It happened today – this day in history – October 12

1216: King John loses the crown jewels in The Wash as the flood tide swamps his wagons.

1492: Christopher Columbus lands on a Caribbean island he names San Salvador.

1518: The pontifical ambassador interrogates Martin Luther.

1609: The children’s rhyme Three Blind Mice is published.

1845: Death of prison reformer Elizabeth Fry.

1853: John Morrissey wins boxing title, when opponent Yankee Sullivan leaves the ring after the 36th round to fight with Morrissey’s fans.

1870: Death of Gen Robert E Lee, who commanded the Confederate forces in the American Civil War.

1879: British troops occupy Kabul.

1901: Theodore Roosevelt renames the Executive Mansion “The White House.”

1914: The first battle of Ypres begins.

1931: The statue of Christ the Redeemer opens on top of Mt Corcovado overlooking Rio de Janeiro.

1933: Gangster John Dillinger escapes from prison in Ohio. On the same day, Machine Gun Kelly (George Barnes) is sentenced to life imprisonment.

1944: The German army retreats from Athens.

1957: During an Australian tour Little Richard denounces rock n roll and embraces religion..

1960: Soviet leader Nikita Kruschev bangs his shoe on his desk at a session of the UN General Assembly

1966: The Jimi Hendrix Experience forms with Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell.

1968: The Olympic Games open in Mexico City.

1971: Death of rocker Gene Vincent aged 36.

1973: US President Richard Nixon nominates Gerald Ford to replace Spiro Agnew as Vice President.

1976: Hua Guo-feng succeeds Mao Zedong as chairman of the Chinese Communist Party.

1978: Sid Vicious is charged with the murder of his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen.

1980: Seven people are stabbed at, of all places, a Blood, Sweat & Tears concert in LA.

1984: The IRA bombs the Grand Hotel in Brighton where members of the Government, including prime minister Margaret Thatcher, are staying during the Conservative Party Conference. Five people die.

1986: The Queen and Prince Philip visit China.

1997: Singer John Denver dies in a plane crash.

2002: Terrorists explode two bombs in a Bali nightclub, killing 202 and injuring 209.

2003: Michael Schumacher clinches his fourth consecutive Formula 1 World Drivers Championship.

2018: Banksy work “Girl With Balloon” automatically shreds moments after being sold for £1 million in London, re-named “Love is in the Bin” .

BIRTHDAYS: Angela Rippon, former newsreader, 75; Robin Askuith, actor, 69; Dave Vanian (David Lett), singer (The Damned), 63; Hugh Jackman, actor, 51; Ledley King, former footballer, 39; Josh Hutcherson, actor, 27.