1910s C.E.

Roald Amundsen at the South Pole

Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen leads the first expedition to reach the South Pole

He and four other crew members made it to the geographical south pole on 14 December 1911, which would prove to be five weeks ahead of the competitive British party led by Robert Falcon Scott as part of the Terra Nova Expedition. Amundsen and his team returned safely to their base, and about a year later heard that Scott and his four companions had perished on their return journey.

Mau demonstration in Apia

The Mau movement pushes for Samoa’s independence

The Mau was a non-violent movement for Samoan independence from colonial rule during the first half of the 20th century. The movement had its beginnings on the island of Savai’i with the Mau a Pule resistance in the early 1900s with widespread support throughout the country by the late 1920s.

Tango dancers

Tango becomes a global sensation

Initially, it was just one of the many dances, but it soon became popular throughout society, as theatres and street barrel organs spread it from the suburbs to the working-class slums.

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