ON THIS DAY

The Siege of Jerusalem during the First Crusade begins.

Spain and Portugal divide the New World between them.

An earthquake and tsunami devastate the pirate haunt of Port Royal, Jamaica, from whence the likes of Henry Morgan and Roche Brasiliano launched raids. The town never recovers.

Queen of the Silver Screen, Mary Pickford, makes her screen debut at 16.

Allied soldiers detonate mines beneath German trenches at Messines Ridge, killing 10 000 enemy troops.

Chicago businessmen found Lions Clubs International, the world’s largest service organisation.

George Mallory and Andrew Irvine disappear 245m from Everest’s summit during an attempt to conquer the world’s highest mountain. Their bodies lie untouched for 75 years until found in 1999. Whether they summited is a subject of speculation and continuing research.

The Vatican becomes a sovereign state, the world’s smallest country at just 0.44km2, smaller than Monaco (2km2)

The father of organised crime, mobster Charles “Lucky” Luciano, is jailed.

The Chinese government creates the Yellow River flood to stop Japanese forces advancing. The “largest act of environmental warfare in history” kills between 500 000 to 900 000 civilians, displacing millions and leaving vast tracts of land unusable for years to come.

Six months after Pearl Harbour, the Battle of Midway ends in a decisive American victory.

The musical Grease opens at New York’s Broadhurst Theatre for 3 388 performances. The rom-com would be the inspiration for a successful 1978 film.

The Israeli Air Force destroys an Iraqi nuclear reactor.

Runner Zola Budd, 23, retires. President FW de Klerk lifts a four-year state of emergency.

Singer Prince changes his name to an unpronounceable symbol.

Roger Federer wins his only French Open Men’s title, outclassing Swede Robin Söderling, 6-1, 7-6, 6-4

Earliest evidence of Homo Sapiens (300 000 years old) is found in Morocco.