1984
York Minster was struck by lightning, setting fire to the roof and destroying the south transept

1984
Death of Randall Thompson, American composer

1938
35 million gas masks were issued to Britain’s civilian population in anticipation of World War II.

1918
Great train wreck, Nashville, Tennessee: two trains collided, killing 101 people and injuring 171 – the deadliest rail accident in US history.

1900
Queen Victoria gave her assent to the Australia Act, which united the different colonies and created Australia as a unified country.

1877
1st Wimbledon tennis tournament

1858
Birth of Franz Boas, German anthropologist .

1797
Death of Edmund Burke, philosopher

1793
Upper Canada passed the Act Against Slavery, and Lower Canada banned the importation of slaves. This was the first ever limitation on slavery in the British Empire.

1540
Henry VIII divorces Anne of Cleves

1441
Death of Jan van Eyck, painter

1357
The foundation stone for the Charles Bridge in Prague was laid with the assistance of Emperor Charles IV.
