- 1380 King Charles VI of France crowned at age 12
Francisco Pizarro
1524 Francisco Pizarro begins his 1st great expedition, near Colombia
- 1550 Pope Julius III proclaims new seat on Council of Trent
- 1606 First play staged in Arcadia at Port-Royal, a performance of "Muses de la Nouvelle-France" by Marc Lescarbot [1]
1st Blood Transfusion Report
1666 English writer Samuel Pepys writes the first report of a blood transfusion (between dogs) in his diary
- 1675 Pope Clemens X declares Gorcumse martyrs divine
- 1680 Gottfried Kirch discovers the Great Comet of 1680 (Kirch's Comet/Newton's Comet)
- 1698 Spanish king Carlos appoints grandson prince Jozef Ferdinand as heir
- 1732 First professional librarian in north America, Louis Timothee, hired in Philadelphia
- 1755 Henry Fox appointed British 'Secretary of State for the Southern Department'
- 1775 -15] Floods ravage Dutch coast provinces
- 1792 Captain George Vancouver is first Englishman to enter San Francisco Bay
- 1832 First streetcar (horse-drawn) (John Mason) debuts in NYC; fare 12 cents rode on 4th Avenue between Prince and 14th Streets
William Thomson
1834 William Thomson, later scientist Lord Kelvin, enters Glasgow University at just 10 yrs 4 months
Moby-Dick
1851 "Moby-Dick" by Herman Melville first published by Harper and Brothers in the US
Condensed Milk
1856 American Gail Borden is issued a patent for technology related to his invention of condensed milk
Nathan Bedford Forest
1863 Nathan Bedford Forrest is assigned to command of West Tennessee
- 1863 Skirmish at Danville, Mississippi
The Shaughraun
1874 Dion Boucicault's stage drama "The Shaughraun" opens at Wallack's Theatre, NYC
Charles J. Guiteau
1881 Charles Guiteau put on trial for the assassination of US President Garfield
- 1881 Leon Gambetta forms French government
Treasure Island
1883 "Treasure Island" by Robert Louis Stevenson is first published as a book by Cassell & Co.
Nellie Bly
1889 New York World reporter Nellie Bly (Elizabeth Cochrane) begins her attempt to surpass fictitious journey of Jules Verne's Phileas Fogg by traveling around the world in under 80 days. She succeeds, finishing the trip in 72 days, 6 hours
Hanneles Himmelfahrt
1893 Gerhart Hauptmann's play "Hanneles Himmelfahrt" premieres in Berlin, Germany
Roosevelt Visits Panama
1906 US President Theodore Roosevelt visits Panama
Third Duma
1907 The Third Duma (Parliament) meets in Russia; following Tsar Nicholas II's limiting of the franchise, a conservative majority holds sway and suppresses the radical elements
Quantum Theory of Light
1908 Albert Einstein presents his quantum theory of light
Demand for Independence
1915 Tomáš Masaryk demands independence for Czechoslovakia
- 1935 Nazis deprive German Jews of their citizenship
- 1938 Dutch DC3 crashes at Schiphol, 6 die
- 1939 Oil refinery fire kills 500 & destroys Lagunillas, Venezuela
- 1940 During WW II, German planes destroy most of Coventry, England
- 1941 British aircraft carrier Ark Royal sank in Mediterranean, having been torpedoed by a German submarine the day before
- 1941 Governr-General Wouters of Dutch Antilles refuses Jews refuge
- 1942 -Nov 15th) Japanese vs US sea battle at Savo-Island in Guadalcanal
- 1942 Last Vichy-French troops in Algeria surrender
- 1943 Chic Bear Sid Luckman passes for 7 touchdowns vs NY Giants (56-7)
- 1943 J Postma, C Schalker, D Goulooze arrested for leading illegal CPN
- 1945 H Lindsay and R Crouse's "State of the Union" premieres in NYC
- 1945 Java: Sutan Sjahrir appointed to form a government as Indonesia's first Prime Minister
- 1946 Dutch Dakota flight to Schiphol crashes, kills 11
- 1952 First regular UK singles chart published by the New Musical Express
- 1952 Greek General Alexander Papagos wins elections
- 1953 WCIA TV channel 3 in Champaign, Illinois (CBS) begins broadcasting
- 1954 Egyptian President Naguib resigns, state of emergency declared
- 1956 Hungarian revolt put down by Soviet invasion
Aaron NLMVP
1957 Milwaukee Brave Hank Aaron wins NL MVP
- 1957 The Apalachin Meeting outside Binghamton, New York is raided by law enforcement, and many high level Mafia figures are arrested
- 1959 Kilauea's most spectacular eruption (in Hawaii)
- 1960 2 passenger trains collided at high-speed killing 110 (Czech)
- 1960 Belgium threatens to leave UN due to criticism on its policy on Congo
Judge With a Passion For Civil Rights
1960 New Orleans elementary schools begin desegregation under an order from U.S. Circuit Judge J. Skelly Wright, the McDonogh Three join McDonogh 19 Elementary School and Ruby Bridges joins William Frantz Elementary School. They are met with death threats and racial slurs while the schools faced immediate boycotts.
