On November 27, 1992, a fire destroyed parts of the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria, threatening the famous Lipizzaner stallions. File Photo by Gugerell/Wikimedia Msgr. Pasquale Macci (C), private secretary to Pope Paul VI, pushes away a crew-cut, cassock-clad man (R) trying to attack the pope with a knife at the airport in Manila, Philippines, shortly after the Pope’s arrival on November 27, 1970. UPI File Photo Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder (R), beams upon receiving the 75th NAACP Spingarn Medal from former recipient Percy Ellis Sutten (L) of New York on July 12, 1990, in Los Angeles. On November 27, 1989, Wilder became the first elected African-American governor in the United States. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI On November 27, 1978, a former San Francisco official killed Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, the first openly gay official elected in California. File Photo by Pat Benic/UPI
Nov. 27 (UPI) -- On this date in history:
In 1901, the U.S. War Department authorized creation of the Army War College to instruct commissioned officers. It was built in Leavenworth, Kan.
In 1924, the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade took place in New York. The first three years, it was known as the Macy's Christmas Parade.
In 1940, two months after Gen. Ion Antonescu seized power in Romania and forced King Carol II to abdicate, more than 60 aides of the exiled king, including Nicolae Iorga, a former minister and acclaimed historian, were executed.
In 1970, a man with a knife attempted to injure Pope Paul VI at Manila Airport in the Philippines.
In 1978, a disgruntled former San Francisco official shot and killed Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, the first openly gay official elected in California.
In 1983, a crippled Colombian jumbo jet crashed in flames on approach to the Madrid, Spain, airport, killing 181 people and injuring 11. Among those killed were several notable literary figures invited to a meeting in Colombia, including Mexican novelist Jorge Ibargüengoitia, Peruvian novelist Manuel Scorza and Argentine writer Marta Traba.
In 1989, Virginia certified Douglas Wilder as the first elected Black American governor by a margin of 0.38 percent of the vote.
In 1992, a fire destroyed parts of the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria, threatening the famous Lipizzaner stallions.
In 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush arrived in Iraq under the cover of darkness in a surprise visit to U.S. forces in Baghdad. The president mingled with troops gathered in a hangar for Thanksgiving dinner and joined the serving line, dishing out corn and sweet potatoes. Bush's 2 1/2 hour stay marked the first time a U.S. president traveled to Iraq.
In 2022, Mauna Loa, one of the five volcanoes that form Hawaii's Big Island, erupted for the first time in 38 years. Lava flowed for more than two weeks and caused more than $1.5 million in damage.