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1487 - Battle of Stoke Field, the last dying breath of the Wars of the Roses.

1586 - Mary Queen of Scots recognizes Philip II of Spain as her heir.

1745 - British troops take Cape Breton Island, which is now part of Nova Scotia, Canada.

1745 - Sir William Pepperell captures the French Fortress Louisbourg in Louisbourg, Nova Scotia during the War of the Austrian Succession.

1746 - War of Austrian Succession: Austria and Sardinia defeat a Franco-Spanish army at the Battle of Piacenza.

1755 - French and Indian War: French surrender Fort Beauséjour to the British, leading to the expulsion of the Acadians.

1774 - Formation of Harrodsburg, Kentucky.

1779 - Spain declares war on the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the siege of Gibraltar begins.

1815 - Battle of Ligny and Battle of Quatre Bras, two days before Waterloo.

1836 - Formation of the London Working Men's Association begins the Chartist Movement.

1846 - The Papal conclave of 1846 concludes. Pope Pius IX is elected pope, beginning the longest reign in the history of the papacy (not counting St. Peter).

1858 - Abraham Lincoln's House Divided speech in Springfield, Illinois.

1858 - Battle of Morar, during the Indian Mutiny.

1871 - University Tests Act allows students to enter the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Durham without religious tests, except for courses in theology.

1884 - The first roller coaster in the United States begins operation at Coney Island, New York.

1891 - John Abbott becomes Canada's third prime minister.

1903 - Ford Motor Company incorporates.

1903 - Roald Amundsen commences first east-west navigation of the Northwest Passage by leaving Oslo, Norway.

1904 - Eugen Schauman assassinates Nikolai Bobrikov, Governor-General of Finland.

1911 - A 772 gram stony meteorite struck earth near Kilbourn, Columbia County, Wisconsin damaging a barn.

1915 - Foundation of the British Women's Institute

1922 - General election in Irish Free State: large majority to pro-Treaty Sinn Féin.

1924 - Whampoa Military Academy is founded.

1925 - The most famous Young Pioneer camp of the USSR, Artek established.

1930 - Sovnarkom establishes decree time in the USSR.

1940 - World War II: Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain becomes Premier of Vichy France.

1940 - A Communist government is installed in Lithuania.

1948 - The storming of the cockpit of the Miss Macao passenger seaplane, operated by a subsidiary of the Cathay Pacific Airways, marks the first skyjacking of a commercial plane.

1955 - Pope Pius XII excommunicates Juan Perón.

1960 - Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho opens in New York.

1961 - Rudolf Nureyev defects at Le Bourget airport in Paris.

1963 - Soviet Space Program: Vostok 6 Mission, Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova becomes the first woman in space.

1964 - Leonid Brezhnev becomes president of the USSR.

1967 - Monterey Pop Festival begins; Monterey, California.

1972 - Red Army Faction member Ulrike Meinhof is captured by police in Langenhagen.

1972 - Largest single-site hydro-electric power project in Canada starts at Churchill Falls, Labrador.

1976 - Apartheid: A non-violent march by 15,000 students in Soweto, South Africa turns into days of rioting when police open fire on the crowd and kill 566 children.

1983 - Yuri Andropov becomes president of the USSR.

1989 - Historic reburial of Imre Nagy, the former Hungarian Prime Minister in Budapest.

1994 - A Chinese operated Tupolev TU-154 crashes 10 minutes after takeoff killing 160.

1996 - First round of voting in the Russian presidential election.

1997 - Dairat Labguer massacre in Algeria; some 50 people killed.

1999 - Thabo Mbeki elected President of South Africa.

2000 - Israel completely fulfills UN Security Council Resolution 425 (calling on Israel to completely withdraw from Lebanon)

2001 - George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin meet in Brdo pri Kranju, Slovenia.

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1139 - Emperor Konoe of Japan (d. 1155)

1313 - Giovanni Boccaccio, Italian writer (d. 1375)

1514 - John Cheke, English classical scholar (d. 1557)

1583 - Axel Oxenstierna, Swedish statesman (d. 1654)

1591 - Joseph Solomon Delmedigo, Italian physician, mathematician, and music theorist (d. 1655)

1606 - Arthur Chichester, 1st Earl of Donegall, Irish soldier (d. 1675)

1612 - Murad IV, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1640)

1613 - John Cleveland, English poet (d. 1658)

1633 - Jean de Thévenot, French traveler and scientist (d. 1667)

1644 - Henrietta Anne Stuart, Princess of Scotland, England and Ireland and Duchess of Orléans (d. 1670)

1713 - Meshech Weare, Governor of New Hamphsire (d. 1786)

1723 - Adam Smith, Scottish philosopher and economist

1738 - Mary Katharine Goddard, American printer and publisher (d. 1816)

1792 - John Linnell, English artist (d. 1882)

1792 - Sir Thomas Mitchell, Australian explorer (d. 1855)

1801 - Julius Plücker, German mathematician and physicist (d. 1868)

1806 - Edward Davy, English physician, chemist, and inventor (d. 1885)

