June 30: On This Day in World History … briefly

1520:   Aztec king slain by Spain

The Aztec sovereign of Mexico, Montezuma II, is killed by the Spanish conquerors of Hernando Cortez who had overthrown his empire and taken him prisoner. Misled by the ancient prophecies of his race, Montezuma II and his people received Cortez and his men as divinities when they first arrived at the Mexican capital, Tenochtitlan. His father, Montezuma I, was a mighty ruler whose power stretched from the Atlantic and to the Pacific. Montezuma II himself was a successful conqueror until overthrown by Hernando Cortez.

1789:   The revolutionary mob in Paris attacks Abbaye Prison.

1822:   In Spain, rebels take King Ferdinand VII prisoner.

1837:   The use of the pillory is banned in Britain.

1859:   Tightrope thrills as Blondin walks over Falls

Crowds held their breath in stunned admiration as a daring Frenchman crossed the 167ft (51m) high Niagara Falls, balanced on a tightrope. The whole extraordinary feat took just five minutes. Thirty-five year-old Charles Blondin, whose real name was Jean Francois Gravelet, was an acrobat and tightrope walker of world renown. Born at St Omer and trained at Lyons, he was engaged in a tour throughout the United States.

1894:   Tower Bridge officially opens

Amidst much celebration the Tower Bridge was opened by HRH the Prince of Wales. His cavalcade made a double crossing before the bascules were raised to allow an impressive procession of boats to sail down the Thames.

1919:   Death of British physicist Lord Rayleigh, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1904 for his discovery of argon gas.

1936:   Margaret Mitchell’s romantic novel ‘Gone with the Wind’ is published.

1938:   Superman sighted

Thanks to Action Comics, a new super crime-fighter from the distant planet of Krypton made his appearance in spectacular fashion. He could leap taller than the highest building, run faster than a speeding train, was invulnerable and possessed the strength of 200 men. Most of the time, his true identity was kept hidden behind the mild, unassuming persona of Clark Kent, a reporter on the Metropolis Daily Globe. But when action called, he quickly materialised in a blue catsuit and red cape, with a big ‘S’ on his enormous chest. And what was his name? Why, Superman, of course!

1960:   Norman Bates is here

Screams of terror filled the cinemas when Norman Bates went into a killing frenzy in the film ‘Psycho’, which opened on this day. Director Alfred Hitchcock – who refused to give too much of the plot away in advance – limited himself to saying that the original novel was based on the true story of a man who kept his dead mother in the basement. An orchestra composed entirely of strings was used for the musical score and the shrieking of violins contributes greatly to the atmosphere of chilling horror.

1974:   Russian ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov defects to the West while on tour in Canada.

1989:   Death of Lillian Hellman, American playwright best known for ‘The Little Foxes’.

1997:   The first novel by JK Rowling, ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ is published.

1997:   Hong Kong is given back

Against a backdrop of celebrations all over China, Hong Kong was handed back to the Chinese after 99 years of British administration. Attending the ceremony was Prince Charles and Prime Minister Tony Blair, as well as Chinese President Jiang Zemin, who promised to govern Hong Kong by the principle of ‘one country, two systems’.

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