Today:
868 – The Diamond Sutra, the world’s oldest known printed book, is dated in China.
1745 – French forces defeat the British at the Battle of Fontenoy during the War of the Austrian Succession.
1792 – The Columbia River is named by American captain Robert Gray, who becomes the first recorded European to sail into it.
1812 – British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated in the House of Commons by John Bellingham.
1858 – Minnesota is admitted as the 32nd U.S. state.
1927 – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is founded in Los Angeles.
1949 – Israel is admitted to the United Nations.
1960 – Israeli agents capture Adolf Eichmann in Argentina.
1995 – More than 170 countries agree to extend the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty indefinitely.
1997 – IBM’s Deep Blue defeats world chess champion Garry Kasparov in a six-game match.