Revised and updated edition to include recent events such as Nelson Mandela's death, the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 and Andy Murray's Wimbledon victory. What historical events happened on your birthday? With a whole page for each day of the year, and more than 700 illustrations, On This Day covers over 8000 events throughout history day by day. Newspaper-style articles recount all the main stories of the day in a lively and immediate way, from the Roman Empire to Mikhail Gorbachev, from the discovery of gravity to landing on the moon, from Beethoven to the Beatles. Also included for each day are extracts from diaries, letters and speeches, amusing events and trivia that maybe didn't quite make the headlines, famous peoples' birthdays and a news-in-brief column. Packed full of historical information, this is a book that can be read from cover to cover or dipped into for fascinating facts or for special dates such as anniversaries or birthdays.