This Day in History

On March 10, 1959, thousands of Tibetans rebelled against occupying Chinese forces, surrounding the Dalai Lama's palace to protect him from potential harm. Fierce fighting between Tibetans and Chinese forces ensued, causing the Dalai Lama to flee Tibet for India, where he remains in exile today.

Also on this date:

In 1496, Christopher Columbus concluded his second visit to the Western Hemisphere as he left Hispaniola for Spain.

In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln promoted Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant to lieutenant general and the command of the Union army in the Civil War.

In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell's assistant, Thomas Watson, heard Bell say over his experimental telephone: "Mr. Watson — come here — I want to see you" from the next room of Bell's Boston laboratory; those were the first words ever conveyed by telephone.

In 1913, abolitionist and Underground Railroad "conductor" Harriet Tubman died of pneumonia in Auburn, New York.

In 1969, James Earl Ray pleaded guilty in Memphis, Tennessee, to assassinating civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. (Ray later repudiated that plea, maintaining his innocence until his death.)

In 1993, Dr. David Gunn was killed outside the Pensacola Women's Medical Services clinic by anti-abortion activist Michael Griffin; it was the first killing attributed to a doctor's role in providing abortion care.

In 2019, a Boeing 737 Max 8 operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed shortly after takeoff from the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, killing all 157 people on board.

Today's birthdays: Actor Chuck Norris is 86. Singer Dean Torrence (Jan and Dean) is 86. TV personality/business executive Barbara Corcoran (TV: "Shark Tank") is 77. Actor Sharon Stone is 68. Actor Jasmine Guy is 64. Music producer Rick Rubin is 63. Football Hall of Famer Rod Woodson is 61. Singer-songwriter Edie Brickell is 60. Actor Paget Brewster is 57. Actor Jon Hamm is 55. Rapper-producer Timbaland is 54. Singer Robin Thicke is 49. Olympic gymnastics gold medalist Shannon Miller is 49. Actor Thomas Middleditch is 44. Country singer-songwriter Carrie Underwood is 43. Actor Olivia Wilde is 42. Actor Emily Osment is 34. Rapper-singer Bad Bunny is 32.