Georgia On My Mind
1960 Ray Charles' single "Georgia On My Mind" reaches #1
Fade Out-Fade In
1964 Betty Comden & Adolph Green and Jule Styne's musical "Fade Out-Fade In", goes into lay-off due to star Carol Burnett's illness
Gordie Howe
1964 Detroit Red Wings Gordie Howe sets NHL record 627th career goal
- 1965 George Abbott Theater (Adelphi, 54 St) at 152 W 54th NYC, demolished
- 1965 KCST TV channel 39 in San Diego, CA (NBC) begins broadcasting
- 1965 US government sends 90,000 soldiers to Vietnam
Ali vs. Williams
1966 Muhammad Ali TKOs Cleveland Williams in 3 for heavyweight title
- 1967 Orchestre de Paris, France's 1st full-time salaried orchestra, debuts, conducted by its founder Charles Münch
- 1967 The Congress of Colombia in commemoration of the 150 years of the death of Policarpa Salavarrieta, declares this day as "Day of the Colombian Woman"
- 1968 "National Turn in Your Draft Card Day" features draft card burning
- 1968 First European lung transplant
- 1968 U.S. premiere of film version of Morris L. West's best seller "The Shoes of the Fisherman"
- 1968 Yale University announces it is going co-educational
- 1969 2nd Vietnam Moratorium Day in US
- 1969 Apollo 12 (Conrad/Gordon/Bean) launched for 2nd manned Moon landing
- 1970 Marshall U football team wiped out in DC-9 air crash at Kenova, West Virginia, killing 75
- 1971 Enthronment of Pope Shenouda III as Pope of Alexandria
- 1972 Dow Jones closes above 1,000 for 1st time (1003.16)
- 1973 Canada begins production of Olympic coins
Palmer AL Cy Young
1973 Jim Palmer is named AL Cy Young winner
- 1975 Spain, Morocco and Mauretania sign accord about Spanish Sahara
Network
1976 "Network", directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Faye Dunaway, Peter Finch and William Holden, premieres in Los Angeles and New York City (Finch - Academy Awards Best Actor 1977)
- 1976 Cleveland Browns' Jerry Sherk sets club record with 4 sacks
Menten Captured
1976 Dutch war criminal Pieter Menten captured one day after fleeing
Sadat on Israel
1977 Egyptian President Anwar Sadat repeats willingness to visit Israel to Walter Cronkite
- 1979 California's Don Baylor, wins AL MVP
- 1980 Guinea-Bissau Vice President João Bernardo "Nino" Vieira, overthrows President Luis Cabral in a military coup
- 1980 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- 1981 "Raise!" 11th studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire is released (Billboard Album of the Year 1982)
- 1981 2nd NASA Space Shuttle Mission: Columbia 2 returns to Earth
Benitez vs. Santos
1981 In the first world championship fight between 2 Puerto Ricans in boxing history, WBC Super Welterweight champion Wilfred Benitez beats Carlos Santos in a 15-round unanimous decision at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas
- 1981 Old Dutch Windmill in Golden Gate Park repaired and working again
- 1981 Pakistan all out 62 v Australia at WACA, Lillee 5-18
- 1981 Paul 'Bear' Bryant ties Amos Alonzo Stagg with 314 football wins
Wałęsa Freed
1982 Polish Solidarity chairman Lech Wałęsa freed
- 1983 First cruise missile placed at Greenham Common, England
- 1984 Astronauts aboard "Discovery" pluck a 2nd satellite from orbit
- 1984 NASA launches NATO-3D
- 1984 Zamboanga City mayor Cesar Climaco, a prominent critic of the government of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, is assassinated in his home city.
