1597-A group of early Japanese Christians, known as the 26 Martyrs, are killed by the new government of Japan for being seen as a threat to Japanese society
1852-The Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg first opens to the public with Catherine the Great's collection of 4,000 paintings forming its core collection
1885-King Leopold II of Belgium establishes the Congo as a personal colonial possession
1924-Mahatma Gandhi is released from Yerwada Prison in Pune, British India, on health grounds after a bout of appendicitis
1945-U.S. troops under General Douglas MacArthur enter Manila in the Philippines after a month long battle, ending three years of Japanese military occupation
1962-French President Charles de Gaulle calls for Algeria's independence
1969-United States population reaches 200 million
1986-Corazon Aquino & Ferdinand Marcos appear on "Nightline"
1992-Jury selection begins in the trial of Los Angeles police charged with beating Rodney King
2004-Rebels from the Revolutionary Artibonite Resistance Front capture the city of Gonaïves, starting the 2004 Haiti rebellion