1773
May 27
| 1773 • French astronomer Charles Messier discovers the Whirlpool Galaxy, an interacting, grand design spiral galaxy located at a distance of approximately 23 million light-years in the constellation Canes Venatici. |
1762
Jan 1
| 1762 • The Great Holocaust of the Sikhs is carried out by the forces of Ahmed Shah Abdali in Punjab. In all, around 30,000 men, women and children perish in this campaign of slaughter. |
1820
Age: 46y
| 1820 • Slavery in the United States: The Missouri Compromise becomes law, allowing admission of Missouri and Maine, slave and free states respectively, as U.S. states. |
1850
Jun 3
Age: 77y
| 1850 • The hippopotamus Obaysch arrives at London Zoo from Egypt, the first seen in Europe since Roman times. |