June 18

1178 – Canterbury monks see an impact event believed to have been the formation of the Giordano Bruno crater on the moon. It is believed that the current oscillations of the Moon’s distance from the Earth -on the order of meters -are a result of this collision.

1429 – The French army of King Charles VII under the leadership of Joan of Arc defeats the main English army of Lord John Talbot, led by Sir John Fastolf at the Battle of Patay, turning the tide of the Hundred Years’ War.

1684 – The charter of the Massachusetts Bay Colony is revoked by order  English court

1778 – Due to France’s earlier recognition of the United States, and open letters published noting the identities of people to be treated as traitors; loyalists and British troops abandon Philadelphia during the Revolutionary War.

1812 – The United States declaration of war on the United Kingdom is signed by President James Madison, beginning the War of 1812.

1873 – Susan B. Anthony is fined $100 for attempting to vote in the 1872 presidential election.

1908 – Japanese immigration to Brazil begins when 781 people arrive in Santos aboard the ship Kasato-Maru.

1923 – Checker Taxi puts its first taxi on the streets in Chicago.

1948 – Britain, France and the United States occupation forces announce that on June 21st, the Deutsche Mark will be introduced to replace the Reichmark in western Germany and West Berlin.

1953 – A United States Air Force C-124 of the 374th Troop Carrier Group, crashes and burns near Tachikawa, Japan, killing all 129 servicemembers aboard.

1965 – The U.S. Air Force begins Operation Arc Light during the Vietnam War, using B-52 bombers stationed in Thailand and Guam to attack Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army forces in South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

1979 – The SALT II, strategic arms treaty is signed by the United States and the Soviet Union.

1981 – The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk, the first operational aircraft initially designed around stealth technology, makes its first flight.

1983 – Aboard Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-7, Astronaut Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space.

2007 –  9 firefighters are killed while putting out a fire in the Sofa Super Store in Charleston, South Carolina.

2009 – NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is launched from Cape Canaveral.