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Major Events
- 1836 – The Arc de Triomphe was inaugurated in Paris, 30 years after it was commissioned by Napoleon.
- 1958 – The U.S. Congress established NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration).
- 1981 – Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer were married at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, watched by millions around the world.
- 1987 – British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and French President François Mitterrand signed the agreement to build the Channel Tunnel.
- 2005 – Astronomers announced the discovery of the dwarf planet Eris, one of the largest known objects in the solar system beyond Pluto.
Famous Birthdays
- Benito Mussolini (1883–1945), Italian dictator and founder of Fascism
- Dag Hammarskjöld (1905–1961), Swedish diplomat and second Secretary-General of the United Nations
- Clara Bow (1905–1965), American silent film actress known as the “It Girl”
- Peter Jennings (1938–2005), Canadian-American journalist and news anchor
- Wil Wheaton (born 1972), American actor known for Star Trek: The Next Generation
- Josh Radnor (born 1974), American actor best known for How I Met Your Mother
Notable Deaths
- Vincent van Gogh (d. 1890), Dutch Post-Impressionist painter (b. 1853)
- Andrew Mellon (d. 1937), American banker, industrialist, and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1855)
- Dennis Brown (d. 1999), Jamaican reggae singer (b. 1957)
Holidays
- International Tiger Day – Celebrated worldwide to raise awareness for tiger conservation
- National Lasagna Day (USA) – A fun culinary holiday celebrating the beloved Italian dish
Fun Facts
- The wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1981 was watched by an estimated 750 million people globally.
- NASA, established in 1958, has since been responsible for numerous space exploration milestones including the Apollo moon landings.
- Vincent van Gogh died two days after allegedly shooting himself, though mystery still surrounds the circumstances of his death.
- The Channel Tunnel, whose agreement was signed on this day, is one of the longest underwater tunnels in the world.
- International Tiger Day was launched in 2010 at the Saint Petersburg Tiger Summit to highlight the alarming decline in tiger populations.