Today in History
Important Events
- 1621 Dutch West India Company (WIC) receives charter for The West Indies (The Americas, Caribbean and West Africa)
- 1929 Chile and Peru sign the Treaty of Lima, finally resolving their border dispute from the War of the Pacific (1879–83). Chile keeps Arica and Peru regains Tacna.
- 1943 A mob of 60 from the Los Angeles Naval Reserve Armory beat up everyone perceived to be Hispanic, starting the week-long Zoot Suit Riots
- 1979 Ixtoc I rig in the Gulf of Mexico blows, spilling 3 million barrels of oil in one of the worst oil spills in history
- 1989 Beginning of the Tiananmen Square Massacre as Chinese troops open fire on pro-democracy supporters in Beijing
Today in Film & TV
- 1988 "Big" film directed by Penny Marshall, starring Tom Hanks premieres in US
Today in Music
- 1976 Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" goes gold
Today in Sport
- 1899 W. G. Grace's last day of Test cricket aged 50 yrs 320 days
Did You Know?
American radical feminist Valerie Solanas attempts to assassinate Andy Warhol by shooting him three times. She is later diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and pleads guilty to "reckless assault with intent to harm", serving a 3 year sentence.
On this day in 1968
Famous Birthdays
James Hutton
(1726 - 1797)- Jefferson Davis
(1808 - 1889) - Rafael Nadal
34th Birthday
James Hutton
Jefferson Davis
Rafael NadalTomorrow's Famous Birthdays
- George III
(1738 - 1820) - Angelina Jolie
Turns 45 - Alexei Navalny
Turns 44
George III
Angelina Jolie
Alexei NavalnyWould You Believe?
1st baseball uniforms worn when the NY Knickerbockers wear a uniform of straw hats, white shirts and blue long trousers
On this day in 1851
Famous Weddings
- 1353 Peter of Castile [Peter the Cruel] (18) marries Blanch of Bourbon (14) in Valladolid, Spain. Peter abandons her 2 days later for his secret wife Maria de Padilla.
- 1805 Lady Caroline Ponsonby (19) marries future Prime Minister William Lamb, Lord Melbourne (26) in London
- 1869 Composer Georges Bizet (30) weds Genevieve Halevy
John XXIII
Ayatollah Khomeini
Muhammad Ali
Giacomo Casanova
Wilhelm II
Reinhard HeydrichThis Month in History
Testing Time for Drivers
Deaths caused by accidents on UK roads fell by 1,000 within a year of the official driving test being introduced. But was the half-hour test enough?
June 1, 1935The King is Dead; Long Live the Queen
Princess Elizabeth was in Africa when her father died and she became Queen. Her coronation, on this day in history, could be described as a magnificent washout.
June 2, 1953The Fire and Fury of Jonathan Martin
Jonathan Martin was a religious extremist who described the clergy as 'vipers from hell' and tried to burn down one of England’s most treasured cathedrals.
June 3, 1838Dunkirk: Military Retreat They Called a Miracle
Trapped on beaches and a sitting target for German fighter planes and bombers, 330,000 Allied troops looked doomed. Then came the "miracle" of Dunkirk.
June 4, 1940
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