# What happened on October 20 in history?

**Date:** October 20  
**Events recorded:** 38  
**Years spanned:** 1568 – 2022  
**Full page:** https://thisday.info/events/october/20/

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## Featured Event

**2022** — Liz Truss steps down as British Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party amid the country's political crisis, serving for the least time of any British Prime Minister (49 days).

[Read more on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liz_Truss)

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## Events on this date

- **1568** — The Spanish Duke of Alba defeats a Dutch rebel force under William the Silent. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernando_%C3%81lvarez_de_Toledo%2C_3rd_Duke_of_Alba))
- **1572** — Eighty Years' War: Three thousand Spanish soldiers wade through fifteen miles of water in one night to effect the relief of Goes. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eighty_Years'_War))
- **1740** — France, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony refuse to honour the Pragmatic Sanction, and the War of the Austrian Succession begins. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pragmatic_Sanction_of_1713))
- **1774** — American Revolution: The Continental Association, a nonconsumption and nonimportation agreement against the British Isles and the British West Indies, is adopted by the First Continental Congress. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolution))
- **1781** — The Patent of Toleration, providing limited freedom of worship, is approved in Austria. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent_of_Toleration))
- **1803** — The United States Senate ratifies the Louisiana Purchase. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase))
- **1818** — The Convention of 1818 is signed between the United States and the United Kingdom, which settles the Canada–United States border on the 49th parallel for most of its length. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_1818))
- **1827** — Greek War of Independence: In the Battle of Navarino, a combined Turkish and Egyptian fleet is defeated by British, French and Russian naval forces in the last significant battle fought with wooden sailing ships. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_War_of_Independence))
- **1883** — Peru and Chile sign the Treaty of Ancón, by which the Tarapacá province is ceded to the latter, bringing an end to Peru's involvement in the War of the Pacific. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Anc%C3%B3n))
- **1904** — Chile and Bolivia sign the Treaty of Peace and Friendship, delimiting the border between the two countries. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Peace_and_Friendship_(1904)))
- **1910** — British ocean liner RMS Olympic is launched. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_liner))
- **1935** — The Long March, a mammoth retreat undertaken by the armed forces of the Chinese Communist Party a year prior, ends. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_March))
- **1941** — World War II: Thousands of civilians in German-occupied Serbia are murdered in the Kragujevac massacre. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II))
- **1944** — World War II: The Soviet Red Army and Yugoslav Partisans liberate Belgrade. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Army))
- **1944** — Liquefied natural gas leaks from storage tanks in Cleveland and then explodes, leveling 30 blocks and killing 130 people. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquefied_natural_gas))
- **1944** — World War II:  American general Douglas MacArthur fulfills his promise to return to the Philippines when he comes ashore during the Battle of Leyte. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur))
- **1947** — Cold War: The House Un-American Activities Committee begins its investigation into Communist infiltration of the Hollywood film industry, resulting in a blacklist that prevents some from working in the industry for years. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War))
- **1948** — A KLM Lockheed L-049 Constellation crashes on approach to Glasgow Prestwick Airport, killing 40. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KLM))
- **1951** — The "Johnny Bright incident" occurs during a football game between the Drake Bulldogs and Oklahoma A&M Aggies. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Bright_incident))
- **1952** — The Governor of Kenya Evelyn Baring declares a state of emergency and begins arresting hundreds of suspected leaders of the Mau Mau Uprising. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evelyn_Baring%2C_1st_Baron_Howick_of_Glendale))
- **1961** — The Soviet Navy performs the first armed test of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, launching an R-13 from a Golf-class submarine. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_Navy))
- **1962** — China launches simultaneous offensives in Ladakh and across the McMahon Line, igniting the Sino-Indian War. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China))
- **1973** — Watergate scandal: "Saturday Night Massacre": United States President Richard Nixon fires U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus after they refuse to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox, who is finally fired by Solicitor General Robert Bork. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal))
- **1973** — The Sydney Opera House is opened by Elizabeth II after 14 years of construction. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Opera_House))
- **1976** — The Luling–Destrehan Ferry MV George Prince is struck by the Norwegian freighter SS Frosta while crossing the Mississippi River in St. Charles Parish, Louisiana. Seventy-eight passengers and crew die, and only 18 people aboard the ferry survive. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luling%E2%80%93Destrehan_Ferry))
- **1977** — A plane carrying the rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd crashes in woodland in Mississippi, United States. Six people, including three band members, are killed. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynyrd_Skynyrd))
- **1981** — Two police officers and a Brink's armored car guard are killed during an armed robbery carried out by members of the Black Liberation Army and Weather Underground in Nanuet, New York. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brink's))
- **1982** — During the UEFA Cup match between FC Spartak Moscow and HFC Haarlem, 66 people are crushed to death in the Luzhniki disaster. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FC_Spartak_Moscow))
- **1986** — Aeroflot Flight 6502 crashes while landing at Kuibyshev Airport (now Kuromoch International Airport) in Kuibyshev (now present-day Samara, Russia), killing 70 people. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeroflot_Flight_6502))
- **1991** — A 6.8 Mw earthquake strikes the Uttarkashi region of India, killing more than 1,000 people. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moment_magnitude_scale))
- **1991** — A massive firestorm breaks out in the hills of Oakland and Berkeley, California killing 25 people and destroying more than 3,000 homes, apartments and condominiums. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firestorm))
- **1995** — Space Shuttle Columbia launches on STS-73. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Columbia))
- **2002** — Top Gear, the revived popular British TV motoring magazine, premieres on BBC. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Gear_(2002_TV_series)))
- **2003** — The Sloan Great Wall, once the largest cosmic structures known to humanity, is discovered by students at Princeton University. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sloan_Great_Wall))
- **2005** — The general conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) passes the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNESCO))
- **2011** — Libyan Crisis: Rebel forces capture Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi and his son Mutassim in his hometown of Sirte and kill them shortly thereafter, ending the first Libyan civil war. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libyan_crisis))
- **2017** — Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) declare victory in the Raqqa campaign. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_civil_war))
- **2022** — Liz Truss steps down as British Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party amid the country's political crisis, serving for the least time of any British Prime Minister (49 days). ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liz_Truss))

