What happened on June 6? There are more than 290 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
Interesting Facts & Myths About June 6
June 6 is the 158th day of the year 2024. There are 208 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Thursday. This day falls under the 23rd week of the year 2024.
On this day in Dover, Ohio 44622 sunrise will occur at 05:53 AM and sunset will occur at 08:55 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Gemini. The modern birthstone for this month is Pearl while the mystical birthstone is Moonstone.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 237 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).
Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the April 21 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)
Historical Events For June 6
- 1513Italian Wars: Battle of Novara. Swiss troops defeat the French under Louis de la Tremoille, forcing the French to abandon Milan. Duke Massimiliano Sforza is restored.
- 1523Gustav Vasa is elected King of Sweden, marking the end of the Kalmar Union.
- 1644The Qing Dynasty Manchu forces led by the Shunzhi Emperor capture Beijing during the collapse of the Ming Dynasty. The Manchus would rule China until 1912 when the Republic of China is established.
- 1654Charles X succeeds his abdicated cousin Queen Christina to the Swedish throne.
- 1674Shivaji, founder of the Maratha empire is crowned.
- 1683The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England, opens as the world’s first university museum.
- 1752A devastating fire destroys one-third of Moscow, including 18,000 homes.
- 1808Napoleon’s brother, Joseph Bonaparte is crowned King of Spain.
- 1809Sweden promulgates a new Constitution, which restores political power to the Riksdag of the Estates after 20 years of Enlightened absolutism.
- 1813War of 1812: Battle of Stoney Creek – A British force of 700 under John Vincent defeats an American force two times its size under William Winder and John Chandler.
- 1822Alexis St. Martin accidentally shot in the stomach, which leads way to William Beaumont’s studies on digestion.
- 1832The June Rebellion of Paris is put down by the National Guard.
- 1833U.S. President Andrew Jackson becomes the first President to ride on a train.
- 1844The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) is founded in London.
- 1857Sophia of Nassau marries the future King Oscar II of Sweden-Norway.
- 1859Australia: Queensland is established as a separate colony from New South Wales (Queensland Day).
- 1862American Civil War: Battle of Memphis – Union forces capture Memphis, Tennessee, from the Confederates.
- 1882More than 100,000 inhabitants of Bombay are killed as a cyclone in the Arabian Sea pushes huge waves into the harbour.
- 1882The Shewan forces of Menelik II of Ethiopia defeat the Gojjame army in the Battle of Embabo. The Shewans capture Negus Tekle Haymanot of Gojjam, and their victory leads to a Shewan hegemony over the territories south of the Abay River.
- 1889The Great Seattle fire destroys the entirety of downtown Seattle, Washington.
- 1892Chicago ‘L’begins operation
- 1894Governor Davis H. Waite orders the Colorado state militia to protect and support the miners engaged in the Cripple Creek miners’ strike.
- 1909French troops capture Abéché (in modern-day Chad) and install a puppet sultan in the Ouaddai Empire.
- 1912The eruption of Novarupta in Alaska begins. It is the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century.
- 1918World War I: Battle of Belleau Wood – The U.S. Marine Corps suffers its worst single day’s casualties while attempting to recapture the wood at Chateau-Thierry.
- 1919The Republic of Prekmurje ends.
- 1921The Southwark Bridge in London, is opened for traffic by King George V and Queen Mary.
- 1932The Revenue Act of 1932 is enacted, creating the first gas tax in the United States, at a rate of 1 cent per US gallon (1/4 ¢/L) sold.
- 1933The first drive-in theater opens in Pennsauken, New Jersey, United States.
- 1934New Deal: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Securities Act of 1933 into law, establishing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
- 1939Judge Joseph Force Crater, known as the “Missingest Man in New York”, is declared legally dead.
- 1942World War II: Battle of Midway. U.S. Navy dive bombers sink the Japanese cruiser Mikuma and four Japanese carriers.
- 1944World War II: Battle of Normandy begins. D-Day, code named Operation Overlord, commences with the landing of 155,000 Allied troops on the beaches of Normandy in France. The allied soldiers quickly break through the Atlantic Wall and push inland in the largest amphibious military operation in history.
- 1946The National Basketball Association is created, with eleven original teams.
