303 – 1st official Roman edict for persecution of Christians issued by Emperor Diocletian. 1525 – Battle of Pavia: Holy Roman Emperor Charles V’s troops beat the French. French King Francois I captured, 15,000 killed or wounded. 1582 – Pope Gregory XIII announces New Style (Gregorian) calendar 1739 – Battle of Karnal: Army of Iranian ruler Nadir Shah defeats the forces of the Mughal emperor of India, Muhammad Shah. 1803 – In Marbury v. Madison, the U.S. Supreme Court declared an act of Congress unconstitutional, thus establishing the doctrine of judicial review. 1821 – Agustín de Iturbide and Vicente Guerrero agree to the Plan of Iguala, stating that Mexico will become a constitutional monarchy, Roman Catholicism the official religion and that Peninsulares and Creoles will enjoy equal political and social rights. 1848 – The antimonarchical Revolutions of 1848 reached France, the one nation where the insurgency was successful. 1868 – US House of Representatives vote 126 to 47 to impeach President Andrew Johnson. 1942 – The Voice of America made its first broadcast, in German, to counter the propaganda of Nazi leaders. 1946 – General Juan Perón first elected President of Argentina. 1976 – The regime of Fidel Castro adopted the constitution of Cuba, which mandated the operation of only one political party—the Communist Party of Cuba. 1991 – U.S. ground operations began in the Persian Gulf War, more than a month after an air war was launched against Iraq to free Iraqi-occupied Kuwait. 2008 – Fidel Castro retires as the President of Cuba due to ill health after nearly fifty years.
Births & Deaths:1836 – American painter Winslow Homer, who captured the interaction of humans and nature in his watercolours, was born in Boston. 1955 – American businessman Steve Jobs, cofounder of Apple Inc. and a charismatic pioneer of the personal computer era, was born.
Sport: 2010 – Sachin Tendulkar scores the first double century in One Day International cricket.
Music: 1607 – Claudio Monteverdi’s opera “LOrfeo” premieres in Mantua, oldest opera still regularly performed.
TV & Film: 1969 – “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” film based on novel by Muriel Spark directed by Ronald Neame, starring Maggie Smith (Academy Award Best Actress) premieres in London.
