Important Events From This day in History – 8 April

Today in History

• 2005 Over 4 million people pay their last respects to Pope John Paul II

  Pope Karol Józef Wojtya of Poland was a hugely popular figure. Benedict XVI of Germany, born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, succeeded him.

• 1977 The Clash release their debut album of the same name

  The British combo around lead vocalist Joe Strummer is considered one of the most influential early punk rock bands.

• 1959 One of the first modern programming languages is created

  Grace Hopper, a woman, was the primary designer of the Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL). She is regarded as a pioneer in the field and is also known as Amazing Grace.

• 1953 Jomo Kenyatta is sentenced to 7 years hard labor

  Kenyatta led the anti-British colonialist Mau Mau movement. He is regarded as Kenya’s founding father and served as the country’s first President in 1964.

• 1904 France and the United Kingdom sign the Entente cordiale

  The treaty was originally intended to regulate the countries’ colonial interests in Africa, but it later evolved into the Triple Entente to fight Germany in World War I.