313: The Edict of Milan is signed by Constantine the Great granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire.
1373: Anglo-Portuguese Alliance between England and Portugal is the oldest alliance in the world that is still in force.
1774: Rhode Island becomes the first of Britain's North American colonies to ban the importation of slaves.
1886: Fire devastates much of Vancouver, British Columbia.
1898: The Yukon Territory is formed, with Dawson chosen as its capital.
1922: Longest attack of hiccups begins: Charlie Osborne gets the hiccups and continues for 68 years, dies 11 months after it stops.
1956: After 72 years, Britain gives up Suez Canal to Egyptian control.
1966: The United States Supreme Court rules in Miranda v. Arizona that the police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them.
1970: "The Long and Winding Road" becomes The Beatles' last U.S. number one song.
1977: Convicted Martin Luther King Jr. assassin James Earl Ray is recaptured after escaping from prison.
1983: Pioneer 10 becomes the first man-made object to leave the central solar system when it passes beyond the orbit of Neptune.
1994: A jury in Anchorage, Alaska, blames recklessness by Exxon and Captain Joseph Hazelwood for the Exxon Valdez disaster, allowing victims of the oil spill to seek $15 billion in damages.