6 May 1260

A Thursday in history

Weekday

Thursday

Season

Spring (N. Hemisphere)

Century

13th century

Records

305

  1. 2023

    King Charles III and Queen Camilla were crowned at Westminster Abbey in London.

    Source
  2. 2013

    Amanda Berry escaped from the Cleveland, Ohio, home of her captor, Ariel Castro, having been held there with two other women for ten years.

    Source
  3. 2008

    British barrister Mark Saunders was shot dead by police after a five-hour siege at his home in Chelsea, London.

    Source
  4. 2004

    The final episode of the television sitcom Friends was aired.

    Source
  5. 1998

    Steve Jobs unveiled the iMac G3' personal computer.

    Source
  6. 1991

    Time magazine published the article "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" by Richard Behar criticizing the Church of Scientology, leading to years of legal conflict.

    Source
  7. 1988

    Widerøe Flight 710 crashed into the fog-covered mountain of Torghatten in Brønnøy, Norway, killing all 36 people on board.

    Source
  8. 1976

    An earthquake struck Northern Italy, killing 990 people and injuring up to 3,000.

    Source
  9. 1975

    About 100,000 Armenians gathered during a lull in fighting to mark the 60th anniversary of the Armenian genocide.

    Source
  10. 1954

    At Oxford's Iffley Road Track, English runner Roger Bannister became the first person to run the mile in under four minutes.

    Source
  11. 1942

    World War II: Japanese troops overcame fierce American and Philippine resistance to win the Battle of Corregidor.

    Source
  12. 1941

    American entertainer Bob Hope performed his first show with the United Service Organizations, beginning a 50-year involvement with them.

    Source
  13. 1937

    The German airship Hindenburg caught fire and was destroyed during an attempt to dock at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey, killing 36 people.

    Source
  14. 1930

    Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson purchased the Kent property they would transform into Sissinghurst Castle Garden.

    Source
  15. 1915

    Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition: SY Aurora, anchored in McMurdo Sound, broke loose during a gale, beginning a 312-day ordeal in the Ross Sea and Southern Ocean for her 18-man crew.

    Source
  16. 1882

    Irish civil servants Thomas Henry Burke and Lord Frederick Cavendish were stabbed to death by members of the radical Irish National Invincibles in Phoenix Park, Dublin.

    Source
  17. 1882

    U.S. president Chester A. Arthur signed the Chinese Exclusion Act into law (cartoon pictured), implementing a ban on Chinese immigration to the United States that remained for 61 years.

    Source
  18. 1801

    French Revolutionary Wars: The 32-gun Spanish frigate El Gamo was captured by the outmanned and outgunned HMS Speedy.

    Source
  19. 1782

    Construction began on the Grand Palace in Bangkok, the official residence of the king of Thailand.

    Source
  20. 1757

    English poet Christopher Smart (pictured) was admitted to St Luke's Hospital for Lunatics in London, beginning his six-year confinement in mental asylums.

    Source
  21. 1536

    Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire: Sapa Inca emperor Manco Inca Yupanqui's army began a ten-month siege of Cusco.

    Source

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.