On this day in 1643, Abel Janszoon Tasman, Dutch mariner and explorer who was the first European to discover Tasmania and New Zealand in 1642, discovered the Fiji Islands in the Pacific.
On this day in 1778, Britain declared war on France.
On this day in 1819, the East India Company, represented by Stamford Raffles, set up its settlement at Singapore.
On this day in 2000, Tarja Halonen became the first female president of Finland.
On this day in 2011, the Philippine government deported 14 Taiwanese fraud suspects to China, sparking strong protests from Taiwan.