1494

France's King Charles VIII invades Italy to claim throne of Naples.

1674

William of Orange takes Grave, Belgium, but is unable to invade France.

1875

Birth of Edgar Rice Burroughs, an American novelist, he is best known for his series of Tarzan books.

1879

Britain signs peace treaty with Zulus in South Africa.

1923

An earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale strikes Japan, completely destroying Yokahama and nearly destroying Tokyo. At least 142,000 people are killed and 2.5 million made homeless.

1923

Birth of Bui Xuan Phai (died 1988), Vietnamese painter. He was best known for his paintings of Ha Noi's old streets, and is one of the four most prominent figures in Viet Nam's contemporary fine art movement.

1939

Germany invades Poland, heralding the start of World War II. Norway, Finland and Switzerland declare their neutrality. Italy claims to be "non-belligerent."

1939

Radio Sai Gon, then the most important station in the French propaganda system in Indochina, goes on air.

1941

Luong Khanh Thien, Vietnamese revolutionary and one of the leaders of the Communist Party of Indochina, is executed by the French in the port city of Hai Phong.

1954

The first ambassador of the People's Republic of China arrives in Viet Nam.

1969

Military officers overthrow the Libyan government and the Libyan Arab Republic is proclaimed under the leadership of Colonel Moammar Kadahfi.

1971

The Swiss Government officially recognises the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam.

1973

Viet Nam and Equatorial Guinea establish diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level.

2000

Twelve South America presidents signed the Declaration of Brasilia, including a pledge to unite South America's two main trade blocs. — REUTERS/AP/VNS