1498: Mozambique, on Africa’s south-eastern coast, was discovered by Vasco de Gama.

1711: The first edition of The Spectator was published.

1810: Composer Frederic Chopin was born near Warsaw, Poland.

1904: Glenn Miller, US trombonist, bandleader, composer and arranger, was born.

1913: The International Lawn Tennis Federation, the world’s governing body for tennis, was founded in Paris with representatives from 13 countries.

1940: Vivien Leigh won the Best Actress Oscar for her role as Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With The Wind.

1949: Joe Louis, US world heavyweight boxing champion retired aged 35.

1957: Israel bowed to UN and US pressure and agreed to pull out of Gaza and Aqaba.

1966: Chancellor of the Exchequer James Callaghan said Britain would switch to decimal currency from 1971.

1978: Charlie Chaplin’s coffin was stolen from a Swiss cemetery three months after burial.