Category: Today In History

567 BC – Servius Tullius, the king of Rome, celebrates a triumph for his victory over the Etruscans. 240 BC – First recorded perihelion passage of Halley’s Comet. 1521 – The Diet of Worms ends when Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, issues the Edict of Worms, declaring Martin Luther an outlaw. 1738 – A treaty...

1218 – The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt. 1626 – Peter Minuit buys Manhattan. 1830 – “Mary Had a Little Lamb” by Sarah Josepha Hale is published. 1844 – Samuel Morse sends the message “What hath God wrought” (a biblical quotation, Numbers 23:23) from the Old Supreme Court Chamber in the United States Capitol...

1430 – Joan of Arc is captured at Compiegne and sold to the English 1493 – King Charles VIII and Maximilian I of Austria sign Peace of Senlis 1536 – Pope Paul III installs Portugese inquisition 1568 – The Netherlands declare independence from Spain. 1701 – Captain William Kidd is hanged in London after being...

334 BC – The Macedonian army of Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia in the Battle of the Granicus 760 – 14th recorded perihelion passage of Halley’s Comet 1570 – First atlas ‘Theatrum Orbis Terrarum’ (Theatre of the World), published by Abraham Ortelius in Antwerp with 70 maps 1803 – First public library...

878 – Syracuse is captured by the Muslim sultan of Sicily. 1260 – Kublai Khan of the Mongol Empire sends his envoy Hao Jing and two other advisors to the Song Dynasty court of Emperor Lizong of Song; while attempting to negotiate with the Song in order to resolve their conflict, Hao Jing and his...

332 – Constantine the Great announced free distributions of food to the citizens in Constantinople. 1565 – The Great Siege of Malta begins, in which Ottoman forces attempt and fail to conquer Malta. 1652 – Rhode Island passes the first law in English-speaking North America making slavery illegal. 1756 – The Seven Years’ War begins...