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Today in History, November 1, 1478: Spanish Inquisition was established

Associated Press
Spanish Inquisition.

Today is Nov. 1. This is All Saints Day. On this date:

1478

The Spanish Inquisition was established.

1755

The Great Lisbon earthquake killed more than 50,000 in Portugal.

Stamp Act warning: “An Emblem of the Effects of the STAMP,” a warning against the Stamp Act published in the Pennsylvania Journal, October 1765; in the New York Public Library.

1765

The Stamp Act, passed by the British Parliament, went into effect, prompting stiff resistance from American colonists.

1936

In a speech in Milan, Italy, Benito Mussolini described the alliance between his country and Nazi Germany as an “axis” running between Rome and Berlin.

1950

Two Puerto Rican nationalists tried to force their way into Blair House in Washington, D.C., in a failed attempt to assassinate President Harry S. Truman. (One of the pair was killed, along with a White House police officer.)

1952

The United States exploded the first hydrogen bomb, code-named “Ivy Mike,” at Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

"Ivy Mike," an atmospheric nuclear test conducted by the U.S. on Nov. 1, 1952, was the world's first successful hydrogen bomb.

1989

East Germany reopened its border with Czechoslovakia, prompting tens of thousands of refugees to flee to the West.

1991

Clarence Thomas took his place as the newest justice on the Supreme Court.