Today is Monday, March 21, the 81st day of 2016. There are 285 days left in the year.
On this date:
In 1556, Thomas Cranmer, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, was burned at the stake for heresy.
In 1685, composer Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany.
In 1804, the French civil code, or the “Code Napoleon” as it was later called, was adopted.
In 1925, Tennessee Gov. Austin Peay signed the Butler Act, which prohibited the teaching of the Theory of Evolution in public schools. (Tennessee repealed the law in 1967.)
In 1935, Persia officially changed its name to Iran.
In 1945, during World War II, Allied bombers began four days of raids over Germany.
In 1956, “Marty” won best picture at the Academy Awards; its star, Ernest Borgnine, was named best actor. Anna Magnani won best actress for “The Rose Tattoo.”
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