Today:
1521 – Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés captured Tenochtitlán after a lengthy siege, bringing the Aztec Empire under Spanish control and profoundly changing the history of Mexico.
1704 – British and allied forces under the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene of Savoy defeated a Franco-Bavarian army at the Battle of Blenheim during the War of the Spanish Succession.
1792 – King Louis XVI and his family were formally imprisoned in the Temple in Paris during the French Revolution. The monarchy would be abolished the following month.
1846 – The American flag was raised over Los Angeles during the Mexican-American War as U.S. forces occupied the city. Mexican forces temporarily recaptured it the following month.
1889 – William Gray received a U.S. patent for a coin-operated telephone, an invention that helped lead to the widespread use of public pay phones.
1918 – Opha May Johnson became the first woman to enlist in the United States Marine Corps Reserve, joining during World War I.
1961 – East Germany began sealing the border between East and West Berlin with barbed wire and troops, beginning construction of what became the Berlin Wall. It would divide the city for the next 28 years.
1967 – Bonnie and Clyde, starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, premiered in the United States. The film became a landmark of the “New Hollywood” era and influenced a generation of filmmakers.
1997 – The animated television series South Park debuted on Comedy Central. Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, it became one of the longest-running animated series in American television history.
2004 – The opening ceremony of the Summer Olympic Games was held in Athens, Greece, returning the modern Olympics to the country where the ancient Games originated and where the first modern Olympics had been held in 1896.