On this day

1471: The Yorkists defeated the Lancastrians at the Battle of Tewkesbury in the War of the Roses.

1780: The first Derby was run at Epsom.

1839: The Cunard shipping line was founded by Canadian Sir Samuel Cunard.

1896: The Daily Mail, founded by Lord Northcliffe, was first published, priced one halfpenny. 1904: Charles Rolls and Henry Royce signed an agreement to produce Rolls-royce cars.

1926: The General Strike began, the first in British history. It was called off on May 12.

1974: Abba reached the top of the pop charts with Waterloo, the Eurovision song contest winner. 1979: Margaret Thatcher became Britain’s first woman prime minister.

1982: HMS Sheffield was struck by an Exocet missile during the Falklands War. It was the first British ship to be lost to enemy action since the Second World War. 1990: Latvia declared itself an independent democratic republic in the first stage of withdrawal from the Soviet Union.

2000: Ken Livingstone became the first Mayor of London.

ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: The Duchess of Sussex revealed she had written a children’s book inspired by the relationship between her husband and son.