Historical Events on Thursday, 18th September

18/09/2018

Cannabis is legalized in South Africa, through a ruling of the Constitutional Court.

Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species being recognized: Cannabis sativa, C. indica, and C. ruderalis. Alternatively, C. ruderalis may be included within C. sativa, or all three may be treated as subspecies of C. sativa, or C. sativa may be accepted as a single undivided species.

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18/09/2017

Toy retail chain Toys "R" Us files for bankruptcy protection in the United States and Canada.

Toys "R" Us is an American toy, clothing, and baby product retailer that was founded in April 1948 by Charles Lazarus in Washington, D.C. The retailer initially began as Children's Supermart, selling furniture until it refocused itself as Toys "R" Us in June 1957. By the end of the 1970s, Toys "R" Us had opened locations across the United States, followed by another major growth in the 1980s to become one of the U.S.'s leading toy retailers. In the mid-1980s, it expanded internationally and established Canadian and British divisions. In September 2017, Toys "R" Us filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. and Canada. In June 2018, Toys "R" Us closed its remaining 200 stores after entering bankruptcy; however, certain international divisions outside of the United States continued.

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18/09/2016

The 2016 Uri attack in Jammu and Kashmir, India by terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed results in the deaths of nineteen Indian Army soldiers and all four attackers.

The 2016 Uri attack was carried out on 18 September 2016 by four militants from Jaish-e-Mohammed against an Indian Army brigade headquarters near the town of Uri in the Indian Jammu and Kashmir. 19 Indian soldiers were killed in the attack, and 19–30 others were injured. It was reported by the BBC as having been "the deadliest attack on security forces in Kashmir in two decades".

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18/09/2015

Two security personnel, 17 worshippers in a mosque, and 13 militants are killed during a Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan attack on a Pakistan Air Force base on the outskirts of Peshawar.

The 2015 Camp Badaber attack occurred on 18 September 2015, when 14 Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants attempted to storm Camp Badaber, a Pakistan Air Force base located in Badaber, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The attack killed 25–29 security personnel, including Captain Asfandyar Bukhari of the Pakistan Army, who was responding to the attack as part of a quick-reaction force. All 14 militants were killed in combat with Pakistani forces, according to claims by security officials. The attack, claimed by the TTP to be in retaliation for the Pakistan Armed Forces' Operation Zarb-e-Azb, was the first of its kind in its intensity, and the well-armed TTP militants engaged Pakistani forces at Camp Badaber in a protracted battle that resulted in heavier losses than those inflicted in previous attacks on military installations. PAF Camp Badaber is located about 48 kilometres (30 mi) east of the Afghanistan–Pakistan border.

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18/09/2014

Scotland votes against independence from the United Kingdom, by 55% to 45%.

A referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom was held in Scotland on 18 September 2014. The referendum question was "Should Scotland be an independent country?", which voters answered with "Yes" or "No". The "No" side won with 2,001,926 (55.3%) voting against independence and 1,617,989 (44.7%) voting in favour. The turnout of 84.6% was the highest recorded for an election or referendum in the United Kingdom since the January 1910 general election, which was held before the introduction of universal suffrage.

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18/09/2011

The 2011 Sikkim earthquake is felt across northeastern India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and southern Tibet.

The 2011 Sikkim earthquake occurred with a moment magnitude of 6.9 and was centered within the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, near the border of Nepal and the Indian state of Sikkim, at 18:10 IST on Sunday, 18 September. The earthquake was felt across northeastern India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and southern Tibet.

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18/09/2010

Philippe Croizon becomes the first quadruple amputee to swim across the English Channel.

Philippe Croizon is a French athlete and the first quadruple amputee to swim across the English Channel and to run the Rally Dakar.

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18/09/2009

After 72 years on radio and television, CBS Television broadcasts the final episode of Guiding Light, the longest-running soap opera in American history.

CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network and the flagship property of the CBS Entertainment Group division of Paramount Skydance. It is one of Paramount Skydance's three flagship subsidiaries, along with Paramount Pictures and MTV.

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18/09/2007

Buddhist monks join anti-government protesters in Myanmar, starting what some call the Saffron Revolution.

The Saffron Revolution was a series of economic and political protests and demonstrations that took place during August, September and October 2007 in Myanmar. The protests were triggered by the decision of the national military government to remove subsidies on the sales prices of fuel. The national government is the only supplier of fuels and the removal of the price subsidy immediately caused diesel and petrol prices to increase by 66–100% and the price of compressed natural gas for buses to increase 500% in less than a week.

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18/09/2006

The CW Television Network debuts in the US, following the merger of UPN and The WB.

The CW Network, LLC is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through an 81% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the first letters of the names of its two founding co-owners CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Nexstar acquired a 75% controlling stake in the network on October 3, 2022, with Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery each retaining a 12.5% ownership stake.

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18/09/2001

First mailing of anthrax letters from Trenton, New Jersey in the 2001 anthrax attacks.

Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis or Bacillus cereus biovar anthracis. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one day and two months after the infection is contracted. The skin form presents with a small blister with surrounding swelling that often turns into a painless ulcer with a black center. The inhalation form presents with fever, chest pain, and shortness of breath. The intestinal form presents with diarrhea, abdominal pains, nausea, and vomiting.

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18/09/1997

United States media magnate Ted Turner donates US$1 billion to the United Nations.

Robert Edward Turner III is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television, as well as television network TNT.

