Napoleon's abdication at Fontainebleau
On this day in 1814, during the Napoleonic wars, Napoleon was facing an invasion of France by forces bent on his overthrow and, pressed by his own officers, abdicated unconditionally at Fontainebleau.

Launch of first space shuttle
On this day in 1981, NASA launched the first space shuttle, Columbia, which was designed to orbit Earth, transport people and cargo to and from orbiting spacecraft, and glide to a runway landing on its return to Earth.

1997: Tiger Woods wins Masters at 21
Golfing sensation Tiger Woods wins the US Masters, the youngest player ever to do so.

2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland began sending ash plumes into the skies, disrupting air traffic for days across northern and central Europe.

1955 American fast-food pioneer Ray Kroc opened the first McDonald's franchise, launching an enterprise that would eventually become the world's largest fast-food chain, in Des Plaines, Illinois.

Harriet Quimby's flight across the English Channel
On this day in 1912, American aviator Harriet Quimby became the first woman to fly across the English Channel, guiding her French Blériot monoplane through heavy overcast from Dover, England, to Hardelot, France.

Canada Act proclaimed
The Canada Act, also known as the Constitution Act, took effect on this day in 1982, establishing certain individual rights, preserving parliamentary supremacy, and making Canada a wholly independent, fully sovereign state.

The midnight ride of Paul Revere
Paul Revere, a renowned silversmith, is better remembered as a folk hero of the American Revolution who this night in 1775 made a dramatic ride on horseback to warn Boston area residents of an imminent British attack.

American Revolution begun
Launched this day in 1775 with the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the American Revolution was an effort by 13 British colonies in North America (with help from France, Spain, and the Netherlands) to win their independence.

1972: Apollo 16 safely on Moon after engine crisis
The Apollo 16 manned mission to the Moon lands after a seven-hour crisis which nearly aborts the mission.

1509 With the death of Henry VII, his eldest surviving son assumed the British throne as Henry VIII.

1994 Former U.S. president Richard M. Nixon, who was the first American president to resign from office, died.

2005 The first video—which was of YouTube cofounder Jawed Karim's visit to the San Diego Zoo—was uploaded on the YouTube Web site; approximately one year later the site had some 100 million videos

1990: Hubble telescope takes off for space
The space shuttle Discovery takes off, carrying the revolutionary Hubble Telescope into orbit high above the Earth's atmosphere.

1915 The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landed at Gallipoli in western Turkey during the Dardanelles Campaign of World War I.