Today In History [6th May, 2016]

A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.

 

Today in History
May 6

1527		German troops begin sacking Rome. Libraries are destroyed, the Pope is captured and thousands are killed.
1529		Babur defeats the Afghan Chiefs in the Battle of Ghaghra, India.
1682		King Louis XIV moves his court to Versailles, France.
1856		U.S. Army troops from Fort Tejon and Fort Miller prepare to ride out to protect Keyesville, California, from Yokut Indian attack.
1861		Arkansas becomes the ninth state to secede from the Union.
1862		Henry David Thoreau dies of tuberculosis at age 44.
1864		In the second day of the Battle of the Wilderness between Union General Ulysses S. Grant and Confederate General Robert E. Lee, Confederate Gen. James Longstreet is wounded by his own men.
1877		Chief Crazy Horse surrenders to U.S. troops in Nebraska. Crazy Horse brought General George Custer to his end.
1937		The dirigible Hindenburg explodes in flames at Lakehurst, New Jersey.
1941		Bob Hope gives his first USO show at California’s March Field.
1942		General Jonathan Wainwright surrenders Corregidor to the Japanese.
1944		The Red Army besieges and captures Sevastopol in the Crimea.
1945		Axis Sally makes her final propaganda broadcast to Allied troops.
1954		British runner Roger Bannister breaks the four minute mile.
1960		President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the Civil Rights Act of 1960.
1962		The first nuclear warhead is fired from a Polaris submarine.
1994		The Channel Tunnel linking England to France is officially opened.
Born on May 6
973		Henry II, Holy Roman emperor.
1740		John Penn, signer of the Declaration of Independence.
1758		Maximilien Robespierre, French revolutionary.
1840		Frederick William Stowe, son of the Harriet Beecher Stowe.
1856		Robert Edward Peary, arctic explorer and the first man to reach the North Pole.
1856		Sigmund Freud, Austrian neurologist, founder of psychoanalysis.
1868		Gaston Leroux, French novelist (The Phantom of the Opera).
1888		Russell Stover, candy manufacturer.
1895		Rudolph Valentino, actor, film icon.
1902		Max Ophuls, film director (La Ronde, Lola Montes).
1915		Orson Welles, actor, director, and writer (Citizen Kane).
1931		Willie Mays, baseball player.
1942		Ariel Dorfman, Chilean writer (Death and the Maiden).