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The Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention is adopted.

The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction of 1997, known informally as the Ottawa Treaty, the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, or often simply the Mine Ban Treaty, aims at eliminating anti-personnel landmines (APLs) around the world.

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18/09/1992

An explosion rocks Giant Mine at the height of a labor dispute, killing nine replacement workers in Yellowknife, Canada.

The Giant Mine was a gold mine located on the Ingraham Trail, 5 km (3.1 mi) north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. Giant Mine was within the Kam Group, a part of the Yellowknife greenstone belt. Gold was discovered on the property and mineral claims staked in 1935 by Johnny Baker, but the true extent of the gold deposits was not known until 1944, when a massive gold-bearing shear zone was uncovered beneath the drift-filled Baker Creek Valley.

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18/09/1990

Liechtenstein becomes a member of the United Nations.

Liechtenstein, officially the Principality of Liechtenstein, is a doubly landlocked country in the Central European Alps. It is located between Austria to the east and north-east and Switzerland to the north-west, west and south.

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18/09/1989

An attempted coup d'état against Burkina Faso president Blaise Compaoré is uncovered and foiled.

The 1989 Burkina Faso coup d'état attempt was allegedly an attempt at a military coup d'état, planned by Jean-Baptiste Boukary Lingani and Henri Zongo, in addition to other unnamed conspirators. The plot, as described by the government of Burkina Faso, targeted President Blaise Compaoré – who, together with Lingani and Zongo, had previously carried out two coups in the country. All known conspirators were quickly executed.

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18/09/1988

The 8888 Uprising in Myanmar comes to an end.

The 8888 Uprising, also known as the 1988 Uprising, was a series of nationwide protests, marches, and riots in Burma that peaked in August 1988. Key events occurred on 8 August 1988 and therefore it is commonly known as the "8888 Uprising". The protests began as a student movement and were organised largely by university students at the Rangoon Arts and Sciences University and the Rangoon Institute of Technology.

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General Henri Namphy, president of Haiti, is ousted from power in a coup d'état led by General Prosper Avril.

Henri Namphy was a Haitian general and political figure who served as President of Haiti's interim ruling body, the National Council of Government, from 7 February 1986 to 7 February 1988. He served again as President of Haiti from 20 June 1988 after the June 1988 coup that he led, until his deposition on September 17, 1988 in the September coup.

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The Magna Charta Universitatum, asserting key principles essential to the free operation of universities, is signed in Bologna by the rectors of 388 institutions of higher learning, to commemorate the 900th anniversary of the University of Bologna.

The Magna Charta Universitatum is a two-page document produced by the University of Bologna and the European Rectors' Conference in 1988 in Bologna, Italy. It identifies key principles that are asserted to be essential for the operation of universities, including academic freedom and institutional autonomy. Initially signed by the rectors of 388 higher education institutions, the number of signatories has subsequently grown to about 1000, with the aim to recognize and celebrate university traditions and to encourage cooperation among European universities. The document is intended to serve as a universal inspiration and is as such open to universities throughout the world and not only those located in Europe.

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18/09/1984

Joe Kittinger completes the first solo balloon crossing of the Atlantic.

Joseph William Kittinger II was an American military pilot who was an officer in the United States Air Force. He served from 1950 to 1978 and earned Command Pilot status before retiring with the rank of colonel. He held the world record for the highest skydive—102,800 feet (31.3 km)—from 1960 until 2012.

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18/09/1981

The Assemblée Nationale votes to abolish capital punishment in France.

The National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate. The National Assembly's legislators are known as députés or deputies.

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18/09/1980

Soyuz 38 carries two cosmonauts (including one Cuban) to the Salyut 6 space station.

Soyuz 38 was a human spaceflight mission conducted by the Soviet Union during September 1980. The Soyuz spacecraft brought two visiting crew members to the Salyut 6 space station, one of whom was an Intercosmos cosmonaut from Cuba.

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18/09/1977

Voyager I takes the first distant photograph of the Earth and the Moon together.

Voyager 1 is a space probe launched by NASA on September 5, 1977, as part of the Voyager program, to study the outer Solar System and the interstellar space beyond the Sun's heliosphere. It was launched 16 days after its twin, Voyager 2. It communicates through the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN) to receive routine commands and to transmit data to Earth. Real-time distance and velocity data are provided by NASA and JPL. At a distance of 172.59 AU as of March 2026, it is the most distant human-made object from Earth. Voyager 1 is also projected to reach a distance of one light day from Earth in November 2026.

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18/09/1974

Hurricane Fifi strikes Honduras with 110 mph winds, killing 5,000 people.

Hurricane Fifi, later known as Hurricane Orlene, was a catastrophic tropical cyclone that killed over 8,000 people in Honduras in September 1974, ranking it as the third deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, only behind Hurricane Mitch in 1998, and the 1780 hurricane. Fifi is also the first billion-dollar hurricane not to make landfall in the United States. Originating from a strong tropical wave on September 14, the system steadily tracked west-northwestward through the eastern Caribbean. On September 16, the depression intensified into Tropical Storm Fifi just off the coast of Jamaica. The storm quickly intensified into a hurricane the following afternoon and attained its peak intensity on September 18 as a strong Category 2 hurricane. Maintaining hurricane intensity, Fifi brushed the northern coast of Honduras before making landfall in Belize the following day. The storm quickly weakened after landfall, becoming a depression late on September 20. Continuing westward, the former hurricane began to interact with another system in the eastern Pacific.

