The First Silesian War was a conflict between Prussia and Austria lasting from 1740 to 1742, which resulted in Prussia's seizure of most of the region of Silesia (now in south-western Poland). The war was fought mainly in Silesia, Moravia and Bohemia and was part of the wider War of the Austrian Succession. The war commenced in late 1740 with an invasion of Habsburg Silesia when Maria Theresa's contested succession to the Habsburg Monarchy provided an opportunity for Prussia to expand. It ended in a Prussian victory with the 1742 Treaty of Berlin. The War of the Austrian Succession continued, and would draw Austria and Prussia into the Second Silesian War only two years later, which also ended in Prussian control of Silesia. The First Silesian War marked the unexpected defeat of the Habsburg Monarchy by a lesser German power and initiated the Austria–Prussia rivalry that would shape German politics for more than a century. (This article is part of a featured topic: Silesian Wars.).
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Silesian_Wars
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1847:
Prince Afonso died at the age of two, leaving his father Pedro II, the last emperor of Brazil, without a male heir. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afonso,_Prince_Imperial_of_Brazil
1920:
During their national convention in Chicago, Republican Party leaders gathered in negotiations at The Blackstone Hotel to select their presidential candidate, leading to the phrase "smoke-filled room". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blackstone_Hotel
1955:
Two cars collided during a running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, resulting in 84 deaths making it the deadliest accident in motorsport history. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1955_Le_Mans_disaster
2007:
Mudslides caused by heavy monsoon rainfall and exacerbated by hill cutting killed at least 128 people in Chittagong, Bangladesh. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Chittagong_mudslides
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
esquamulose: (botany, mycology) Not covered in scales or scale-like objects; having a smooth skin or outer covering. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/esquamulose
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Thy praise or dispraise is to me alike; One doth not stroke me, nor the other strike. --Ben Jonson https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ben_Jonson