History of Today

History is a very interesting subject. There are many things that have happened in the world that we live in. Some of the history may be common knowledge for you, while some of the history may just downright surprise you. You never know what you will find until you start looking at the many dates within History of Today.

History of Today provides a couple of options that you can use to find some specific information as to what happened on a particular day in history. You can search through the History of Today archive by selecting a specific day and month or selecting a particular month. This assures you that there is an easy way to find out what you’re looking for in a quick manner.

History of Today is a great resource for anyone who wants to know more about the significance of his or her birthday, anniversary, or any other special occasion. Or if you’re just a history buff, you can bookmark History of Today and discover daily the many historical events that have made our world what it is today. The website is not just limited to one culture and documents specific events all the way back to the ancient Greeks and Romans, at the cusp of recorded history.

So give the site a try, and start with your birthday or whatever day today is. You’ll be amazed at all there is to learn about one little day of the year! History of Today is loaded with entries so you’ll always be learning something new, even if you’re already well versed in the history of a specific day. So what are you waiting for? Let’s learn some history!

History of May 20th

On May 20th the following events have occured in our world's history.

0325 - 1st Christian ecumenical council opens at Nicaea, Asia Minor
0325 - 1st Christian ecumenical council opens at Nicaea - Asia Minor
0325 - 1st Christian ecumenical council opens at Nicaea - Asia Minor
0325 - 1st Christian ecumenical council opens at Nicaea, Asia Minor
1217 - The Second Battle of Lincoln is fought near Lincoln, England, resulting in the defeat of Prince Louis of France by William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke.
1293 - Earthquake strikes Kamakura Japan, 30,000 killed
1293 - King Sancho IV of Castile creates the Study of General Schools of Alcal+
1303 - Treaty of Paris restores Gascony to British in Hundred Years War
1310 - Shoes were made for both right & left feet
1347 - Rienzo calls Rome for people's tribunal
1495 - French King Charles VIII leaves Naples
1498 - Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrives at Calcutta India
1501 - Joao da Nova Castell discovers Ascension Islands
1506 - Christopher Columbus died in poverty in Spain
1521 - Ignatius Loyola seriously wounded by a cannon ball
1524 - Duke of Albany leaves Scotland
1570 - Egidius Coppens publishes Abraham Ortelius' "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum"
1571 - Venice, Spain & Pope Pius form anti-Turkish Saint League
1591 - Spanish troops in Zutphen surrenders to Willem Louis/Mauritius
1609 - Shakespeare's Sonnets are first published in London, perhaps illicitly, by the publisher Thomas Thorpe.
1631 - German army under earl Johann Tilly conquerors Maagdenburg
1631 - The city of Magdeburg in Germany is seized by forces of the Holy Roman Empire and most of its inhabitants massacred, in one of the bloodiest incidents of the Thirty Years' War.
1639 - Dorchester Mass, forms 1st school funded by local taxes
1690 - England passes Act of Grace, forgiving followers of James II
1704 - Elias Neau forms school for slaves in NY
1734 - 1st Jockey Club forms in SC
1774 - Britain gives Quebec, Labrador & territory north of Ohio
1775 - Mecklenburg County - NC citizens declare independence from England
1775 - Citizens of Mecklenburg County, NC declare independence of Britain
1784 - England & Netherlands signs peace treaty (Peace of Paris)
1825 - Charles X becomes King of France
1830 - 1st railroad timetable published in newspaper -`Baltimore American'
1830 - 1st railroad timetable published in newspaper (Baltimore American)
