site.btaObservances: August 3

The world:

1492: Christopher Columbus sails from Spain on mission to find shortest route to Indies and reaches Americas.

1778: La Scala opera theatre designed by architect Giuseppe Piermarini opens in Milan.

On this date in Bulgarian history:

1903: Krushevo Republic proclaimed (Old Style July 21) during Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising against Ottoman rule, organized and led by Internal Macedonian-Adrianopolitan Revolutionary Organization.

1904: General Workers' Trade Union holds its constituent congress in Plovdiv, South Central Bulgaria.

1996: Five are killed in fire and explosion at Neftochim oil refinery in Burgas, on the Black Sea.

2001: Bulgaria's first frozen embryo test-tube baby (girl weighing 2.850 kg) is born.

2006: National Assembly ratifies United Nations Convention against Corruption, signed by Bulgaria on December 10, 2003.