Official Languages Act approved

In 1438, the decrees of Basel were adopted by the Roman Catholic Church. They restricted the authority of the popes and imposed a degree of accountability on the cardinals and bishops of the church.

In 1534, in the first known exchange between Europeans and natives of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, French explorer Jacques Cartier traded furs with the Mi'kmaq.

In 1607, Britain's national anthem — God Save the King — was sung in public for the first time.

In 1620, Samuel de Champlain began work on Fort St. Louis on the present site of the Chateau Frontenac Hotel in Quebec City.

In 1787, the first white woman arrived in what is now British Columbia. Frances Barkley was the 17-year-old wife of the captain of the British ship “Imperial Eagle.” The aboriginals of Nootka, on Vancouver Island, were said to be amazed at the sight of her.

In 1793, the first Prince Edward Island assembly convened.

In 1865, four people were hanged in Washington, D.C, for conspiring with John Wilkes Booth to assassinate U.S. President Abraham Lincoln.

In 1898, the U.S. Congress voted to annex Hawaii.

In 1915, an electronic railway car jumped the tracks at Queenston, Ont., killing 16 people and injuring 97.

In 1941, American forces took up positions in Iceland, Trinidad and British Guyana to forestall any German invasion, even though the U.S. had not yet entered the Second World War.

In 1945, some 500 Canadian troops rioted in Aldershot, England, over slow repatriation.

In 1946, Italian-born Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini was canonized as the first American saint.

In 1960, the world's first working laser was demonstrated by Theodore Maiman in Malibu, Calif.

In 1967, the first members of the Order of Canada were named in Ottawa by Gov. Gen. Roland Michener; 35 people received the highest honour, Companion of the Order, and 55 people received medals of service.The Order is given in recognition of exemplary merit and achievement by Canadians in any field.

In 1969, the House of Commons gave final approval to the Official Languages Act, making English and French the official languages of Canada. The Senate approved the bill two days later and it was given royal assent later the same day.

In 1975, Ed Broadbent was elected leader of the federal New Democratic Party, defeating Rosemary Brown on the fourth ballot of a Winnipeg convention. He held the post until 1989.

In 1976, Canada signed an agreement of economic co-operation with the European Economic Community. The agreement was the first of its kind to be signed between the EEC and a major industrial country.

In 1981, Prince Edward Island police received wide powers in two new acts, including the authority to take citizens from their homes without warrant and hold them in drug and alcohol treatment centres without laying a charge.

In 1988, the Soviet Union launched a space probe to the Mars moon Phobos in a joint East-West mission designed to pave the way for a manned voyage to Mars. However, a ground control error caused communication with the spacecraft to be lost before it reached Mars.

In 1988, Newfoundland became the eighth province to ratify the Meech Lake Accord on constitutional amendments to recognize Quebec as a distinct society, but that approval was later rescinded.

In 1990, Martina Navratilova captured a record ninth Wimbledon women's singles title, defeating Zina Garrison.

In 1992, Ottawa and nine provinces (all but Quebec) agreed on constitutional reform proposals which formed the basis of the Charlottetown Accord. The accord was rejected in an Oct. 26 referendum.

In 1993, Tom Burgess tossed three touchdown passes, and Wayne Walker scored twice as the Ottawa Rough Riders spoiled the debut of the CFL’s first American-based team, beating the Sacramento Gold Miners 32-23.

In 1996, space shuttle Columbia and its crew, including Canadian astronaut Robert Thirsk, concluded a 17-day journey, the longest flight for any space shuttle.

In 1998, former NHL players' union head Alan Eagleson was paroled from an Ontario jail. He had served one-third of an 18-month term for defrauding Hockey Canada, the NHL Players Association and Labatt Breweries.

In 2005, bombs exploded on London’s transit system on three subway trains and a double-decker bus, resulting in 56 deaths, including the four suicide bombers and injuries to more than 700 people at the height of morning rush hour.

Also in 2005, Kelly Ellard, 22, was given a life sentence with no parole for seven years at her third trial in the beating and drowning death of Victoria teenager Reena Virk. That conviction was later overturned on appeal, but on June 12, 2009, the Supreme Court of Canada restored the guilty verdict.