241 BC – First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands – The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing the First Punic War to an end. 1783 – USS Alliance under Captain Barry fights and wins last naval battle of US Revolutionary War off Cape Canaveral. 1861 – West African political leader El Hadj Umar Tall seizes the city of Segou, destroying the Bambara Empire of Mali. 1920 – Home Rule Act passed by the British Parliament, dividing Ireland into two parts; it is rejected by the southern counties, where the Ango-Irish war continues for a year. 1933 – Soon after Adolf Hitler became chancellor, the first concentration camp in Germany opened at Dachau, where at least 32,000 people would die from disease, malnutrition, physical oppression, and execution. 1952 – Military coup led by General Fulgencio Batista in Cuba. 2000 – The NASDAQ Composite stock market index peaks at 5132.52, signalling the beginning of the end of the dot-com boom. 2006 – NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter entered Mars orbit and began searching for signs of water on the planet.
Births & Deaths: 1947 – Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada, was born.
Music: 2015 – The family of Marvin Gaye win a record $7.3 million lawsuit for music copyright infringement against Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams, and T.I.
TV & Film: 1997 – “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” created by Joss Whedon and starring Sarah Michelle Geller premieres on WB Television Network.
