Nelson Mandela inaugurated as president of South Africa (1994), and Fire at Kader Toy Factory kills over 200 workers (1993). Born on this day: Fred Astaire, Heydar Aliyev and Bono. Died: Hokusai, Louis XV and Joan Crawford.
33 events, 86 births and 65 deaths on this date.
Nelson Mandela took office after South Africa's first fully representative election, ending white minority rule. He became the country's first Black president, leading a government that set out to dismantle apartheid's legacy.
Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel · CC BY-SA 2.0Nelson MandelaHear the story in ChunksOver 200 workers died when fire broke out at the Kader Toy Factory in Thailand. The disaster stands as a grim reminder of the dangers faced by factory workers in the region.
A sudden blizzard swept across the upper slopes of the world's highest mountain, and eight climbers had died by the following day. The deaths showed how quickly weather can turn lethal on Everest, even for experienced mountaineers.
Quantrill had led guerrilla raids through Missouri and Kansas, and his name was feared across the border region. Shot in the ambush, he lingered for nearly four weeks before dying of his wounds.
Elizabeth I, the Tudor queen who gave her name to the Elizabethan era, was entertained at Theobalds with an entertainment called the Hermit's Welcome. Her reign from 1558 to 1603 shaped English religion and culture for generations.
Unidentified painter · Public domain
Jacques Cartier, a Breton sailor, visits Newfoundland during voyages that later took him up the Saint Lawrence. His maps of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence later gave Europeans their first description of the region.
Théophile Hamel / After François Nicholas Riss · CC BY-SA 4.0
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Fred Astaire was an American dancer whose partnership with Ginger Rogers in ten Hollywood musicals made him the most admired screen dancer of his age. His trademark style also shaped the American Smooth style of ballroom dance.
Studio publicity still · Public domain
Heydar Aliyev was a former KGB officer who rose to lead Soviet Azerbaijan, then returned to power as its president in 1993. His rule is widely described as authoritarian, marked by rigged elections and a growing cult of personality.
Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan · CC BY 4.0
Irish singer and lead vocalist of U2, known for his soaring voice and grandiose songwriting. He has also campaigned tirelessly against extreme poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa, co-founding the ONE Campaign and Product Red.
Daniel Hazard · CC BY-SA 4.0
Hokusai was a Japanese printmaker whose woodblock series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji, including The Great Wave off Kanagawa, made him famous at home and abroad. His landscapes and natural subjects also shaped European artists such as Van Gogh and Monet.
missing name · CC0
Louis XV ruled France for almost 59 years, the second longest reign in its history. Historians mostly blame his extravagance and incompetence for draining the treasury and weakening the monarchy his grandson inherited.
Manner of Louis-Michel van Loo · Public domain
Joan Crawford was an American actress who rose from dancing in travelling theatre companies to become one of Hollywood's biggest stars. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Mildred Pierce in 1945 after a comeback that followed a long absence from the screen.
George Hurrell · Public domain
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