Today in History

1305 – Sir William Wallace, champion of Scottish independence, is captured by the English and later executed.

1884 – The cornerstone of the Statue of Liberty is laid.

1891 – The first American Express travellers’ cheque is cashed.

1914 – New Zealand enters World War I.

1925 – Plaid Cymru is formed to disseminate knowledge of the Welsh language, which is in danger of dying out.

1953 – Operation Big Switch, the exchange of prisoners of war between the UN and the Chinese and North Koreans, takes place at Panmunjom, Korea.

1962 – Anti-apartheid fighter Nelson Mandela is arrested; movie star Marilyn Monroe is found dead in the bedroom of her Los Angeles home.

1963 – US, Britain and the Soviet Union sign treaty outlawing nuclear tests in atmosphere, in space and under water.

1965 – The Cook Islands is granted internal self-government by New Zealand.

1973 – Palestinian Black September guerrillas attack travellers at Athens Airport, killing three and wounding 55. 1974 – US President Richard Nixon admits he withheld information about the Watergate break-in.

1988 – The Cartwright Report condemns Auckland’s National Women’s Hospital for providing inadequate treatment to

cervical cancer patients.

1992 – Nelson Mandela leads 100,000 black people in Pretoria in a protest to end white rule.

Birthdays

John Huston, US film director (1906-1987); Robert Taylor, US actor (1911-1969); Neil Armstrong, US astronaut (1930-2012); Loni Anderson, US actress (1946-); Jonathan Silverman, US actor (1966-); Justin Marshall, former All Black, sports commentator (1973-); Robert Loe, NZ basketballer (1991-).