Today, in 1755, Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, who is said to have said "let them eat cake," was born in Vienna, Austria.
Marie Antoinette was born in Vienna, Austria, on November 2, 1755. Marie Antoinette was the 15th and final child of Austrian Empress Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I. She had a rather carefree upbringing. Marie Antoinette contributed to the public dissatisfaction that led to the French Revolution and the monarchy's collapse in August 1792. She became a symbol of the monarchy's excesses and is commonly associated with the famous remark "Let them eat cake," despite the fact that there is no proof she really uttered it. Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI's consort, was killed by decree of the Revolutionary tribunal nine months after her husband.
Related On This Day
David Lawrence Schwimmer, an American actor, comedian, director, and producer, was born on November 2, 1966.
Today, at the age of 62, Ngô nh Dim, President and autocratic leader of South Vietnam, was killed in a coup.
Today, Howard Hughes flies the "Spruce Goose," a massive wooden airplane, for the first and only time in 1947.
Tabu [Tabassum Hashmi], an Indian actress, was born today in Hyderabad, India, in 1972.
Today, Shah Rukh Khan, an Indian actor, producer, and television personality, was born in New Delhi, India in 1965.
Shakuntala Devi, an Indian writer and mental calculator known as the "Human Computer," was born today in Bangalore, Mysore, British India, in 1929.
Today, the Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2 in 1957, with space dog Laika, a mostly-Siberian husky, onboard, becoming the first animal in orbit.
Today, Aga Khan III, a Shia Imam who was a founder of the All-India Muslim League and subsequently President of the League of Nations, was born in Karachi, British India, in 1877.
Matthew McConaughey, an American actor, was born today in Uvalde, Texas, in 1969.
Today, in Pune, India, Nizari Imam Aga Khan III marries his first cousin Shahzadi Begum in 1896.
Today, in Springfield, Illinois, American socialite Mary Todd marries Illinois Congressman and lawyer Abraham Lincoln in 1842.
Kendall Jenner, an American model and television personality, was born in Los Angeles, California in 1995.
Today, Amar Bose, an American entrepreneur and professor, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1929.
Today, The Times of India, the world's most widely read English-language daily broadsheet newspaper, was launched in 1838 as The Bombay Times and Journal of Commerce Today.
Today is 1933. Amartya Sen is an Indian economist and Nobel laureate who was born in Santiniketan, West Bengal, India.
Chevrolet officially joins the automotive market in 1911, competing with the Ford Model T.
Today, Barack Obama is elected President of the United States, becoming the first African-American to do so, beating Republican contender John McCain.
Today, Howard Carter discovers Tutankhamun's tomb in Egypt in 1922.
Today, in 1950, Irish dramatist George Bernard Shaw dies at the age of 94.