Historical Events
406
Vandals, Alans, and Suevi cross the frozen Rhine, beginning the invasion of the Western Roman Empire.
1687
Huguenots flee France after Louis XIV revokes the Edict of Nantes.
1759
Arthur Guinness signs a 9,000-year lease on a brewery in Dublin, founding Guinness Brewery.
1879
Thomas Edison first publicly demonstrates his incandescent light bulb in Menlo Park.
1999
The Panama Canal is fully handed over to Panama.
Famous Birthdays
1491
Jacques Cartier
French explorer who made three voyages to Canada, claiming the land for France.
1738
Charles-Cornwallis
British general who surrendered at Yorktown, ending the American Revolutionary War.
1869
Henri Matisse
French artist known for his vibrant use of color and The Dance.
1908
Simon Wiesenthal
Austrian-American Jewish writer and Nazi hunter.
1937
Anthony Hopkins
Welsh actor who won the Academy Award for The Silence of the Lambs.
