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ondisdae.bsky.social
On Dis Dae
@ondisdae.bsky.social
Historian
#OTD January 13, 1898

Émile Zola publishes “J’accuse…!”. Aiming state injustice out loud when institutions demand silence.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #jacuse #press #accountability #history
January 13, 2026 at 11:23 PM
#OTD January 13, 1893

U.S. Marines land in Honolulu. Stability arrives at gunpoint, and a monarchy’s fate is decided by someone else’s interests.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #hawaii #intervention #imperialism #history
January 13, 2026 at 11:14 PM
#OTD January 13, 1842

Dr. Brydon reaches Jalalabad as the lone survivor. An empire’s confidence collapses into one exhausted witness.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #afghanistan #empire #war #history
January 13, 2026 at 10:36 PM
#OTD January 13, 1833

Andrew Jackson rejects South Carolina’s nullification. Federal authority vs. local defiance collides in a national power test.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #nullification #federalism #history #politics
January 13, 2026 at 10:24 PM
#OTD January 13, 1547

Henry Howard is condemned for treason over symbols, because in paranoid courts, resemblance becomes guilt.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #tudor #treason #paranoia #history
January 13, 2026 at 9:23 PM
#OTD January 13, 1435

Pope Eugene IV issues Sicut Dudum, forbidding the enslavement of Indigenous converts. Morality arrives late, and only for the approved.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #colonialism #church #humanrights #history
January 13, 2026 at 9:07 PM
#OTD January 13, 532

The Nika riots erupt in Constantinople. Public anger detonates after people decide the system answers only to itself.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #nikariots #protest #statepower #history
January 13, 2026 at 8:24 PM
#OTD January 13, 27 BC

Octavian returns authority to the Senate, then quietly keeps the provinces that matter, building a republic-shaped shell around one-man rule.

Photo credit: public domain
#january13th #rome #power #republic #history #authoritarianism
January 13, 2026 at 7:23 PM
#OTD January 8, 2023

Bolsonaro supporters storm Brazil’s Congress. When strongman politics can’t accept losing, democracy becomes optional and mobs become “patriots.”

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #brazil #democracy #history #authoritarianism #politics
January 9, 2026 at 2:28 AM
#OTD January 8, 2011

Rep. Gabby Giffords is shot in Tucson. Political violence doesn’t arrive out of nowhere; it arrives after years of dehumanizing rhetoric.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #tucson #gunviolence #politics #history #usa
January 9, 2026 at 2:23 AM
#OTD January 8, 2002

No Child Left Behind becomes law. Proof that big slogans can mask quiet damage when education is treated like branding instead of a public trust.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #education #usa #history #policy #schools
January 9, 2026 at 1:39 AM
#OTD January 8, 1973

The Watergate trial begins. Accountability only happens when the pressure is too loud to ignore and the cover story starts to crack.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #watergate #history #corruption #accountability #politics
January 9, 2026 at 1:03 AM
#OTD January 8, 1912

San Diego restricts free speech, triggering brutal unrest. Because speech is always “free” until it threatens money, power, or control.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #freespeech #labor #history #protest #rights
January 9, 2026 at 12:42 AM
#OTD January 8, 1900

President McKinley places Alaska under military rule. When “order” becomes the excuse, civilian governance is always the first casualty.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #alaska #usa #history #military #civilrights
January 9, 2026 at 12:34 AM
#OTD January 8, 1877

Crazy Horse fights his last battle against the U.S. Cavalry. Resistance crushed once power decides negotiation is no longer useful and promises are only kept while convenient.

Photo credit: public domain
#January8th #crazyhorse #wolfmountain #power
January 9, 2026 at 12:25 AM
#OTD January 8, 1811

Charles Deslondes leads a major slave revolt in Louisiana that is crushed. Resistance punished twice: first with violence, then with silence.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #slavery #louisiana #history #resistance #justice
January 8, 2026 at 11:48 PM
#OTD January 8, 1790

George Washington delivers the first State of the Union. An early attempt to define national unity before faction hardens into permanent warfare.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #usa #history #democracy #government #politics
January 8, 2026 at 10:44 PM
#OTD January 8, 1547

The first Lithuanian-language book is published. Language preserved on paper becomes cultural survival when power tries to standardize, erase, or control identity.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #lithuania #history #language #culture #books
January 8, 2026 at 7:21 PM
#OTD January 8, 1454

The papal bull Romanus Pontifex grants Portugal sweeping rights to colonize and trade across Africa. One signature turning exploitation into “permission.”

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #colonialism #africa #portugal #history #empire
January 8, 2026 at 5:04 PM
#OTD January 8, 871

Æthelred I and Alfred the Great rally Wessex to repel Viking forces. Proof that when institutions strain, survival depends on local cohesion, leadership, and whether the line holds.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #england #vikings #history #conflict
January 8, 2026 at 4:43 PM
#OTD January 8, 307

Sima Chi becomes emperor of China’s Jin dynasty amid a contested succession. Another reminder that “lawful” transfers of power often depend on who controls the court, the guards, and the story.

Photo credit: public domain
#january8th #china #history #power #politics #succession
January 8, 2026 at 3:21 PM
#OTD January 7, 1610

Galileo Galilei makes observations that challenge the accepted model of the universe, evidence that will be resisted despite what can be clearly seen.

Photo credit: public domain
#january7th #science #truth #galileo #history
January 8, 2026 at 4:48 AM
#OTD January 7, 1558

French forces capture Calais, England’s last possession on the European mainland, marking the end of centuries of English territorial claims in France.

Photo credit: public domain
#january7th #empire #borders #europe #history
January 7, 2026 at 6:30 PM
#OTD January 7, 1078

The people of Constantinople revolt, lynch the unpopular official Nikephoritzes, and proclaim a new emperor, turning public rage into street justice.

Photo credit: public domain
#january7th #byzantineempire #mobrule #history
January 7, 2026 at 4:19 PM
#OTD January 7, 49 BC

The Roman Senate declares Julius Caesar a public enemy unless he disbands his army, prompting Caesar to defy the order and march to Rome, accelerating the collapse of the Republic.

Photo credit: public domain
#january7th #rome #power #legitimacy #history
January 7, 2026 at 3:57 PM