A big day in history

Dominic Sandbrook charts significant dates in history

An illustration depicting the death of William II at the hands of Walter Tirel. Although his death is thought to have been a hunting accident, some contemporary observers

Death in the New Forest: how King William II met his demise

Oliver Cromwell at the battle of Marston Moor. (Photo by The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)

ON THIS DAY 2 July 1644, the battle of Marston Moor

The opening of the Great Exhibition by Queen Victoria on 1 May 1851. (The Print Collector/Getty Images)

“A wonder of the world”: Queen Victoria opens the Great Exhibition at the famous Crystal Palace

Thomas Blood stealing the Crown Jewels

The day Thomas Blood stole the Crown Jewels

Police Constable Neil finds the body of MARY ANN NICHOLS in Buck's Row, Whitechapel Date: 31 August 1888

A big day in history: Mary Ann Nichols becomes the first victim of ‘Jack the Ripper’ (31 August 1888)

Senator Edward 'Ted' Kennedy photographed shortly after the infamous Chappaquiddick drowning incident. (Photo by John Loengard/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images)

A big day in history: a woman drowns as the Kennedy curse strikes again

A depiction of Hannibal at the battle of Trasimene, which is

A big day in history: Hannibal smashes his foes “at the very gates of Rome”

A cartoonist's depiction of the Ely and Littleport riots. For the Tory government at the time, the riots were a

A big day in history: Rioters give East Anglia’s rich and respectable a fright

The Battle on the Ice, fought between the men of Novgorod and the Teutonic Knights, was a landmark in European history, says Dominic Sandbrook. (Alamy)

A big day in history: Nevsky’s Russians crush the Teutonic Knights

LA Times photo from newspaper report 1942

Second World War

A big day in history: Japanese planes attack Los Angeles. Or do they?

Gold miners in California in 1849. The gold rush sparked one of the greatest mass migrations in American history. (Universal History Archive/Getty Images)

A big day in history: A speck of glitter triggers the California Gold Rush

A big day in history: The day Pope Urban II exhorted Christians to go on crusade

A relief showing Emperor Constantine's over Maxentius at the battle of Milvian Bridge. (Prisma/UIG/Getty Images)

A big day in history: “A cross of light” leads Constantine to victory

The

A big day in history: a royal icon is stabbed through the heart

The Fire of Rome, by Hubert Robert (1733-1808).

The Library A big day in history: the Great Fire of Rome