24 June 1869

A Thursday in history

Weekday

Thursday

Season

Summer (N. Hemisphere)

Century

19th century

Records

437

  1. 2021

    A portion of a 12-story condominium building collapsed (aftermath pictured) in Surfside, Florida, United States, killing 98 people and injuring 11 others.

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  2. 2010

    Julia Gillard was sworn in as the first female prime minister of Australia after incumbent Kevin Rudd declined to contest a leadership spill in the Labor Party.

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  3. 2010

    John Isner defeated Nicolas Mahut at the Wimbledon Championships, concluding the longest match in tennis history, which lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes over three days.

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  4. 1989

    Following the Tiananmen Square massacre, the 13th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party appointed Jiang Zemin as general secretary in place of Zhao Ziyang.

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  5. 1943

    Amid racial tensions, U.S. Army military police shot and killed a black serviceman after a confrontation at a pub in Bamber Bridge, England.

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  6. 1940

    Second World War: The British Army carried out Operation Collar, its first commando raid into German-occupied France.

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  7. 1939

    The first of the Thai cultural mandates was issued, officially changing the country's name from Siam to Thailand.

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  8. 1937

    The U.S. Navy's first two fast battleships, North Carolina and Washington, of the North Carolina class, were respectively ordered from the New York and Philadelphia Naval Shipyards.

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  9. 1932

    A group of military officers and civilians engineered a bloodless coup in Siam, ending the absolute rule of the Chakri dynasty.

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  10. 1880

    "O Canada", the present-day national anthem of Canada, was first performed in Quebec City during a Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day banquet.

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  11. 1812

    Napoleonic Wars: Led by Napoleon, the French Grande Armée crossed the Neman, beginning their invasion of Russia.

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  12. 1724

    On the Feast of St. John the Baptist, Bach led the first performance of Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam, BWV 7, the third cantata of his chorale cantata cycle.

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  13. 1717

    The first Grand Lodge of Freemasonry, the Premier Grand Lodge of England, was founded in London.

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  14. 1559

    The Book of Common Prayer, a major component of the Elizabethan religious settlement, was introduced as the liturgy of the Church of England through the Act of Uniformity 1558.

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  15. 1374

    An outbreak of dancing mania, in which crowds of people danced themselves to exhaustion, began in Aachen (in present-day Germany) before spreading to other parts of Europe.

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  16. 1340

    Hundred Years' War: The English fleet commanded by Edward III almost completely destroyed the French fleet at the Battle of Sluys.

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  17. 1314

    In the decisive battle of the First War of Scottish Independence, Scottish forces led by Robert the Bruce defeated English troops under Edward II near Bannockburn, Scotland.

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  18. 474

    Western Roman emperor Glycerius, who was not recognized by his Eastern counterpart Leo I, was forced to abdicate.

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Photo archive

24 historic images from this day — tap to open the gallery.

What was life like?

Prices, jobs, food, music and everyday routine — the world as it felt to live in.

Sources & fact check

Every claim is traced to primary sources, archives, universities and the press — with an explicit confidence rating. Dossiers are generated once and cached permanently.