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18/09/1973

The Bahamas, East Germany and West Germany are admitted to the United Nations.

The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, is an island country located within the Lucayan Archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean. The country comprises more than 3,000 islands, cays and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Cuba and north-west of the island of Hispaniola and the Turks and Caicos Islands, southeast of the US state of Florida and east of the Florida Keys. The capital and largest city is Nassau on the island of New Providence. The Royal Bahamas Defence Force describes The Bahamas' territory as encompassing 470,000 km2 (180,000 sq mi) of ocean space.

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18/09/1965

Mel Brooks and Buck Henry's spy-comedy series Get Smart premieres on NBC Television.

Melvin James Brooks is an American actor, filmmaker, comedian, songwriter, and playwright. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodies. A recipient of numerous accolades, he is one of 28 entertainers to win the EGOT, which includes an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony. He received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2009, a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 2010, the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2013, a British Film Institute Fellowship in 2015, a National Medal of Arts in 2016, a BAFTA Fellowship in 2017, and an Honorary Academy Award in 2024.

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18/09/1964

The wedding of Constantine II of Greece and Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark takes place in Athens.

The wedding of Constantine II, King of the Hellenes, and Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark took place on Friday, 18 September 1964, at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens.

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The first television adaptation of Charles Addams's "The Addams Family" premieres on ABC Television.

The Addams Family is an American Gothic sitcom based on Charles Addams's New Yorker cartoons. With an ensemble cast, the 30-minute television series took the unnamed characters in the single-panel gag cartoons and gave them names, backstories, and a household setting. The series was spearheaded by David Levy, who created and developed it with Donald Saltzman in cooperation with cartoonist Addams, who gave each character a name and description. Shot in black-and-white, The Addams Family aired for two seasons on ABC from September 18, 1964, to April 8, 1966, for a total of 64 episodes — its opening theme was composed and sung by Vic Mizzy.

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18/09/1962

Burundi, Jamaica, Rwanda and Trinidad and Tobago are admitted to the United Nations.

Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million people. It is bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and southeast, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west; Lake Tanganyika lies along its southwestern border. The political capital city is Gitega and the economic capital and largest city is Bujumbura.

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Aeroflot Flight 213 crashes into a mountain near Chersky Airport, killing 32 people.

Aeroflot Flight 213 was a regularly scheduled passenger flight operated by Aeroflot from Chersky Airport to Keperveyem Airport. On 18 September 1962, the Ilyushin Il-14 operating this flight crashed shortly after takeoff. All 27 passengers and five crew members were killed.

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18/09/1961

United Nations Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld dies in an air crash while attempting to negotiate peace in the Katanga region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld was a Swedish economist and diplomat who served as the second Secretary-General of the United Nations from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in September 1961. As of 2026, he remains the youngest person to have held the post, having been only 47 years old when he was elected. He was a son of Hjalmar Hammarskjöld, who served as Prime Minister of Sweden from 1914 to 1917.

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18/09/1960

Fidel Castro arrives in New York City as the head of the Cuban delegation to the United Nations.

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as prime minister from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2008. Ideologically a Marxist–Leninist and Cuban nationalist, he also served as the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from 1965 until 2011. Under his administration, Cuba became a one-party communist state; industry and business were nationalized, and socialist reforms were implemented throughout society.

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18/09/1958

The Bank of America introduces its first credit card, the BankAmericard (later renamed the VISA Card), in a test market in Fresno County, California.

The Bank of America Corporation is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, with investment banking and auxiliary headquarters in Manhattan. The bank was founded by the merger of NationsBank and Bank of America in 1998. It is the second-largest banking institution in the United States and the second-largest bank in the world by market capitalization, both after JPMorgan Chase. Bank of America is one of the Big Four banking institutions of the United States, and one of eight systemically important financial institutions in the United States. It serves about 10 percent of all American bank deposits, in direct competition with JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo. Its primary financial services revolve around commercial banking, wealth management, and investment banking. Through mergers, the oldest branch of the Bank of America franchise dates back to 1784, when Massachusetts Bank was chartered, becoming the first federally chartered joint-stock-owned bank in the United States. Another branch of its history goes back to the American-based Bank of Italy, founded by Amadeo Pietro Giannini in 1904, which provided various banking services to Italian immigrants who faced service discrimination at the time. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Giannini acquired Banca d'America e d'Italia in 1922 and eventually did business as Bank of America.

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18/09/1955

A four-person landing party, led by Lt.-Cdr. Desmond Scott RN, disembarks from a Royal Navy helicopter and raises the Union Flag on Rockall, claiming the uninhabited Atlantic island for the United Kingdom.

The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom, responsible for defending the UK, the Crown Dependencies, and the Overseas Territories from naval attack or invasion. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against France. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the English Navy of the early 16th century; the oldest of the UK's armed services, it is consequently known as the Senior Service.

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18/09/1954

Finnish president J. K. Paasikivi becomes the first Western head of state to be awarded the highest honor of the Soviet Union, the Order of Lenin.

Juho Kusti Paasikivi was a Finnish politician who served as the president of Finland from 1946 to 1956. Representing the Finnish Party until its dissolution in 1918 and then the National Coalition Party, he previously served as senator, member of parliament, envoy to Stockholm (1936–1939) and Moscow (1940–1941), and Prime Minister of Finland. He also held several other positions of trust, and was an influential figure in Finnish economics and politics for over fifty years.

