1407 – Lama Deshin Shekpa visits the Ming Dynasty capital at Nanjing and is awarded the title Great Treasure Prince of Dharma
1516 – 1st Jewish ghetto established: Venice compels Jews to live in a specific area
1815 – Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies experiences a cataclysmic eruption, one of the most powerful in history, killing around 71,000 people, causes global volcanic winter
1858 – “Big Ben”, a 13.76 tonne bell, is recast at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
1972 – US, USSR & 70 other nations agree to ban biological weapons
1981 – Computer glitch keeps Space Shuttle Columbia grounded
1986 – Benazir Bhutto returns to Pakistan
1991 – Rare tropical storm develops in the Southern Hemisphere near Angola; first to be documented by satellites
1998 – The Good Friday Agreement [Belfast Agreement] for Northern Ireland is signed by the British and Irish governments
2012 – United Nations deadline for Syrian troop withdrawal passes as violence continues
2012 – Apple Inc claims a value of $600 billion making it the largest company by market capitalization in the world
2013 – Japan and Taiwan sign an agreement on fishing rights around the Senkaku Islands
2017 – Edward Enninful is announced the new Editor of “British Vogue” its first male and black editor
2018 – Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg begins testifying before US Congress about data use and security
2019 – New species of human announced named Homo luzonensis, 3ft tall, remains dated 50-60,000 years old found in cave on island of Luzon, Philippines
2019 – First home delivery service by drone begins in Canberra, Australia by Wing, part of Google’s Alphabet company
2019 – New York declares a public health emergency and compulsory vaccinations after a measles outbreak in Brooklyn with 285 cases
Film & TV:
1953 – “House of Wax” 1st color 3-D movie, premieres in New York
2017 – “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” directed by James Gunn and starring Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana premieres in Toyko
Music:
1970 – Paul McCartney officially announces the split of The Beatles
Sport:
1896 – Spyridon Louis of Greece wins inaugural Olympic marathon (2:58:50) in Athens; runs last lap accompanied by Constantine I
