This Day in History: September 9

1000 The Battle of Svolder on the Baltic Sea

King Olaf was defeated onboard the Long Serpent in one of the most significant naval battles of the Viking Age. Defeated, he chose to end his life by leaping overboard.

1776 The Official Renaming of the United Colonies

The Congress officially renamed the country as the United States of America, marking a significant transition from their colonial past.

1817 A Historical Achievement by Alexander Twilight

Alexander Twilight, suspected to be the first African American graduate from a US college, received his BA degree from Middlebury College.

1914 The Creation of the British Army's First Fully Mechanised Unit

The Canadian Automobile Machine Gun Brigade, the first fully mechanized unit in the British Army, was created during WWI.

1993 Exchange of Recognition between Israel and Palestine Liberation Organization

An important political milestone was reached when both Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization exchanged letters of mutual recognition.

2015 Queen Elizabeth II Breaks the Reign Record

Queen Elizabeth II became Great Britain's longest-reigning monarch at 63 years and seven months. She surpassed the previous record set by her great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria.

2007 The End of Manuel Noriega's Sentence in the United States

Former Panamanian military ruler, Manuel Noriega, was released after spending 17 years in prison in the United States on charges of drug trafficking, money laundering, and racketeering.

2001 Celebrating the Unix Billennium

The unique timestamp system of Unix, which measures the number of seconds from midnight UTC of January 1, 1970, achieved a significant milestone. At 01:46:40 UTC on September 9, 2001, Unix time reached the billionth second timestamp.

1991 Tajikistan's Declaration of Independence from the Soviet Union

Tajikistan, a Central Asian nation conquered by Russia in the late 19th century, declared its independence following the collapse of the USSR. It had been a constituent republic of the Soviet Union under the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic since 1929.

1948 The Establishment of North Korea by Kim Il-sung

Following the Second World War, the Korean peninsula was divided along the 38th parallel into Soviet-occupied North Korea and American-occupied South Korea. Despite Cold War tensions, Kim Il-sung declared the creation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea with the USSR's support on October 9, 1948.