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18/09/1950

Korean War: U.S. Eighth Army and United Nations forces break out of the Pusan Perimeter in southeast Korea.

The Korean War was an armed conflict the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea and South Korea and their allies. North Korea was supported by China and the Soviet Union, while South Korea was supported by the United Nations led by the United States under the auspices of the United Nations Command (UNC). The conflict was one of the first major proxy wars of the Cold War and one of its deadliest conflicts on noncombatants, especially civilians. It is estimated that 1.5 to 3 million Korean civilians were killed during the war. The Korean War was the first time the United Nations Security Council authorized the use of force under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter.

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TV Tupi Difusora, the first television station to broadcast in Brazil, begins transmissions on Channel 3 in São Paulo.

Rede Tupi was a Brazilian commercial terrestrial television network. Its flagship station, located in the city of São Paulo, was the first TV station to operate in the country, being inaugurated on 18 September 1950 by journalist Assis Chateaubriand. It was owned by Diários Associados, one of the largest media conglomerates of the 20th century, owner of several newspapers, magazines, and radio stations.

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18/09/1948

Operation Polo is terminated after the Indian Army accepts the surrender of the army of Hyderabad.

The Annexation of Hyderabad was a military operation launched in September 1948 that resulted in the annexation of the princely state of Hyderabad by India, which was dubbed a "police action".

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Margaret Chase Smith of Maine becomes the first woman elected to the United States Senate without completing another senator's term.

Margaret Madeline Chase Smith was an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, she served as a U.S. representative (1940–1949) and a U.S. senator (1949–1973) from Maine. She was the first woman to serve in both houses of the U.S. Congress. A Republican, she was among the first to criticize the tactics of Joseph McCarthy in her 1950 speech "Declaration of Conscience".

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18/09/1947

The National Security Act reorganizes the United States government's military and intelligence services.

The National Security Act of 1947 was a law enacting major restructuring of the United States government's military and intelligence agencies following World War II. The majority of the provisions of the act took effect on September 18, 1947, the day after the Senate confirmed James Forrestal as the first secretary of defense.

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18/09/1945

General Douglas MacArthur moves his general headquarters from Manila to Tokyo.

Douglas MacArthur was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army. He served with distinction in World War I; as chief of staff of the United States Army from 1930 to 1935; as Supreme Commander, Southwest Pacific Area, from 1942 to 1945; as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers overseeing the occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1951; and as head of the United Nations Command in the Korean War from 1950 to 1951. MacArthur was nominated for the Medal of Honor three times, and awarded it for his WWII service in the Philippines. He is one of only five people to hold the rank of General of the Army, and the only person to hold the rank of Field Marshal in the Philippine Army.

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18/09/1944

World War II: The British submarine HMS Tradewind torpedoes Jun'yō Maru, killing 5,600, mostly slave labourers and POWs.

HMS Tradewind was a British submarine of the third group of the T class. She was built as P329 at Chatham, and launched on 11 December 1942. As of 2021 she is the only ship of the Royal Navy to have been named Tradewind, after the trade winds.

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World War II: Operation Market Garden results in the liberation of Eindhoven.

Operation Market Garden was an Allied military operation during the Second World War fought in the German-occupied Netherlands from 17 to 25 September 1944. Its objective was to create a salient spanning 62 miles (100 km) into German territory with a bridgehead over the Nederrijn, creating an Allied invasion route into northern Germany. This was to be achieved by two sub-operations: seizing nine bridges with combined American, British and Polish airborne forces ("Market") followed by British land forces swiftly following over the bridges ("Garden").

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World War II: The Battle of Arracourt begins.

The Battle of Arracourt took place between U.S. and German armoured forces near the town of Arracourt, Lorraine, France between 18 and 29 September 1944, during the Lorraine Campaign of World War II. As part of a counteroffensive against recent U.S. advances in France, the German 5th Panzer Army had as its objective the recapture of Lunéville and the elimination of the XII Corps bridgehead over the Moselle River at Dieulouard.

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18/09/1943

World War II: Adolf Hitler orders the deportation of Danish Jews.

The history of Jews in Denmark goes back to the 1600s. Although there were very likely Jewish merchants, sailors, and others who entered Denmark during the Middle Ages, no efforts were made to establish a Jewish community. At present, the Jewish community in Denmark comprises about 6,000 persons.

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18/09/1941

World War II: The Soviet Union introduces conscription for all males between the ages of 16 and 50.

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18/09/1939

World War II: The Polish government of Ignacy Mościcki flees to Romania.

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, the latter enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the only nuclear weapons used in war. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 60 to 75 million people. Millions died as a result of massacres, starvation, disease, and genocides, including the Holocaust. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.

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World War II: The radio show Germany Calling begins transmitting Nazi propaganda.

Germany Calling was an English language propaganda radio programme, broadcast by Nazi German radio to audiences in the British Isles and North America during the Second World War. Every broadcast began with the station announcement: "Germany calling! Here are the Reichssender Hamburg, station Bremen". Today, it is best known for its employment of several radio presenters jointly known as Lord Haw-Haw — most notably, William Joyce, who was German radio's most prominent English language speaker and to whom the name gradually came to be exclusively applied.

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18/09/1934

The Soviet Union is admitted to the League of Nations.

