On January 22, 1506, the first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrived at the Vatican. Swiss Guards (Gardes Suisses in French and Schweizergarde in German) are the Swiss soldiers who have served as guards at foreign European courts since the late 15th century. The earliest unit to be established on a permanent basis was the Hundred Swiss (Cent Suisses), created in 1480 when Louis XI … Continue reading The Pontifical Swiss Guard
On August 7, 1942, Allied forces, predominantly United States Marines, landed on Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Florida in the southern Solomon Islands, with the objective of denying their use by the Japanese to threaten Allied supply and communication routes between the United States, Australia, and New Zealand; powerful American and Australian naval forces supported these landings. It was the first major offensive by Allied forces against … Continue reading The Battle of Guadalcanal
In my collection titled “Stamps From (Almost) Everywhere” (SFAEW), I usually count separate stamp-issuing entities based upon the inscriptions upon the stamps themselves (however, I’m still not sure whether to divide my stamps inscribed BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS from the earlier issues inscribed just VIRGIN ISLANDS as everything else is the same). I can usually find information (at least enough for a “Stamp A Day” article) … Continue reading Zanzibar and Tanzania #330 (1965)
The United States Naval Academy is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland, established on October 10, 1845, under Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft. Often simply called Annapolis, it is the second oldest of the United States’ five service academies, and educates officers for commissioning primarily into the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The 338-acre campus is located on the former grounds … Continue reading United States Naval Academy
A Stamp A Day 