Today in history
1533 — Spanish conquistadors give Atahuallpa, last emperor of the Incas, the choice of being burned at the stake or converting to Christianity. He converts and is garotted the same day.
1756 — Frederick II of Prussia invades Saxony, marking start of Seven Years’ War.
1792 — At least 900 die when the British warship Royal George sinks at Spithead while repairs are being carried out just below the waterline.
1842 — Anglo-chinese war ends with Treaty of Nanking, confirming the ceding of Hong Kong to Britain.
1874 — French performer Blondin walks tightrope across Sydney Harbour.
1882 — English cricketers lose to Australia on English soil for the first time – a mock obituary in the Sporting Times then declares the death of English cricket, saying its ashes will be taken to Australia, the origin of the ‘‘Ashes’’ trophy.
1885 — First motorcycle, built by Gottlied Daimler in Germany, is patented.
1943 — Danish warships are scuttled at Copenhagen in World War II uprising against Nazis.
1960 — Jordanian prime minister Hazza El-majali and 10 others are assassinated by a time-bomb.
1964 — Roy Orbison releases the song Pretty Woman.
1966 — The Beatles play their last live concert to a crowd of 25,000 at Candlestick Park, San Francisco.
1992 — The last Russian diplomats pull out of Kabul, ending a decade of involvement in Afghanistan.
1997 — The Japanese Supreme Court rules the government acted illegally when it deleted from a history textbook references to Japan’s deadly experiments on Chinese people during World War II.
1998 — A Cuban aeroplane bursts into flames and crashes during takeoff from Quito, Ecuador, killing 79 people.
2004 — Greece brings the curtain down on the Athens Olympic Games.
2005 — Hurricane Katrina rams into the US Gulf Coast with 225kmh winds and a 9-metre storm surge, devastating the city of New Orleans and killing 1330 people across the region.
2014 — Senegal becomes the fifth West African country to confirm a case of Ebola. Today’s Birthdays: John Locke, English philosopher (1632-1704); Jean-auguste-dominique Ingres, French painter (1780-1867); Ingrid Bergman, Swedish actress (1915-1982); George Montgomery, US actor (1916-2000); Richard Attenborough, British actor-director (1923-2014); John Mccain, American presidential candidate (1936-); Michael Jackson, US pop star (1958-2009); Rebecca De Mornay, US actress (1959-); Liam Payne, British singer of One Direction fame (1993-).