Category: Today

On June 30, 1801, Frédéric Bastiat was born. Bastiat became one of the most important French Liberal School economists, following Condilliac and Jean-​Baptiste Say, best known for his books Economic Harmonies and Economic Sophisms and two monographs, “The Seen and the Unseen,” and “The Law.” He was a brilliant stylist and perceptive critic of state-​managed trade. His influence on conservative, libertarian and “limited-​government thought” has been vast. He died on Christmas Eve, 1850.

The emergency number of “999” was introduced in London, June 30, 1937, the first of its kind — arguably the best innovation in government service in modern times.

On June 29, 1914, the day after the shooting of the Archduke Ferdinand and his wife, Austrian interrogations confirmed that the Serbian government was behind the assassination. Serbia denied involvement.

Thus continued the series of events that led to “The Great War,” now known as “World War I.”

June 28 birthdays include that of Jean-​Jacques Rousseau, philosopher, in 1712.

On this date in 1914, 19-​year-​old Gavril Princip assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne, and the Archduke’s wife Sophie. The Archduke had earlier missed a bomb thrown at his car, which necessitated a change in the motorcade route, which the driver forgot, which is why the car paused at the precise intersection in which Princip fired his fatal shots.

The shooting began a series of events that led to “The Great War,” now known as “World War I.”

On June 28, 1992, the Constitution of Estonia was signed into law.

In 1556 on this date, the thirteen Stratford Martyrs were burned at the stake near London for their Protestant beliefs. In 1844, Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, and his brother Hyrum Smith, were killed by a mob at the Carthage, Illinois jail.

Paul von Mauser was born on June 27, 1838, and would go on to become a weapons designer. In 1869, Emma Goldman was born, to later become known as a feminist, anarchist, and early leftist opponent of Soviet Communism. In 1880, Helen Keller was born on this date — and she, too, was an anarchist “of the left.”

On June 26, 363, Roman Emperor Julian was killed during the retreat from the Sassanid Empire. 

On this same date in 1960, Madagascar gained its independence from France; in 1963, U.S. President John F. Kennedy gave his “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech.

Virginia became the tenth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, on June 25, 1788. 

Other events on the 25th of June include Custer dying at the Battle of Little Bighorn (1876); Igor Stravinsky’s ballet The Firebird debuting (1910), with the composer becoming an instant celebrity; and Civil War veterans began arriving at the Great Reunion of 1913 at Gettysburg.