| 1540 | | The Society of Jesus, a religious order under Ignatius Loyola, is approved by the Pope. |
| 1669 | | The island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea falls to the Ottoman Turks after a 21-year siege. |
| 1791 | | Jews in France are granted French citizenship. |
| 1864 | |
Confederate guerrilla Bloody Bill Anderson and his
henchmen, including a teenage Jesse James, massacre 20 unarmed Union soldiers
at Centralia, Missouri. The event becomes known as the Centralia Massacre. |
| 1869 | |
Wild Bill Hickok, sheriff of Hays City, Kan., shoots
down Samuel Strawhim, a drunken teamster causing trouble. |
| 1916 | |
Constance of Greece declares war on Bulgaria. |
| 1918 | |
President Woodrow Wilson opens his fourth Liberty
Loan campaign to support men and machines for World War I. |
| 1920 | | Eight Chicago White Sox players are charged with fixing the 1919 World Series. |
| 1939 | |
Germany occupies Warsaw as Poland falls to Germany
and the Soviet Union. |
| 1942 | |
Australian forces defeat the Japanese on New Guinea
in the South Pacific. |
| 1944 | | Thousands of British troops are killed as German forces rebuff their massive effort to capture the Arnhem Bridge across the Rhine River in Holland. |
| 1950 | |
U.S. Army and Marine troops liberate Seoul, South
Korea. |
| 1956 | |
The U.S. Air Force Bell X-2, the world's fastest
and highest-flying plane, crashes, killing the test pilot. |
| 1964 | | The Warren Commission, investigating the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, issues its report, stating its conclusion that Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole gunman. |
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