On this date

In 1899,

a peace treaty between the United States and Spain was ratified by the U.S. Senate.

In 1922,

Cardinal Archille Ratti was elected pope; he took the name Pius XI.

In 1933,

the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the so-called “lame duck” amendment, was proclaimed in effect by Secretary of State Henry Stimson.

In 1952,

Britain’s King George VI, 56, died at Sandringham House in Norfolk, England; he was succeeded as monarch by his 25-year-old elder daughter, who became Queen Elizabeth II.

In 1968,

the Winter Olympic Games were opened in Grenoble, France, by French President Charles de Gaulle.

In 1973,

Dixy Lee Ray was appointed by President Richard Nixon to be the first woman to head the Atomic Energy Commission.

In 1998,

President Bill Clinton signed a bill changing the name of Washington National Airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, on former President Reagan’s 87th birthday.

Ten years ago:

The Bush White House defended the use of the interrogation technique known as waterboarding, saying it was legal — not torture as critics argued — and had saved American lives.

Five years ago:

Toy maker Hasbro Inc. announced that Monopoly fans had voted online to add a cat token to the board game, replacing the iron.

One year ago:

Irwin Corey, the wild-haired comedian and actor known for his improvisational riffs and nonsensical style who billed himself as “The World’s Foremost Authority,” died in New York at age 102.