ON THIS DAY

1422:

King Henry V of England died in Vincennes, France, struck down with dysentery. He was succeeded by his ninemonth-old infant son, Henry VI.

1888:

Mary Ann “Polly” Nichols, first victim of Jack the Ripper, was found mutilated in Buck’s Row in the East End.

1900:

Coca-Cola first went on sale in Britain.

1908:

At the age of 60, and after a career spanning 43 years, the legendary WG Grace retired from first-class cricket. He scored 54,896 runs (126 centuries), took 2,879 wickets and held 871 catches.

1936:

Elizabeth Cowell, Britain’s first woman TV announcer, made her debut at Alexandra Palace.

1962:

Chris Bonington and Ian Clough became the first Britons to conquer the north face of the Eiger.

1968:

Gary Sobers (now Sir Garfield) of Nottinghamshire became the first cricketer to score six sixes off an over, at Swansea against Glamorgan. The hapless bowler was Malcolm Nash.

1969:

Rocky Marciano, American world heavyweight boxing champion from 1952 to 1956, who retired undefeated, was killed in an air crash in Iowa.

1972:

American swimmer Mark Spitz won his fifth gold medal at the Munich Olympics.

1997:

Diana, Princess of Wales, above, was killed in a car crash in central Paris along with Dodi Fayed.