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), also known as the Soviet Union, was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until its dissolution in 1991. It was the world's third-most populous country, largest by area, and bordered twelve countries. A diverse multinational state, it was organized as a federal union of national republics, the largest and most populous being the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. In practice, its government and economy were highly centralized. As a one-party state governed by the Communist Party, it was the flagship communist state. Its capital and largest city was Moscow.

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18/09/1932

The body of actress Peg Entwistle is discovered by police, two days after her suicide by jumping off of the Hollywoodland sign.

Millicent Lilian "Peg" Entwistle was a British stage and screen actress. She began her stage career in 1925, appearing in several Broadway productions. She appeared in only one film, Thirteen Women (1932), which was released posthumously. Entwistle gained notoriety after she jumped to her death from atop the 'H' on the Hollywoodland sign in September 1932, at the age of 24.

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18/09/1931

Imperial Japan instigates the Mukden incident as a pretext to invade and occupy Manchuria.

The Mukden incident was a false flag event staged by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria. On September 18, 1931, Lieutenant Suemori Kawamoto of the Independent Garrison Unit of the 29th Japanese Infantry Regiment detonated a small quantity of dynamite close to a railway line owned by Japan's South Manchuria Railway near Mukden. The explosion was so weak that it failed to destroy the track, and a train passed over it minutes later. The Imperial Japanese Army accused Chinese dissidents of the act and responded with a full invasion that led to the occupation of Manchuria, in which Japan established its puppet state of Manchukuo five months later.

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18/09/1928

Juan de la Cierva makes the first Autogyro crossing of the English Channel.

Juan de la Cierva y Codorníu, 1st Count of la Cierva, was a Spanish civil engineer, pilot and a self-taught aeronautical engineer. His most famous accomplishment was the invention in 1920 of a rotorcraft called Autogiro, a single-rotor type of aircraft that came to be called autogyro in the English language. In 1923, after four years of experimentation, De la Cierva developed the articulated rotor, which resulted in the world's first successful flight of a stable rotary-wing aircraft, with his C.4 prototype.

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18/09/1927

The Columbia Broadcasting System goes on the air.

CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network and the flagship property of the CBS Entertainment Group division of Paramount Skydance. It is one of Paramount Skydance's three flagship subsidiaries, along with Paramount Pictures and MTV.

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18/09/1926

A hurricane devastates Miami, Florida, killing 372 people.

The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 was a large and intense tropical cyclone that devastated the Greater Miami area of Florida and caused catastrophic damage in the Bahamas and the U.S. Gulf Coast in September 1926, accruing a US$100 million damage toll. The devastation brought by the hurricane resulted in the end of Florida's land boom, and represented an early start to the Great Depression in the state. It has been estimated that a similar hurricane would cause about $235 billion in damage if it were to hit Miami in 2018.

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18/09/1924

The U.S. ends its military occupation of the Dominican Republic, after invading in May 1916 to force the Dominican government to pay its debts to European creditors.

The Military Government of Santo Domingo was a provisional military government established during the American occupation of the Dominican Republic that lasted from May 15, 1916 to September 18, 1924. The United States aimed to force the Dominicans to repay their large debts to European creditors, whose governments threatened military intervention. On May 13, 1916, Rear Admiral William B. Caperton forced the Dominican Republic's Secretary of War Desiderio Arias, who had seized power from President Juan Isidro Jimenes Pereyra, to leave Santo Domingo by threatening the city with naval bombardment.

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18/09/1922

The Kingdom of Hungary is admitted to the League of Nations.

The interwar Kingdom of Hungary, referred to retrospectively as the Regency, the Horthy era, the Horthy regime, and Horthyist Hungary, was the Hungarian state under a monarchy from 1920 to 1946 under the rule of Miklós Horthy for most of its existence, who officially represented the Hungarian monarchy after a period of revolutions and the counter-revolution as the Regent of Hungary. In reality there was no king, and attempts by King Charles IV to return to the throne shortly before his death were prevented by Horthy.

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18/09/1921

Rif War: In Ajdir, Spanish Morocco, a secessionist group of Berbers led by Abd el-Krim proclaim the Republic of the Rif, in rebellion against the Sultan of Morocco and the Spanish Army. French and Spanish forces suppress the Republic by May 1926.

The Rif War was an armed conflict fought from 1921 to 1926 between Spain and Berber tribes of the mountainous Rif region of northern Morocco.

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18/09/1919

Fritz Pollard becomes the first African American to play professional football for a major team, the Akron Pros.

Frederick Douglass "Fritz" Pollard was an American professional football player and coach. In 1921, he became the first African-American head coach in the National Football League (NFL). Pollard and Bobby Marshall were the first two African-American players in the NFL in 1920. He is also recognized as the first Black quarterback in NFL history, playing the position for the Hammond Pros in 1923. Football pioneer Walter Camp called Pollard "one of the greatest runners these eyes have ever seen."

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In the Netherlands, a law granting full voting rights to women is granted royal assent by Queen Wilhelmina.

The Netherlands, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Netherlands consists of twelve provinces and three overseas special municipalities. European Netherlands has land borders with Germany to the east and with Belgium to the south, and a coastline to the north and west. It shares maritime borders with the United Kingdom, Germany, and Belgium in the North Sea. The official language is Dutch, with West Frisian as a secondary official language in the province of Friesland. Dutch, English, and Papiamento are official in the Caribbean territories. People from the Netherlands are referred to as Dutch.

