1138: Earthquake in Aleppo, Syria, kills an estimated 230,000 people
1634: Burchardi flood, known as the second “Grote Mandrenke,” kills about 15,000 in North Friesland, Denmark, and Germany
1737: An earthquake is reported to have killed 300,000 and destroyed half of Calcutta in India, now thought to have been an exaggerated account of a hurricane that claimed 3,000 of the city’s estimated 20,000 residents [1]
1797: Battle of Camperdown: British North Sea fleet led by Admiral Adam Duncan decisively defeats a Dutch fleet led by Vice-Admiral Jan de Winter, capturing eleven Dutch ships
1945: Chinese Civil War begins between the Kuomintang government led by Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong’s Communist Party
1945: First man-made object to escape the atmosphere (WAC Corporal) is fired from White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, reaching 235,000 feet
1962: Second Vatican Council (21st ecumenical) is convened by Pope John XXIII
1986: Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev open talks at a summit in Reykjavik, Iceland
Source: Onthisday.com
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