Today in History

Today is Thursday, April 11, the 101st day of 2013. There are 264 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On April 11, 1913, Postmaster General Albert S. Burleson, during a meeting of President Woodrow Wilson's Cabinet, proposed gradually segregating whites and blacks who worked for the Railway Mail Service, a policy which went into effect and spread to other agencies.

On this date:

In 1689, William III and Mary II were crowned as joint sovereigns of Britain.

In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht was signed, ending the War of the Spanish Succession.

In 1814, Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated as Emperor of the French and was banished to the island of Elba.

In 1921, Iowa became the first state to impose a cigarette tax, at 2 cents a package.

In 1945, during World War II, American soldiers liberated the notorious Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald in Germany.

In 1951, President Harry S. Truman relieved Gen. Douglas MacArthur of his commands in the Far East.

In 1953, Oveta Culp Hobby became the first Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare.

In 1963, Pope John XXIII issued his final encyclical, "Pacem in Terris" -- "Peace on Earth."

In 1970, Apollo 13, with astronauts James A. Lovell, Fred W. Haise and Jack Swigert, blasted off on its ill-fated mission to the moon.

In 1979, Idi Amin was deposed as president of Uganda as rebels and exiles backed by Tanzanian forces seized control.

In 1983, at the Academy Awards, "Gandhi" was named best picture; its star, Ben Kingsley, won best actor while Meryl Streep received the best actress Oscar for "Sophie's Choice."

In 1988, "The Last Emperor" won best picture at the Academy Awards ceremony; Cher won best actress for "Moonstruck," Michael Douglas best actor for "Wall Street."

Ten years ago: Ten of the main suspects in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole escaped from prison in Yemen. American troops took the northern Iraqi city of Mosul without a fight. In Cuba, three men convicted of hijacking a passenger ferry the previous week were executed by firing squad, a swift response by Fidel Castro's government to a recent string of hijackings to the United States.

Five years ago: Group of Seven financial officials meeting in Washington pledged to strengthen their regulation of banks and other financial institutions while anxiously hoping the credit crisis in the United States would be a short one. French troops captured six pirates after the pirates released 30 hostages who were aboard the French luxury yacht Le Ponant when it was seized off Somalia's coast.

One year ago: George Zimmerman, the Florida neighborhood watch volunteer who fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. A California prison panel denied parole to mass murderer Charles Manson in his 12th and probably final bid for freedom. A University of California task force said that UC Davis police should not have used pepper-spray on student demonstrators in an incident that prompted national outrage. Algeria's first president, Ahmed Ben Bella, 95, died in Algiers. French Resistance figure Raymond Aubrac, 97, died in Paris.

Today's Birthdays: Ethel Kennedy is 85. Actor Joel Grey is 81. Actress Louise Lasser is 74. Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Ellen Goodman is 72. Movie writer-director John Milius is 69. Actor Peter Riegert is 66. Actor Meshach Taylor is 66. Movie director Carl Franklin is 64. Actor Bill Irwin is 63. Country singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale is 56. Songwriter-producer Daryl Simmons is 56. Rock musician Nigel Pulsford is 52. Actor Lucky Vanous is 52. Country singer Steve Azar is 49. Singer Lisa Stansfield is 47. Rock musician Dylan Keefe (Marcy Playground) is 43. Actor Johnny Messner is 43. Actor Vicellous Shannon is 42. Rapper David Banner is 39. Actress Tricia Helfer is 39. Rock musician Chris Gaylor (The All-American Rejects) is 34. Actress Kelli Garner is 29. Singer Joss Stone is 26. Actress-dancer Kaitlyn Jenkins (TV: "Bunheads") is 21.

Thought for Today: "We think in generalities, but we live in detail." -- Alfred North Whitehead, British philosopher (1861-1947).

Copyright 2013, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.