Today:
619 – The Avars lift the siege of Constantinople, ending their attempt to capture the city.
1410 – The Peace of Bicêtre is signed, ending the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War in France.
1570 – A tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast of Holland, killing thousands.
1783 – General George Washington delivers his *Farewell Address* to the Continental Army near Princeton, New Jersey.
1868 – Time zone system is formally adopted in New Zealand.
1895 – The first organized automobile race in the United States is held in Chicago, won by Frank Duryea.
1917 – The Balfour Declaration is issued, expressing British support for a “national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine.
1930 – Haile Selassie is crowned emperor of Ethiopia.
1947 – Howard Hughes pilots the maiden flight of the *Spruce Goose*, the largest fixed-wing aircraft ever built.
1983 – President Ronald Reagan signs a bill establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday in the United States.
Today!
Post your best pictures, memes,
videos, or whatever