1256 – Mongol forces under the command of Hulagu Khan enter and destroy the Hashshashin stronghold at Alamut Castle (in present-day Iran) as part of their offensive on Islamic southwest Asia.
1778 – American Revolutionary War: British and French fleets clash in the Battle of St. Lucia.
1791 – The United States Bill of Rights becomes law when ratified by the Virginia General Assembly.
1905 – The Pushkin House is established in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to preserve the cultural heritage of Alexander Pushkin
1906 – The London Underground’s Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway opens.
1913 – Nicaragua becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.
1914 – World War I: The Serbian Army recaptures Belgrade from the invading Austro-Hungarian Army.
1917 – World War I: An armistice between Russia and the Central Powers is signed.
1939 – Gone with the Wind (highest inflation adjusted grossing film) receives its premiere at Loew’s Grand Theatre inAtlanta, Georgia, United States.
1941 – The Holocaust: German troops murder over 15,000 Jews at Drobytsky Yar, a ravine southeast of the city ofKharkiv, Ukraine, Soviet Union.
1942 – World War II: The Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse begins during the Guadalcanal Campaign.
1945 – Occupation of Japan/Shinto Directive: General Douglas MacArthur orders that Shinto be abolished as the state religion of Japan.
1960 – Richard Pavlick is arrested for plotting to assassinate U.S. President-Elect John F. Kennedy.
1960 – King Mahendra of Nepal suspends the country’s constitution, dissolves parliament, dismisses the cabinet, and imposes direct rule.
1961 – Adolf Eichmann is sentenced to death after being found guilty by an Israeli court of 15 criminal charges, including charges of crimes against humanity, crimes against the Jewish people, and membership of an outlawed organization.
1965 – Project Gemini: Gemini 6A, crewed by Wally Schirra and Thomas Stafford, is launched from Cape Kennedy,Florida. Four orbits later, it achieves the first space rendezvous, with Gemini 7.
1970 – Soviet spacecraft Venera 7 successfully lands on Venus. It is the first successful soft landing on another planet
1978 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter announces that the United States will recognize the People’s Republic of China and sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan
1981 – A suicide car bombing targeting the Iraqi embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, levels the embassy and kills 61 people, including Iraq’s ambassador to Lebanon. The attack is considered the first modern suicide bombing.
2001 – The Leaning Tower of Pisa reopens after 11 years and $27,000,000 spent to fortify it, without fixing its famous lean.
2005 – Introduction of the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor into USAF active service.
2009 – Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner makes its maiden flight from Seattle, Washington.