Today in History

1419		John the Fearless is murdered at Montereau, France, by supporters of the dauphine.
1547		The Duke of Somerset leads the English to a resounding victory over the Scots at Pinkie Cleugh.
1588		Thomas Cavendish returns to England, becoming the third man to circumnavigate the globe.
1623		Lumber and furs are the first cargo to leave New Plymouth in North America for England.
1813		The nine-ship American flotilla under Oliver Hazard Perry wrests naval supremacy from the British on Lake Erie by capturing or destroying a force of six English vessels.
1846		Elias Howe patents the first practical sewing machine in the United States.
1855		Sevastopol, under siege for nearly a year, capitulates to the Allies during the Crimean War.
1861		Confederates at Carnifex Ferry, Virginia, fall back after being attacked by Union troops. The action is instrumental in helping preserve western Virginia for the Union.
1912		J. Vedrines becomes the first pilot to break the 100 m.p.h. barrier.
1914		The six-day Battle of the Marne ends, halting the German advance into France.
1923		In response to a dispute with Yugoslavia, Mussolini mobilizes Italian troops on Serb front.
1961		Jomo Kenyatta returns to Kenya from exile, during which he had been elected president of the Kenya National African Union.
1963		President John F. Kennedy federalizes Alabama's National Guard to prevent Governor George C. Wallace from using guardsmen to stop public-school desegregation.
1981		Pablo Picasso's painting Guernica is returned to Spain and installed in Madrid's Prado Museum. Picasso stated in his will that the painting was not to return to Spain until the Fascists lost power and democracy was restored.