Today:
1066 – The Battle of Hastings: William the Conqueror’s Norman forces defeated King Harold II’s Anglo-Saxon army, leading to the Norman conquest of England.
1322 – Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeated King Edward II of England at the Battle of Byland, consolidating Scotland’s independence.
1586 – Mary, Queen of Scots, went on trial for conspiracy against Queen Elizabeth I of England.
1806 – Napoleon’s French forces defeated the Prussians at the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt, securing French domination of central Europe.
1912 – Theodore Roosevelt was shot in Milwaukee while campaigning for the presidency but still delivered his speech before seeking medical attention.
1926 – A. A. Milne’s *Winnie-the-Pooh* was first published in London, introducing the world to the beloved characters of the Hundred Acre Wood.
1944 – German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel committed suicide after being implicated in a plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.
1947 – Chuck Yeager became the first person to break the sound barrier, flying the Bell X-1 at supersonic speed.
1964 – Martin Luther King Jr. was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his nonviolent campaign against racial segregation in the United States.
2012 – Felix Baumgartner became the first person to break the sound barrier without an aircraft, free-falling from 128,100 feet during the Red Bull Stratos mission.