- 1964Under a temporary order, the rocket launches at Cuxhaven, Germany, are terminated, though they never resume.
- 1971A midair collision between a Hughes Airwest Douglas DC-9 jetliner and a United States Marine Corps McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II jet fighter near Duarte, California claims 50 lives.
- 1971Soyuz program: Soyuz 11 launches.
- 1971Vietnam War: The Battle of Long Khanh between Australian and Vietnamese communist forces begins.
- 1974A new Instrument of Government is promulgated making Sweden a parliamentary monarchy.
- 1981Bihar train disaster A passenger train travelling between Mansi and Saharsa, India, jumps the tracks at a bridge crossing the Bagmati river. The government places the official death toll at 268 plus another 300 missing; however, it is generally believed that the actual figure is closer to 1,000 killed.
- 19821982 Lebanon War begins: Forces under Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon invade southern Lebanon in their “Operation Peace for the Galilee”, eventually reaching as far north as the capital Beirut.
- 1984Tetris, one of the best-selling video games of all-time, is released.
- 1985The grave of “Wolfgang Gerhard” is exhumed in Embu, Brazil; the remains found are later proven to be those of Josef Mengele, Auschwitz’s “Angel of Death”. Mengele is thought to have drowned while swimming in February 1979.
- 1993Mongolia holds its first direct presidential elections.
- 2002Eastern Mediterranean Event. A near-Earth asteroid estimated at 10 meters diameter explodes over the Mediterranean Sea between Greece and Libya. The resulting explosion is estimated to have a force of 26 kilotons, slightly more powerful than the Nagasaki atomic bomb.
- 2004Tamil is established as a Classical language by the President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam in a joint sitting of the two houses of the Indian Parliament.
- 2005The United States Supreme Court upholds a federal law banning cannabis, including medical marijuana, in Gonzales v. Raich.
Who Were Born On June 6?
- 1236Wen Tianxiang, Chinese statesman (d. 1283)
- 1296Władysław of Legnica, Duke of Legnica (d. 1352)
- 1436Regiomontanus, German mathematician (d. 1476)
- 1502King John III of Portugal (d. 1557)
- 1519Andrea Cesalpino, Italian philosopher and botanist (d. 1603)
- 1542Richard Grenville, English soldier and explorer (d. 1591)
- 1576Giovanni Diodati, Swiss Protestant clergyman (d. 1649)
- 1580Godefroy Wendelin, Flemish astronomer (d. 1667)
- 1599Diego Velázquez, Spanish painter (d. 1660)
- 1606Pierre Corneille, French dramatist (d. 1684)
- 1622Claude-Jean Allouez, French missionary and explorer (d. 1689)
- 1699Johann Georg Estor, German jurist (d. 1773)
- 1714King Joseph I of Portugal (d. 1777)
- 1755Nathan Hale, American writer and patriot (d. 1776)
- 1756John Trumbull, American painter (d. 1843)
- 1772Maria Teresa of the Two Sicilies, Holy Roman Empire Empress (d. 1807)
- 1799Alexander Pushkin, Russian poet (d. 1837)
- 1807Thieu Tri, the third emperor of the Nguyễn Dynasty of Vietnam (d. 1847)
- 1810Friedrich Wilhelm Schneidewin, German classical scholar (d. 1856)
- 1829Honinbo Shusaku, Japanese Go player (d. 1862)
- 1841Eliza Orzeszkowa, Polish novelist (d. 1910)
- 1844Konstantin Savitsky, Russian painter (d. 1905)
- 1850Karl Ferdinand Braun, German physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1918)
- 1857Aleksandr Lyapunov, Russian mathematician (d. 1918)
- 1862Henry John Newbolt, English author (d. 1938)
- 1867David T. Abercrombie, American entrepreneur (d. 1931)
