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1972–Berry Oakley, of The Allman Brothers, is killed when his motorcycle collides with a bus in Macon, Georgia. The fatal accident occurs only three blocks from where Allman Brothers guitarist, Duane Allman, was killed in a motorcycle accident just over a year earlier.


308–At Carnuntum, Emperor emeritus, Diocletian, confers with Galerius, Augustus of the East, and Maximianus, the recently returned former Augustus of the West, in an attempt to end the civil wars of the Tetrarchy.

1100–Henry I of England marries Matilda of Scotland, the daughter of Malcolm III of Scotland and a direct descendant of the Saxon king, Edmund Ironside.

1215–The Fourth Lateran Council meets, defining the doctrine of transubstantiation, the process by which bread and wine are, by that doctrine, said to transform into the body and blood of Christ.

1500–Louis XII of France and Ferdinand II of Aragon agree to divide the Kingdom of Naples between them.

1620–The Mayflower Compact is signed in what is present-day Provincetown Harbor near Cape Cod.

1634–Following pressure from Anglican bishop, John Atherton, the Irish House of Commons passes An Act for the Punishment for the Vice of Buggery.

1673–Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth forces, under the command of Jan Sobieski, defeat the Ottoman army. In this battle, rockets made by Kazimierz Siemienowicz are successfully used.

1675–Gottfried Leibniz demonstrates integral calculus for the first time to find the area under the graph of y = ƒ(x).

1724–Joseph Blake, alias Blueskin, a highwayman known for attacking "Thief-Taker General" (and thief) Jonathan Wild at the Old Bailey, is hanged in London, England.

1748–Charles IV of Spain is born Carlos Antonio Pascual Francisco Javier Juan Nepomuceno José Januario Serafín Diego at the Palace of Portici, Portici, Kingdom of Naples.

1750–Riots break out in Lhasa after the murder of the Tibetan regent.

1750–The F.H.C. Society, also known as the Flat Hat Club, is formed at Raleigh Tavern, Williamsburg, Virginia. It is the first college fraternity.

1778–Loyalists and Seneca Indian forces attack a fort and village in eastern New York during the American Revolutionary War, killing more than 40 civilians and soldiers.

1799–Politician, Charles Bent, is born in Charleston, West Virginia. Bent was the first Governor of New Mexico. Bent Street, which runs in front of what had been his home in Taos, and Martyr's Lane, which runs behind it, are named for him.

1805–During the Napoleonic Wars, 8,000 French troops attempt to slow the retreat of a vastly superior Russian and Austrian force.

1818–Architect, James Renwick, Jr., is born in Bloomingdale, Manhattan, New York. His first two commissions were won by competitions, and the first at age 25, was the Grace Church in Manhattan. Thought to be one of the most successful architects of his time, Renwick's other commissions include The Mark Twain House and Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York, and The Smithsonian Institution Building in Washington D.C.

1821–Novelist, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, is born in Moscow, Russia. He is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. Dostoyevsky had a military education, after which he became a draftsman in the Engineer's Corps of the War Department. Even though he had great financial successes over the years, he also gambled away great sums, and spent much of his life struggling to support himself and his relatives. He was arrested as a subversive in 1849, and spent 18 months in prison awaiting trial. He was sentenced to death and got as far as standing in front of the scaffold, but he was suddenly reprieved. In 1861, he published Notes from the House of the Dead, a realistic description of his years in prison, which was followed by Notes from the Underground. He later wrote Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov.

1831–Slave, Nat Turner, dies by hanging in Jerusalem, Virginia, at age 31. He had led a rebellion of slaves and free blacks on August 21, 1831, that resulted in 60 white deaths. Turner hid successfully for two months. When found, he was quickly tried, convicted, sentenced to death, and hanged.

1839–The Virginia Military Institute is founded in Lexington, Virginia.

1864–In the American Civil War, General William Tecumseh Sherman begins burning Atlanta, Georgia, to the ground in preparation for his march to the sea.

1865–The Treaty of Sinchula is signed, whereby Bhutan cedes the areas east of the Teesta River to the British East India Company.

1869–The Victorian Aboriginal Protection Act is enacted in Australia, giving the government control of indigenous people's wages, their terms of employment, where they could live, and of their children, effectively leading to the Stolen Generations.

1880–Australian bushranger, Ned Kelly, is hanged at Melbourne Gaol.

1885–Military General, George S. Patton, is born George Smith Patton, Jr. in San Gabriel, California. He was a senior officer of the U.S.s Army, who commanded the U.S. Seventh Army in the Mediterranean and European Theaters of World War II. But he is best known for his leadership of the U.S. Third Army in France and Germany following the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944. Patton's impact on armored warfare and leadership were substantial, with the U.S. Army adopting many of his aggressive strategies for its training programs following his death.

1887–August Spies, Albert Parsons, Adolph Fischer, and George Engel are executed as a result of the Haymarket affair.

1889–Washington becomes the 42nd state in the United States of America.

1899–Songwriter, Hoagy Carmichael, is born in Bloomington, Indiana. Among his songs are Stardust and Georgia on My Mind.

