March 18 in History

• 1871

  March 18, 1871:

  The Parisian insurrection against the government of France known as the Commune of Paris begins.

• 1902

  March 18, 1902:

  Enrico Caruso, the Italian tenor makes his first phonograph recording.

• 1906

  March 18, 1906:

  Romanian inventor Trajan Vuia’s monoplane flies up to 12 meters.

• 1937

  March 18, 1937:

  A natural gas leak in Texas causes an explosion at the New London School, killing 295 people.

• 1965

  March 18, 1965:

  Aleksei Leonov of the Soviet Union becomes the first man to walk in space.

• 1974

  March 18, 1974:

  The five-month-long oil embargo imposed on the United States by the seven-member OPEC countries is lifted.

• 1990

  March 18, 1990:

  The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is looted and the 13 pieces of artwork stolen are estimated to be worth $500 million.

• 1992

  March 18, 1992:

  Singer Donna Summer is given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

• 2000

  March 18, 2000:

  Chen Shui-bian, a pro-independence movement leader who helped fight for statehood for Taiwan becomes the country’s president.

• 2012

  March 18, 2012:

  Crown Prince Lavaka of Tonga ascends the throne following the death of his elder brother, King Tupou V.