Today in History

1594 – Henry IV, having renounced Protestantism, is crowned king of France. 1693 – First women’s magazine, Ladies’ Mercury, published in London.

1706 – Death of English diarist John Evelyn, whose diaries are considered an invaluable record of the period.

1788 – Convicted thief Thomas Barrett becomes the first person to be executed in New South Wales colony, for stealing rations. 1827 – Masked and costumed students dance through the streets of New Orleans, marking the start of the US city’s famous Mardi Gras celebrations. 1844 – Dominican Republic declares independence as a sovereign state.

1892 – Luggage maker Louis Vuitton dies, aged 70.

1900 – A meeting in London of the Trades Union Congress and the Independent Labour Party results in the eventual creation of the modern British Labour Party.

1933 – The Reichstag, Germany’s parliament building, is burned. Nazis blame Communists. 1936 – Seven-year-old star Shirley Temple receives a new contract that pays her US$50,000 per film.

1940 – Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discover carbon-14 (radiocarbon dating) at the University of California in Berkeley.

1951 – Troops are sent on to the Auckland and Wellington wharves to load and unload ships during a strike by waterfront workers; the 22nd Amendment, which effectively limits to two the number of terms a US president may serve, is ratified.

1964 – Italian government seeks suggestions on how to save the renowned Leaning Tower of Pisa, left, from collapse.

1968 – US broadcaster Walter Cronkite delivers scathing editorial on America’s chances of winning the Vietnam War. 1973 – Native Americans begin an occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota. 1980 – First election giving black majority full voting powers in Rhodesia (Zimbabwe);

I Will Survive wins the first – and last – Grammy ever awarded for Best Disco Recording.

2002 – UK comedian/author Spike Milligan dies, aged 83.

2010 – An earthquake of magnitude 8.8, one of the largest on record, kills more than 500 people in central Chile.

2015 – US actor Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek) dies, aged 83.

Birthdays

Constantine the Great, Roman Emperor (272-337); Henry Longfellow, US poet (1807-82); Heaton Rhodes, NZ politician, lawyer (1861-1956); John Steinbeck, US novelist (1902-68); Brian Carbury, NZ WWII flying ace (1918-1961); Peter Whittle, NZ mathematician (1927-); Joanne Woodward, US actress (1930-); Elizabeth Taylor, UK-born actress (1932-2011); Ralph Nader, US consumer advocate (1934-); Don McKinnon, NZ politician (1939-); Christopher Pugsley, NZ military historian (1947-); Timothy Spall, UK actor (1957-).