618: Coronation of the Chinese governor Li Yuan as Emperor Gaozu of Tang, the new Emperor of China, initiating three centuries of Tang Dynasty rule over China

1812: War of 1812 begins as the US declares war against Britain

1815: Battle of Waterloo; Napoleon Bonaparte and France defeated by British forces under Duke of Wellington and Prussian troops under Field Marshall von Blücher

1928: American aviator Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean (as a passenger), landing at Burry Port, Wales

1940: Winston Churchill gives his “this was their finest hour” speech to the House of Commons urging perseverance in the war after the Dunkirk evacuation and the fall of France

Source: Onthisday.com