The first open presidential elections were held in Egypt. Current president Mubarak was first elected in 1981, he is the longest serving Egyptian President.

An earthquake of 5.9 magnitude on the Richter scale hits Athens, Greece. Over 100 people died in its wake.

Google was founded. It is estimated that as of 2006, Google runs utilizing over 450,000 servers.

Rap artist, Tupac Shakur, was shot several 5 times after attending a boxing match, he died six days after the shooting.

Reverend, Desmond Tutu, became the first black person to become the head of the Anglican Church in South Africa. He became known worldwide for his activisms against the state of apartheid.

The Monty Python, (under the name Monty Python's Flying Circus) recorded their first episode for the BBC.

Soviet, Nikita Khrushchev, became head of the Soviet Central Committee.

The air force of Nazi Germany commenced with the bombing of London, the bombing continued for 275 consecutive nights. Over 40000 people died as a result of the bombing and over a million buildings were destroyed.

American singer, Buddy Holly, was born in Lubbock, Texas. He was born Charles Hardin Holley and was one of the pioneers of the Rock and Roll music movement.

American, David Packard, was born in Pueblo, Colorado. He was an electrical engineer and businessman who co founded the Hewlett-Packard corporation.

French poet, Guillaume Apollinaire, was arrested and jailed on suspicion that he had stolen the Mona Lisa painting from the Louvre. Apollinaire was one of the architects of the surrealism movement.

Film director, Elia Kazan, was born in Istanbul. He was born Elias Kazanjoglou to Greek parents. He attended Yale University and eventually rose to become one of the most celebrated and acclaimed directors of world cinema.

The Boxer Rebellion in China ends with the signing of the Boxer Protocol. The rebellion had started in 1899 and was a movement against foreign influences in China. The rebels killed over 250 foreigners and tens of thousands of Christian Chinese nationals. The rebellion was opposed by an eight nation alliance comprised of the forces of Italy, United States, France, Austria-Hungary, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom and Russia.

Brazil declared its independence from the rule of Portugal. Then prince regent Dom Pedro I declared independence and established the independent Empire of Brazil. Thus it was more of a split of the Portuguese Empire, than a declaration of independence.

The Republic of Gran Colombia was established, with Venezuelan revolutionary, Simon Bolivar as the President. The republic consisted most of what is today consisting of present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Panama.

Queen Elizabeth I of England was born. She was the fifth and final monarch of the Tudor dynasty and her reign is referred to as the Golden Age of Elizabeth.

During the third Crusade Richard I, king of England defeated Saladin at the battle of Arsuf. Saladin was forced to retreat as a result of the battle, whose effect was most of all the shattering of the legend that Saladin was invincible.