Facts

311: Emperor Galerius Valerius Maximian issues a decree, by which the Christian religion is officially recognized in the Roman Empire.

1841:The newly established National Bank issues its first banknote, with a face value of five hundred drachmas.

1927: The salaries of civil servants and officers of the Greek army are cut, to cover the budget deficits.

[1945: Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun kill themselves with poison, one day after their wedding.

1947: During the Civil War, a group of OPLA (an organization of the KKE) attacks an Air Force bus in Thessaloniki with grenades. The attack kills 5 and injures 8 airmen.

1975:The Viet Cong take over Saigon and the last American helicopter takes off from the roof of the US Embassy. The United States withdraws from the Indochina peninsula after a 20-year engagement, having suffered a crushing defeat, while North and South Vietnam are unified under communist rule.

Births

1903: Eleni Kazantzakis, Greek writer and journalist, second wife of Nikos Kazantzakis. (Than. 2/18/2004)

1916: Claude Shannon, American mathematician and electromechanical engineer, one of the founders of communication theory. He formulated theory about the mathematical processing of information flow, which has found wide application in circuit design, computer construction, broader communication technology, as well as biology, psychology, and linguistics. His contribution to computer science was also important where he introduced the term “bit” for the unit of information. (D. 24/2/2001)

1956: Lance Von Trier, Danish director, proponent of the film theory “Doctrine 95”.

Deaths

1989: Sergio Leone, Italian director, the “father” of the spaghetti-western. (Born 3/1/1929)

2011:Ernesto Sabato, Argentinian writer. (Born 6/24/1911)

2011: Lakis Santas, Greek hero of the Resistance. (Born 22/2/1922)