1279 BC: Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great becomes Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt’s 19th Dynasty

1578: Martin Frobisher sails from Harwich, England, to Frobisher Bay, Canada. Eventually mines fools gold, famously used to pave the streets of London.

1902: Treaty of Vereeniging is signed, ending the Second Boer War and making Transvaal and the Orange Free State self-governing British colonies

1910: Union of South Africa declares independence from the United Kingdom

1916: Battle of Jutland: Largest naval battle of World War I between the British Grand Fleet and the German High Seas Fleet, 8,645 sailors are killed in an inconclusive battle but strategic British victory. German fleet never puts to sea again in WWI.

1935: A 7.7 magnitude earthquake destroys Quetta in Balochistan, British India (now Pakistan), killing an estimated 40,000 people

1947: Communists seize power in Hungary

1970: 7.75 Ancash earthquake off the coast of Peru kills 66,000-70,000 people and triggers the world’s deadliest avalanche

Source: Onthisday.com