Andrew Johnson, future 17th president of the United States, is born (1808), and Mongolia breaks away from Qing rule (1911). Born on this day: Andrew Johnson, Jon Voight and Elizabeth. Died: Jimmy Carter, Pelé and Thomas Malthus.
32 events, 44 births and 51 deaths on this date.
Born into poverty in North Carolina, Johnson never attended school yet rose to the presidency after Lincoln's assassination. His term was dominated by a bitter clash with Congress, ending in impeachment.
Mathew Brady, Retouched by Mmxx · Public domainMongolia cast off Qing dynasty rule and placed the eighth Jebtsundamba Khutughtu, a Buddhist religious leader, on the throne as Khagan. The move came as the Qing empire fell apart, though full independence would take another decade to secure.
France's parliament passed a law giving the ground where British war dead lay to Britain as a gift from the French people. It settled the question of who owned the plots, which were tended as permanent memorials.
Seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher was left with a severe head injury after a skiing accident. The news shocked a sport that knew him as one of its most decorated drivers, and his condition became a long-running public concern.
At Caltech, Richard Feynman delivered a lecture called There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom, arguing that engineers could one day build and manipulate things atom by atom. The talk is now widely credited with sketching out the idea of nanotechnology decades before the field existed.
Copyright Tamiko Thiel 1984 · CC BY-SA 3.0
The former playwright and dissident was chosen by parliament to lead a country that had just thrown off Communist rule in the Velvet Revolution. He had spent years in prison for his opposition writing, and his election marked a sharp turn away from one-party government.
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Born into poverty and self-taught, Johnson rose from tailor's apprentice to the presidency, taking office after Abraham Lincoln's assassination. His clashes with Congress over Reconstruction led to his impeachment in 1868, from which he was acquitted by a single vote.
Mathew Brady, Retouched by Mmxx · Public domain
American actor who won the Best Actor Oscar for playing a paraplegic Vietnam veteran in Coming Home. He is also remembered for Midnight Cowboy, Deliverance and Ray Donovan.
Toglenn · CC BY-SA 4.0
Elizabeth ruled Russia as empress from 1741 until her death, and is still admired for refusing to execute anyone while in power. She also commissioned lavish Baroque palaces, backed the founding of Moscow University, and resisted Prussian influence.
Vigilius Eriksen · Public domain
Carter, the 39th US president, was a Georgia peanut farmer and former naval officer who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work after leaving office. He died at 100, the longest-lived American president, after a lifetime of humanitarian work.
Department of Defense. Department of the Navy. Naval Photographic Center · Public domain
Brazilian forward who won three World Cups and was known as O Rei, the King. He died aged 82, remembered for his goals for Brazil and Santos.
Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain
Thomas Malthus was an English economist and clergyman whose 1798 Essay on the Principle of Population argued that population growth tends to outrun food supply. His gloomy warnings about famine and poverty shaped debates on economics and demography for generations.
John Linnell · CC BY 4.0
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