Today in History

558		The dome of the church of St. Sophia in Constantinople collapses. Its immediate rebuilding is ordered by Justinian.
1274		The Second Council of Lyons opens in France to regulate the election of the pope.
1429		Joan of Arc breaks the English siege of Orleans.
1525		The German peasants' revolt is crushed by the ruling class and church.
1763		Indian chief Pontiac begins his attack on a British fort in present-day Detroit, Michigan.
1800		Congress divides the Northwest Territory into two parts. The western part will becomes the Indiana Territory and the eastern section remains the Northwest Territory.
1824		Beethoven's "Ninth Symphony" premiers in Vienna.
1847		The American Medical Association is formed in Philadelphia.
1862		Confederate troops strike Union troops at the Battle of Eltham's Landing in Virginia.
1864		The Battle of Wilderness ends with heavy losses to both sides.
1877		Indian chief Sitting Bull enters Canada with a trail of Indians after the Battle of Little Big Horn.
1915		The German submarine U-20 torpedoes the passenger ship Lusitiania, sinking her in 21 minutes with 1,978 people on board.
1937		The German Condor Legion arrives in Spain to assist Fransico Franco's forces.
1942		In the Battle of the Coral Sea, Japanese and American navies attack each other with carrier-launched warplanes. It is the first time in the history of naval warfare where two fleets fought without seeing each other.Two crucial battles in 1942 marked the turning point of the war in the Pacific.
1943		The last major German strongholds in North Africa–Tunis and Bizerte–fall to Allied forces.
1945		Germany signs an unconditional surrender, effectively ending World War II in Europe.
1952		In Korea, Communist POWs at Koje-do riot against their American captors.
1954		French troops surrender to the Vietminh at Dien Bien Phu.
1958		Howard Johnson sets an aircraft altitude record in F-104.
1960		Leonid Brezhnev becomes president of the Soviet Union.