ON THIS DAY

1793: The first church built in Sydney.

1819: Death of James Watt, Scottish inventor and developer of the steam engine.

1844: Australia’s first synagogue is founded in Melbourne.

1942: Australian troops begin battle in first onland defeat of the Japanese at Milne Bay, Papua.

1967: Hanoi announces plans for the evacuation of all non-essential civilians in the Vietnamese city in view of the increased US air attacks.

2006: Australian government announces it will sell almost half of its remaining stake in Telstra.

2014: Syria welcomes outside help, including the US, to defeat Islamic State.

Birthdays: Russian tsar Ivan IV (The Terrible) (1530-1584); US composer Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990); British singer-songwriter Elvis Costello (1954-); German model Claudia Schiffer (1970-); US actress Blake Lively (1987-).