On This Day for March 11 - Japan struck by earthquake and tsunami, Dorothy Gish is featured, and more

This message contains graphics. If you do not see the graphics, [click here to view](. March 11 [Dorothy Gish in Orphans of the Storm (1921).]( FEATURED BIOGRAPHY 1898 Dorothy Gish [READ MORE]( [Fishing boat lying amid the wreckage in Ōfunato, Iwate prefecture, Japan, after being washed ashore by the tsunami that struck the city on March 11, 2011.]( FEATURED EVENT 2011 Japan struck by earthquake and tsunami [READ MORE]( Advertisement Advertisement [Explore Britannica's 100 Women Trailblazers]( MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY [Madrid; terrorism] 2004: [Madrid]( suffered a series of [terrorist attacks]( when 10 bombs, detonated by [Islamist]( militants, exploded on four trains at three different rail stations, killing 191 people and injuring some 1,800 others. [Lithuania] 1990: Following a vote in the parliament, [Lithuania]( became the first Soviet republic to declare its independence from the [U.S.S.R.]( [Gorbachev, Mikhail] 1985: [Mikhail Gorbachev]( succeeded [Konstantin Chernenko]( as leader of the Soviet Union. [Douglas MacArthur, 1945.] 1942: During [World War II]( Allied forces in the Southwest Pacific Theatre came under the command of U.S. General [Douglas MacArthur]( following his tour on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. [Rupert Murdoch.] 1931: Newspaper entrepreneur [Rupert Murdoch]( founder of the News Corporation Ltd., was born in Melbourne, Australia. [Harold Wilson] 1916: British politician [Harold Wilson]( who led the [Labour Party]( to victory in four general elections and was prime minister of the [United Kingdom]( from 1964 to 1970 and from 1974 to 1976, was born. [SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY]( ALSO BORN ON THIS DAY 1931 [Rupert Murdoch]( Australian-American publisher 1936 [Antonin Scalia]( United States jurist 1978 [Didier Drogba]( Ivorian football player 1952 [Douglas Adams]( British author 1916 [Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx]( prime minister of United Kingdom 1950 [Bobby McFerrin]( American musician [SEE ALL BIOS ON THIS DAY]( Advertisement FOLLOW: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( To unsubscribe from Britannica e-mails, [click here](. Encyclopædia Britannica 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, Illinois 60654 United States © 2019 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. [Privacy Policy]( • [Help](