June 12

Qutb ud-Din Aibak establishes the Delhi Sultanate, beginning centuries of Muslim rule in northern India.

Turkic military commander Qutb ud-Din Aibak, a former slave who had risen through the ranks to become a powerful general, established the Delhi Sultanate in northern India, founding a series of Muslim dynasties that would rule large portions of the Indian subcontinent for the following three centuries.

Joan of Arc leads French forces to capture the town of Jargeau during the Hundred Years' War.

Joan of Arc led French royal forces to capture the town of Jargeau from English occupation during the Hundred Years' War, one of several rapid successive victories following her earlier relief of Orleans that dramatically shifted momentum in France's favor and paved the way for the coronation of Charles VII weeks later.

King Gustav I of Sweden founds the city of Helsinki.

King Gustav I of Sweden founded the trading town of Helsinki on the coast of Finland, then a Swedish possession, intending it to compete commercially with the nearby Estonian city of Tallinn, though Helsinki grew slowly for centuries before eventually becoming the capital of an independent Finland in the 20th century.

Virginia's colonial convention adopts the Virginia Declaration of Rights, an influential precursor to the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Virginia's colonial convention adopted the Virginia Declaration of Rights, drafted primarily by George Mason, asserting fundamental principles including popular sovereignty, freedom of the press, and protection against unreasonable searches, a document that profoundly influenced both the Declaration of Independence weeks later and the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Filipino revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo declares the Philippines' independence from Spain.

Filipino revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo declared the Philippines' independence from Spanish colonial rule following the collapse of Spanish authority during the Spanish-American War, though the newly proclaimed republic's independence proved short-lived as the United States subsequently asserted its own colonial control over the islands.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame opens in Cooperstown, New York.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame officially opened its doors in Cooperstown, New York, a town chosen based on a now largely discredited legend crediting Abner Doubleday with inventing the sport there, establishing a museum and shrine that has since become the sport's most revered institution honoring its greatest players.

The U.S. Supreme Court rules unanimously in "Loving v. Virginia" that state laws banning interracial marriage are unconstitutional.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously in "Loving v. Virginia" that state laws banning interracial marriage violated the Constitution's Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses, striking down anti-miscegenation statutes still in effect in sixteen states and establishing a legal precedent later cited in other landmark civil rights cases.

"Raiders of the Lost Ark," the first Indiana Jones film, premieres in American theaters.

"Raiders of the Lost Ark," directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Harrison Ford as archaeologist-adventurer Indiana Jones, premiered in American theaters, becoming an enormous critical and commercial success that launched one of the most beloved action-adventure film franchises in cinema history.

President Ronald Reagan delivers his famous "tear down this wall" speech at the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin.

President Ronald Reagan, standing before the Berlin Wall at the Brandenburg Gate, delivered his famous challenge to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," a Cold War speech that, while not immediately acted upon, became emblematic of the ideological standoff in the years before the wall's fall two years later.

President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hold their first summit meeting in Singapore.

President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un held an unprecedented first summit meeting in Singapore, marking the first time a sitting American president had ever met with a North Korean leader, resulting in a vague joint statement on denuclearization that produced limited concrete follow-through in subsequent negotiations.