Added to 12 June

1775 – British general Thomas Gage declares martial law in Massachusetts. The British offer a pardon to all colonists who lay down their arms. There would be only two exceptions to the amnesty: Samuel Adams and John Hancock, if captured, were to be hanged.
1990 – The First Congress of People’s Deputies of the Russian Federation adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. The idea of the declaration was born in the Democratic Russia movement, in which proponents of evolutionary market reform and strong statehood based on Russia’s national interests started opposing the Communist monopoly on power. In addition, by the late 1980s, society had begun to doubt the Politburo’s ability to carry out meaningful socio-economic reforms. The creation of the post of the President of the Russian Federation and the adoption of the new Russian Constitution to reflect the new political reality, along with the national flag, anthem and emblem of the Russian Federation, were major landmarks in the consolidation of Russian statehood. The country’s new name- the Russian Federation (Russia)- was adopted on December 25, 1991. The day when the declaration was adopted- June 12 – was proclaimed as national holiday by Supreme Soviet of Russia in 1992, and again proclaimed Russia’s national holiday by the Russian President’s decree of June 2, 1994. Under the presidential decree of June 16, 1998, it was called the Day of Russia. In 2002, the new Labor Code gave official seal to this title.
1991 – Russians elect Boris Yeltsin as the president of the republic.