461 Proclamation of Flavius Libius Severus Serpentius Augustus as Roman Emperor in the West (Nov. 19, 461-Aug. 15, 465)

461 Consecration of Pope St. Hilary I (461-468)

636 Battle of al-Qadisiyyah: The Moslem Arabs defeat the Persians, leading to the collapse of the Sassanid Empire

1492 Columbus lands in Puerto Rico

1521 Prospero Colonna captures Milan from the French by a coup de main

1794 Jay's Treaty, between the US and Britain, resolves some of the issues remaining from the Revolutionary War

1809 Battle of Ocaña: The French defeat the Spanish

1861 Skirmish at Wirt Court House, Va

1863 Abraham Lincoln makes a few remarks at Gettysburg

1912 Balkan Wars: The Serbians captured Bitola, ending five centuries of Ottoman rule in Macedonia

1912 HM Battlecruiser 'New Zealand' is commissioned in the Royal Navy

1916 Balkan Front: The Allies capture Bitola, Macedonia, from the Bulgarians, who had held it for about a year

1940 Belgian King Leopold III visits Adolf Hitler

1941 HMAS 'Sydney' and the German merchant cruiser 'Kormoran' clash off the western coast of Australia, both sinking, 'Sydney' with no survivors; wrecks located, 2008

1942 Operation Saturn: The Red Army initiates a counteroffensive at Stalingrad

1943 Following an attempted uprising, the Nazis liquidate the Janowska concentration camp near Lemberg, at least 6,000 Jews are murdered

1944 Battle of Vianden: Heavily outnumbered Luxembourg resistance fighters hold Vianden and its castle against the SS, who retreat

1944 New Guinea: U.S. troops land on Asia Island

1950 General of the Army D.D. Eisenhower becomes the supreme commander of NATO

1952 North American F-86 Sabre sets world aircraft speed record, 1124 kph

1969 Apollo 12, Charles Conrad & Alan Bean make the second lunar landing

1999 USCG Capt Earl R. Fox, Public Health Service, retires; last WW II veteran on active service