Events

• 69 – Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Emperor of Rome, beginning a reign of only three months.
• 1541 – King Francis I of France gives Jean-François Roberval a commission to settle the province of New France (Canada) and provide for the spread of the “Holy Catholic faith”.
• 1559 – Elizabeth I is crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey, London.
• 1582 – Truce of Yam-Zapolsky: Russia cedes Livonia to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
• 1777 – American Revolutionary War: New Connecticut (present-day Vermont) declares its independence.
• 1815 – War of 1812: American frigate USS President, commanded by Commodore Stephen Decatur, is captured by a squadron of four British frigates.
• 1822 – Greek War of Independence: Demetrios Ypsilantis is elected president of the legislative assembly.
• 1865 – American Civil War: Fort Fisher in North Carolina falls to the Union, thus cutting off the last major seaport of the Confederacy.
• 1889 – The Coca-Cola Company, then known as the Pemberton Medicine Company, is incorporated in Atlanta.
• 1919 – Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, two of the most prominent socialists in Germany, are tortured and murdered by the Freikorps at the end of the Spartacist uprising.
• 1937 – Spanish Civil War: Nationalists and Republican both withdraw after suffering heavy losses, ending the Second Battle of the Corunna Road.
• 1943 – World War II: The Soviet counter-offensive at Voronezh begins.
• 1943 – The Pentagon is dedicated in Arlington, Virginia.
• 1949 – Chinese Civil War: The Communist forces take over Tianjin from the Nationalist Government.
• 1962 – Netherlands New Guinea Conflict: Indonesian Navy fast patrol boat RI Macan Tutul commanded by Commodore Yos Sudarso sunk in Arafura Sea by the Dutch Navy.
• 1966 – The First Nigerian Republic, led by Abubakar Tafawa Balewa is overthrown in a military coup d’état.
• 1970 – Nigerian Civil War: Biafran rebels surrender following an unsuccessful 32-month fight for independence from Nigeria.
• 1970 – Muammar Gaddafi is proclaimed premier of Libya.
• 1973 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, President Richard Nixon announces the suspension of offensive action in North Vietnam.
• 1975 – The Alvor Agreement is signed, ending the Angolan War of Independence and giving Angola independence from Portugal.
• 1991 – The United Nations deadline for the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from occupied Kuwait expires, preparing the way for the start of Operation Desert Storm.
• 1991 – Elizabeth II, in her capacity as Queen of Australia, signs letters patent allowing Australia to become the first Commonwealth realm to institute its own Victoria Cross in its honours system.
• 2001 – Wikipedia, a free wiki content encyclopaedia, goes online.
• 2013 – A train carrying Egyptian Army recruits derails near Giza, Greater Cairo, killing 19 and injuring 120 others.
• 2016 – The Kenyan Army suffers its worst defeat ever in a battle with Al-Shabaab Islamic insurgents in El-Adde, Somalia. An estimated 150 Kenyan soldiers are killed in the battle.
• 2019 – Somali militants attack the DusitD2 hotel in Nairobi, Kenya killing at least 21 people and injuring 19.
• Armed Forces Day (Nigeria).
• Army Day (India).

People (Births)

• 1481 – Ashikaga Yoshizumi, Japanese shōgun (d. 1511).
• 1538 – Maeda Toshiie, Japanese general (d. 1599).
• 1850 – Leonard Darwin, English soldier, eugenicist, and politician (d. 1943).
• 1855 – Jacques Damala, Greek-French soldier and actor (d. 1889).
• 1875 – Thomas Burke, American sprinter, coach, and journalist (d. 1929).
• 1890 – Michiaki Kamada, Japanese admiral (d. 1947).
• 1907 – Janusz Kusociński, Polish runner and soldier (d. 1940).
• 1913 – Alexander Marinesko, Ukrainian-Russian lieutenant (d. 1963).
• 1914 – Stefan Bałuk, Polish general (d. 2014).
• 1918 – João Figueiredo, Brazilian general and politician, 30th President of Brazil (d. 1999).
• 1918 – Gamal Abdel Nasser, Egyptian colonel and politician, 2nd President of Egypt (d. 1970).
• 1932 – Lou Jones, American sprinter (d. 2006).
• 1945 – William R. Higgins, American colonel (d. 1990).
• 1949 – Ian Stewart, Scottish runner.
• 1955 – Khalid Islambouli, Egyptian lieutenant (d. 1982).
• 1965 – Maurizio Fondriest, Italian cyclist.
• 1972 – Shelia Burrell, American heptathlete.
• 1976 – Iryna Lishchynska, Ukrainian runner.
• 1978 – Franco Pellizotti, Italian cyclist.
• 1987 – Tsegaye Kebede, Ethiopian runner.

People (Deaths)

• 950 – Wang Jingchong, Chinese general.
• 1950 – Henry H. Arnold, American general (b. 1886).
• 1951 – Ernest Swinton, British Army officer (b. 1868).
• 1952 – Ned Hanlon, Australian sergeant and politician, 26th Premier of Queensland (b. 1887).
• 2007 – James Hillier, Canadian-American computer scientist and academic, co-invented the electron microscope (b. 1915).
• 2007 – Bo Yibo, Chinese commander and politician, Vice Premier of the People’s Republic of China (b. 1908).
• 2011 – Pierre Louis-Dreyfus, French soldier, race car driver, and businessman (b. 1908).
• 2012 – Ed Derwinski, American soldier and politician, 1st United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (b. 1926).
• 2012 – Samuel Jaskilka, American general (b. 1919).
• 2020 – Lloyd Cowan, British athlete and coach (b. 1962).