ON THIS day
1622 Opechancanough, brother of Chief Powhatan and his successor as the leader of the Powhatan Indian empire, leads an attack on the Jamestown Colony, killing at least 347 colonists and starting the Powhatan War.
1765 England’s Parliament passes the Stamp Act to raise revenue in American colonies. Revoked a year later, it is too late to avert resentment which led to the American War of Independence.
1814 A road opens from Sydney to Liverpool. It was built by William Roberts.
1859 The first workers’ political party in Australia, the Political Labour League of Victoria, is founded in Melbourne.
1882 A government-owned telephone exchange opens at Sydney’s GPO. Only 10 subscribers are connected at first.
1895 The Lumiere brothers (pictured) show their first movie to an invited audience in Paris, giving birth to the “Big Screen”.
1888 The English Football League is formed by representatives from 12 clubs meeting at a hotel in Fleet St, London.
1934 The first Masters Tournament is held at Augusta National Golf Club, Georgia, and is won by Horton Smith.
1942 Nine Japanese bombers target Katherine in the Northern Territory. One man is killed but damage to the airfield is minimal.
1997 American skater Tara Lipinski, 14, wins gold at the World Figure Skating Championships in Switzerland, becoming the youngest girl to hold the title.
2004 Israeli missiles kill Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, 67, quadriplegic spiritual leader of Palestinian group Hamas, in Gaza City, sending his supporters on a fury for revenge.
2012 Suspected murderer Malcolm Naden is captured in remote bushland west of Gloucester, ending a seven-year police hunt.