1911–Many cities in the midwestern United States break their record temperature highs and lows on the same day as a strong cold front rolls through.

1913–French artist Marcel Duchamp's Nude Descending a Staircase is displayed at the Armory Show in New York City, ushering in the age of Modernism in a rather abrupt manner. One year earlier, the work was rejected by the Cubists as too Futurist for inclusion at the avant garde Parisian 1912 Salon des Indépendants. Critics of the Armory Show labeled the painting “scandalous” and “meaningless.” The work is now considered a modernist masterpiece, and perhaps the most famous of its time.

1917–Liliuokalani of Hawaii dies in Honolulu, Oahu, Territory of Hawaii. She was the last monarch and only Queen Regnant of the Kingdom of Hawaii.

1918–Germany signs an armistice agreement with the Allies in a railroad car in the forest of Compiègne.

1918–Józef Pilsudski assumes supreme military power in Poland.

1918–Emperor Charles I of Austria relinquishes power.

1919–The Industrial Workers of the World attack an Armistice Day parade in Centralia, Washington, ultimately resulting in the deaths of five people.

1919–Latvian forces defeat the West Russian Volunteer Army at Riga, in the Latvian War of Independence.

1921–The Tomb of the Unknowns is dedicated by President Warren G. Harding at Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia.

1922–Novelist, Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., is born in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is best known for his cynical, satirical novels that highlight the ironies of our modern civilization. Vonnegut was fighting in Germany when he was captured and housed as a prisoner in a slaughterhouse in Dresden. His most famous novel, based on his experiences as a prisoner in a slaughterhouse in Dresden, is Slaughterhouse-Five, published in 1969. He went on to write Breakfast of Champions, Slapstick, and Hocus Pocus.

1925–Comedian, Jonathan Winters, is born Jonathan Harshman Winters III in Bellbtook, Ohio. Winters was famous for his groundbreaking improv work and mimicry skills that inspired younger generation comedians such as Robin Williams and Jim Carrey. He appeared in the films It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, The Loved One, Penelope, Viva Max!, The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh, and Moon Over Parador.

1926–U.S. highway, Route 66, is established. “Get your kicks on Route 66.”

1927–Jazz musician, Mose Allison, is born Mose John Allison, Jr. in Tippo, Mississippi. In 1956, Allison moved to New York City and launched his jazz career, performing with artists such as Stan Getz, Gerry Mulligan, Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, and Phil Woods. His songs include Young Man Blues, Parchman Farm, and Your Mind Is on Vacation.

1930–Patent number US1781541 is awarded to Albert Einstein and Leó Szilárd for their invention, the Einstein refrigerator.

1934–The Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, is opened.

1940–During World War II, the Royal Navy launches its historic first all-aircraft ship-to-ship naval attack.

1940–World War II: The German auxiliary cruiser, Atlantis, captures top secret British mail from the Automedon, and sends it to Japan.

1944–Singer-songwriter, Jesse Colin Young, of The Youngbloods, is born.

1945–Chris Dreja, of The Yardbirds, is born in Surbiton, Surrey, England.

1945–Vince Martell, of Vanilla Fudge, is born in the Bronx, New York.

1945–Composer, Jerome Kern, dies. Among his songs are Smoke Gets In Your Eyes and The Way You Look Tonight.

1947–Activist, Elizabeth Glaser, is born Elizabeth Meyer. She was married to actor, Paul Michael Glaser. She contracted HIV very early in the modern AIDS epidemic, after receiving an HIV-contaminated blood transfusion while giving birth in 1981. Like other HIV-infected mothers, Glaser unknowingly passed the virus to her infant daughter, Ariel, through breastfeeding. Ariel was born in 1981, and died in 1988. The Glasers' son, Jake, born in 1984, contracted HIV from his mother in utero, but has lived into adulthood: he remains relatively healthy due to a mutation of the CCR5 gene that protects his white blood cells.

1948–Actor, Vincent (Andrew) Schiavelli, is born in Brooklyn, New York. He appeared in the films The Great Gatsby, For Pete’s Sake, The Happy Hooker, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, Next Stop Greenwich Village, An Unmarried Woman, The Frisco Kid,Amadeus, Valmont, and Ghost. He was married to actress, Allyce Beasley,

1952–The first video recorder is demonstrated by inventors, John Mullin and Wayne Johnson, in Beverly Hills, California.

1960–A military coup against President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam is crushed.

1961–Thirteen Italian Air Force servicemen, deployed to the Congo as a part of the UN peacekeeping force, are massacred by a mob in Kindu.

1962–Kuwait's National Assembly ratifies the Constitution of Kuwait.

1965–In Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe), the white-minority government of Ian Smith unilaterally declares independence.

1965–The Beatles are in the recording studio, working on final recording session for the album Rubber Soul, which is hailed as a breakthrough album for The Beatles: their lyrics are more introspective than ever before, the range of instruments employed is greatly expanded, and new recording techniques that have been developed are utilized effectively.

1966–NASA launches Gemini 12.

