TODAY IN HISTORY

1643

Louis XIV became King of France at age 4upon the death of his father, Louis XIII.

1796

English physician Edward Jenner inoculated 8-year-old James Phipps against smallpox by using cowpox matter.

1804

The Lewis and Clark expedition to explore the Louisiana Territory as well as the Pacific Northwest left camp near present-day Hartford, Ill.

1940

The Netherlands surrendered to invading German forces during World War II.

1948

According to the current-era calendar, the independent state of Israel was proclaimed in Tel Aviv by David Ben-Gurion, who became its first prime minister; U.S. President Harry S. Truman immediately recognized the new nation.

1955

Representatives from eight Communist bloc countries, including the Soviet Union, signed the Warsaw Pact in Poland.

1961

Freedom Riders were attacked by violent mobs in Anniston and Birmingham, Alabama.