This day in History

618:
Coronation of Chinese governor Li Yuan as Emperor Gaozu of Tang, the new Emperor of China, initiating three centuries of Tang Dynasty rule over China

1815:
Battle of Waterloo: Napoleon Bonaparte and France are defeated by British forces under the Duke of Wellington and Prussian troops under Field Marshal von Blücher

1928:
American aviator Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean (as a passenger), landing at Burry Port, Wales

1940:
Winston Churchill gives his “This was their finest hour” speech to the House of Commons, urging perseverance in the war after the Dunkirk evacuation and the fall of France

1979:
US President Carter and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev sign SALT II treaty limiting nuclear weapons

1971:
Pakistan’s President A. M. Yahya Khan sent a letter to US President Richard Nixon urging him to persuade India regarding the growing conflict and unrest in East Pakistan

1975:
The Bangladesh National Museum was officially established, upgrading the institution from the former Dacca Museum.