1813 - Otto Jahn, German archaeologist (d. 1869)

1820 - Athanase Coquerel, French protestant preacher (d. 1875)

1826 - Constantin von Ettingshausen, Austrian geologist and botanist (d. 1897)

1829 - Geronimo, Apache leader (d. 1909)

1836 - Wesley Merritt, American soldier (d. 1910)

1837 - Ernst Laas, German philosopher (d. 1885)

1838 - Cushman Davis, American politician (d. 1900)

1840 - Ernst Otto Schlick, German engineer (d. 1913)

1858 - King Gustaf V of Sweden (d. 1950)

1874 - Arthur Meighen, ninth Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1960)

1880 - Otto Eisenschiml, Austrian-American chemist and historian (d. 1963)

1888 - Alexander Alexandrovich Friedman, Russian physicist (d. 1925)

1890 - Stan Laurel, British-born actor and comedian (d. 1965)

1894 - Norman Kerry, American actor (d. 1956)

1896 - Murray Leinster, American author (d. 1976)

1897 - Elaine Hammerstein, American actress (d. 1948)

1897 - Georg Wittig, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1987)

1902 - Barbara McClintock, American geneticist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1992)

1902 - George Gaylord Simpson, American paleontologist (d. 1984)

1903 - Helen Traubel, American soprano (d. 1972)

1907 - Jack Albertson, American actor (d. 1981)

1909 - Archie Fairley Carr, biologist (d. 1987)

1910 - Juan Velasco, President of Peru (d. 1977)

1912 - Enoch Powell, British politician (d. 1998)

1915 - John Tukey, American statistician

1916 - Hank Luisetti, baseball player (d. 2002)

1917 - Katharine Graham, American publisher (d. 2001)

1917 - Irving Penn, American photographer

1920 - José López Portillo, President of Mexico (d. 2004)

1920 - John Howard Griffin, American writer (d. 1980)

1923 - Ron Flockhart, Scottish racing driver (d. 1962)

1924 - Faith Domergue, American actor (d. 1999)

1927 - Tom Graveney, English cricketer

1927 - Herbert Lichtenfeld, German author and playwright (d. 2001)

1929 - Ramon Bieri, American actor (d. 2001)

1930 - Vilmos Zsigmond, Hungarian/American cinematographer

1934 - Dame Eileen Atkins, English actress

1934 - William Forsyth Sharpe, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate

1934 - Elvira Vinogradova, Russian TV persona.

1934 - Roger Neilson, NHL coach (d. 2003)

1935 - Jim Dine, American artist

1936 - Joan Van Ark, actress, "Dallas" and "Knots Landing"

1937 - Erich Segal, American author

1938 - James Bolam, English actor

1938 - Joyce Carol Oates, American novelist

1940 - Neil Goldschmidt, Governor of Oregon

1941 - Lamont Dozier, American record company executive

1941 - Aldrich Ames, CIA officer and spy for the Soviet Union

1942 - Giacomo Agostini, Italian motorcyclist

1942 - Eddie Levert, American singer (The O'Jays)

1945 - Lucienne Robillard, Canadian politician

1946 - Derek Sanderson, Professional ice hockey player

1947 - -minu, Swiss columnist and writer

1949 - Paulo César Lima, Brazilian football player

1951 - Roberto Durán, Panamanian boxer

1952 - George Papandreou, junior, Greek politician

1952 - Gino Vannelli, Canadian singer and songwriter

1953 - Ian Mosley, British drummer (Marillion)

1955 - Laurie Metcalf, American actress

1958 - Jóhannes Helgason, Icelandic guitarist (Þeyr)

1960 - Peter Sterling, Australian rugby player

1961 - Steve Larmer, Canadian ice hockey player

1962 - Wally Joyner, American baseball player

1962 - Arnold Vosloo, South-African actor

1963 - Jim Fullington, American professional wrestler

1966 - Jan Zelezný, Czech athlete

1967 - John Franklin, American actor

1969 - Mark Crossley, Welsh footballer

1970 - Phil Mickelson, American golfer

1970 - James Shaffer, American guitarist (KoЯn)

1970 - Cobi Jones, American football (soccer) player

1970 - Clifton Collins Jr., American actor

1971 - Derek R. Audette, Canadian artist and poet

1971 - Tupac Shakur, American rapper (d. 1996)

1972 - Hank von Helvete, Norwegian musician

1972 - John Cho, Korean-American actor

1976 - Edwin Tenorio, Ecuadorian footballer

1977 - Kerry Wood, baseball player

1978 - Daniel Brühl, German actor

1978 - Dainius Zubrus, Lithuanian ice hockey player

1980 - Joey Yung, Hong Kong singer

1980 - Nehir Erdoğan, Turkish actress

1981 - Benjamin Becker, German tennis player

1981 - Ben Kweller, American singer song writer

1982 - Matt Costa, American singer song writer

1984 - Rick Nash, Canadian hockey player

1986 - Rodrigo Defendi Brazilian footballer.

