Anniversaries and commemorations come and go daily. Most of us, even the best historians, miss most occasions. If we think of history as events then we are faced with a continually showering in the grains of sand. Nevertheless, we do pick out certain patterns in the remembrance of historical dates. The blog here reminds us of some dates where the local, state, national, and global perspectives entwine.
What Time is It? It is flow of a sandstorm that will on each day compress somewhere into a structure – sandstone, selected and only remembered in the longue durée.
On Thursday, 25 March 1920, Irish War of Independence: British recruits to the Royal Irish Constabulary begin to arrive in Ireland. They become known from their improvised uniforms as the “Black and Tans”.
On Tuesday, 25 March 1980, Defence Minister James Killen announces that Cockburn Sound Western Australia will offer base and home port facilities to the United States Navy.
On Sunday, 25 March 1990, A bomb and poison attack is instigated against an Adelaide poultry processing plant.
On Sunday, 25 March 1990, In New York City, a fire due to arson at an illegal social club called “Happy Land” kills 87.
On Sunday, 25 March 1990, Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie announces his intention to retire at the end of the year.
On Sunday, 25 March 1990, In the Hungarian parliamentary election, Hungary’s first multiparty election since 1948, the Hungarian Democratic Forum wins the most seats.
On Saturday, 25 March 1995, Bob Carr leads the Labor Party to victory in the New South Wales state election, deposing the Liberal/National coalition government of John Fahey that had been in power since 1988. Labor scraped in with a 2.2% swing and 50 of the 99 seats.
On Saturday, 25 March 1995, Liberal candidate Brendan Smyth wins the Canberra by-election, 1995 with a 16% swing, a formerly safe Labor seat occupied by Ros Kelly.
On Saturday, 25 March 2000, Brisbane City Council election – Jim Soorley is elected for a fourth term as Lord Mayor of Brisbane, defeating Liberal candidate Gail Austen.
On Thursday, 25 March 2010, The Australian Bureau of Statistics announces that the population of Australia now exceeds 22 million.
On Wednesday, 25 March 2015, A Saudi Arabia-led coalition of Arab countries starts a military intervention in Yemen in order to uphold the Yemeni government in its fight against the Houthis’ southern offensive.
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Neville Buch