1983
Brinks Mat Robbery: £26 million worth of gold bars were stolen from the Brinks Mat warehouse at Heathrow Airport, London.
1979
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) agreed to re-admit China, allowing it to take part in the 1980 Winter Games
1968
The Race Relations Act came into force in the UK, making it illegal to refuse housing, employment or public services to people because of their.
Great Britain
1949
India adopted a new constitution and became a republic within the British Commonwealth
1948
The first Polaroid instant cameras went on sale in Boston, Massachusetts .
1942
WWII: Siege of Stalingrad: Soviet forces launched a counter-attack, ending the siege and forcing the Sixth Army to retreat
1909
Birth of Eugene Ionesco, Romanian-born French author and playwright, founded the Theatre of the Absurd
1908
Birth of Charles Forte, British hotelier .
1858
Birth of Katharine Drexel, American saint, founder of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament.