Nestor Makhno (1888–1934) was a Ukrainian anarchist revolutionary and the commander of the Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine during the Ukrainian Civil War. Born into a poor peasant family in southern Ukraine, Makhno became involved in the local anarchist movement and was imprisoned for his activities. Following the 1917 Revolution, he returned to his hometown and became a local revolutionary leader, spearheading anarchist resistance to Ukrainian nationalists and the White movement. Upon defeating his enemies in battle, he established the Makhnovshchina, a mass movement by the Ukrainian peasantry to establish anarchist communism in Ukraine, coming to control much of the southern and eastern part of the country. After he collaborated with the Bolsheviks to defeat the Whites, his former allies turned on him, and he was wounded and driven into exile in 1921. He died in Paris from tuberculosis.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nestor_Makhno
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1809:
Napoleonic Wars: French admiral Villaret de Joyeuse unconditionally surrendered to the British, which ended the British invasion of Martinique and began a five-year occupation of the island. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Martinique_%281809%29
1979:
Uganda–Tanzania War: Ugandian government forces fled Masaka, Uganda, as the Tanzania People's Defence Force bombarded and captured the town. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Masaka
1989:
United Airlines Flight 811 experienced uncontrolled decompression after leaving Honolulu International Airport, Hawaii, blowing seats out of the aircraft and killing nine passengers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Airlines_Flight_811
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
fraught: 1. (nautical) Of a boat, ship, or other vessel: laden with cargo. 2. (figurative) 3. Followed by with: carrying, or charged or loaded up with (usually something negative); accompanied by; entailing. 4. (specifically) Carrying or loaded with anxiety, fear, or stress, for example, due to complexity or difficulty; distressed; also, causing distress; distressing. 5. Followed by with: furnished, provided. [...] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fraught
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Sir Walter Raleigh declared in the early 17th century that "whoever commands the sea, commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself." This principle is as true today as when uttered, and its effect will continue as long as ships traverse the seas. --Chester W. Nimitz https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Chester_W._Nimitz