November 28th, 1960

On this date in 1960, the country of Mauritania separated from the French and declared its independence. The people of this nation disagreed with the overall conduct of the government which they were under and formed Mauritania, declaring themselves free and independent. Many controversies still plague the country itself, but that is a matter for another time.

November 28th, 1912

Following the theme of independence, on this date in 1912, Albania declared independence from the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire was one of the final remaining medieval empires that still held a grasp on the world we know, but as more and more countries either defected or were taken from them, the empire finally crumbled apart, and seemingly the last enemy of static borders was erased.

November 28th, 1972

To end on a rather gruesome (or optimistic–-depends on which way you look at it) note, on this day in 1972, Claude Buffet and Roger Bontems were the last people to be executed in Paris — their execution method via the guillotine. As for Claude Buffet, he was executed on account of murder. As for Roger, he unfortunately was executed for the same reason, despite never actually murdering someone. Something that surprised me was the amount of coverage this story got–and still gets. This was the first instance of the guillotine being used in three or so years, and the last instance of it being used to this date.