On this day in 1066: William the Conqueror and his army set sail from the mouth of the River Somme, beginning the Norman conquest of England.
On this day in 1821: Mexico gains its independence from Spain.
On this day in 1928: The Republic of China is recognized by the United States.
On this day in 1938: Queen Elizabeth, the world's largest passenger liner, is launched at Clydebank in Scotland.
On this day in 1946: The first annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank is held in Washington, D.C.
On this day in 1959: Nearly 5,000 people die on the main Japanese island of Honshu as the result of a typhoon.
On this day in 2008: CNSA astronaut Zhai Zhigang becomes the first Chinese person to perform a spacewalk while flying on Shenzhou 7.