Video encyclopedia

Flashback calendar

VW borrows €20bn to help it survive

Volkswagen agreed to the terms of a bridging loan with banks to help survive the costs of its emissions scandal. The scandal occurred after VW admitted to cheating U.S. diesel emissions tests and to falsifying carbon dioxide emissions.

A rogue trader Nick Leeson is jailed for busting Barings Bank

Nick Leeson is a former derivatives broker whose fraudulent, unauthorized speculative trading caused the great collapse of Barings Bank. Leeson was charged with fraud for deceiving his superiors about the riskiness of his activities and the scale of his losses.

Pablo Escobar dies in a shootout

16 months after his escape from La Catedral, Pablo Escobar died in a shootout amid another of Escobar's attempts to elude the Search Bloc. A Colombian electronic surveillance team, led by Brigadier Hugo Martínez, used radio trilateration technology to track his radiotelephone transmissions and found him hiding in Los Olivos.

Fidel Castro becomes President of Cuba


The United Arab Emirates forms

The United Arab Emirates is a federal absolute monarchy in Western Asia at the southeast end of the Arabian Peninsula on the Persian Gulf. The country is a federation of seven emirates and was established in December 1971. Each emirate is governed by an absolute monarch; together, they jointly form the Federal Supreme Council.

Gillette Company is founded

The Gillette Company was founded by King C. Gillette. Nowadays, Gillette is a well-known brand of men's and women's safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies. The brand is owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble.

Franz Joseph I becomes Emperor of Austria

Following the abdication of his uncle Ferdinand I, Franz Joseph succeeded as Emperor of Austria. He was the longest-reigning Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary, as well as the 3rd-longest-reigning monarch of any country in European history.

President James Monroe declares his "Monroe Doctrine"

The Monroe Doctrine was a United States policy of opposing European colonialism in the Americas beginning in 1823. It stated that further efforts by European nations to take control of an independent state in North or South America would be viewed as "the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States."

Napoleon Bonaparte crowns himself Emperor of the French

As Napoleon wanted to establish the legitimacy of his imperial reign, he designed a new coronation ceremonial that was unlike the ceremony used for the kings of France. Napoleon brought together many different rites and customs, incorporating aspects of Carolingian tradition, the ancien régime, and the French Revolution.

Anniversaries of the (in)famous

died 1993

Pablo Escobar

died 1995

Roxie Roker