Timeline Thursday 7 June 1917

Events on Thursday 7 June 1917 4

• 1917 Battle of Messines British mines devastate German lines in Flanders British and Commonwealth forces detonated a series of massive underground mines beneath German positions near Messines, one of the largest planned explosions in history to that point. The attack captured the ridge with comparatively limited casualties before the wider Passchendaele campaign began.
• 1917 – 1995 Dean Martin (1917-1995) Died 25 December 1995, aged 78 Dean Martin was an American singer and actor, a member of the Rat Pack alongside Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr., and a fixture of Las Vegas entertainment. He had a long comedy partnership with Jerry Lewis before pursuing a solo career in film and music. His relaxed crooning style produced enduring hits such as That's Amore.
• 1917 – 2000 Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) Died 3 December 2000, aged 83 Gwendolyn Brooks was an American poet who chronicled everyday Black life on Chicago's South Side. In 1950 she became the first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize, for the collection Annie Allen. She later served as poet laureate of Illinois and as consultant in poetry to the Library of Congress.
• 1917 The mines at Messines Messines, Belgium Nineteen mines holding 450 tonnes of explosive were detonated under the German lines at once. The sound was heard in London, and around 10,000 German soldiers died instantly.