- 1985 Brewers release 39-year-old pitcher Rollie Fingers
- 1985 Volcano Nevado del Ruiz Colombia erupts, 1000s killed
- 1986 Doubleday Publishing sells NY Mets to Nelson Doubleday and Fred Wilpon
- 1986 FCC issues Notice Of Apparent Liability to WYSP Philadelphia
- 1986 US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) imposes a record $100 million penalty against Ivan Boesky for insider trading
- 1987 Sam's Town National Bowling Pro-Am won by Debbie Bennett
- 1988 Sitcom "Murphy Brown" starring Candice Bergen premieres on CBS
- 1989 Padres reliever Mark Davis wins NL Cy Young Award
- 1990 Doug Drabek (22-6) wins NL Cy Young Award
- 1990 France performs nuclear test at Mururoa atoll
- 1990 Great Britain performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
James Worthy
1990 James Worthy is arrested in Houston and charged with two counts of solicitation of prostitution
Heseltine vs. Thatcher
1990 Michael Heseltine contests Margaret Thatcher's leadership of the British Conservative Party
- 1990 Philippines hit by typhoon, 110 die
Lockerbie Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103
1991 American and British authorities announce indictments against two Libyan intelligence officials for the downing of Pan Am Flight 103
Prince Norodom Sihanouk
1991 Cambodian Prince Norodom Sihanouk returns to Phnom Penh after thirteen years of exile
Black or White
1991 Michael Jackson's "Black or White" music video with groundbreaking morphing effects premieres simultaneously in 27 countries on MTV, Fox TV and BBC's Top of the Pops
- 1991 Pittsburgh Steelers guard Terry Long loses his steroids appeal and is suspended without pay by NFL for 4 weeks
- 1993 Puerto Rico votes against becoming the 51st US state
Latest Wonder of the World
1994 1st public trains run through the Channel Tunnel linking England and France under the English Channel
- 1994 Space shuttle STS-66 (Atlantis 13), lands
Chicago
1996 Revival of John Kander and Fred Ebb's musical "Chicago" opens at Richard Rodgers Theater, NYC
- 1996 Texas Ranger Juan Gonzalez wins AL MVP
- 1997 Colo Rockie Larry Walker wins NL MVP
- 1997 Disney's "Lion King" sets Broadway record of $2,700,000 daily sale
- 2001 OPEC announces that it intends to cut its crude oil output quotas by 1.5 million barrels per day effective, but only if non-OPEC producers cut their output by 500,000 barrels per day as well
- 2001 War in Afghanistan: Afghan Northern Alliance fighters takeover the capital Kabul
- 2002 Argentina defaults on an $805 million World Bank payment.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
2002 Film "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" is released, based on the 2nd book of the series by J. K. Rowling
9/11 Attack on NY's World Trade Towers
2002 The United States House of Representatives votes not to create an independent commission to investigate the September 11 attacks
Casino Royale
2006 "Casino Royale", 21st James Bond film premieres in London, starring Daniel Craig for the 1st time and Eva Green, premieres in London
- 2007 the last direct-current distribution by Con Edison was shut down.
