1527 – German troops began sacking Rome, bringing about the end of the Renaissance.
1529 – Babur defeated the Afghan Chiefs in the Battle of Ghagra, India.
1576 – The peace treaty of Chastenoy ended the fifth war of religion.
1682 – King Louis XIV moved his court to Versailles, France.
1835 – James Gordon Bennett published the “New York Herald” for the first time.
1861 – Rabindranath Tagore Hindu poet, musical composer
1882 – The U.S. Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. The act barred Chinese immigrants from the U.S. for 10 years.
1889 – The Universal Exposition opened in Paris, France, marking the dedication of the Eiffel Tower. Also at the exposition was the first automobile in Paris, the Mercedes-Benz.
1910 – Kind Edward VII of England died. He was succeeded by his second son, George V.
1935 – The first flight of the Curtiss P-36 Hawk.
1937 – The German airship Hindenburg crashed and burned in Lakehurst, NJ. Thirty-six people (of the 97 on board) were killed.
1941 – Joseph Stalin assumed the Soviet premiership.
1941 – The first flight of the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.
1942 – During World War II, the Japanese seized control of the Philippines. About 15,000 Americans and Filipinos on Corregidor surrendered to the Japanese.
1945 – Axis Sally made her final propaganda broadcast to Allied troops.
1962 – The first nuclear warhead was fired from the Polaris submarine.
1994 – The Channel Tunnel officially opened. The tunnel under the English Channel links England and France.
