istoryworld
All Events
Afghan aristocrat and politician Hamid Karzai heads an interim government in his country
Yasumasa Kanada sets his 11th world record in calculating the number of digits in the decimal expansion of Π, reaching 1.2411 trillion
The Asgill House Beech receives a riverside plaque recording it as one of the Great Trees of London
Michael Rogers, in a team led by Sileshi Semaw, discovers the world's oldest known chipped stone tool, at Gona in Ethiopia
The historic city of Bam, in Iran, is destroyed in a massive earthquake, with more than 40,000 deaths
The US space shuttle Columbia disintegrates, with seven on board, when re-entering the earth's atmosphere
Around the world millions of people march in protest against the war planned by the USA and UK against Iraq
The two remaining regions of the unravelled Yugoslavia unite as a new nation, Serbia and Montenegro
Civil war breaks out in the Darfur region of the Sudan, resulting in large numbers of civilian deaths and accusations of government-sponsored genocide
A deadly new form of pneumonia, SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) is first reported in Hanoi and soon spreads globally
Zoran Dindić, the prime minister of Serbia, is assassinated in Belgrade
Hu Jintao succeeds Jiang Zemin as president of the People's Republic of China
US, British, Australian and Polish forces invade Iraq
US forces are in control of Baghdad and an excited crowd topples from its plinth a massive statue of Saddam Hussein
President Bush prematurely celebrates his Iraq achievement with a speech on a US aircraft carrier in front of a banner declaring 'Mission Accomplished'
Finding Nemo, following the adventures of a clownfish, wins an Oscar for Pixar Animation as the Best Animated Feature
The UN Security Council and the Polisario accept a plan for the future of Western Sahara, proposed by James Baker, but it is rejected by Morocco
The Public Records Office and the Historic Manuscripts Commission come together to form The National Archives
UK scientist David Kelly commits suicide, apparently for reasons linked with the Iraq War
US tennis player Pete Sampras retires with a record total of 14 Grand Slam titles
Lost in Translation, a film directed by Sofia Coppola, depicts the culture shock of an American couple in modern Japan
Sweden's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Anna Lindh, is stabbed in a Stockholm department store and dies the following day
Californians vote to remove governor Gray Davis from office in a 'recall' election and to replace him with Arnold Schwarzenegger
The last three Concorde airliners to carry fare-paying passengers land within a space of five minutes at Heathrow
US singer Britney Spears creates a new record when she has a fourth successive album (In the Zone) go straight to the top of Billboard 200
