This Day In History

April 16
73
Masada, a Jewish fortress, falls to the Romans after several months of siege, ending the Jewish Revolt. 1582 Spanish conquistador Hernando de Lerma founds the settlement of Salta, Argentina.
1853
The first passenger rail opens in India, from Bori Bunder, Bombay to Thane.
1863
American Civil War: The Siege of Vicksburg ships led by Union Admiral David Dixon Porter move through heavy Confederate artillery fire on approach to Vicksburg, Mississippi.
1917
Lenin returns to Petrograd from exile in Switzerland.
1919
Gandhi organizes a day of "prayer and fasting" in response to the killing of Indian protesters in the Amritsar Massacre by the British.
1922
The Treaty of Rapallo, pursuant to which Germany and the Soviet Union re-establish diplomatic relations, is signed.
1946
Syria gains independence.