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March 20
4 moments across history
US-Led Coalition Invades Iraq — Operation Iraqi Freedom Begins
At approximately 05:34 local time, US and coalition forces launched the invasion of Iraq, beginning with air strikes on Baghdad in the "shock and awe" campaign. President George W. Bush declared that the goal was to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and free the Iraqi people. The invasion marked the beginning of one of the most consequential and controversial conflicts of the 21st century.
Coalition forces crossing into Iraq at the Kuwait border
Concorde Makes Its First Supersonic Flight
Concorde prototype on the runway before its historic supersonic test
Concorde breaking the sound barrier during its first supersonic flight
The Anglo-French supersonic passenger jet Concorde broke the sound barrier for the first time during a test flight over France, reaching Mach 1. The aircraft represented a triumph of engineering collaboration between Britain and France and would go on to carry passengers across the Atlantic in under 3.5 hours — less than half the time of conventional jets. Concorde entered commercial service in 1976 and flew until its retirement in 2003.
Aum Shinrikyo Carries Out Tokyo Subway Sarin Attack
Emergency responders at Kasumigaseki station following the sarin attack
Victims receiving treatment outside Tokyo subway stations
Members of the Japanese doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo released sarin nerve agent on five lines of the Tokyo Metro during the morning rush hour, killing 13 people and injuring nearly 1,000. It was one of the most deadly terrorist attacks in Japan's history and the first large-scale use of a chemical weapon by a non-state actor. The attack prompted major changes to Japan's anti-terrorism laws and emergency response capabilities.
Harriet Beecher Stowe Publishes Uncle Tom's Cabin
First edition printing of Uncle Tom's Cabin, 1852
Harriet Beecher Stowe, author whose novel galvanized the abolitionist movement
Harriet Beecher Stowe's anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was published as a book after being serialized in the abolitionist newspaper The National Era. The novel depicted the harsh realities of slavery in the American South and became a cultural sensation — selling 300,000 copies in its first year. Abraham Lincoln reportedly greeted Stowe with the words "So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war," referring to the Civil War.