Pierre Curie Killed: Radioactivity Pioneer Dies in Paris
Pierre Curie slipped on a rain-soaked Paris street in April 1906 and fell under a horse-drawn wagon. The wheel crushed his skull instantly. He was 46. He and Marie had already won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903 for their work on radioactivity. He had also discovered piezoelectricity -- the generation of electric charge in certain crystals under pressure -- which is the principle behind the microphones and speakers in every electronic device made since. Marie carried their research forward alone.
April 19, 1906
120 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on April 19
A slave named Milichus didn't just overhear a whisper; he heard his master Piso plotting to kill Nero himself. The freedman raced through Rome's dark streets, r…
Belisarius didn't just lose; he lost his cavalry to a Persian arrow that shattered his shield and forced a chaotic retreat across the Euphrates. Thousands of me…
Danish raiders bludgeoned the Archbishop of Canterbury, Ælfheah, to death after he refused to authorize a massive ransom payment from his impoverished people. H…
Three days of fire and blood in April 1506 turned Lisbon's streets red. Angry mobs dragged the "New Christians" from their homes, burning them alive at the Ross…
Seven German princes and four free cities just refused to sign a decree banning Luther's teachings. They didn't care that Emperor Charles V had already crushed …
Two rivals sat in Frankfurt, ink drying on paper that promised silence where screams had been loud for years. Charles V and Protestant leaders didn't just sign;…
Talk to History
Have a conversation with historical figures who witnessed this era. Ask questions, explore perspectives, and bring history to life.