On this day in ...... 1946, the emirate of Trans-Jordan became the independent state now known as Jordan (flag at left), with the coronation of its former emir as King Abdullah Ibn Ul-Hussein in what the New York Times' correspondent peculiarly called "spectacular ceremonies and amid a setting that in some respects resembled a frontier town in the Western United States when the first railroad came through." The 1st king was assassinated in 1951 en route to al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem; his great-grandson, Abdullah II, now rules the country.
... 1810, Argentinians asserted their autonomy from Napoleonic Spain, 1 of many events in what came to be known as la Semana de Mayo during which the "United Provinces of the Rio de la Plata" were established. A declaration of independence would not be
formalized for another half-dozen years; a constitution not until 1853. Today is celebrated as el Día de la Revolución de Mayo in Argentina.
