On This Day

This Day in History

1. 2011The United States military brought its "don't ask, don't tell" policy to an end, allowing gay and lesbian individuals to serve openly.
2. 2008A truck packed with explosives was detonated outside the Marriott hotel located in Islamabad, Pakistan, resulting in 54 deaths and 266 injuries.
3. 2000The Real Irish Republican Army launched a rocket-launcher attack against the MI6 headquarters in London, causing minimal damage and no casualties.
4. 1997Hurricane Erika, the most powerful and longest-lasting storm of the 1997 Atlantic hurricane season, dissipated after producing power outages and flooding throughout Puerto Rico.
5. 1988British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher delivered a landmark address at the Belfry of Bruges, Belgium, speaking out against federalism within the European Economic Community.
6. 1984The Cosby Show premiered its pilot episode, eventually becoming one of just three American television series to secure the highest ratings for five consecutive years.
7. 1977A series of celestial occurrences of disputed origin was observed across the western Soviet Union, Finland, and Denmark.
8. 1973Billie Jean King defeated Bobby Riggs in straight sets during an internationally broadcast tennis match at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas, dubbed the "Battle of the Sexes".
9. 1971Hurricane Irene traveled from the Atlantic Ocean into the Pacific Ocean, becoming the first actively tracked tropical cyclone to make this transition.
10. 1967Sweden, Norway, and Denmark submitted the Greek case, alleging that the Greek junta had committed human rights violations.
11. 1967Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard disclosed the narrative of Xenu by sending a recorded lecture to all members of the movement.
12. 1944Allied forces captured San Marino from the German Army during the Second World War.
13. 1943Australian troops commanded by Gordon Grimsley King prevailed over Imperial Japanese forces at the Battle of Kaiapit in New Guinea during World War II.
14. 1920British auxiliary police officers known as the Black and Tans rampaged through Balbriggan during the Irish War of Independence, killing two people and burning over fifty homes and businesses.
15. 1906The RMS Mauretania, an ocean liner that was the largest and fastest vessel in the world at the time, was launched in Tyneside, England.
16. 1870The Bersaglieri entered Rome through the Porta Pia, bringing an end to the Pope's temporal power and finalizing the unification of Italy.