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18/09/1915

The Saturday Evening Post publishes the short story "Extricating Young Gussie" by P.G. Wodehouse, featuring the first appearance of Bertie Wooster and his valet Jeeves.

The Saturday Evening Post is an American magazine published six times a year. It was first published in 1821, and published weekly from 1897 until 1963. It was published every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influential magazines among the American middle class, with fiction, nonfiction, cartoons, and features that reached two million homes every week.

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18/09/1914

The Irish Home Rule Act becomes law, but is delayed until after World War I.

The Government of Ireland Act 1914, also known as the Home Rule Act, and before enactment as the Third Home Rule Bill, was an Act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom intended to provide home rule for Ireland. It was the third such bill introduced by a Liberal government during a 28-year period in response to agitation for Irish Home Rule.

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18/09/1910

In Washington, D.C., George Owen Squier demonstrated the first system to allow multiplexing of telephone transmissions, sending a message between two laboratories of the U.S. Signal Corps.

George Owen Squier was an American general, scientist, and inventor best known for inventing and popularizing what today is called Muzak.

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18/09/1906

The 1906 Hong Kong typhoon kills an estimated 10,000 people.

The 1906 Hong Kong typhoon was a tropical cyclone that hit Hong Kong on 18 September 1906. The typhoon caused property damage exceeding a million pounds sterling, affected international trade, and took the lives of around 15,000 people.

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18/09/1898

The Fashoda Incident triggers the last war scare between Britain and France.

The Fashoda Incident, also known as the Fashoda Crisis, was the climax of imperialist territorial disputes between Britain and France in East Africa, occurring between 10 July and 3 November 1898. A French expedition to Fashoda on the White Nile sought to gain control of the Upper Nile river basin and thereby exclude Britain from Sudan. The French party and a British-Egyptian force met on friendly terms. However, in Europe, it became a war scare. Both empires stood on the verge of war with heated rhetoric on both sides. Under heavy pressure, the French withdrew, ensuring Anglo-Egyptian control over the area.

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18/09/1897

Veal Oscar, a dish of veal, seafood, asparagus, and Bernaise sauce, is first served at the Grand Hotel in Stockholm, in honour of the 25th anniversary of the reign of King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway.

Veal Oscar is a culinary creation consisting of sauteed veal cutlets topped with crab meat, and an emulsified butter sauce such as Hollandaise or Béarnaise. Traditionally, Veal Oscar is garnished with two white asparagus spears.

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18/09/1885

Five Chinese people were lynched outside of Pierce City in the Idaho Territory of the United States.

On September 18, 1885, five Chinese people in the United States were lynched by a mob outside of Pierce City in the Idaho Territory. The individuals had been arrested by a vigilance committee formed in the city after the killing of a local businessman.

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18/09/1882

The Pacific Stock Exchange opens.

The Pacific Exchange was an American regional stock exchange in California, from 1956 to 2006. Its main exchange floor and building were in San Francisco, California, with a branch building in Los Angeles, California.

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18/09/1879

The Blackpool Illuminations are switched on for the first time.

Blackpool Illuminations is an annual lights festival that started on 18 September 1879, held each autumn in the British seaside resort of Blackpool on the Fylde Coast in Lancashire. Also known locally as The Lights or The Illuminations, they ran each year for 66 days from late August until early November, extended to over 100 days to run until after the Christmas and New Year holidays from 2020, at a time when most other English seaside resorts' seasons had come to an end; for example, Friday 30 August 2024 to Sunday 5 January 2025, and Friday 29 August 2025 to Sunday 4 January 2026.

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18/09/1873

The U.S. bank Jay Cooke & Company declares bankruptcy, contributing to the Panic of 1873.

Jay Cooke & Company was a U.S. bank that operated from 1861 to 1873. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with branches in New York City and Washington, D.C., the bank helped underwrite the Union Civil War effort. It was the first "wire" brokerage house, pioneering the use of telegraph messages to confirm securities transactions with clients. The bank became overextended in the building of the Northern Pacific Railway and failed, contributing to the Panic of 1873.

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18/09/1870

During an expedition to the Wyoming Territory, Henry D. Washburn observes and names the Old Faithful Geyser.

The Washburn Expedition of 1870 explored the region of northwestern Wyoming that two years later became Yellowstone National Park. Led by Henry D. Washburn and Nathaniel P. Langford, and with a U.S. Army escort headed by Lt. Gustavus C. Doane, the expedition followed the general course of the Cook–Folsom–Peterson Expedition made the previous year.

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18/09/1867

The first provincial election for the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly after Canada's Confederation returns a large majority for the Anti-Confederation Party, led by William Annand, who becomes Premier.

The Nova Scotia House of Assembly, or Legislative Assembly, is the deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia, and together with the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia makes up the Nova Scotia Legislature.

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The fourth and current State Constitution of Maryland is ratified by voters.

The current Constitution of the State of Maryland, which was ratified by the people of the state on September 18, 1867, forms the basic law for the U.S. state of Maryland. It replaced the short-lived Maryland Constitution of 1864 and is the fourth constitution under which the state has been governed. It was last amended in 2024.

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18/09/1864

American Civil War: John Bell Hood begins the Franklin–Nashville Campaign in an unsuccessful attempt to draw William Tecumseh Sherman back out of Georgia.

John Bell Hood was a Confederate general during the American Civil War.

