Discover What Happened Today in History
The forces of the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, captured the city of Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in Spain. This event completed the Reconquista and ended nearly 800 years of Islamic rule in the Iberian Peninsula.
Georgia became the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution. Its quick ratification helped build momentum for the new framework of government.
Under Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, federal agents in 23 cities arrested thousands of suspected radicals, primarily anarchists and communists. This marked a major escalation of the First Red Scare in the United States.
The Soviet Union launched Luna 1, also known as Mechta, which became the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon and the first to go into orbit around the Sun. It was a major milestone in the early space race.
A fatal crowd crush occurred at the Ibrox Stadium in Glasgow, Scotland, at the end of a soccer match between Rangers and Celtic. Sixty-six people were killed and over 200 injured in one of British football's worst disasters.
President Richard Nixon signed the Emergency Highway Energy Conservation Act, establishing a national 55 miles per hour speed limit. The law was a response to the 1973 oil crisis to reduce fuel consumption.