1830 - D Hyde patents fountain pen
1835 - Otto is named the first modern king of Greece.
1840 - York Minster was badly damaged by fire
1845 - 1st legislative assembly convenes in Hawaii
1845 - HMS Erebus and HMS Terror with 134 men under John Franklin sail from the River Thames in England, beginning a disastrous expedition to find the Northwest Passage. All hands are lost.
1861 - NC becomes 10th state to secede from US
1861 - Cornerstone of University of Washington laid in Seattle
1861 - Kentucky proclaims its neutrality in Civil War
1861 - North Carolina becomes 11th & last state to secede from Union
1861 - US marshals appropriate previous year's telegraph dispatches, to reveal prosecessionist evidence
1862 - Homestead Act provides cheap land for settlement of West
1864 - Battle at Ware Bottom Church, Virginia, 1,400 killed or injured
1864 - Spotsylvania-campaign ends after 10,920 killed/injured person
1867 - Brit parliament rejects John Stuart Mills law on women suffrage
1867 - Royal Albert Hall foundation laid by Queen Victoria
1868 - Republican National Convention, meets in Chicago, nominates Grant
1870 - Second Chamber abolishes capital punishment
1874 - Levi Strauss markets blue jeans with copper rivets, price $13.50 doz
1875 - Intl Bureau of Weights & Measures established by treaty
1875 - Intl Bureau of Weights & Measures forms by treaty
1879 - 5th Kentucky Derby: Charlie Shauer aboard Lord Murphy wins in 2:37
1882 - Germany/Austria-Hungary/France sign Triple Alliance
1882 - Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts" (Gengangere) premieres in Chicago
1882 - St Gotthard-railroad tunnel between Switzerland & Italy opens
1891 - History of cinema: The first public display of Thomas Edison's prototype kinetoscope.
1892 - George Sampson patents clothes dryer
1892 - Triple Alliance between Germany, Italy & Austria forms
1895 - 1st commercial movie performance (153 Broadway, NYC)
1896 - The six ton chandelier of the Palais Garnier falls on the crowd resulting in the death of one and the injury of many others.
1900 - 2nd modern Olympic games opens in Paris (lasted 5 months)
1902 - US ends occupation of Cuba
1902 - Cuba gains independence from Spain
1902 - US military occupation of Cuba (since Jan 1, 1899) ends
1910 - Funeral for Britain's King Edward VII
1911 - Edwin Boaler Alletson hits 189 in 90 mins Notts v Sussex
1913 - 38th Preakness: James Butwell aboard Buskin wins in 1:53.4
1915 - Bataafsche Petroleum Me begins oil extraction of Maracaibo
1916 - Codell, Kansas hit by tornado (also on same date in 1917 & 1918)
1916 - Saturday Evening Post cover features Norman Rockwell painting
1917 - Turkish govt authorizes Jews to return to Tel Aviv & Jaffa
1918 - 1st electrically propelled warship (New Mexico)
1919 - Volcano Keluit on Java, erupts killing 550
1920 - Policemen raid the Cubs' bleachers & arrest 24 fans for gambling
1922 - "Egypt" sinks off Ushant after colliding with "Seine," killing 90
1922 - Babe Ruth & Bob Meusel, suspended on October 16, 1921, by Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis, return to the NY lineup & go hitless
1923 - Stanley Baldwin, becomes PM of UK
1926 - Thomas Edison said Americans preferred silent movies over talkies
1926 - Belgian govt of Jaspar takes power
1926 - Congress passes Air Commerce Act, licensing of pilots & planes
1926 - Railway Labor Act became law
1926 - Thomas Edison says Americans prefer silent movies over talkies
1927 - Lindbergh flew NY-Paris - 1st solo flight across Atlantic
1927 - At 7:40 AM, Lindbergh takes off from NY to cross Atlantic for Paris
1927 - Saudi Arabia becomes independent of Great Britain (Treaty of Jedda)
1930 - 1st airplane catapulted from a dirigible, Charles Nicholson, pilot
1930 - University of California dedicates $1,500 to research on prevention & cure of athlete's foot
1932 - Earhart left Newfoundland 1st woman fly solo across Atlantic
1932 - Amelia Earhart leaves Newfoundland 1st woman fly solo across Atlantic
