Today:
55 BCE: Julius Caesar invades Britain for the first time.
1346: The Battle of Crécy occurs during the Hundred Years’ War, with England defeating France.
1542: Francis Xavier reaches Japan, starting a wave of Christian missionary activity in the country.
1768: Captain James Cook sets sail from England on the ship *Endeavour* on his first voyage of exploration.
1789: The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is approved by France’s National Constituent Assembly.
1883: The eruption of Krakatoa begins, leading to one of the most violent volcanic events in recorded history.
1920: The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is certified, granting women the right to vote.
1957: The Soviet Union announces the successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
1978: Cardinal Albino Luciani is elected as Pope John Paul I.
2012: Voyager 1 spacecraft, launched by NASA, enters interstellar space, becoming the first human-made object to do so.