October 14
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1066
The famous death at the Battle of Hastings
On this day in 1066, the Battle of Hastings ended in defeat for King Harold II of England at the hands of the invading army of William, duke of Normandy. During the fighting, Harold II was allegedly struck in the eye by an arrow, a scene famously depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry. However, doubts remain about how he actually died. What is clear is that his demise secured William’s victory and ushered in the Norman Conquest.
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Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress Washington DC (LC-DIG-pcrd-2b04041); Photo Illustration Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Featured Event
U.S. Air Force
On this day in 1947, American test pilot Chuck Yeager became the first person to break the sound barrier. He flew in the secret experimental plane X-1, which was attached to a B-29 mother ship and taken to an altitude of 25,000 feet (7,600 meters). The X-1 then rocketed separately to 40,000 feet (12,000 meters).
Featured Biography
Featured Biography
Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library & Museum
Dwight D. Eisenhower, born this day in 1890, served as Supreme Allied Commander in western Europe during World War II, overseeing the Normandy Invasion in June 1944, and was elected to two terms (1953–61) as U.S. president.
Famous Birthdays
More on October 14
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
2012
Two days after arriving at Los Angeles International Airport, the space shuttle Endeavour reached its final destination, the California Space Center; its 12-mile journey through the city had required trees to be cut down and signs to be removed. [Sort fact from fiction in our space travel quiz.]
© s_bukley/Shutterstock.com
2007
The reality TV series Keeping Up with the Kardashians premiered; the show’s huge popularity helped make various family members major celebrities, notably Kim Kardashian. [How much do you know about American reality TV?]
EPA/REX/Shutterstock.com
1994
Naguib Mahfouz, the 82-year-old novelist and 1988 winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, was stabbed by Islamic militants in Cairo but survived. [Take our quiz about Nobel laureates in literature.]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1973
Prime Minister Thanom Kittikachorn of Thailand was forced to step down following huge public demonstrations. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about Thailand.]
Julian Wasser
1964
Baptist minister and social activist Martin Luther King, Jr., was named the winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace, cited for his work involving civil rights and social justice. [How much do you know about the Nobel Prize?]
Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
1944
German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, the “Desert Fox,” ended his life by drinking poison following the discovery of his connection to a conspiracy to assassinate Adolf Hitler. [Sort fact from fiction in our World War II quiz.]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1943
Some 300 Jewish laborers at Sobibor extermination camp in Nazi-occupied Poland staged a revolt, killing several SS supervisors and Ukrainian guards; many inmates died, and the camp was subsequently dismantled. [Witness the horrors of the Holocaust committed in Nazi concentration camps, as seen by Allied forces when they liberated survivors.]
Courtesy of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives, Brandeis University Library
1936
During the Spanish Civil War, the first group of 500 trainees for the International Brigades arrived in Albacete, Spain. [Test your knowledge of European history.]
© Buena Vista/Everett Collection
1926
English humorist A.A. Milne published Winnie-the-Pooh, a children’s book featuring the adventures of a honey-loving bear and his friends, including Eeyore and Piglet. [Take our quiz about classic children’s books.]
© Jenny Solomon/Shutterstock.com
1908
The Chicago Cubs beat the Detroit Tigers to win the team’s second World Series championship; they did not claim their third title until 2016. [Test your knowledge of baseball.]
© Photos.com/Jupiterimages
1806
French troops under Napoleon smashed the outdated Prussian army led by Charles William Ferdinand at the Battle of Jena. [How much do you know about Napoleon Bonaparte?]
© Photos.com—PHOTOS.com>>/Getty Images
1644
English Quaker leader and advocate of religious freedom William Penn, who oversaw the founding of the American Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, was born. [Test your knowledge of early America.]