1932 - Engelbert Dollfuss becomes chancellor of Austria
1939 - Pan Am began transatlantic passenger & air mail service
1939 - "3 Little Fishies," by Kay Kyser hits #1
1939 - Pan Am begins transatlantic passenger & air mail service
1939 - 1st regular transatlantic airmail (NY to Marsseille France)
1940 - Gen Guderians tanks reach The Channel (British expeditionary army)
1940 - Igor Sikorsky unveils his helicopter invention
1940 - Soccer team HZVV forms in Hoogeveen
1940 - Trailing 7-1 in 9th to Pitts, Phils win 8-7
1941 - Archer's "Christian Calendar & Gregorian Reform" published
1941 - Former Dutch PM Colijn says Neth Indies not ready for independence
1941 - Germany invades Crete
1941 - White Sox Taft Wright sets AL record of RBIs in 13 consecutive games
1942 - US Navy 1st permitted black recruits to serve
1943 - French, British & US victory parade in Tunis Tunisia
1944 - US Communist Party dissolves
1945 - Keith Miller scores 105 in the 1st Victory Test Cricket at Lord's
1946 - Cubs Claude Passeau makes his 1st error since September 21, 1941, ending pitcher's fielding record of 273 consecutive errorless chances
1948 - 1st use of Israeli Air Force & 1st war victory, defeating Syrian army
1948 - Cleve Indians tie AL record of 18 walks (beat Red Sox 13-4)
1950 - 76th Preakness: Eddie Arcaro aboard Hill Prince wins in 1:59.2
1954 - Chiang Kai-shek becomes president of Nationalist China
1955 - Argentine parliament accepts separation of church & state
1956 - Atomic fusion (thermonuclear) bomb dropped from plane - Bikini Atoll
1956 - Atomic fusion (thermonuclear) bomb dropped from plane-Bikini Atoll
1956 - Jordan government of Samir resigns
1958 - US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests)
1959 - Yanks sink to last place - 1st time since May 25 - 1940
1959 - Ford wins battle with Chrysler to call its new car "Falcon"
1959 - Japanese-Americans regain their citizenship
1959 - Shah of Persia visits Netherlands
1959 - Yanks sink to last place, 1st time since May 25, 1940
1960 - Baseball game in Milwaukee postponed due to dense fog
1961 - White mob attacks `Freedom Riders' in Montgomery - Alabama
1961 - 87th Preakness: Johnny Sellers aboard Carry Back wins in 1:57.6
1961 - Henzes opera "Elegy for Young Lovers," premieres in Schwetzingen
1961 - Mauritania adopts constitution
1961 - White mob attacks "Freedom Riders" in Montgomery, Alabama
1962 - Patty Berg wins LPGA Muskogee Civitan Golf Open
1963 - Sukarno appointed president of Indonesia
1964 - Buster Mathis defeats Joe Fraizer to qualify for US Olympic team
1965 - Pakistani Boeing 720-B crashes at Cairo Egypt, killing 121
1965 - Yorkshire all out for 23 v Hampshire at Middlesbrough
1967 - 10,000 demonstrate against war in Vietnam
1967 - 93rd Preakness: Bill Shoemaker aboard Damascus wins in 1:55.2
1967 - BBC bans Beatle's "A Day in the Life" (drug references)
1969 - US troop capture Hill 937/Hamburger Hill Vietnam
1970 - 100,000 march in NY supporting US policies in Vietnam
1970 - 2 die in a NYC subway accident
1970 - Beatles' "Let it Be" movie premieres in UK
1971 - Pentagon reports blacks constitute 11% of US soldiers in SE Asia
1972 - Republic of Cameroon declared
1972 - "Different Times" closes at ANTA Theater NYC after 24 performances
1972 - "Hard Job Being God" closes at Edison Theater NYC after 6 performances
1972 - 5th ABA Championship: Indiana Pacers beat NY Nets, 4 games to 2
1972 - 98th Preakness: Eldon Nelson aboard Bee Bee Bee wins in 1:55.6
1972 - Cameroon adopts its constitution
1972 - Republic of Cameroon declared as constitution is ratified
1973 - "2 Gentlemen of Verona" closes at St James Theater NYC after 613 perfs
1973 - 25th Emmy Awards: Waltons, All in the Family & Mary Tyler Moore
1973 - Donna Caponi Young wins LPGA Bluegrass Golf Invitational
1974 - Soyuz 14 returns to Earth
1976 - Viking 1 - Mars landing
1976 - USSR performs nuclear test at Sary Shagan USSR
1978 - US Launches Pioneer Venus 1-produces 1st global radar map of Venus
