Today in History
1812 – The United States declares war on Britain because of restrictions imposed on shipping.
1815 – Napoleon Bonaparte defeated at Waterloo, in Belgium, by the Duke of Wellington, bringing an end to the Napoleonic Wars.
1895 – Southland woman Minnie Dean goes on trial for baby murder, leading to her conviction and execution.
1932 – Aucklander Esther James arrives in Bluff after walking the length of the country to promote New Zealand-made goods during the Depression.
1940 – General Charles de Gaulle makes his famous BBC broadcast, declaring himself leader of the Free French and urging compatriots to resist Nazi occupation.
1948 – United Nations Commission on Human Rights adopts the International Declaration of Human Rights.
1972 – A Trident jetliner crashes after takeoff from Heathrow Airport in London, killing 118 people.
1983 – Sally Ride becomes the first American woman to travel into space, aboard Challenger.
1995 – All Blacks wing Jonah Lomu, right, lays waste to England in the semifinal of the Rugby World Cup in South Africa, scoring four tries in a 45-29 win.
1997 – Fugitive Cambodian Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot surrenders to his former comrades.
2000 – Tiger Woods wins his first US Open by 15 strokes, a record margin in a Major championship.
2001 – Nearly 14,000 New Zealand dairy farmers vote to merge the country’s main milk-processing and marketing companies into one, to be known as Fonterra.
2006 – Three-month-old twins Chris and Cru Kahui die of serious head injuries in Auckland’s Starship hospital. Their deaths trigger a homicide inquiry centred on their family.
Birthdays
George Mallory, UK mountaineer (1886-1924); Denny Hulme, NZ racing driver (1936-1992); Paul McCartney, UK musician (1942-); Thabo Mbeki, South African president (1942-); Isabella Rosselini, Italian model- actress (1952-); Alison Moyet, UK singer; Simon Dallow, NZ TV news presenter (1964-); Nigel Owens, UK rugby referee (1971-); Teresa Cormack, murdered NZ schoolgirl (1981-1987); Cameron Smith, Australian rugby league player (1983-).