Former Queen of France Marie Antoinette was convicted of high treason and executed by guillotine during the French Revolution.
1846
Dentist William T. G. Morton successfully demonstrated ether anesthesia in Boston, an event now celebrated as World Anesthesia Day.
1859
Abolitionist John Brown led an armed raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry to initiate an anti-slavery revolt.
1905
Viceroy Lord Curzon executed the Partition of Bengal, triggering widespread national outrage and sparking India’s Swadeshi Movement.
1945
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations was founded in Quebec, establishing the date for World Food Day.
1962
President John F. Kennedy received photographic proof of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba, launching the 13-day Cuban Missile Crisis.
1964
China successfully detonated its first atomic bomb at Lop Nur, becoming the world’s fifth nuclear-armed nation.
1968
Olympic sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised black-gloved fists on the podium in Mexico City to protest racial injustice.