Elizabeth Warren
2008 Elizabeth Warren is appointed to chair a Congressional Oversight Panel for the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act
- 2008 Eurozone officially slips into recession for the first time since its creation in 1999, pushed down by recessions in Germany and Italy
- 2008 Hong Kong becomes the second Asian economy to tip into recession, its exports hit by weakening global demand
- 2008 Italy plunges into recession, its first since the start of 2005, after GDP contracts a steeper-than-expected 0.5% in the third quarter
- 2009 The National Statistical Service of Greece states that the country has been in recession since the beginning of the year
Tangled
2010 Disney's 3-D computer-animated musical adventure film "Tangled" premieres at El Capitan Theatre, loosely based on the German fairy tale "Rapunzel" by brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Sebastian Vettel
2010 German Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel wins the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit to claim his first F1 World Drivers Championship by 4 points from Fernando Alonso; Red Bull's first Constructors title
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2
2012 "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2", based on the book by Stephenie Meyer, directed by Bill Condon, starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, is released
- 2012 A series of protests against austerity measures occur across Europe including Spain, Portugal, and Greece
- 2012 CFBDSIR 2149-0403 is discovered, the closest rogue planet to earth (100 light-years away)
Bulger Sentenced
2013 Boston gangster Whitey Bulger is sentenced to two consecutive life terms plus five years for his crimes
Moana
2016 "Moana" animated Disney film directed by Ron Clements and John Musker with voices by Auli'i Cravalho and The Rock premieres in Los Angeles
- 2016 7.8 earthquake cuts off town of Kaikoura, New Zealand, raising sea bed by 4m, and killing 2 people
Film & TV History
2016 Toshiro Mifune posthumously receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6912 Hollywood Boulevard
Tucker Carlson Tonight
2016 US talk show "Tucker Carlson Tonight" hosted by Tucker Carlson premieres on Fox
Army Seizes Harare
2017 Zimbabwe Army seizes key sites in capital Harare following tensions over Robert Mugabe's dismissal of vice-president Emmerson Mnangagwa
- 2018 Archaeologists announce discovery of ancient Greek city of Tenea near Corinth, supposedly founded by captives from Trojan War
- 2018 Astronomers announce discovery of Super-Earth planet (3.2x bigger than Earth) orbiting red dwarf Barnard's star, 6 light years away
- 2018 Attempt to move 720,000 Rohingya back to Myanmar from Bangladesh refugee camps amid international criticism. They refuse to go.
- 2018 Edward Hopper's painting "Chop Suey" sells $92 million, a record for the artist at auction in New York
Marie Antoinette
2018 Jewellery that belonged to French Queen Marie Antoinette is auctioned off in Geneva, after not being seen for 200 years
- 2018 Large impact crater, 31 km wide, from iron meteorite identified under Hiawatha Glacier in Greenland
- 2018 New York Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom wins NL Cy Young Award; his 10 wins fewest ever by a Cy Young winner in a non-strike-shortened season; MLB-leading 1.70 ERA; 29 consecutive start streak longest in MLB history
Brexit Plan Approved
2018 UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s cabinet approves draft plan for country's exit from the European Union (Brexit)
Sports History
2019 Thierry Henry becomes manager of Major League Soccer side Montreal Impact
- 2020 Record global daily total of 660,905 COVID-19 cases declared to the WHO, with total known infections over 54 million
- 2021 Attack on a military police outpost near a gold mine in Inata, northern Burkina Faso, kills at least 53, prompting three days of national mourning [1]
- 2021 ICC Men's Cricket T20 World Cup, Dubai: Australia beats New Zealand by 8 wickets with 7 balls remaining for their first title; Player of the series: Australian batsman David Warner (289 runs)
- 2022 Australian town of Eugowra experiences extreme flash flooding, with 2 deaths and 150 air-lifted to safety amid one-in-5,000-year flood event [1]
- 2022 Earliest evidence of fire being used to cook by humans found in study of fish remains 780,000 years ago at Gesher Benot Ya’aqov in northern Israel [1]
Roberta Flack
2022 Grammy Award winner Roberta Flack reveals she is suffering from ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) and is no longer able to sing
Biden meets Xi Jinping
2022 US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet in person for the first time as national leaders at a G20 meeting in Bali, Indonesia [1]
- 2023 Liberia General Election: Joseph Boakai defeats sitting President George Weah by just 1% in closest runoff in Liberia’s history [1]
- 2023 Mali's army seizes Kidal, a key town in the country's north, held by Tuareg rebels for nearly ten years [1]
- 2023 World's first protected area for endangered sperm whales set up off the coast of Caribbean island of Dominica [1]
