On this day in 1815, Mount Tambora in Indonesia began one of the most violent volcanic eruptions in recorded history, killing at least 71,000 people, and affecting worldwide temperatures for the next two years.
On this day in 1858, Big Ben, the bell in the Palace of Westminster's clock tower in London, was cast after the original bell had cracked during testing.
On this day in 1959, Crown Prince Akihito, the future Emperor of Japan, wedded Michiko, the first commoner to marry into the Japanese Imperial Family.