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This Day, That Year
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1808
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Arthur Wellesley, later Duke of Wellington, and his British troops defeated the French at the Battle of Vimiero in the Iberian Peninsular War.
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1810
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One of Napoleon’s commanders, Marshal Bernadotte, was elected Crown Prince of Sweden. He took the name Charles John.
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1911
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Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in Paris by an Italian waiter, Vicenzo Perruggia. It was recovered in 1913.
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1944
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Representatives of the United States, Britain, Russia and China met at Dumbarton Oaks near Washington to plan for the formation of the United Nations.
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1959
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Hawaii became the 50th state of the United States.
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1960
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Kenyan nationalist leader Jomo Kenyatta was released by the British after being detained for nine years.
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1961
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The United States and El Salvador signed the first Food for Peace agreement.
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1965
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The US spacecraft Gemini 5 was launched from Cape Kennedy (Canaveral), with Gordon Cooper and Charles Conrad on board.
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1982
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King Sobhuza II of Swaziland died aged 83. One of the world’s longest-reigning monarchs, he had been on the throne since 1921.
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1983
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Philippine opposition leader Benigno Aquino was assassinated moments after stepping off the plane carrying him home from three years in exile in the United States.
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1988
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An earthquake measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale killed about 1,000 people on India’s border with Nepal.
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1989
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British conservationist George Adamson, whose work featured in the film “Born Free”, was murdered by bandits in Kenya.
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1990
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The Indian parliament approved presidential rule in Jammu and Kashmir and gave the armed forces special powers in the riot-torn state.
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1990
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The first pictures from Venus by the space probe Magellan showed features similar to volcanoes and valleys on Earth.
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1991
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Latvia declared independence from the Soviet Union.
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1991
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Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev declared he was back in full control after a 60-hour coup by Communist hardliners crumbled under popular resistance.
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1994
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The last French troops pulled out of Rwanda, ending their controversial humanitarian mission.
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1997
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Newly appointed prime minister of Afghanistan Abdur Rahim Gaffurzai was killed in a plane crash.
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1998
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Former President P.W. Botha was found guilty of contempt for defying South Africa’s truth commission and was given a 10,000 rand ($1,600) fine or 12 months in jail.
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1999
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Tove Hansen, a member of the Danish resistance who helped thousands of Jews escape the Nazis by smuggling them into neutral Sweden, died aged 88.
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