An interesting date in history - from the
BBC Website:
1509: Henry VIII marries first wife
King
Henry VIII of England marries Catherine of Aragon, the first of the six wives he had in his lifetime. When Catherine failed to produce a male heir, Henry divorced her against the will of the Roman
Catholic Church, thus precipitating the Protestant
Reformation in England. Henry went on to have five more wives; two of whom,
Anne Boleyn and
Catherine Howard, he executed for alleged
adultery after he grew tired of them. His only surviving child by Catherine of Aragon, Mary, ascended to the throne upon the death of
Edward VI in 1553.
2004
The state funeral of former US President Ronald Reagan takes place in Washington.2001
Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber, is executed by lethal injection in America.1976
Angolan authorities put 13
mercenary soldiers, 10 of whom are British, on trial, accused of fighting for the opposition during the country’s civil war.
1963
A
monk, Thich Quang Duc, sets fire to himself in Saigon in protest at South Vietnam's treatment of Buddhists.
1963
In America,
Alabama Governor George Wallace ends his
blockade of the University of Alabama and allows two African American students to enrol.
1962
John and Clarence Anglin and Frank Lee Morris attempt to escape from Alcatraz federal prison. Whilst they do escape from “the Rock”, it is thought that they drowned in the surrounding water.1959
The Hovercraft is launched off England’s south coast.1955
At least 80 people are killed and another 100 injured when three cars crash on the Le Mans race
circuit in France and smash into a crowded spectator area.
1944
The Second World War: Five days after the D-Day landing, the Allied landing groups link up in Normandy to form a single solid front. 1943
The Second World War: Britain lands its troops on the
Italian island of Pantelleria, off the southern coast of Sicily, in Operation Corkscrew.
1837
In America, English and
Irish residents of Boston clash in the Broad Street Riot.
1788
The Russian explorer Gerrasim Grigoriev Izmailov reaches the Alaskan coast. 1429
The Battle of Jargeau, Joan of Arc's first offensive battle, begins in
France. 
