Add Your Piece of History… 9th August

• On this day in 1173.  Construction begins on the Tower of Pisa, which is later to become the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa.  The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the bell tower, or campanile, of the cathedral in Pisa’s Campo dei Miracoli (field of Miracles).  The tower took nearly 200 years to complete, being finished in 1372.

• On this day in 1945.  The United States drops a second atomic bomb, this time on the Japanese city of Nagasaki.  On the morning of 6 August 1945, the “Enola Gay”, an American B-29 Superfortress dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima in Japan.  Another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki 3 days later, killing 74,000 immediately.  However the real death toll from the impact and the effects of the bomb was closer to 150,000, no including the effects on generation to come.  Nagasaki was targeted as it was one of Japan’s most important ports providing vital access to and from Shanghai.  The destruction was limited to about 6.5 square kilometres as Nagasaki is surrounded by mountains.  President Truman issued the order to drop the bombs after Japan failed to act upon the Potsdam Declaration.  The declaration had been issued 10 days previously, calling for the unconditional surrender of Japan.  Japan surrendered to the Allies on 14 August 1945.

Please feel free to add your piece of history (something personal or general history).

The Leaning tower of Pisa (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Mission map for the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, August 6 and August 9, 1945. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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