On this day

1547: Ivan the Terrible, first Russian to assume title of Tsar, was crowned. 1780: British forces under Admiral Rodney defeated the Spanish at Cape St Vincent.

1908: The first issue of Scouting For Boys, journal of the Scouting Movement, was published.

1909: The magnetic South Pole was found by Ernest Shackleton.

1920: Prohibition started in the United States, banning the manufacture, sale or involvement with alcohol.

1928: Thomas Hardy was buried beside Charles Dickens in Westminster Abbey. His heart was buried in the grave of his first wife, Emma, in Wessex.

1950: Listen With Mother started on radio, setting nursery rhymes to music. The catchphrase “Are you sitting comfortably?” originated in this series. 1970: Colonel Gaddafi became prime minister of Libya.

1979: The Shah of Iran fled to Egypt from Tehran after being ousted by Ayatollah Khomeini.