“We Cannot Escape History” – This Week In History

Abraham Lincoln once stated that we cannot escape history but nor should we want to; it is only by learning from the past that we can escape the mistakes of the present and the future. With this in mind, we thought we would take a look back in time at some of the most important events which occurred throughout history and remember them here. This week, from February 10th to February 17th was certainly an eventful one in the past. 1. Queen Victoria married Prince Albert (February 10th, 1840) It was perhaps one of the most romantic true stories ever witnessed. On February 10th in 1840, Queen Victoria of England married the love of her life, Prince Albert. The pair had nine children together and when Albert passed away, Victoria entered mourning, seldom seen on public tours. She still laid out Albert's clothes every day until the day she died. 2. Nelson Mandela is released from prison (February 11th, 1990) After 27 years of incarceration, Nelson Mandela was freed from Victor Verster Prison outside Cape Town in South Africa. He would later become the first black South African President. 3. Edvard Munch's "The Scream" is stolen from the National Gallery of Norway (February 12th, 1994) On February 12th, 1994, two men broke into the National Gallery of Norway and stole Munch's The Scream leaving a note stating: "Thanks for the poor security." The painting was later returned undamaged after a sting operation was put in place to recover it. The Scream is safely back at its home. 4. College students stage the sit-ins in Nashville. (February 13th, 1960) The Civil Rights movement was just beginning in Nashville when some brave students staged sit-ins in a local cafeteria. The sit-ins were organised by some of the leading members of the movement and eventually led to the desegregation of Nashville. Most importantly, they were non-violent demonstrations. 5.  YouTube is launched! (February 14th, 2005) On February 14th, 2005, YouTube the largest video-sharing website was launched. Created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, the site is now owned by Google since 2006.