1987 - Diana DeGarmo, American singer

1987 - Per Ciljan Skjelbred, Norwegian footballer

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1216 - Pope Innocent III

1397 - Philip of Artois, Count of Eu, French soldier (b. 1358)

1464 - Roger van der Weyden, Flemish painter (b. 1399)

1468 - Jean Le Fevre, Burgundian chronicler (b. ca. 1395)

1622 - Alexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline, Chancellor of Scotland (b. 1555)

1623 - Christian, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Wolfenbüttel, German protestant military leader (b. 1599)

1666 - Richard Fanshawe, English poet, translator, and diplomat (b. 1608)

1671 - Stenka Razin, Cossack rebel leader (executed)

1707 - Marie d'Orleans-Longueville, Duchess de Nemours, sovereign princess of Neuchâtel and writer (b. 1625)

1722 - John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, English general (b. 1650)

1749 - Johann Baptista Ruffini, Italian trader (b. 1672)

1752 - Giulio Alberoni, Spanish cardinal (b. 1664)

1752 - Joseph Butler, English philosopher (b. 1692)

1777 - Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset, French poet and dramatist (b. 1709)

1778 - Konrad Ekhof, German actor (b. 1720)

1779 - Sir Francis Bernard, Governor of New Jersey and Massachusetts (b. 1712)

1804 - Johann Hiller, German composer (b. 1728)

1824 - Charles-François Lebrun, duc de Plaisance, Third Consul of France (b. 1739)

1849 - Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette, German theologian (b. 1780)

1850 - William Lawson explorer of New South Wales, Australia (b. 1774)

1855 - John Gorrie, American physician (b. 1803)

1858 - John Snow, English obstetrician (b. 1813)

1866 - Joseph Méry French poet (b. 1798)

1869 - Charles Sturt, English explorer (b. 1795)

1872 - Norman MacLeod, Scottish clergyman (b. 1812)

1878 - Crawford Long, American physician (b. 1815)

1881 - Sir Josiah Mason, English manufacturer (b. 1795)

1885 - Wilhelm Camphausen, German painter (b. 1818)

1902 - Ernst Schröder, German mathematician (b. 1841)

1925 - Chittaranjan Das, Indian patriot and freedom fighter (b. 1870)

1925 - Emmett Hardy, American musician (b. 1903)

1928 - Dr. Mark Keppel, County Superintendent of Los Angeles County Schools from 1902-1928 (b. 1867)

1929 - Bramwell Booth, the 2nd General of The Salvation Army (b. 1856)

1930 - Elmer Ambrose Sperry, American inventor (b. 1860)

1939 - Chick Webb, Jazz drummer and big band leader (b. 1905)

1940 - DuBose Heyward, American writer (b. 1885)

1944 - Marc Bloch, French historian (executed) (b. 1886)

1953 - Margaret Bondfield, English politician and feminist (b. 1873)

1955 - Ozias Leduc, Quebec painter (b. 1864)

1958 - Imre Nagy, Prime Minister of Hungary (b. 1895)

1959 - George Reeves, American actor (b. 1914)

1961 - Marcel Junod, Swiss physician (b. 1904)

1969 - Harold Alexander, British military commander (b. 1891)

1970 - Heino Eller, Estonian composer (b. 1887)

1970 - Brian Piccolo, American football player (b. 1943)

1971 - Lord Reith, British broadcast executive (b. 1889)

1977 - Wernher von Braun, German-born rocket scientist (b. 1912)

1979 - Nicholas Ray, American film director (b. 1911)

1979 - Ignatius Kutu Acheamphong, Ghanian dictator (b. 1931)

1981 - Jule Gregory Charney, meteorologist (b. 1917)

1982 - James Honeyman-Scott, British guitarist and songwriter (The Pretenders) (b. 1956)

1984 - Lew Andreas, American basketball coach (b. 1895)

1986 - Maurice Duruflé, French composer and organist (b. 1902)

1988 - Kim Milford, American actor (b. 1951)

1993 - Lindsay Hassett, Australian cricketer (b. 1913)

1994 - Kristen Pfaff, American bass guitarist (with Hole) (b. 1967)

1996 - Mel Allen, baseball announcer (b. 1913)

1996 - Curt Swan, American comic book artist (b. 1920)

1999 - David Edward Sutch British musician (b. 1940)

2000 - Empress Nagako of Japan (b. 1903)

2003 - Georg Henrik von Wright, Finnish-Swedish philosopher (b. 1916)

2003 - Pierre Bourgault, French Canadian politician (b. 1934)

2004 - Thanom Kittikachorn, Prime Minister of Thailand (b. 1912)

2005 - Enrique Laguerre, Puerto Rican writer (b. 1906)

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South Africa - Youth Day.

Bloomsday, in honour of Leopold Bloom, the hero of James Joyce's Ulysses set on 16 June, 1904.

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Liturgical feasts
Feast of the Roman Catholic Church

Saint Benno
Saint John Regis, patron of medical social workers.
Saint Julitta and Saint Quiricus
Saint Lutgart of Tongeren (died 1246, patron saint of the Flemish National Movement)

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See also

16 June Movement