Important Events From Today in History – 19 September

Today in History

• 2010 Oil rig Deepwater Horizon is declared sealed after a 5-month long spill in the Gulf of Mexico

  The Deepwater Horizon spill, also known as the BP oil spill, is considered one of the worst accidents in the oil and gas industry. It began on April 20, 2010, when an explosion destroyed the rig and killed 11 people.

• 2006 A Military coup overthrows the elected government in Thailand

  Forces loyal to General Sonthi Boonyaratglin deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s elected government and dissolved parliament and the constitution.

• 1983 Saint Kitts and Nevis gain their Independence from the British Crown

  During an expedition led by Columbus, the first Europeans set foot on the West Indian island country in the late 15th century. Control of the islands was transferred from the French to the British in 1713.

• 1973 Carl XVI Gustaf succeeds his grandfather King Gustaf VI Adolf as the King of Sweden

  The monarch is the ceremonial head of state in Sweden, which is a constitutional monarchy. Swedish law was changed in 1980 to allow a monarch’s firstborn child, regardless of gender, to become the crown’s heir apparent.

• 1944 The Moscow Armistice ends the Continuation War

  The Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and Finland signed the treaty. It ended the conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland between 1941 and 1944.