31 historical moments · one line of insight
The Yorkists won the Battle of Towton, the bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil. The slaughter of tens of thousands in a blizzard proves the sheer cruelty humans unleash for the vain illusion of a crown.
Tomé de Sousa established the city of Salvador in Bahia, serving as the first capital of colonial Brazil under Portuguese rule.
Swedish colonists established New Sweden along the Delaware River, creating the first permanent European settlement in the Delaware Valley.
German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers discovered Vesta, one of the largest and brightest objects in the asteroid belt.
An ice jam in the upper river temporarily blocked the flow of water, causing Niagara Falls to run dry for approximately 30 hours.
Queen Victoria officially opened the Royal Albert Hall in London, dedicating the iconic concert venue to her late husband, Prince Albert.
The Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization, was officially chartered by Father Michael J. McGivney in Connecticut.
Stranded in a blizzard on his return from the South Pole, British explorer Robert Falcon Scott wrote his final diary entry before dying.
In a heavily manipulated election endorsing the remilitarization of the Rhineland, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party claimed 99% of the vote.
Malagasy nationalists rebelled against French colonial rule in Madagascar, sparking a bloody conflict that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted of espionage for passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
The New York, Ontario and Western Railway made its final run, becoming the first major US railroad to be completely abandoned.
The classic comedy 'Some Like It Hot', starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon, premiered in New York City.
The 23rd Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified, finally granting residents of Washington D.C. the right to vote in presidential elections.
Argentine President Arturo Frondizi was overthrown by a military coup after allowing Peronist candidates to run in regional elections.
The last US combat troops departed South Vietnam. It was a painful retreat for a superpower, leaving behind the lesson that overwhelming military might cannot crush nationalistic resistance in an unjustified war.
Farmers digging a well in Shaanxi discovered the Terracotta Army. The obsession of an emperor trying to rule the afterlife leaped across two millennia, awakening in clay form in a phenomenal archaeological find.
NASA's Mariner 10 became the first spacecraft to fly past Mercury, capturing and transmitting the first detailed images of its surface.
The inaugural London Marathon took place with over 7,000 runners, later evolving into one of the world's most prominent marathon events.
Queen Elizabeth II granted Royal Assent to the Canada Act 1982, severing the final legislative ties between the UK Parliament and Canada.
The road trip drama 'Rain Man' swept the 61st Academy Awards, winning Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for Dustin Hoffman.
Czechoslovak politicians engaged in the 'Hyphen War' over what to call their country after the fall of communism, illustrating deep national divisions.
Catherine Callbeck led the Liberal Party to victory in Prince Edward Island, becoming the first woman elected as a provincial premier in Canada.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above the 10,000 mark for the first time in history, reflecting the peak of the dot-com boom.
Built on reclaimed mudflats, Incheon International Airport opened. Overcoming geographical limits to build a Northeast Asian hub represents the pinnacle of modern infrastructure re-creating space to connect the world.
Ireland became the first country to ban smoking in all workplaces and pubs. It was a paradigm shift, resolutely breaking centuries of entrenched culture through law for the sake of public health.
Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia officially joined NATO in the alliance's largest single expansion.
The 'Earth Hour' initiative expanded globally, with millions of people and landmarks around the world turning off lights to support climate action.
Two suicide bombings carried out by Chechen separatists struck the Moscow Metro, killing 40 people and injuring over 100.
The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act came into force, allowing the first legal same-sex marriages to take place in England and Wales.
UK PM Theresa May triggered Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, officially notifying the EU of Britain's intent to leave. Begun 9 months after the June 2016 referendum, formal negotiations would drag on for nearly 4 years before the UK's official departure on January 31, 2020.
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