On this day

1491:

Henry VIII, the English monarch best known for his six wives and religious split from Rome, was born.

1838:

Queen Victoria was crowned in Westminster Abbey, aged just 19. During the ceremony, Austrian composer Johann Strauss conducted his orchestra outside the London Reform Club, playing God Save The Queen.

1914:

Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne, was assassinated with his wife in the Bosnian town of Sarajevo by terrorist Gavrilo Princip, lighting the touchpaper to World War I.

1919:

A peace treaty between German representatives and Allied powers was signed in the Palace of Versailles, west of Paris, officially ending World War I .

1930:

Frank Whittle (later Sir) patented the jet engine.

1935:

The first Rupert Bear cartoon was drawn by Alfred Bestall and appeared in the Daily Express newspaper. Bestall had taken over from Rupert’s creator, Mary Tourtel.

1950:

The United States humbled England 1-0 in a World Cup match in Brazil.

1984:

After 104 years, the British magazine Tit-Bits stopped publishing.

1990:

The Prince of Wales was detained in hospital overnight after breaking his right arm in two places when falling from his pony during a polo match.

ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR:

It was announced that Prince Harry is to follow in the footsteps of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales, and make the fight against HIV a major part of his public work.