On This Day in History: June 22

Richard II of England begins his reign as king at the age of 10, on June 22, 1377 following the death of his grandfather, Edward III. Richard was crowned in the Westminster Abbey on July 16, 1377. His reign was initially governed by councils and his uncles, most notably John of Gaunt. Expand +

Galileo Galilei is convicted of heresy by the Roman Catholic Church's Holy Office (the Inquisition)on June 22, 1633, and forced to publicly recant his scientific position that the Earth orbits the Sun.  Expand +

The Royal Greenwich Observatory was established by King Charles II on June 22, 1675, by a royal warrant. The primary purpose for creating the observatory was to create a scientific institution to determine longitude at sea to improve the safety and efficiency of sea navigation. Expand +

The Continental Congress approves the first release of $1 million in bills of credit (paper currency) to help fund the American Revolutionary War. Another $1 million was authorized in July. By the end of 1775, Congress had authorized a total of $6 million bills of credit. The currency quickly lost value, partly because it was not backed by a physical asset like gold or silver, but also due to the fact that too many bills were printed. The loss in value inspired the term "not worth a continental". More

Napoleon abdicates as French emperor for the second time after his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, bringing an end to France’s domination of Europe. He was exiled to the remote island of Saint Helena, in the southern Atlantic Ocean, where he lived out the rest of his life. He died on May 5, 1821 at the age of 52.

The Franco-German Armistice formally ending hostilities between France and Germany during World War II is signed. The armistice resulted in the division of France into occupied and unoccupied zones, with the French State, becoming a collaborationist government under the leadership of Marshal Philippe Pétain. Expand +

Nazi Germany Invades the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The Invasion, named Barbarossa, was the largest land offensive in human history, with over 10 million combatants taking part. More

The American forces secured Okinawa and the Tenth Army.conducts a flag-raising ceremony. While this marked the end of organized resistance, some Japanese soldiers continued to hide in caves and fight. The battle for Okinawa dragged out over nearly three months and included some of the worst kamikaze attacks of the war. The United States sustained over 49,000 casualties including more than 12,000 soldiers killed or missing. About 90,000 Japanese combatants died in the fighting, but deaths among Okinawan civilians may have reached 150,000. More

The severely polluted Cuyahoga River in Cleveland catches fire when an oil slick floating on the surface ignites; although it was not the first fire or the largest on the river, the incident garnered national attention and led to antipollution measures that substantially improved the river's condition. More

Charon, the largest of Pluto's five moons and about half the size of Pluto, is discovered by James Christy and Robert Harrington at the U.S. Naval Observatory. Christy noticed that Pluto appeared elongated in some images, leading to the discovery of its moon. The discovery was announced on later on July 7, 1978. More