Today in News History

On June 21, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 533, A Byzantine expeditionary fleet under Belisarios sails from Constantinople to attack the Vandals in Africa, via Greece and Sicily. In 906, Abu Ja'far Ahmad ibn Muhammad, Saffarid emir (died 963) was born. In 1621, Execution of 27 Czech noblemen on the Old Town Square in Prague as a consequence of the Battle of White Mountain. In 1798, Irish Rebellion of 1798: The British Army defeats Irish rebels at the Battle of Vinegar Hill. In 1864, American Civil War: The Battle of Jerusalem Plank Road begins. In 1900, Boxer Rebellion: China formally declares war on the United States, Britain, Germany, France and Japan, as an edict issued from the Empress Dowager Cixi. In 1942, World War II: A Japanese submarine surfaces near the Columbia River in Oregon, firing 17 shells at Fort Stevens in one of only a handful of attacks by Japan against the United States mainland. In 1942, World War II: Tobruk falls to Italian and German forces; 33,000 Allied troops are taken prisoner. In 1970, Penn Central declares Section 77 bankruptcy in what was the largest U.S. corporate bankruptcy to date. In 2001, A federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, indicts 13 Saudis and a Lebanese in the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 American servicemen. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.