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18/09/1863

American Civil War: The Battle of Chickamauga begins between Confederate and Union forces. It involves the second highest amount of casualties for any American Civil War battle apart from Gettysburg.

The American Civil War was a civil war in the United States between the Union and the Confederacy, which was formed in 1861 by states that had seceded from the Union to preserve slavery in the United States, which they saw as threatened because of the election of Abraham Lincoln and the growing abolitionist movement in the North. The war lasted a little over four years, ending with Union victory, the dissolution of the Confederacy and the abolition of slavery, freeing four million African Americans.

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18/09/1862

The Confederate States celebrate for the first and only time a Thanksgiving Day.

The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or the South, was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States from 1861 to 1865. It comprised 11 U.S. states that declared secession: South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. These states fought against the United States during the American Civil War.

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18/09/1860

Second Opium War: Battle of Zhangjiawan: Now heading towards Beijing after having recently occupied Tianjin, the allied Anglo-French force engages and defeats a larger Qing Chinese army at Zhangjiawan.

The Second Opium War, also known as the Second Anglo-Chinese War or Arrow War, was fought between the United Kingdom and France against the Qing dynasty of China between 1856 and 1860. It was the second major conflict in the Opium Wars, which were fought over the right to import opium to China, and resulted in a second defeat for the Qing and the forced legalisation of the opium trade. It caused many Chinese officials to believe that conflicts with the Western powers were no longer traditional wars, but part of a looming national crisis.

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Wars of Italian Unification: Battle of Castelfidardo: Royal Sardinian Army defeats forces of the Papal States, resulting in the conquest of Umbria and Marche by the Kingdom of Italy.

The unification of Italy, also known as the Risorgimento, was the 19th century political and social movement that in 1861 ended in the annexation of various states of the Italian peninsula and its outlying isles to the Kingdom of Sardinia, resulting in the creation of the Kingdom of Italy. Inspired by the rebellions in the 1820s and 1830s against the outcome of the Congress of Vienna, the unification process was precipitated by the Revolutions of 1848, and reached completion in 1871 with the official designation of Rome as capital of Italy, following the capture of Rome in 1870.

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18/09/1851

First publication of The New-York Daily Times, which later becomes The New York Times.

The New York Times (NYT) is a newspaper based in Manhattan, New York City. The New York Times covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces and reviews. One of the longest-running newspapers in the United States, the Times serves as one of the country's newspapers of record. As of August 2025, The New York Times had 11.88 million total and 11.3 million online subscribers, both the highest numbers for any newspaper in the United States by a significant margin; the total also included 580,000 print subscribers. The New York Times is published by the New York Times Company. Since 1896, the company has been chaired by the Ochs-Sulzberger family. The current chairman and the paper's publisher is A. G. Sulzberger. The Times is headquartered at The New York Times Building in Midtown Manhattan.

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18/09/1850

The U.S. Congress passes the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850.

The Fugitive Slave Act or Fugitive Slave Law was a statute passed by the 31st United States Congress on September 18, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850 between Southern interests in slavery and Northern Free-Soilers.

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18/09/1838

The Anti-Corn Law League is established by Richard Cobden.

The Anti–Corn Law League was a successful political movement in Great Britain aimed at the abolition of the unpopular Corn Laws, which protected national farming interests by levying taxes on imported wheat, thus raising the price of bread at a time when factory-owners were trying to cut wages. The League was a middle-class nationwide organisation that held many well-attended rallies on the premise that a crusade was needed to convince parliament to repeal the corn laws. Its long-term goals included the removal of feudal privileges, which it denounced as impeding progress, lowering economic well-being, and restricting freedom.

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18/09/1837

Tiffany & Co. (first named Tiffany & Young) is founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany and Teddy Young in New York City. The store is called a "stationery and fancy goods emporium".

Tiffany & Co. is an American luxury jewelry and specialty design house owned by the French conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, and headquartered on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Tiffany is known for its luxury goods, particularly its sterling silver and diamond jewelry. These goods are sold at Tiffany stores, online, and through corporate merchandising. Its name and branding are licensed to Coty for fragrances and to the Franco-Italian company EssilorLuxottica for eyewear.

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18/09/1812

The 1812 Fire of Moscow dies down after destroying more than three-quarters of the city. Napoleon returns from the Petrovsky Palace to the Moscow Kremlin, spared from the fire.

During the French occupation of Moscow, a fire persisted from 14 to 18 September 1812 and all but destroyed the city. The Russian troops and most of the remaining civilians had abandoned the city on 14 September 1812 just ahead of French Emperor Napoleon's troops entering the city after the Battle of Borodino. The Moscow military governor, Count Fyodor Rostopchin, has often been considered responsible for organising the destruction of the former capital to weaken the French army in the scorched city even more.

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18/09/1810

First Government Junta in Chile. Though supposed to rule only during the Peninsular War in Spain, it is in fact the first step towards independence from Spain, and is commemorated as such.

The First Government Junta of Chile, officially the Provisional Government Junta of the Kingdom in the name of Ferdinand VII, was the organization established to rule post-colonial Chile following the deposition and imprisonment of King Ferdinand VII of Spain by Napoleon Bonaparte. It was the earliest step in the Chilean struggle for independence, and the anniversary of its establishment is celebrated as the national day of Chile.

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18/09/1809

The Royal Opera House in London opens.

The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, which are known collectively as the Royal Ballet and Opera.

