1497: Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci leaves for his first voyage to the New World (disputed)

1775: Second Continental Congress convenes in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and issues paper currency for 1st time

1801: First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America (1st US foreign war)

1857: Indian mutiny against rule by the British East India Company begins with the revolt of the Sepoy soldiers in Meerut

1940: Winston Churchill succeeds Neville Chamberlain as British Prime Minister

1960: US atomic submarine USS Triton completes 1st submerged circumnavigation of the globe

1994: Nelson Mandela sworn in as South Africa’s 1st black president

Source: Onthisday.com