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The impeachment of President Park Geun-hye of South Korea in response to a major political scandal is unanimously upheld by the country's Constitutional Court, ending her presidency.
The Nasdaq Composite stock market index peaks at 5132.52, signaling the beginning of the end of the dot-com boom.
In Haiti, Prosper Avril is ousted 18 months after seizing power in a coup.
Vietnam War: Ho Chi Minh Campaign: North Vietnamese troops attack Ban Mê Thuột in the South on their way to capturing Saigon in the final push for victory over South Vietnam.
Vietnam War: Captain Ernest Medina is charged by the U.S. military with My Lai war crimes.
In Memphis, Tennessee, James Earl Ray pleads guilty to assassinating Martin Luther King, Jr. He later unsuccessfully attempts to recant.
Vietnam War: Battle of Lima Site 85, concluding the 11th with largest single ground combat loss of United States Air Force members (12) during that war.
Military Prime Minister of South Vietnam Nguyễn Cao Kỳ sacked rival General Nguyễn Chánh Thi, precipitating large-scale civil and military dissension in parts of the nation.
Tibetan uprising: Fearing an abduction attempt by China, thousands of Tibetans surround the Dalai Lama's palace to prevent his removal.
Fulgencio Batista leads a successful coup in Cuba and appoints himself as the "provisional president".
The U.S. Army Air Force firebombs Tokyo, and the resulting conflagration kills more than 100,000 people, mostly civilians.
Greek Civil War: The Political Committee of National Liberation is established in Greece by the National Liberation Front.
The 6.4 Mw Long Beach earthquake affects the Greater Los Angeles Area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), leaving 115-120 people dead, and causing an estimated $40 million in damage.
Mahatma Gandhi is arrested in India, tried for sedition, and sentenced to six years in prison, only to be released after nearly two years for an appendicitis operation.
Some provinces and cities in the Philippines are incorporated due to the ratification of Act No. 2711 or the Administrative Code of the Philippines.
The Battle of Neuve Chapelle begins. This is the first large-scale operation by the British Army in WWI.
By signing the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909, Thailand relinquishes its sovereignty over the Malay states of Kedah, Kelantan, Perlis and Terengganu, which become British protectorates.
The Courrières mine disaster, Europe's worst ever, kills 1099 miners in northern France.
Almon Strowger, an undertaker in Topeka, Kansas, patents the Strowger switch, a device which led to the automation of telephone circuit switching.
The first successful test of a telephone is made by Alexander Graham Bell.
El Hadj Umar Tall seizes the city of Ségou, destroying the Bamana Empire of Mali.
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is ratified by the United States Senate, ending the Mexican-American War.
Crossing of the Andes: A group of royalist scouts are captured during the Action of Juncalito.
Louisiana Purchase: In St. Louis, Missouri, a formal ceremony is conducted to transfer ownership of the Louisiana Territory from France to the United States.
French Huguenot Jean Calas, who had been wrongly convicted of killing his son, dies after being tortured by authorities; the event inspired Voltaire to begin a campaign for religious tolerance and legal reform.
An agreement between Nader Shah and Russia is signed near Ganja, Azerbaijan and Russian troops are withdrawn from Baku.
Charles I of England dissolves Parliament, beginning the eleven-year period known as the Personal Rule.
Susenyos I defeats the combined armies of Yaqob and Abuna Petros II at the Battle of Gol in Gojjam, making him Emperor of Ethiopia.
The Later Han is founded by Liu Zhiyuan. He declares himself emperor and establishes the capital in Bian, present-day Kaifeng.
Roman Emperor Maximian concludes his campaign in North Africa against the Berbers, and makes a triumphal entry into Carthage.
First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands: The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing the First Punic War to an end.
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