SortStack #1864 — 2031-07-17

By year · Order from earliest to most recent.

1. William the Conqueror defeats King Harold at the Battle of Hastings 1066

   The Bayeux Tapestry — actually an embroidery nearly 70 meters long — tells the story, including Harold's famous (and disputed) arrow in the eye.

2. Copernicus publishes his book putting the Sun at the center of the cosmos 1543

   Legend says a finished copy was placed in his hands on his deathbed. The Catholic Church didn't formally suspend the book until 73 years later.

3. The Taj Mahal is completed in Agra 1653

   Emperor Shah Jahan built it as a tomb for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, employing some 20,000 workers — and was later imprisoned by his own son within sight of it.

4. Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone 1876

   Bell's lawyer filed at the patent office mere hours before rival Elisha Gray filed a notice for a similar device — one of history's closest patent races.

5. India and Pakistan gain independence from Britain 1947

   Independence came at midnight, and the hastily drawn border triggered one of history's largest migrations — some fifteen million people crossed in both directions.

6. President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas 1963

   Abraham Zapruder's 26-second home movie of the motorcade became one of the most studied pieces of film ever shot.

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