TODAY IN HISTORY

Today’s highlight:

On Feb. 6, 1952, Britain’s King George VI, 56, died at Sandringham House in Nor- folk, England; he was succeeded as monarch by his 25-year-old elder daughter, who became Queen Eliza- beth II.

On this date:

In 1778, during the Amer- ican Revolutionary War, the United States won official recognition and military support from France with the signing of a Treaty of Alliance in Paris.

In 1788, Massachusetts became the sixth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

In 1815, the state of New Jersey issued the first Amer- ican railroad charter to John Stevens, who proposed a rail link between Trenton and New Brunswick. (The line, however, was never built.)

In 1862, during the Civil War, Fort Henry in Tennessee fell to Union forces.

In 1899, a peace treaty between the United States and Spain was ratified by the U.S. Senate.

In 1911, Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, was born in Tampico, Illinois.

In 1922, Cardinal Archille Ratti was elected pope; he took the name Pius XI.

In 1933, the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitu- tion, the so-called “lame duck” amendment, was proclaimed in effect by Secretary of State Henry Stimson.

In 1993, tennis Hall of Famer and human rights advocate Arthur Ashe died in New York at age 49.

In 1998, President Bill Clinton signed a bill changing the name of Washington National Airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Carl Wilson, a founding member of The Beach Boys, died in Los Angeles at age 51.

In 2000, first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton launched her successful candidacy for the U.S. Senate.

In 2008, 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.

Ten years ago: At least nine people were killed by a tsunami that smashed into villages in the Solomon Islands, flattening dozens of homes in the South Pacific island chain. Toy maker Hasbro Inc. announced that Monopoly fans had voted online to add a cat token to the board game, replacing the iron.

Five years ago: Casino mogul Steve Wynn resigned as chairman and CEO of Wynn Resorts amid sexual misconduct allegations. Spacex’s big new rocket blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center on its first test flight, carrying a red sports car on a route that would take it to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.