1521 – Emperor Charles V opened the Diet of Worms. (Not as disgusting as it sounds.)
1561 - Francis Bacon was born.
1879 – The Battle of Rorke's Drift: 139 British soldiers successfully defend their garrison against an onslaught by 3 to 4 thousand Zulu warriors.
1901 – Edward VII was proclaimed King after the death of his mother, Queen Victoria.
1905 – Bloody Sunday in Saint Petersburg began the 1905 revolution.
1924 – Ramsay MacDonald became the first Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.