- 1868Sir Robert Falcon Scott, English explorer (d. 1912)
- 1872Tsarina Alexandra of Russia (d. 1918)
- 1875Thomas Mann, German writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1955)
- 1878Vincent de Moro-Giafferi, French criminal attorney (d. 1956)
- 1890Ted Lewis, American bandleader (d. 1971)
- 1891Maasti Venkatesh Iyengar, Karnatakaian poet and playwright (d. 1986)
- 1892Donald F. Duncan Sr., American entrepreneur (d. 1971)
- 1896Henry Allingham, English first world war veteran, and supercentenarian (d. 2009)
- 1896Italo Balbo, Italian fascist leader (d. 1940)
- 1898Ninette de Valois, Irish dancer (d. 2001)
- 1898Walter Abel, American actor (d. 1987)
- 1900Manfred Sakel, Polish psychiatrist (d. 1957)
- 1901Sukarno, First President of Indonesia (d. 1970)
- 1902Jimmie Lunceford, American bandleader (d. 1947)
- 1903Aram Khachaturian, Armenian composer (d. 1978)
- 1906Max August Zorn, German-born mathematician (d. 1993)
- 1907Bill Dickey, American baseball player (d. 1993)
- 1913Carlo L. Golino, American scholar (d. 1991)
- 1914H. Adams Carter, American mountaineer (d. 1995)
- 1915Vincent Persichetti, American composer (d. 1987)
- 1916Hamani Diori, former President of Niger (d. 1989)
- 1917Kirk Kerkorian, American businessman
- 1918Edwin G. Krebs, American biochemist, Nobel laureate (d. 2009)
- 1919Peter Carrington, British politician
- 1923V. C. Andrews, American author (d. 1986)
- 1926Klaus Tennstedt, German conductor (d. 1998)
- 1926Torsten Andersson, Swedish painter (d. 2009)
- 1929Sunil Dutt, Indian actor and politician (d. 2005)
- 1932Billie Whitelaw, English actress
- 1932David Scott, American astronaut
- 1933Eli Broad, American entrepreneur and philanthropist
- 1933Heinrich Rohrer, Swiss physicist, Nobel laureate
- 1934King Albert II of Belgium
- 1934Roy Innis, American civil rights activist
- 1936A. Venkatesh Naik, Indian politician
- 1936Levi Stubbs, American musician (The Four Tops) (d. 2008)
- 1938Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza, pretender to the Brazilian throne
- 1939Ed Giacomin, Canadian hockey player
- 1939Gary U.S. Bonds, American musician
- 1939Lawrence Stephen, Nauruan politician (d. 2006)
- 1939Louis Andriessen, Dutch composer
- 1939Marian Wright Edelman, American activist
- 1940Larry Lujack, American disc jockey
- 1940Willie John McBride, Irish Rugby player
- 1941Alexander Cockburn, Scottish-born American journalist
- 1943José de Jesús Gudiño Pelayo, Mexican jurist
- 1943Ken Hatfield, American football coach
- 1943Richard Smalley, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 2005)
- 1944David Penhaligon, British politician (d. 1986)
- 1944Edgar Froese, German artist and electronic music pioneer (Tangerine Dream)
- 1944Monty Alexander, Jamaican pianist
- 1944Phillip Allen Sharp, American scientist, Nobel laureate
- 1944Tommie Smith, American track and field athlete
- 1945Arthur Shawcross, American serial killer (d. 2008)
- 1945David Dukes, American actor (d. 2000)
- 1945David E. Bonior, American politician
- 1947Ada Kok, Dutch swimmer
- 1947David Blunkett, English politician
- 1947Robert Englund, American actor
- 1948Richard Sinclair, English musician (Caravan)
- 1948Tony Levin, American bassist (King Crimson)
- 1949Holly Near, American folk singer
- 1949Ioannis Matzourakis, Greek association football manager and former player
- 1950Chantal Akerman, Belgian film director
- 1951Dwight Twilley, American pop/rock singer
- 1951Marietta Giannakou, Greek politician
- 1951Noritake Takahara, Japanese racing driver
- 1952Harvey Fierstein, American actor
