1984 – Wing of York Minster Gutted By Fire1984 : A 760-year-old wing of York Minster, the largest medieval cathedral in Britain, was gutted by a fierce fire started by lightning. A rescue party save most of the historic and valuable artifacts from the burning cathedral including tapestries and silver candlesticks. These Bells are still rung by hand and the sound is stunning [ the heaviest bell (Great Peter) weighs 10.8 tons ].
1941 – UK Enigma Code Broken
1941 : British cryptologists break the secret code (Enigma) used by the German army to direct ground-to-air operations on the Eastern front.
1932 : A bill to legalize beer containing 3.2 percent alcohol was presented to the senate but was again rejected keeping the country dry for a further period.
1947 : Princess Elizabeth the future Queen of England announces her engagement to Lt. Philip Mountbatten.
1960 : With the continuing cold war and the new communist revolutionary Fidel Castro taking control of Cuba which then became the focus of arguments between President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev due to Americas concern over having a communist controlled country within striking distance of the United States.
1966 : Prisoners at Maryland Penitentiary rioted setting fire to a number of buildings, the riot was stopped in the end by authorities using tear gas on the 1200 inmates.
1975 : In Morris, Minnesota, an earthquake of with a magnitude of almost five strikes the area.
1982 : 30-year-old Michael Fagan broke into Buckingham Palace morning and spent 10 minutes talking with Queen Elizabeth II in her bedroom before being arrested inside the palace at 3 a.m. Major questions were asked on how he evaded 43 soldiers, 24 police, 350 palace staff members, dog patrols, surveillance cameras, electronic listening devices and other equipment.
1991 : South Africa is readmitted into the Olympics after 20 years, they were expelled from the IOC in 1970 because of apartheid policies of racial segregation.
1995 : The Grateful Dead played their last concert including the lead guitarist Jerry Garcia, at Soldier Field in Chicago.
1996 : A family is attacked in the small English village of Nonington by a man wielding a hammer on their way home, he then bludgeoned them one by one. One daughter Josie 9 years old was the sole survivor of the vicious assault. Michael Stone was arrested 12 months later and charged with the murder of Dr. Lin Russell and her daughter Megan.
1998 : A magnitude 5.9 Earthquake strikes the Portuguese Azores killing at least 10 with many more still missing in the rubble. The Portuguese government has reacted quickly sending medical supplies, portable generators, rescue workers with sniffer dogs, and 100’s of tents for temporary sleeping accommodation.
2000 : Pete Sampras wins his seventh and final Wimbledon singles title, tying the record with William Renshaw for men at the All England Club. He had won on 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000.
2003 : The ferry “MV Nasrin-1” travelling from Dhaka, to Lalmohan hits strong winds and high seas causing the ferry to overturn (it is also believed the ferry was overloaded with passengers and cargo) making it more unstable. At least 500 are believed to have drowned in the strong currents and 200 are rescued.
2004 : A Senate Intelligence Committee report concluded the CIA had provided unfounded assessments of the threat posed by Iraq which the Bush administration used to justify for invasion of Iraq.
2007 : The plane manufacturer Boeing showed its plans for its new environmentally friendly airplane the 787 Dreamliner, on this day. This marks the first newly designed jet from the company for twelve years. The plane was said to be composed of more carbon fiber than aluminum and would produce twenty percent less carbon dioxide than other planes.
2008 : In an attack on the United States consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, a total of six people were killed on this day. The attacks were linked to an Islamic fundamentalist group by the name of the Great Eastern Islamic Raiders.
2011 : Tens of thousands of people gathered in Juba to witness the raising of the flag of the newly formed South Sudan at an independence ceremony. The new president of the new nation, Salva Kiir, signed the constitution and took his oath of office at the ceremony. South Sudan’s formation follows decades of conflict with its Northern neighbor Sudan, which became the first country to recognize its independence in an official manner. Sudan’s president and the UN chief were among onlookers at the ceremony.
2012 : North Korea’s new leader Kim Jong-Un was pictured with a mystery woman at several events leading many to speculate that was married. Later in the month North Korean media confirmed that Ri Sol-ju, a North Korean singer, was in fact Kim Jong-Un’s wife. It was never confirmed if the woman who had been seen with him in earlier pictures was the same woman as his wife.
Very informative