Edgar the Ætheling is proclaimed King of England, but is never crowned. He reigns until 10 December 1066.

Edgar the Ætheling

Battle of the Rhyndacus: The Latin emperor Henry of Flanders defeats the Nicaean emperor Theodore I Laskaris.

Battle of the Rhyndacus (1211)Latin emperorHenry of FlandersNicaean emperorTheodore I Laskaris

The Siege of Vienna ends as the Austrians rout the invading Turks, turning the tide against almost a century of unchecked conquest throughout eastern and central Europe by the Ottoman Empire.

Siege of ViennaOttoman Empire

Pope Gregory XIII implements the Gregorian calendar. In Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain, October 4 of this year is followed directly by October 15.

Pope Gregory XIIIGregorian calendarOctober 4

Edward Gibbon observes a group of friars singing in the ruined Temple of Jupiter in Rome, which inspires him to begin work on The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

Edward GibbonTemple of Jupiter Optimus MaximusThe History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

The Montgolfier brothers' hot air balloon (tethered) makes the first human ascent, piloted by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier.

Montgolfier brothersHot air balloonJean-François Pilâtre de Rozier

Queen Marie Antoinette of France is tried and convicted in a swift, pre-determined trial in the Palais de Justice, Paris, and condemned to death the following day.

Marie AntoinetteFranceParis

Emperor Napoleon I begins his exile on Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean.

NapoleonSaint HelenaAtlantic Ocean

American Civil War: The H. L. Hunley, the first submarine to sink a ship, sinks during a test, killing its inventor, Horace L. Hunley.

American Civil WarH. L. Hunley (submarine)SubmarineHorace Lawson Hunley

American Civil War: The Battle of Glasgow is fought, resulting in the surrender of Glasgow, Missouri and its Union garrison, to the Confederacy.

Battle of Glasgow, MissouriGlasgow, MissouriConfederate States of America

The Edison Electric Light Company begins operation.

Edison Electric Light Company

The "From Hell" letter allegedly sent by Jack the Ripper is received by investigators.

From Hell letterJack the Ripper

The Dreyfus affair: Alfred Dreyfus is arrested for spying.

Dreyfus affairAlfred Dreyfus

The Russian Baltic Fleet leaves Reval, Estonia for Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War.

Baltic FleetRevalEstoniaLüshunkouRusso-Japanese War

Airship America is launched from New Jersey in the first attempt to cross the Atlantic by a powered aircraft.

America (airship)

World War I: At Vincennes outside Paris, Dutch dancer Mata Hari is executed by firing squad for spying for the German Empire.

World War IVincennesMata HariFiring squadEspionage

The German Rentenmark is introduced in Germany to counter hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic.

German RentenmarkHyperinflation in the Weimar Republic

The airship, Graf Zeppelin completes its first trans-Atlantic flight, landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, United States.

LZ 127 Graf ZeppelinLakehurst, New Jersey

Tata Airlines (later to become Air India) makes its first flight.

Air India

The Soviet Republic of China collapses when Chiang Kai-shek's National Revolutionary Army successfully encircles Ruijin, forcing the fleeing Communists to begin the Long March.

Jiangxi SovietChiang Kai-shekNational Revolutionary ArmyRuijinCommunist Party of China

The New York Municipal Airport (later renamed LaGuardia Airport) is dedicated.

LaGuardia Airport

The President of Catalonia, Lluís Companys, is executed by the Spanish dictatorship of Francisco Franco, making him the only European president to have been executed.

President of the Generalitat of CataloniaCataloniaLluís Companys

The Arrow Cross Party (very similar to Hitler's NSDAP (Nazi party)) takes power in Hungary.

Arrow Cross PartyAdolf Hitler

World War II: The former premier of Vichy France Pierre Laval is shot by a firing squad for treason.

World War IIVichy FrancePierre LavalTreason

Mexican chemist Luis E. Miramontes conducts the very last step of the first synthesis of norethisterone, the progestin that would later be used in one of the first three oral contraceptives.

Luis E. MiramontesNorethisteroneProgestinCombined oral contraceptive pill

The first episode of I Love Lucy, an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley, airs on the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS).

I Love LucySitcomLucille BallDesi ArnazVivian Vance

British nuclear test Totem 1 is detonated at Emu Field, South Australia.

Nuclear testEmu Field, South Australia

Hurricane Hazel devastates the eastern seaboard of North America, killing 95 and causing massive floods as far north as Toronto. As a Category 4 upon landfall, it is the strongest storm on record to strike as far north as North Carolina.

Hurricane HazelSaffir-Simpson hurricane wind scaleNorth Carolina

Fortran, the first modern computer language, is shared with the coding community for the first time.

Fortran

Vietnam War: The Catholic Worker Movement stages an anti-war rally in Manhattan including a public burning of a draft card; the first such act to result in arrest under a new amendment to the Selective Service Act.

Vietnam WarCatholic Worker MovementDraft-card burning