Human Saga

On April 4

On April 4, the Human Saga records one pivotal event: Founding of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty) (1949).

On this day

4 April 1949Founding of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty)Military & conflict

On 4 April 1949 twelve nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, D.C., establishing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Also this week in history (Apr 1 – Apr 7)

7 April – 19 July 1994The Rwandan genocide against the TutsiMilitary & conflict

Over roughly 100 days from 7 April 1994, members of Rwanda's Hutu-led government, army and allied militias such as the Interahamwe carried out a systematic genocide against the Tutsi minority, also killing moderate Hutu and Twa.

5 April 1722Jacob Roggeveen reaches Rapa Nui (Easter Island)Exploration & colonisation

On Easter Sunday, 5 April 1722, the Dutch navigator Jacob Roggeveen became the first European to sight and land on Rapa Nui, which he named Paasch-Eyland (Easter Island) for the day of its discovery.

3 April 1948 (program 1948–1952)Marshall Plan (European Recovery Program)Economy & trade

The Marshall Plan, formally the European Recovery Program, was the principal U.S. initiative to rebuild Western Europe after World War II. Proposed by Secretary of State George C.

On 2 April 2025, President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14257 imposing a 10 percent baseline tariff on nearly all US imports plus steep additional 'reciprocal' rates on dozens of trading partners, a measure he branded 'Liberation…

6 April 2014 (Nigeria GDP rebasing)Nigeria becomes Africa's largest economyEconomy & trade

On 6 April 2014 Nigeria announced the results of a long-overdue 'rebasing' of its gross domestic product, updating the base year for its national accounts from 1990 for the first time in decades.

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