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## Notable births on October 20

- **2003** — **Carney Chukwuemeka** — English footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carney_Chukwuemeka))
- **2002** — **Yéremy Pino** — Spanish footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Y%C3%A9remy_Pino))
- **2001** — **Paige Bueckers** — American basketball player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paige_Bueckers))
- **2000** — **Kenneth Walker III** — American football player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_Walker_III))
- **1999** — **Chuu** — South Korean singer and television personality ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuu))
- **1999** — **YoungBoy Never Broke Again** — American rapper ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YoungBoy_Never_Broke_Again))
- **1998** — **Jordan Ridley** — Australian rules footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_Ridley))
- **1997** — **Ademola Lookman** — Nigerian footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ademola_Lookman))
- **1997** — **Daizen Maeda** — Japanese footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daizen_Maeda))
- **1997** — **Nguyễn Tiến Linh** — Vietnamese footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nguy%E1%BB%85n_Ti%E1%BA%BFn_Linh))

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## Notable deaths on October 20

- **2024** — **Barbara Dane** — American folk, blues and jazz singer (born 1927) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Dane))
- **2024** — **Fethullah Gülen** — Turkish preacher and theologian (born 1941) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fethullah_G%C3%BClen))
- **2024** — **Walter Jacob** — American Reform rabbi (born 1930) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Jacob))
- **2024** — **Janusz Olejniczak** — Polish classical pianist and actor (born 1952) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janusz_Olejniczak))
- **2024** — **Paul White** — Baron Hanningfield, British life peer (born 1940) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_White%2C_Baron_Hanningfield))
- **2022** — **Lucy Simon** — American composer and songwriter (born 1940) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_Simon))
- **2020** — **James Randi** — Canadian-American stage magician and author (born 1928) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Randi))
- **2018** — **Wim Kok** — Dutch prime minister (born 1938) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wim_Kok))
- **2016** — **Robert E. Kramek** — former United States Coast Guard admiral (born 1939) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Kramek))
- **2016** — **Michael Massee** — American actor (born 1952) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Massee))

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## About this page

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