IT HAPPENED TODAY
323BC:
Alexander the Great King of Macedonia, died after a prolonged period of feasting.
1381:
Wat Tyler led the first popular rebellion — against unpopular taxes — in English history. It has become known as the Peasants’ Revolt.
1842:
Queen Victoria travelled by train for the first time, from Slough to Paddington, accompanied by Prince Albert. She was the first British monarch to use the train.
1893:
Dorothy L Sayers, writer of detective stories featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, was born in Oxford.
1900:
The Boxer Rebellion began in China to end the domination and exploitation of the country by foreigners. The Boxers were a secret society, originally formed to practice martial arts.
1944:
The first V1 flying bomb, or ‘doodlebug’, landed in England. Hitler’s ‘secret weapon’ hit a house in Southampton killing three people.
Real Madrid won the first European Cup, beating Stade de Reims 4-3 in Paris.
1981:
Blanks were fired at the Queen during the Trooping the Colour ceremony.
1989:
The wreck of the German ship Bismarck, which was sunk in 1941, was found 600 miles west of Brest.
1990:
The official demolition of the Berlin Wall began.
ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR:
A retired art teacher celebrated winning £1m on a scratchcard — after first thinking that his prize was just a pint of milk.
BIRTHDAYS:
Christo, artist, 83; Andreas Whittam Smith, journalist and former president of the British Board of Film Classification, 81; Malcolm McDowell, actor, 75; Tim Allen, actor, 65; Alan Hansen former Liverpool footballer and TV pundit, 63; Ally Sheedy, actress, 56; David Gray, singer/songwriter, 50; Kym Marsh, actress/singer, 42; MaryKate and Ashley Olsen, actresses, 32.