BBC - On This Day
1955: Communist states sign Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union and its Eastern Bloc allies sign a defence pact in the Polish capital, Warsaw, places all member countries under one military command.
1991: Mandela's wife jailed for kidnaps
Winnie Mandela, the wife of anti-apartheid campaigner Nelson Mandela, is given a six-year jail term for her part in the kidnap of four youths.
1964: Nasser and Khrushchev divert the Nile
The Egyptian and Russian leaders end phase one of the construction of the Aswan High Dam by blowing up a huge sand barrage to divert the course of the Nile.
1957: Cheers as petrol rationing ended
Relief across the country as the paymaster general announces restrictions on fuel consumption imposed during the Suez crisis are to be lifted.
2001: Scientists warn of more CJD cases
Variant CJD - the human form of BSE or "mad cow disease"- has been found in 99 people so far - but scientists warn a "second wave"in several years could be much larger.