- 1952Jean Hamel, Canadian hockey player
- 1952Yukihiro Takahashi, Japanese musician and singer (Yellow Magic Orchestra)
- 1953Dimitris Avramopoulos, Greek politician
- 1953June Yamagishi, Japanese guitarist
- 1954Cynthia Rylant, American author
- 1954Władysław Żmuda, Polish footballer
- 1955Sandra Bernhard, American actress and comedian
- 1956Björn Borg, Swedish tennis player
- 1956Bubbi Morthens, Icelandic singer and songwriter
- 1957Christian Rach, German chef
- 1957Fred Arbinger, German footballer
- 1957Mike Gatting, English cricketer
- 1958Danny Webb, English actor
- 1959Amanda Pays, English actress
- 1959Colin Quinn, American comedian
- 1959David Schultz, American wrestler (d. 1996)
- 1959Georgios Voulgarakis, Greek politician
- 1959Jimmy Jam, American record producer
- 1959Josie Lawrence, British comedienne and actress
- 1960Jozef Pribilinec, Slovak athlete
- 1960Lola Forner, Spanish actress
- 1960Steve Vai, American musician
- 1961Bill Bates, American football player
- 1961Nir Brand, Israeli composer
- 1961Tom Araya, Chilean musician (Slayer)
- 1963Eric Cantor, American politician
- 1963Jason Isaacs, English actor
- 1963Wolfgang Drechsler, German social scientist
- 1964Jay Bentley, American bassist (Bad Religion)
- 1965Cam Neely, Canadian hockey player
- 1966Sean Yseult, American musician (White Zombie)
- 1966Tony Yeboah, Ghanaian footballer
- 1967Max Casella, American actor
- 1967Paul Giamatti, American actor
- 1968Alan Licht, American guitarist, composer and journalist
- 1968François Avard, Canadian writer and scenarist
- 1969Erik Prince, American businessman
- 1970Albert Ferrer, Spanish footballer
- 1970Anthony Norris, American wrestler
- 1970Eugeni Berzin, Russian cyclist
- 1970James Shaffer, American rock musician (Korn)
- 1970Sarah Dessen, American author
- 1972Cristina Scabbia, Italian singer (Lacuna Coil)
- 1972Natalie Morales, American television journalist
- 1973Kat Swift, American politician
- 1974Danny Strong, American actor
- 1974Sonya Walger, British actress
- 1974Uncle Kracker, American musician
- 1975Cheer Chen, Taiwanese singer and musician
- 1975Niklas Sundström, Swedish hockey player
- 1975Nina Kaczorowski, American actress
- 1975Staci Keanan, American actress
- 1976Emilie-Claire Barlow, Canadian singer
- 1976Geoff Rowley, British skateboarder
- 1976Z-Ro, American rapper
- 1976aKido, Canadian musician
- 1977Bryn Williams, Welsh chef
- 1977David Connolly, Irish footballer
- 1978Andrew Reynolds, American professional skater
- 1978Carl Barât, English musician
- 1978Joy Enriquez, American singer
- 1978Judith Barsi, American actress (d. 1988)
- 1978Mariana Popova, Bulgarian singer
- 1980Matt Belisle, American baseball player
- 1981Johnny Pacar, American film actor
- 1981Philip McGinley, English actor
- 1983Gemma Bissix, British actress
- 1983Gianna Michaels, American porn actress
- 1983Joe Rokocoko, Fijian rugby player
- 1984Jason Trusnik, American football player
- 1984Noor Sabri, Iraqi footballer
- 1984Shannon Stewart, American model
- 1985Chris Henry, American football player
- 1985Drew Galloway, Scottish wrestler
- 1985Sebastian Larsson, Swedish footballer
- 1986Bhavana Balachandran, Indian actress
- 1986Justin Allgaier, American racing driver
- 1986Kim Hyun Joong, Korean singer (SS501)
- 1987Daniel Logan, New Zealand actor
- 1987Kyle Falconer, Scottish musician
- 1987Rubin Okotie, Austrian footballer
- 1988Israel Dagg, New Zealand rugby player
- 1989Paula Brancati, Canadian actress
- 1990Vid Belec, Slovenian footballer
- 1991Dong Woon, Korean singer (B2ST)
- 1992Hyuna, Korean singer (4minute)
Who Died On June 6?
