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William Daniel Leahy (6 May 1875 – 20 July 1959) was the most senior United States military officer on active duty during World War II, and the first to hold a five-star rank in the U.S. Armed Forces. An 1897 graduate of Annapolis, Leahy saw active service in the Spanish–American War, the Philippine–American War, the Boxer Rebellion in China, the Banana Wars in Central America, and World War I, and was Chief of Naval Operations from 1937 to 1939. After retiring from the Navy, he was appointed the governor of Puerto Rico. In his most controversial role, he served as the ambassador to France from 1940 to 1942. He was recalled to active duty as Chief of Staff to the President in 1942, and served in that capacity for the rest of the war. As the de facto first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he presided over the American delegation to the Combined Chiefs of Staff. He was a major decision-maker during the war and was second only to the president in authority and influence. (Full article...) Recently featured: Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories Hualca Hualca 2015 KNVB Cup final Archive By email More featured articles About
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Hisham's Palace ... that Hamdan Taha co-led excavations at Hisham's Palace (pictured), an early Islamic archaeological site in the West Bank? ... that according to researcher Treena Clark, indigenous drag performance can be seen as a strategy for cultural survival and resistance? ... that Venezuelan-American socialite Reinaldo Herrera's extensive connections led to Vanity Fair employing him to work as a fixer? ... that in North America, Europe and New Zealand, research funding is sometimes distributed by lottery? ... that Dennis Walker acquired millions of dollars worth of sports memorabilia before being investigated for racketeering and selling unregistered certificates of deposit by the Oregon Attorney General? ... that people caught in the 2025 Belgrade stampede experienced a frightening aural sensation, leading to an accusation that the government used a sonic weapon against them? ... that Nahuel Carabaña turned around mid-race at the 2022 European Athletics Championships to help an injured competitor? ... that one reviewer described Polo by Jilly Cooper as a "frothy brew of sex, class and jodhpurs"? ... that LGBTQ people have adopted cutie marks as personal signifiers, with some getting tattoos of their favorite pony's mark as a form of identity expression? Archive Start a new article Nominate an article

In the news

Zhao Xintong

Zhao Xintong (pictured) defeats Mark Williams to win the World Snooker Championship.
In horse racing, Sovereignty, ridden by Junior Alvarado, wins the Kentucky Derby.
In the Singaporean general election, the People's Action Party retains a supermajority of seats.
The Australian Labor Party increases its majority in the federal election.

On this day...

May 6

The Grand Palace in the 1860s

1536 – Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire: Sapa Inca emperor Manco Inca Yupanqui's army began a ten-month siege of Cusco against a garrison of Spanish conquistadors and Indian auxiliaries led by Hernando Pizarro.
1782 – Construction began on the Grand Palace (pictured) in Bangkok, the official residence of the king of Thailand.
1915 – Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition: SY Aurora, anchored in McMurdo Sound, broke loose during a gale, beginning a 312-day ordeal in the Ross Sea and Southern Ocean for her 18-man crew.
2004 – The final episode of the television sitcom Friends was aired.
2013 – Amanda Berry escaped from the Cleveland, Ohio, home of her captor, Ariel Castro, having been held there with two other women for ten years.

Henry David Thoreau (d. 1862)
Martin Brodeur (b. 1972)
Reg Grundy (d. 2016)

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