99 years ago today
Charles Lindbergh Departs on First Solo Transatlantic Flight
On May 20, 1927, Charles Lindbergh took off from Roosevelt Field in Long Island, New York, aboard his single-engine monoplane the Spirit of St. Louis, beginning the world's first solo nonstop transatlantic flight. He carried only sandwiches, a star chart, and his famous aviator's cool. After 33 hours and 30 minutes of flying, he landed at Le Bourget airfield outside Paris on May 21 to a crowd of more than 100,000 delirious spectators. Lindbergh's achievement captured the imagination of the world, transforming aviation from a stuntman's thrill into a technology of boundless possibility. He was awarded the Orteig Prize of $25,000 and instantly became one of the most famous people on earth.
This day, across time
- 325 CEEventFirst Council of Nicaea Opens
- 794 CEDiedÆthelberht II of East Anglia
- 1444DiedBernardino of Siena
- 1498EventVasco da Gama Arrives in India
- 1506DiedChristopher Columbus
- 1570EventFirst Modern Atlas Published
- 1609EventShakespeare's Sonnets Published
- 1799BornHonoré de Balzac
- 1806BornJohn Stuart Mill
- 1862EventLincoln Signs the Homestead Act
- 1873EventLevi Strauss and Jacob Davis Patent Blue Jeans
- 1875EventMetre Convention Signed, Establishing Metric System
- 1882BornSigrid Undset
- 1883EventKrakatoa Begins Erupting
- 1927FeaturedCharles Lindbergh Departs on First Solo Transatlantic Flight
- 1940EventFirst Prisoners Arrive at Auschwitz
- 1946BornCher
- 1964EventCosmic Microwave Background Radiation Discovered
Alive in 1927
OverlapSame years; not influence
Abraham Heschelturned 20 this year- Adolf Hitlerturned 38 this year
Albert Einsteinturned 48 this year
Carl Gustav Jungturned 52 this year
Deng Xiaopingturned 23 this year
Eleanor Rooseveltturned 43 this year
Emmanuel Levinasturned 21 this year
Ernest Hemingwayturned 28 this year
Franz Rosenzweigturned 41 this year
Frida Kahloturned 20 this year
20 more figures were alive that year
On This Day in History
10 EventsFirst Council of Nicaea Opens
The First Council of Nicaea was formally opened in present-day Turkey under the patronage of Emperor Constantine, marking the first ecumenical council of the Christian Church and producing the Nicene Creed.
Vasco da Gama Arrives in India
Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrived at Kozhikode (Calicut) on the Malabar Coast of India, completing the first direct sea route from Europe to Asia around the Cape of Good Hope and opening a new era of global trade.
First Modern Atlas Published
Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius published Theatrum Orbis Terrarum (Theatre of the World) in Antwerp — widely considered the first true modern atlas, containing 53 maps based on the best geographical knowledge of the age.
Shakespeare's Sonnets Published
Shakespeare's sequence of 154 sonnets was first published in London, possibly without his authorisation, by printer Thomas Thorpe — offering the world some of the greatest lyric poetry in the English language.
Lincoln Signs the Homestead Act
President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act, offering 160 acres of public land to any settler who improved and farmed it for five years, opening 84 million acres to westward expansion.
Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis Patent Blue Jeans
Levi Strauss and tailor Jacob Davis received a U.S. patent for blue jeans reinforced with copper rivets, creating what became the world's most iconic garment.
Metre Convention Signed, Establishing Metric System
Representatives of 17 nations signed the Metre Convention in Paris, establishing the International Bureau of Weights and Measures and creating the infrastructure for the global metric system.
Krakatoa Begins Erupting
The volcanic island of Krakatoa in the Dutch East Indies began a series of eruptions that culminated in the catastrophic explosion of August 27, 1883 — one of the deadliest volcanic events in recorded history, killing more than 36,000 people.
First Prisoners Arrive at Auschwitz
The first prisoners — 728 Polish political prisoners transferred from Tarnów — arrived at the newly established Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz, beginning what would become the largest killing centre of the Holocaust.
Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation Discovered
Robert Woodrow Wilson and Arno Penzias at Bell Labs discovered the cosmic microwave background radiation — a faint echo of the Big Bang — providing the strongest evidence yet for the Big Bang theory of the universe's origin. They won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1978.
Born on This Day
Honoré de Balzac
French novelist
Honoré de Balzac was one of the founders of literary realism, whose vast linked series of novels La Comédie Humaine depicted French society with unparalleled scope and psychological depth. Works including Père Goriot and Lost Illusions influenced Dickens, Proust, Zola, and Marx, who praised his insight into social forces.
John Stuart Mill
English philosopher and economist
John Stuart Mill was the most influential liberal thinker of the 19th century. His works On Liberty, Utilitarianism, and The Subjection of Women remain foundational texts of political philosophy. He was also one of the first Members of Parliament to call for women's suffrage.
Sigrid Undset
Norwegian novelist, Nobel Prize laureate
Sigrid Undset won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1928, primarily for her monumental medieval trilogy Kristin Lavransdatter, set in 14th-century Norway. Her historical novels combined deep psychological realism with a profound moral vision. During World War II she fled to the United States after the Nazi occupation of Norway.
Cher
American singer and actress
Cher is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with a career spanning over six decades. Known for hits like "Believe" and "If I Could Turn Back Time," she is one of the few entertainers to have achieved number-one hits in each decade from the 1960s to the 2000s. She also won an Academy Award for Best Actress for Moonstruck (1987).
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Christopher Columbus
Italian explorer, European discoverer of the Americas
Christopher Columbus died in Valladolid, Spain, still believing he had reached Asia rather than a previously unknown continent. His four voyages across the Atlantic beginning in 1492 opened the Americas to European colonisation, with consequences — transformative and catastrophic — that shaped the modern world.
Æthelberht II of East Anglia
King of East Anglia
King Æthelberht II was executed on the orders of the Mercian king Offa while visiting his court, possibly in a dispute over territory or marriage. He was later venerated as a saint and martyr, with Hereford Cathedral dedicated to him.
Bernardino of Siena
Italian Franciscan preacher and saint
Bernardino of Siena was one of the most influential preachers of 15th-century Italy, known for his fiery sermons on morality and his promotion of the IHS (Jesus) monogram as a symbol of Christian devotion. He was canonised just six years after his death.
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