Egypt and Israel. Egypt became the first Arab nation to acknowledge Israel’s sovereignty and right to exist. Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, which it seized in the Six-Day War years earlier. They agreed on a framework to allow self-governance for Palestinians living in Israel.

Much of the Arab world viewed the peace treaty as a betrayal. Egypt was kicked out of the Arab League and President Sadat was assassinated by an extremist in 1981. The rest of the world celebrated the peace treaty, though, and both Sadat and Begin were awarded the Noble Peace Prize.

March 28, 1979: Nuclear accident at Three Mile Island

Three days after the signing of the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, on March 28, 1979, the nuclear plant at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania experienced a partial meltdown. The accident was caused by mechanical failures involving the plant’s cooling systems and operator errors in the immediate hours following the incident.

No one died as a direct result of the meltdown, although cancer rates in surrounding communities did climb in the years following. The cleanup lasted until 1993 and cost over a billion dollars. The nuclear reactors were restarted in 1985 and operated until 2019 when the plant closed due to changes in electricity demands and costs.

The accident led to a major revision of regulations for training, emergency response planning, plant design, and equipment in nuclear power plants across the United States.

March 29, 1973: American troops evacuate Saigon

After signing the Paris Peace Accords in January of 1973 with North Vietnam, the United States officially evacuated Saigon and ended all military operations in the country on March 29, 1973. The bloody civil war between the communists of North Vietnam and the South Vietnamese pulled the United States into a controversial military role over a decade earlier.

Nearly 60,000 Americans died in the conflict. Approximately 200,000 soldiers allied with the U.S. also died, as well as a half-million North Vietnamese soldiers and a half-million civilians on both sides. Fighting lasted for two years after the United States ended its involvement, with Saigon falling to the North Vietnamese and the war ending in 1975.

March 31, 1998: Arizona Diamondbacks play their first game

Arizona Diamondbacks, Canyon de Chelly, April Fools, A week in history, Cleopatra, Egypt, Israel-Egypt,

On March 31, 1998, the Arizona Diamondbacks played their first regular season game at Bank One Field (now Chase Field) in Phoenix. Despite a tradition of hosting spring training games for major league teams, Arizona didn’t get its own expansion team until 1998. They lost that first game to the Colorado Rockies 9-2, and had a rough first year, finishing with a record of 65 wins and 97 losses. But the team steadily improved to become the first Major League expansion team to win the World Series in 2001.

April 1, 1931: Canyon de Chelly National Monument established

Arizona Diamondbacks, Canyon de Chelly, April Fools, A week in history, Cleopatra, Egypt, Israel-Egypt,

This week marks the anniversary of the establishment of the Canyon de Chelly National Monument in northeastern Arizona in 1931. The canyons have high cliff walls and streams cutting through the middle, with fertile soil along the floor of the canyons and rocky alcoves and sheltered spaces all along the cliff walls.

Native American peoples have occupied the canyons at various times over several thousand years. Ancient Pueblos, Hopi, and Navajo all built houses and cultivated the land. Ruins from long-gone civilizations are still visible throughout Canyon de Chelly. Native Dine people still live and farm there today.

Your obscure holidays of the week:

This week’s obscure holidays include a wide array of different celebrations. Live Long and Prosper Day happens every year on Leonard Nimoy’s birthday. Inspired by Nimoy’s character Spock from Star Trek, the focus of the day on whatever makes us healthy and prosperous.

National Folding Laundry Day is all about finishing that unfolded load of wash, as well as sorting through and donating any clothing not worn in a long time. Hug a Medievalist Day is to recognize those who study Medieval culture. April 1 has several holidays revolving around play and fun, including St. Stupid’s Day, a San Francisco holiday dedicated to dressing up and acting silly.

March 26: Make Up Your Own Holiday Day, Live Long and Prosper Day, Legal Assistants Day, Purple Day, Spinach Day

March 27: Quirky Country Music Song Titles Day, Celebrate Exchange Day, World Theater Day, National Joe Day

March 28: Barnum & Bailey Day, Something on a Stick Day

March 29: Mom & Pop Business Owner’s Day, Manatee Appreciation Day, Niagara Falls Runs Dry Day, Smoke and Mirrors Day, World Piano Day

March 30: Doctors Day, Pencil Day, I Am in Control Day, Folding Laundry Day, Virtual Vacation Day, Take a Walk in the Park Day, Turkey Neck Soup Day

March 31: ‘She’s Funny That Way’ Day, Hug a Medievalist Day, Bunsen Burner Day, World Backup Day, Crayon Day, Clam on the Half Shell Day

April 1: April Fool’s Day, Pillow Fighting Day, Every Day is Tag Day, Fun Day, Play Outside Day, Reading is Funny Day, Boomer Bonus Days, Tatting Day, Library Snap Shot Day, Poetry and the Creative Mind Day, St. Stupid Day, Time Warp Day, Tangible Karma Day, Atheist Day, Fun at Work Day

What was happening in history March 19-25, 2023?


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