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18/09/1793

The first cornerstone of the United States Capitol is laid by George Washington.

The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the United States Congress, the legislative branch of the federal government. It is located on Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Although no longer at the geographic center of the national capital, the U.S. Capitol forms the origin point for the street-numbering system of the district as well as its four quadrants. Like the principal buildings of the executive and judicial branches, the Capitol is built in a neoclassical style and has a white exterior.

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18/09/1759

French and Indian War: The Articles of Capitulation of Quebec are signed.

The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a conflict in North America between Great Britain and France, along with their respective Indigenous allies. Historians generally consider it part of the global Seven Years' War, which lasted from 1756 to 1763, although in the United States it is often viewed as a distinct conflict unassociated with any larger European war.

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18/09/1739

The Treaty of Belgrade is signed, whereby Austria cedes lands south of the Sava and Danube rivers to the Ottoman Empire.

The Treaty of Belgrade, also known as the Belgrade Peace, was a peace treaty between the Habsburg Monarchy and Ottoman Empire, that was signed on September 18, 1739, in Belgrade, thus ending the Austro-Turkish War (1737–1739). Agreed territorial changes were substantial, and also favorable for the Ottoman side, since Habsburgs had to cede three regions: the Banat of Craiova, the Kingdom of Serbia with Belgrade, and Bosnian section of Posavina, thus placing the newly defined Habsburg-Ottoman border on the rivers Sava and Danube.

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18/09/1714

George I arrives in Great Britain after becoming king on August 1.

George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 and ruler of the Electorate of Hanover within the Holy Roman Empire from 23 January 1698 until his death in 1727. He was the first British monarch of the House of Hanover.

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18/09/1618

The twelfth baktun in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar begins.

A baktun is 20 kʼatun cycles of the ancient Maya Long Count Calendar. It contains 144,000 days, equal to 394.26 tropical years. The Classic period of Maya civilization occurred during the 8th and 9th baktuns of the current calendrical cycle. The current baktun started on 13.0.0.0.0 – December 21, 2012 using the GMT correlation.

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18/09/1544

The expedition of Juan Bautista Pastene makes landfall in San Pedro Bay, southern Chile, claiming the territory for Spain.

Giovanni Battista Pastene (1507–1580) was a Genoese maritime explorer who, while in the service of the Spanish crown, explored the coasts of Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile as far south as the archipelago of Chiloé.

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18/09/1454

Thirteen Years' War: In the Battle of Chojnice, the Polish army is defeated by the Teutonic knights.

The Thirteen Years' War, also called the War of the Cities, was a conflict fought in 1454–1466 between the Prussian Confederation, allied with the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, and the State of the Teutonic Order.

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18/09/1180

Philip Augustus becomes king of France at the age of fifteen.

Philip II, also known as Philip Augustus, was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French monarch to style himself "King of France". The only son of King Louis VII and his third wife, Adela of Champagne, he was originally nicknamed 'God-given' because he was a first son and born late in his father's life. Philip was given the epithet "Augustus" by the chronicler Rigord for having extended the crown lands of France so remarkably.

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18/09/1066

Norwegian king Harald Hardrada lands with Tostig Godwinson at the mouth of the Humber River and begins his invasion of England.

Harald Sigurdsson, also known as Harald III and given the epithet Hardrada in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 to 1066. He unsuccessfully claimed the Danish throne until 1064 and the English throne in 1066. Before becoming king, Harald spent 15 years in exile as a mercenary and military commander in Kievan Rus' and chief of the Varangian Guard in the Byzantine Empire. In his chronicle, Adam of Bremen called him the "Thunderbolt of the North".

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18/09/1048

Battle of Kapetron between a combined Byzantine-Georgian army and a Seljuq army.

The Battle of Kapetron or Kapetrou was fought between a Byzantine-Georgian army and the Seljuq Turks at the plain of Kapetron in 1048. The event was the culmination of a major raid led by the Seljuq prince Ibrahim Inal into Byzantine-ruled Armenia. A combination of factors meant that the regular Byzantine forces were at a considerable numerical disadvantage against the Turks: the local thematic armies had been disbanded, while many of the professional troops had been diverted to the Balkans to face the revolt of Leo Tornikios. As a result, the Byzantine commanders, Aaron and Katakalon Kekaumenos, disagreed on how best to confront the invasion. Kekaumenos favoured an immediate and pre-emptive strike, while Aaron favoured a more cautious strategy until the arrival of reinforcements. Emperor Constantine IX chose the latter option and ordered his forces to adopt a passive stance, while requesting aid from the ruler of Georgian Duchy of Kldekari, Liparit IV. This allowed the Turks to ravage at will, notably leading to the sack and destruction of the great commercial centre of Artze.

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18/09/0324

Constantine the Great decisively defeats Licinius in the Battle of Chrysopolis, establishing Constantine's sole control over the Roman Empire.

Constantine I, also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a pivotal role in elevating the status of Christianity in Rome, the Edict of Milan decriminalising Christian practice and ceasing Christian persecution. This was a turning point in the Christianisation of the Roman Empire. He founded the city of Constantinople and made it the capital of the Empire, which it remained for over a millennium.

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18/09/0096

Emperor Domitian is assassinated as a result of a plot by his wife Domitia and two Praetorian prefects. Nerva is then proclaimed as his successor.

AD 96 (XCVI) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valens and Vetus. The denomination AD 96 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

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