On This Day ... in 1783 & Others
Great Britain declared a formal cessation of hostilities with its American colonies
In April 1782 Benjamin Franklin rejected informal peace feelers from Great Britain for a settlement that would provide the 13 States with some measure of autonomy within the British empire. Franklin insisted on British recognition of American independence and refused to consider a peace separate from France, America's staunch ally. Franklin did agree to negotiations with the British for an end to the war. Joined by peace commissioners John Adams and John Jay, Franklin engaged the British in formal negotiations beginning on September 27, 1782. Although Franklin demanded the cessation of Canada to an independent America, he knew that the British Government of Lord Shelburne, opposed to American independence, was unprepared to accept that offer. Two months of hard bargaining resulted in a preliminary articles of peace in which the British accepted American independence and boundaries--a bitter pill to George III--resolved the difficult issues of fishing rights on the Newfoundland banks and prewar debts owed to British creditors, promised restitution of property lost during the war by Americans loyal to the British cause, and provided for the evacuation of British forces from the 13 States. The preliminary articles signed in Paris on November 30, 1782, were only effective when a similar treaty was signed by Britain and France, which French Foreign Minister Vergennes quickly negotiated. France signed preliminary articles of peace with Great Britain on January 20, 1783, which were followed by a formal peace of Paris signed on September 3, 1783.
1874: A minor action was fought at Odasu during the Ashanti War, which cleared the way for Wolseley's expeditionary force to enter the undefended capital Kumasi that evening. Lieutenant Bell of the Royal Engineers was awarded the Victoria Cross for his leadership of a team of African labourers, who, unarmed, worked determinedly to clear obstacles despite at times being caught in a crossfire between the opposing forces.
1917: On the Western Front, Captain Murray of the 13th New South Wales Battalion of the Australian Imperial Force led his company in a successful attack which took a key enemy position. The Germans counterattacked fiercely, but Murray's men beat off three successive attacks. A night attack pushed the Australians back briefly, but Murray led them forward and the position was once more taken and held. Murray himself was notably at the forefront of the action throughout, whether leading bayonet charges or carrying wounded men to safety, and was awarded the Victoria Cross.
1918: The destroyer HMS Zubian sank a German mine-laying U-boat off the coast of Essex. Zubian was most unusual, in that she had been built from the salvaged remnants of two Tribal class destroyers, Zulu and Nubian. Nubian's bows were destroyed by a torpedo hit in October 1916, whilst her sister Zulu had been severely damaged astern by a mine just over a week later. Both ships were judged irreparable by conventional standards, but it proved possible to graft Zulu's undamaged bows onto Nubian's undamaged mid and stern sections. Named Zubian, the hybrid then returned to full active service with the Dover Patrol. She served until the end of the war, sinking the mine-laying U-boat UC-50 on 4 February 1918 off the coast of Essex, and was broken up at Sunderland in 1919.
1945: Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin met in the Crimean town of Yalta at the beginning of a week-long conference to map the concluding stages of the war and the post-war shape of Europe.
Comments
Again, we are most grateful to you for denying us Quebec! It's the only battle I'm glad we lost.
Actually, I wonder if you know whether the French requested independence for Quebec from Canada. It would seem they were in a position of power from which they could have made that demand.
Posted by: POWinCA | February 4, 2009 5:27 AM
Glad to see the 'On This Day' features are being continued.
Believe it or not...they are fantastic teaching moments and are greatly appreciated.
Posted by: Cricket | February 12, 2010 12:38 AM