On this day

April 30: holidays and events on this day

April 30 is the date considered the anniversary of Adolf Hitler’s suicide. And the night from April 30 to May 1 is considered the most mystical of the year. Jazz Day and Dance Day are also celebrated at the end of April. In Ukraine, this date is a professional holiday for border guards.

Holidays and commemorative dates:

Border Guard Day of Ukraine – April 30 became a professional holiday for Ukrainian border guards in 2018. On this day in 1918, the Donetsk Army of the Ukrainian People’s Republic under the command of Colonel Volodymyr Sikevych, liberating a large part of Donbas, reached the internationally recognized border of the Ukrainian People’s Republic with the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and the All-Great Don Army.

World Mobility and Accessibility Day – the date was chosen in order to draw attention to the problems of low-mobility population groups and to improve the access of people with disabilities, the elderly, parents with strollers to public transport, public places and other facilities.

International Jazz Day – April 30 became Jazz Day in 2012 on the initiative of UNESCO. April is considered the month of jazz all over the world, and the celebration on April 30 is its culmination.

Hair Day – this holiday is also called the Day of Appreciation of hairdressers, so do not forget to thank your master for his work.

Walpurgis night – this is one of the most revered pagan holidays. It is dedicated to the cult of fertility. The night from April 30 to May 1 is considered the most magical and mystical.

The name Walpurgis Night is associated with the name of Saint Walpurga, a nun who came from England to Germany in 748 to found a monastery. She died on February 25, 777 in Heidenheim and soon entered the pantheon of Catholic saints. According to legend, when the ship Walpurgis was on was caught in a storm, she began to pray. After that the hurricane stopped and the sea calmed down. Thanks to this miracle, Walpurgis became the patron saint of sailors.

See also  July 14: holidays and events on this day

On icons, Walpurgis is often depicted with a dog, which symbolizes the guide to the afterlife, and with a triangular mirror, which gives the opportunity to see the future.

In the Middle Ages, there was a belief that on Walpurgis night witches’ feasts were held throughout Germany and Scandinavia. According to the myth, witches rode on broomsticks and flew to the mountain tops, where they held wild feasts and dances. According to traditions, the Sabbath began on Lysia Gora (in the myths of the East Slavic countries, otbms flew to Lysia Gora to Kyiv).

It was believed that on this night the borders between the worlds opened, so earlier in the evening of April 30, bonfires were lit everywhere in the cities and villages of Europe. In this way, predators that could attack cattle or sheep were also scared away.

It was believed that on this night it is necessary to light as many candles as possible so that the fire cleans the house and drives away evil spirits. And you can pour sand near the threshold – the witch will not come to visit until she has counted all the grains of sand, and then the morning will come.

It was also believed that you can realize your plans and dreams by planting a plant or a tree.

Events on this day:

1803 — The USA bought Louisiana from France for 15 million dollars.

1840 — the first edition of “Kobzar” by Taras Shevchenko was published. St. Petersburg censor P. Korsakov signed a ticket for issuing a book from Ye. Fischer’s printing house.

1883 Edouard Manet, the French impressionist artist, died.

1901 – Simon Kuznets, American economist, laureate of the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1971, was born.

1918 — the creation of the Crimean People’s Republic was announced.

April 30: holidays and events on this day
Photo: facebook.com/igor.repeshko

1945 — it is believed that the leader of Nazi Germany Adolf Hitler and his wife Eva Braun committed suicide on this day in the bunker under the Reich Chancellery.

On the evening of April 29, during an evening meeting, General Weidling announced that the Berlin garrison was practically destroyed and that the battle for the capital would be over in 24 hours. He advised Hitler to escape from Berlin, but he refused. At midnight he said goodbye to his last associates, officers and secretaries.

See also  5 November: holidays and events on this day

Early in the morning of May 1, Chief of the General Staff of the German Army Krebs appeared at one of the bases of the 8th Guards Army, which attacked the Reichstag building. He submitted a written statement to the Soviet command, under which were the signatures of Goebbels and Bormann. The statement read: “Berlin. April 30, 1945. Imperial Office. Message. We authorize the Chief of the Army General Staff, Infantry General Hans Krebs, to transmit the following message: “I inform the leader of the Soviet peoples, as the first of the Germans, that today, April 30, 1945, At 15:50, the leader of the German people, Adolf Hitler, committed suicide.”

Krebs further stated that Hitler did shoot himself and that his body was cremated at his own request.

In Soviet historiography, there was a widespread version of poisoning – as if Hitler swallowed an ampoule with poison. In the most popular Western version, the Führer shot himself. Hitler’s burial place is not exactly known. They say he was buried somewhere in Magdeburg.

In Soviet times, the story was often retold that in 1970, Andropov, then head of the KGB, suggested to Brezhnev that he destroy all that remained of the Führer. The reason for this decision was that neo-Nazi sentiments began to arise in Europe, and Andropov was afraid that the burial place would become an object of unhealthy interest. Brezhnev supported this idea. Hitler’s remains were secretly dug up, burned and thrown into a lake.

Be that as it may, the story of Hitler’s death still contains many “white spots”.

1977 — the British rock band Led Zeppelin set a world record for concert attendance. The band’s performance in Pontiac (a suburb of Detroit) was seen by 76,299 spectators.

2018 — The anti-terrorist operation in the east of Ukraine was changed to Operation United Forces.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Articles

Back to top button