This day in history: 17 march

1766: The British Parliament repealed the controversial Stamp Act, which had fueled rebellion in the American colonies.
1861: The Kingdom of Italy was officially proclaimed during the first Italian Parliament meeting in Turin, marking the unification of Italy under King Victor Emmanuel II.
1921: The Second Polish Republic adopted the March Constitution, establishing its governmental framework.
1925: Edvard Beneš of Czechoslovakia proposed a “United States of Europe” to promote peace through a western and eastern bloc structure.
1942: Holocaust atrocities began at Belzec extermination camp when Jews from the Lvov Ghetto were gassed.

1776: The British evacuated Boston during the American Revolutionary War after General George Washington successfully fortified Dorchester Heights with cannons. This marked a major strategic victory for the Continental Army and ended an eight-year British occupation of Boston. The event is still commemorated in Boston as “Evacuation Day”.
1941: The National Gallery of Art opened in Washington, D.C., showcasing world-class art collections. It was a gift from financier Andrew W. Mellon.
1965: President Lyndon B. Johnson federalized the Alabama National Guard to protect civil rights marchers during the Selma to Montgomery march. This pivotal moment highlighted the federal government’s commitment to civil rights.

1001: The Butuan Tributary Mission from the Philippines visited China to establish diplomatic ties with the Imperial Court, a key moment in early Southeast Asian-China relations.
1959: The Dalai Lama fled Tibet for India amidst a revolt in Lhasa against Chinese rule. This marked a turning point in Tibetan history and the Dalai Lama’s exile.
1945: During World War II, nearly 20,000 Japanese soldiers lost their lives at the Battle of Iwo Jima.
1988: The Tokyo Dome, Japan’s first covered baseball stadium, was completed and opened on this day.

1992: White South Africans voted overwhelmingly (68.7%) in a national referendum to end over 40 years of apartheid. This historic decision paved the way for multiracial elections in 1994, leading to Nelson Mandela’s presidency and the establishment of democratic governance.
1896: Charles Brooks, an African-American inventor, patented his improvement to the street sweeper, creating the first self-propelled street-sweeping truck.