Today in History
Important Events
- 451 Battle of the Catalaunian Plains: Roman and Visigoths forces defeat Attila the Hun in north east France
- 1214 The University of Oxford receives its charter
- 1789 French Revolution: The Third Estate of the French Estates-General swears the Tennis Court Oath at the Palace of Versailles, swearing not to disband until a new constitution is formed
- 1840 Samuel Morse patents his telegraph
- 1895 1st female PhD from an American University, earned by Caroline Willard Baldwin (in Science) at Cornell University
- 2020 Highest-ever temperature recorded in the Arctic circle, 38C (100F) in Verkhoyansk, Siberia
Today in Film & TV
- 1975 "Jaws", based on the book by Peter Benchley, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Roy Scheider is released
Today in Music
- 1969 200,000 attend Newport '69', then largest-ever pop concert in Northridge, California. Jimi Hendrix gets $120,000 to appear.
Today in Sport
- 1987 1st Rugby World Cup Final, Eden Park, Auckland: New Zealand fly-half Grant Fox lands 4 penalties, a conversion and drop goal as the All Blacks beat France, 29-9
Did You Know?
Did You Know?Black Hole of Calcutta: 146 British soldiers, Anglo-Indian soldiers and Indian civilians are imprisoned in a small dungeon in Calcutta, India where most die from suffocation and heat exhaustion
On this day in 1756
Famous Birthdays
- Sigismund III Vasa
(1566 - 1632) - Wolfe Tone
(1763 - 1798) - Lionel Richie
72nd Birthday - Nicole Kidman
54th Birthday
Sigismund III Vasa
Wolfe Tone
Lionel Richie
Nicole KidmanTomorrow's Famous Birthdays
- Jean-Paul Sartre
(1905 - 1980) - Benazir Bhutto
(1953 - 2007) - Chris Pratt
Turns 42 - Prince William
Turns 39
Jean-Paul Sartre
Benazir Bhutto
Chris Pratt
Prince WilliamWould You Believe?
320 ton Savannah becomes 1st steamship to cross any ocean (Atlantic)
On this day in 1819
Famous Weddings
- 1894 Basketball inventor James Naismith (32) weds Maude Evelyn Sherman (23) in Springfield, Massachusetts
- 1929 Author William Faulkner (31) weds Estelle Oldham at College Hill Presbyterian Church outside Oxford, Mississippi
- 1938 British actor Alec Guinness (24) weds actress Merula Sylvia Salaman (23)
Manuel Belgrano
Bugsy Siegel
Jack Kilby
Edward III
Niccolo Machiavelli
John Smith
SukarnoThis Month in History
'Ship in Distress' Sails Into History Books
What was claimed to be the first trans-Atlantic crossing by a steam ship – even if sails helped – was completed on this day and is still celebrated
June 19, 1819Misery of The King's Executioner
He may have caused civil war but the execution of King Charles I shocked many Englishmen and caused untold anguish for the man who took the royal life.
June 20, 1649'Gorgeous Gussie' Shocks Wimbledon
There is a strict dress code at Wimbledon and, as Gussie Moran discovered on this day in tennis history, tennis players break it at their peril.
June 20, 1949St Paul's Defies Bombing Conflagration
There had been a church on this London spot for well over 1,000 years but it seemed only a miracle could save it from the inferno caused by 100,000 bombs.
June 21, 1675
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