1967–In a propaganda ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, three American prisoners of war are released by the Viet Cong and turned over to "new left" anti-war activist Tom Hayden.

1968–Operation Commando Hunt initiated. The goal is to interdict men and supplies on the Ho Chi Minh trail, through Laos into South Vietnam.

1968–The John Lennon/Yoko Ono LP, Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins, is released in limited quantities in the U.S. John and Yoko appear fully nude on the album cover.

1969–Jim Morrison and his friend, Tom Baker, are arrested upon landing at the Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, Arizona, on charges of “drunk and disorderly conduct” and “interference with a flight crew.” The Captain requests police assistance upon arrival at the airport. Complaints are filed, and Morrison and Baker are hauled off to jail. The intoxicated duo are initially quite unaware of the gravity of the charges: public intoxication is a relatively minor offense, but “interference with a flight crew” is a Federal matter.

1970–The John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band LP is released. It his first album as a solo artist.

1970–Bob Dylan’s book, Tarantula, is published by Bantam Books.

1972–The United States Army turns over the massive Long Binh military base to South Vietnam.

1972–Berry Oakley, of The Allman Brothers, dies when his motorcycle collides with a bus in Macon, Georgia, at age 24. The fatal accident occurs only three blocks from where Allman Brothers guitarist, Duane Allman, was killed in a motorcycle accident just over a year earlier.

1972–The U.S. Army turns over its base at Long Bihn to the South Vietnamese army. The event symbolizes the end of direct involvement in the Vietnam War by the U.S. military.

1973–In a press conference, President Richard Nixon assures the American people, “I am not a crook.”  He will resign the following year.

1975–Angola gains its independence.

1977–The Wings single, Mull of Kintyre, is released in the U.K. It is one of Paul McCartney’s biggest selling records of all time.

1979–Film composer, Dimitri Tiomkin, dies in London, England, at age 85. Musically trained in Russia, he is best known for his Western scores, including Duel in the Sun, Red River, High Noon, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and Last Train from Gun Hill.

1981–Antigua and Barbuda join the United Nations.

1982–A chart topper: Up Where We Belong by Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes.

1992–The General Synod, of the Church of England, votes to allow women to become priests.

1993–A sculpture honoring women who served in the Vietnam War is dedicated at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

1999–The House of Lords Act is given Royal Assent, restricting membership of the British House of Lords by virtue of a hereditary peerage.

1999–The Recording Industry Association of America names The Beatles “Band of the Century.” The Beatles have sold more than 106 million records in the United States alone, and they are the only band in history to earn five diamond albums (sales in excess of 10 million copies): The Beatles (aka “The White Album” 17 million); Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (11 million); Abbey Road (11 million); The Beatles 1967-1970 (14 million); and The Beatles 1962-1966 (13 million). The Beatles are also named as “Top Rock Group.”

2000–One hundred and fifty-five skiers and snowboarders die, when a cable car catches fire in an alpine tunnel in Kaprun, Austria.

2001–Journalists, Pierre Billaud, Johanne Sutton, and Volker Handloik, are killed in Afghanistan during an attack on the convoy in which they are traveling.

2004–The New Zealand Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is dedicated at the National War Memorial in Wellington.

2004–The Palestine Liberation Organization confirms the death of Yasser Arafat from unidentified causes. Mahmoud Abbas is elected chairman of the PLO minutes later.

2006–Queen Elizabeth II unveils the New Zealand War Memorial in London, England, commemorating the loss of soldiers from the New Zealand Army and the British Army.

2007–Film director and producer, Delbert Mann, dies of pneumonia in Los Angeles, California, at age 87. His films include Marty, The Bachelor Party, Desire Under the Elms, Separate Tables, Middle of the Night, Lover Come Back, That Touch of Mink, Dear Heart, Mister Buddwing, and All Quiet on the Western Front.

2008–RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 sets sail on her final voyage to Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

2012–A 6.8 earthquake hits northern Burma, killing at least 26 people.

2014–Fifty-eight people are killed in a bus crash in the Sukkur District in southern Pakistan's Sindh province.

2016–An Atlas V rocket successfully launches WorldView-4 for DigitalGlobe from Vandenberg Air Force Base after a two-month delay caused by wildfires near the spaceport.

2016–At least 13 are killed in a fire in New Delhi, India.

2016–Actor, Robert Vaughn, dies of acute leukemia in Ridgefield, Connecticut, at age 83. He is best known for the role of suave spy Napoleon Solo in the 1960s series The Man from U.N.C.L.E. He appeared in the films The Ten Commandments, Teenage Cave Man, The Young Philadelphians, The Magnificent Seven, The Caretakers, Bullitt, The Towering Inferno, Demon Seed, and The Delta Force.


PHOTOS TOP TO BOTTOM: An image defining the doctrine of transubstantiation; Charles Bent; Nat Turner; Queen Liliuokalani of Hawaii; Jonathan Winters; Jerome Kern; the first video recorder; John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band LP; Mull of Kintyre by Wings; The Beatles; and Delbert Mann.
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