First Peacetime Draft: U.S. Prepares for War
Congress passed the Selective Service Act to institute the first peacetime draft in U.S. history, instantly transforming a volunteer army into a massive mobilization machine ready for global conflict. This legislative leap ensured the nation could field millions of soldiers before Pearl Harbor, fundamentally altering the trajectory of World War II and establishing the federal government's permanent role in national defense.
September 16, 1940
86 years ago
What Else Happened on September 16
Severus II had been handed the western Roman Empire by Galerius, but Maxentius — the son of the retired emperor Diocletian — refused to recognize him and raised…
The Sixth Ecumenical Council condemned Pope Honorius I for heresy, formally excommunicating him decades after his death. This rare rebuke shattered the doctrine…
Friedrich I. Barbarossa entzieht seinem Vetter Heinrich dem Löwen die Herrschaft über die Reichslehen Bayern und Sachsen. Mit dem – territorial beschnittenen – …
en Italia, Francisco de Asís declara haber recibido los estigmas o heridas de la pasión de Jesucristo.
el obispo Berenguel de Landoria ordena el asesinato de once representantes de la burguesía de Santiago de Compostela que habían ido a negociar con él en el Cast…
ascenso al trono del rey de Francia Carlos VI.
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