Today in history

On this date:

In 632, the Prophet Mohammad died. His teachings, recorded in the Qur'an, forged a new religion -- Islam.

In 1615, Fathers Le Caron, Jamet, Colbeau and Duplessies, the first Christian priests in Canada, reached Quebec from France.

In 1786, commercially made ice cream was sold for the first time in New York.

In 1794, a deistic religion honouring Liberty, Equality and Fraternity replaced Christianity during the French Revolution. Churches became temples of reason.

In 1824, Noah Cushing of Quebec obtained a patent for a washing machine.

In 1866, the first meeting of the Canadian Parliament was held in Ottawa. The meeting was held in the Parliament buildings, which were still unfinished. Construction on the complex had begun in 1857, when Queen Victoria chose Ottawa to be the national capital, and would not finish until 1877.

In 1869, Ives W. Mcgaffey of Chicago patented his sweeping machine -- the earliest suction-type vacuum cleaner.

In 1929, Britain's first woman cabinet minister was appointed when Margaret Bondfield became minister of labour.

In 1940, the Royal Navy's aircraft carrier “Glorious” was destroyed with a loss of 1,200 lives during the evacuation of Narvik during the Second World War.

In 1944, Canadian soldiers captured 12 towns in Normandy during the Second World War.

In 1953, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that restaurants in the District of Columbia could not refuse to serve blacks.

In 1966, the American and National Football Leagues announced plans to merge, taking effect in 1970.

In 1968, James Earl Ray was arrested and charged in London with assassinating U.S. civil rights leader Martin Luther King. Ray fled to Toronto just four days after King's murder in Memphis on April 4th. He remained in Toronto for a month before leaving for London with two forged Canadian passports. After being returned to Memphis, Ray pleaded guilty to King's murder and was sentenced to 99 years. He recanted his plea soon after, but remained in prison until dying of liver cancer in 1998.

In 1970, the military seized power in Argentina.

In 1977, Joey Smallwood, Newfoundland's first premier from 1949-72, resigned from the provincial legislature and quit active politics.

In 1982, baseball pitcher Satchel Paige died. At the age of 42, he had signed a “rookie” contract in the American League, after the colour barrier had been broken in the major leagues by Jackie Robinson. Prior to that, Paige played in the Negro Leagues.

In 1986, despite allegations he had participated in Nazi atrocities during the Second World War, former UN secretary general Kurt Waldheim was elected president of Austria. After being shunned by most countries during his six-year term, Waldheim did not seek reelection. In 1990, a hardline government was formed in Israel. Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, underground leader, spymaster and parliamentarian, announced he had succeeded in forming a coalition government. He was Israel's seventh prime minister.

In 1998, the National Rifle Association elected actor Charlton Heston as its president.

In 2004, the UN Security Council voted unanimously on a U.s.-british resolution that would formally end the occupation of Iraq on June 30 and authorized a U.s.-led force to keep the peace.

In 2004, Venus made the first transit across the Sun in more than 100 years.

In 2005, Ontario passed tough antismoking legislation that banned smoking in all indoor public places and workplaces effective June 2006.

In 2006, former aboriginal leader David Ahenakew's conviction for promoting hatred against Jews was overturned and a new trial ordered. He was acquitted in February 2009.

In 2009, Pte. Alexandre Peloquin, 20, based at CFB Valcartier, near Quebec City, was killed after stepping on an explosive device while patrolling in the Panjwaii district of Afghanistan.

In 2012, Quebec became the sixth province to sue big tobacco companies, launching a $60 billion lawsuit in an attempt to recoup health costs