A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.
457: A Thracian officer by the name of Leo is proclaimed as emperor of the East by the army general,
Aspar, on the death of the Emperor Marcian.
1668: The Netherlands, England and Sweden conclude an alliance directed against Louis XIV of France.
1783: The Siege of Gibraltar, which was pursued by the Spanish and the French since July 24, 1779, is
finally lifted.
1818: The first successful U.S. educational magazine, Academician, begins publication in New York City.
1882: American pugilist John L. Sullivan becomes the last of the bare-knuckle world heavyweight
champions with his defeat of Paddy Ryan in Mississippi City.
1913: The Turks lose 5,000 men in a battle with the Bulgarian army in Gallipoli.
1915: Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg moves on the Russians at Masurian Lakes.
1917: The British steamer California is sunk off the coast of Ireland by a German U-boat.
1926: Negro History Week, originated by Carter G. Woodson, is observed for the first time.
1928: The United States signs an arbitration treaty with France.
1931: Amelia Earhart weds George Putnam in Connecticut.
1944: The Germans launch a second attack against the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. They hope to
push the Allies back into the sea.
1950: The United States recognizes Vietnam under the leadership of Emperor Bao Dai, not Ho Chi Minh
who is recognized by the Soviets.
1963: The Mona Lisa is put on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
1964: The British band The Beatles are greeted by 25,000 fans upon their arrival in the United States at
JFK Airport.
1965: U.S. jets hit Dong Hoi guerrilla base in reprisal for the Viet Cong raids.
1968: The North Vietnamese use 11 Soviet-built light tanks to overrun the U.S. Special Forces camp at
Lang Vei at the end of an 18-hour long siege.
1978: Ethiopia mounts a counterattack against Somalia.
1983: Iran opens an invasion in the southeast of Iraq.
Born on February 7
1477: Sir Thomas More, English statesman and writer; famous for Utopia. Later executed for refusing to
accept Henry VIII as the head of the church.
1804: John Deere, farm equipment manufacturer
1812: Charles Dickens, prolific English novelist; his stories reflected life in Victorian England. Some of his
more famous works include Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol and A Tale of Two Cities.
1837: Sir James Murray, Scottish lexicographer and editor.
1867: Laura Ingalls Wilder, author; her works were the basis for television’s Little House on the Prairie.
1885: Sinclair Lewis, novelist of satire and realism. (Arrowsmith, Elmer Gantry).
1905: Ulf Svante von Euler, Swedish physiologist.
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