1876 – Thomas Edison received a patent for his mimeograph machine, a printing device that was one of the forerunners to the photocopier.

1918 – The Battle of Amiens began in Amiens, France, marking the start of the Allied Powers' Hundred Days Offensive through the German front lines that ultimately led to the end of World War I.

1942 – The All India Congress Committee in Bombay passed the Quit India Resolution and Mahatma Gandhi called for determined but passive resistance in a speech at Gowalia Tank, leading to a civil disobedience movement across British India.

1963 – In one of the largest robberies in British history, a gang of 15 train robbers stole £2.6 million in bank notes at Bridego Railway Bridge, Buckinghamshire, England.

1988 – The 8888 Uprising, a series of marches, demonstrations, protests, and riots against the one-party state of the Burma Socialist Programme Party in Burma, began.