1978 - 104th Preakness: Steve Cauthen aboard Affirmed wins in 1:54.4
1978 - 3 PFLP members kill a cop near El Al airlines in Orly Airport, Paris
1978 - US launches Pioneer Venus 1; produces 1st global radar map of Venus
1979 - Cambodian Martyrs Day
1979 - "I Love My Wife" closes at Barrymore Theater NYC after 864 perfs
1979 - 1st western pop star to tour USSR-Elton John
1979 - Nancy Lopez wins LPGA Coca-Cola Golf Classic
1980 - 710 families in Love Canal area (Niagara Falls NY) are evacuated
1980 - Drummer Peter Criss quits Kiss
1980 - Fire in nursing home in Kingston Jamaica, kills 157
1980 - In a referendum, 59.5% of Quebec voters reject separatism
1981 - Ipswich Town wins 10th UEFA Cup at Amsterdam
1983 - Larry Holmes beats Tim Witherspoon in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
1983 - Michael Dokes & Mike Weaver fight to a draw in 15 for hw boxing title
1983 - Phillies Steve Carlton passes W Johnson with 2nd most strike outs
1984 - "On Your Toes" closes at Virginia Theater NYC after 505 performances
1984 - Barb Bunkowsky wins LPGA Chrysler-Plymouth Charity Golf Classic
1984 - Boston's Roger Clemens beats Twins, 5-4, for his 1st victory
1985 - Dow Jones Avg closes above 1300 for 1st time
1985 - FBI arrests John A Walker Jr - convicted of spying for USSR
1985 - US began broadcasts to Cuba on Radio Marti
1985 - 1150 Lebanese/Palestinian prisoners exchanged for 3 Israelis
1985 - Dow Jones industrial avg closes above 1300 for 1st time
1985 - FBI arrests John A Walker Jr, convicted of spying for USSR
1985 - Indians-Brewers game at Cleve Stadium is 1st rain-out of 1985, ends record string of 458 ML games since Opening Day without a rain-out
1985 - Israel exchanges 1,100+ Arab prisoners for 3 Israeli soldiers
1985 - Larry Holmes beats Carl Williams in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
1986 - Christy Fichtner, 23, (Texas), crowned 35th Miss USA
1986 - Flintstones 25th Anniversary Celebration airs on CBS-tv
1987 - Gutenborg wins 16th UEFA Cup at Dundee
1987 - Wrestler Jerry Lawler sues WWF & Harley Race for trademark name "king"
1988 - Howard Stern fans disrupt WMMR's & John DeBella's "Louie Louie" parade
1988 - Mike Schmidt hits his 535th HR, moving into 8th place
1989 - 115th Preakness: Pat Valenzuela aboard Sunday Silence wins in 1:53.8
1989 - China declares martial law in Beijing
1989 - Toonces The Cat takes the wheel on Saturday Night Live
1989 - Walter McConnel, 57, is oldest to reach 27,000' Mt Everest top
1990 - "Truly Blessed" closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 33 performances
1990 - Cindy Rarick wins LPGA Planters Pat Bradley Golf International
1990 - Hubble Space Telescope sends 1st photograph's from space
1991 - Chic Bull Michael Jordan, named NBA's MVP
1991 - Jeff Reardon gains his 300th career save
1991 - Soviet parliament approves law allowing citizens to travel abroad
1992 - FC Barcelona wins 373 Europe Cup 1 at London
1992 - India launches its 1st satellite independently
1992 - Rap singer raps 597 syllables in under 60 seconds
1992 - VP Quayle attacks Murphy Brown for being a single mother
1993 - 10m meteor comes within 150,000 km of Earth (1993KA)
1993 - 274th & final "Cheers" on NBC
1993 - Ukraine Premier Leonid Koetsjma resigns
1994 - Bobcat Goldthwait charged with misdemeanors for fire on Tonight Show
1994 - Miss India (Sushmita Sen) selected Miss Universe
1994 - Sony Theaters & Cineplex (NYC) hike movie ticket prices to $8.00
1995 - 121st Preakness: Pat Day aboard Timber Coutry wins in 1:54.4
1995 - CBS News fires co-anchor Connie Chung
1995 - Twins Marty Cordova ties rookie record of HRs in 5 consecutive games
1997 - Cosmos Zenit-2 Launch (Russia), Failed
1997 - Thor-2A Delta 2 Launch (Norway/USA), Successful
1997 - White Sox Frank Thomas reaches base safely for 15th straight time
2002 - The independence of East Timor is recognized by Portugal, formally ending 23 years of Indonesian rule and 3 years of provisional UN administration (Portugal itself was the former colonizer of East Timor until 1976).