- 1134Norbert of Xanten priest, saint and founder of the Premonstratensian Canons Regular (b. 1060)
- 1393Emperor Go-En'yu of Japan (b. 1359)
- 1480Vecchietta, Italian artist and architect (b. 1412)
- 1548João de Castro, Portuguese noble and explorer (b. 1500)
- 1563Ikeda Nagamasa, Japanese samurai commander (b. 1519)
- 1583Nakagawa Kiyohide, Japanese warlord (b. 1556)
- 1730Alain Emmanuel de Coëtlogon, Marshal of France (b. 1646)
- 1740Alexander Spotswood, British Crown Lieutenant Governor of Virginia (b. 1676)
- 1784Joan van der Capellen tot den Pol, Dutch politician (b. 1741)
- 1799Patrick Henry, American revolutionary (b. 1736)
- 1813Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart, French architect (b. 1739)
- 1832Jeremy Bentham, English philosopher (b. 1748)
- 1840Marcellin Champagnat, French priest, saint, co-founder of the Marist Fathers and founder of the Marist Brothers (b. 1789)
- 1843Friedrich Hölderlin, German poet and dramatist (b. 1770)
- 1861Count Camillo Benso di Cavour, Prime Minister of Italy (b. 1810)
- 1865William Quantrill, American confederate raider (b. 1837)
- 1878Robert Stirling, Scottish inventor (b. 1790)
- 1881Henri Vieuxtemps, Belgian composer (b. 1820)
- 1891John A. Macdonald, 1st Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1815)
- 1916Yuan Shikai, Chinese military officer and politician (b. 1859)
- 1922Lillian Russell, American actress (b. 1860)
- 1934Julije Kempf, Croatian historian and writer (b. 1864)
- 1935Julian Byng, British Field Marshal and 12th Governor-General of Canada (b. 1862)
- 1941Louis Chevrolet, American automotive pioneer (b. 1878)
- 1943Pandelis Pouliopoulos, secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (b. 1900)
- 1946Gerhart Hauptmann, German dramatist, Nobel laureate (b. 1862)
- 1947James Agate, British diarist and critic (b. 1877)
- 1948Louis Lumière, French movie pioneer (b. 1864)
- 1951Olive Tell, American actress (b. 1894)
- 1954Fritz Kasparek, Austrian mountaineer (b. 1910)
- 1955Max Meldrum, Scottish-born painter (b. 1875)
- 1961Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist (b. 1875)
- 1961Ioannis Theotokis, Greek politician, 146th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1880)
- 1962Yves Klein, French artist (b. 1928)
- 1968Randolph Churchill, son of Winston Churchill (b. 1911)
- 1968Robert F. Kennedy, 64th United States Attorney General and politician (b. 1925)
- 1975Larry Blyden, American actor (b. 1925)
- 1976J. Paul Getty, American industrialist (b. 1892)
- 1976Victor Varconi, Hungarian actor (b. 1891)
- 1979Jack Haley, American actor (b. 1898)
- 1981Carleton S. Coon, American anthropologist (b. 1904)
- 1982Kenneth Rexroth, American poet (b. 1905)
- 1984A. Bertram Chandler, Australian author (b. 1912)
- 1991Stan Getz, American musician (b. 1927)
- 1992Larry Riley, American actor (b. 1952)
- 1994Barry Sullivan, American actor (b. 1912)
- 1994Mark McManus, Scottish actor (b. 1935)
- 1995Savely Kramarov, Soviet and American actor (b. 1934)
- 1996George Davis Snell, American geneticist, Nobel laureate (b. 1903)
- 1999Anne Haddy, Australian actress (b. 1930)
- 2000Frédéric Dard, French writer (b. 1921)
- 2002Robbin Crosby, American guitarist (Ratt) (b. 1959)
- 2003Dave Rowberry, British musician (The Animals) (b. 1940)
- 2003Ken Grimwood, American writer (b. 1944)
- 2005Anne Bancroft, American actress (b. 1931)
- 2005Dana Elcar, American actor (b. 1927)
- 2006Arnold Newman, American photographer (b. 1918)
- 2006Billy Preston, American musician (b. 1946)
- 2006Hilton Ruiz, Puerto Rican jazz pianist (b. 1952)
- 2009Jean Dausset, French immunologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1916)
- 2009Jim Owens, American college football head coach (b. 1927)
- 2009Mary Howard de Liagre, American actress (b. 1913)
- 2010Marvin Isley, American musician The Isley Brothers (b. 1953)
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