1827: The trinational fleet under admirals Henry Derigny, Eduardo Codrington and Longino Hayden defeats Ibrahim’s Turco-Egyptian off Navarino and paves the way for Greek independence. (The Naval Battle of Navarino)

1838: Theodoros Kolokotronis gives his famous speech “Admonitions to the new generation” in Pnyka.

1973: Dictator George Papadopoulos, in an attempt to liberalize his regime, appoints Spyros Markezini as prime minister. His government will collapse on November 25, eight days after the Polytechnic uprising.

1980: Bob Marley collapses on stage and is taken to a hospital, where he is diagnosed with a brain tumor. The man who made reggae music known around the world will die seven months later.

1998: The Nobel Prize for Literature is awarded for the first time to a Portuguese, José Saramago.

Births

1927: Kostas Takhtsis, Greek poet and writer. (“The Third Crown”) (Died 8/25/1988)

1958: Ursula von der Leyen, German politician of the Christian Democratic Party, president of the European Commission since 2019.

1970: Matt Damon, American actor.

Deaths

1580: Hieronymus Wolff, German philologist, the first to use the word Byzantium to describe the Eastern Roman State. He is considered the founder of Byzantine Studies. (Born 13/8/1516)

1987 Konstantinos Tsatsos, Greek philosopher and President of the Hellenic Republic. (Born 1/7/1899)

1992 Willy Brandt, chancellor of Germany between 1969 and 1974 and “architect” of the policy of recession (Ostpolitik) – that is, the opening of the West to the then communist East – during the Cold War. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1971. (Born 18/12/1913).