What Happened in 1989

Significant Events

  • Feb 6 Solidarity union leader Lech Wałęsa begins negotiating with Polish government
  • Apr 21 Thousands of Chinese crowd into Beijing's Tiananmen Square cheering students demanding greater political freedom
  • May 13 Approx 2,000 students begin hunger strike in Tiananmen Square, China
  • Jun 2 10,000 Chinese soldiers are blocked by 100,000 citizens in Tiananmen Square, Beijing, protecting students demonstrating for democracy
  • Jun 3 Beginning of the Tiananmen Square Massacre as Chinese troops open fire on pro-democracy supporters in Beijing
  • Jun 4 Eastern Europe's 1st partial free elections in 40 years held in Poland, Solidarity Party comes to power
  • Jun 4 Tiananmen Square Massacre: Chinese troops clear the square of student protesters, unofficial figures place death toll near 1,000
  • Nov 10 Germans begin demolishing the Berlin Wall
  • Dec 3 Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and US President George H. W. Bush, declare the Cold War over
  • Dec 22 After 23 years of dictatorial rule, Romania ousts Nicolae Ceausescu
More Historical Events

Did You Know?

1st free elections in USSR; 190 million votes cast; Boris Yeltsin wins

On March 26, 1989


World Leaders in 1989

Famous People in 1989

Famous People Born in 1989

More Famous Birthdays

Would You Believe?

Wine merchant William Sokolin breaks a bottle of 1787 Château Margaux, possibly belonging to Thomas Jefferson, worth $500,000 at the Four Seasons restaurant in New York

On April 23, 1989

Famous Weddings

  • Jan 1 Actor Leonard Nimoy (57) weds actress Susan Bay
  • Jan 7 MLB player Greg Maddux (22) weds Kathy Ronnow
  • Jan 18 Candace Thomas marries Steve Garvey
  • Jan 21 "Falcon Crest" actor Lorenzo Lamas (31) weds actress Kathleen Kinmont (23) at the Graceland Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas
  • Feb 9 NBA power forward Charles Barkley (26) weds legal aide Maureen Blumhardt in Elkton, Maryland

Famous Divorces

More Weddings & Divorces

Famous Deaths

More Famous Deaths

Articles on Events in 1989