What Happened This Day In History
A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.
A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.
Today in History September 21
454 | In Italy, Aetius, the supreme army commander, is murdered in Ravenna by Valentinian III, the emperor of the West. |
1327 | Edward II of England is murdered by order of his wife. |
1520 | Suleiman (the Magnificent), son of Selim, becomes Ottoman sultan in Constantinople. |
1589 | The Duke of Mayenne of France is defeated by Henry IV at the Battle of Arques. |
1673 | James Needham returns to Virginia after exploring the land to the west, which would become Tennessee. |
1745 | A Scottish Jacobite army commanded by Lord George Murray routs the Royalist army of General Sir John Cope at Prestonpans. |
1863 | Union troops defeated at Chickamauga seek refuge in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which is then besieged by Confederate troops. |
1904 | Exiled Nez Perce leader Chief Joseph dies of a "broken heart". |
1915 | Stonehenge is sold by auction for 6,600 pounds sterling ($11,500) to a Mr. Chubb, who buys it as a present for his wife. He presents it to the British nation three years later. |
1929 | Fighting between China and the Soviet Union breaks out along the Manchurian border. |
1936 | The German army holds its largest maneuvers since 1914. |
1937 | The women’s airspeed record is set at 292 mph by American pilot Jacqueline Cochran. |
1937 | J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel The Hobbit is published. |
1941 | The German Army cuts off the Crimean Peninsula from the rest of the Soviet Union. |
1942 | British forces attack the Japanese in Burma. |
1944 | U.S. troops of the 7th Army, invading Southern France, cross the Meuse River. |
1978 | Two Soviet cosmonauts set a space endurance record after 96 days in space. |
1981 | Belize granted full independence from the United Kingdom. |
1989 | General Colin Powell is confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. |
1991 | Armenia granted independence from USSR. |
1993 | The Russian constitutional crisis of 1993 begins when Russian President Boris Yeltsin suspends parliament and invalidates the existing constitution. |
1999 | Earthquake in Taiwan kills more than 2,400, injures over 11,305, and causes $300 billion New Taiwan dollars ($10 billion in US dollars). |
2003 | Galileo space mission ends as the probe is sent into Jupiter’s atmosphere where it is crushed. |
Born on September 21 | |
1756 | ohn Loudon McAdam, engineer who invented and gave his name to macadamized roads. |
1866 | Charles Jean Henri Nicolle, bacteriologist, discovered that typhus fever is transmitted by body louse. |
1866 | H.G. Wells, science fiction writer whose works include The Time Machine, The Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds. |
1895 | Juan de la Cierva, aeronautical engineer who invented the autogyro. |
1902 | Allen Lake, founded Penguin Books in 1935. |
1912 | Chuck Jones, animator and director of Warner Brothers cartoons. |
1947 | Stephen King, author best known for supernatural and horror tales (The Stand, Salem’s Lot, Joyland). |
1947 | Marsha Norman, playwright (Getting Out, ‘Night Mother). |
1950 | Bill Murray, actor; won Emmy for his work on Saturday Night Live TV series; movies include Ghostbusters, Groundhog Day, Lost in Translation. |
1951 | Aslan Aliyevich Maskhadov, rebel leader widely credited for the Chechen victory in First Chechen War (1994-96); President of Chechnya (1997-99). |
1957 | Mark Levin, attorney, author; host of syndicated radio program The Mark Levin Show. |
1968 | Faith Hill, Grammy Award-winning country pop singer ("Breathe"). |
1968 | Ricki Lake, actress (China Beach TV series), producer, host of The Ricki Lake Show TV talk show for which she won a Daytime Emmy. |
1987 | Ashley and Courtney Paris, twins who played in the Women’s National Basketball Association, Ashley for the Los Angeles Sparks, Courtney for the Atlanta Dream. |
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