istoryworld
All Events
The MPLA, controlling the capital but not the country, declares itself the government of newly independent Angola
Richard Burton marries Elizabeth Taylor for the second time, five years after divorcing
The republic of Dahomey changes its name to one already famous in African history – Benin
UNITA and the FNLA join forces to set up a rival Angolan government at Huambo, in the south of the country
Chiang Kai-shek dies and is succeeded by his son, Chiang Ching-Kuo, as leader of the republic of China in Taiwan
Anatoly Karpov becomes world chess champion by default when Bobby Fischer fails to defend his title
The king of Morocco sends 350,000 settlers across the border into Western Sahara
The South Vietnamese capital, Saigon, is taken by North Vietnamese forces
South Vietnam surrenders, as President Duong Van Minh broadcasts an order to all South Viernames forces to lay down their arms
The Willis Faber building, by English architect Norman Foster, is completed in Ipswich
Khmer Rouge guerrillas, led by Pol Pot, take Phnom Penh and launch a genocidal reign of terror in Cambodia
US author E.L. Doctorow sets his novel Ragtime in the early years of the 20th century
The first series of Fawlty Towers, co-written by and starring John Cleese, is broadcast on British TV
Yakubu Gowon, who united Nigeria after the Biafran war, is thrown out in a military coup
Milos Forman directs Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, based on a novel by Ken Kesey
David Hockney begins a new career as a set designer, with The Rake's Progress by Stravinksky at Glyndebourne
Portuguese East Africa becomes independent as Mozambique, with Frelimo as the only political party
The Cape Verde islands, off the west coast of Africa, become independent as the republic of Cape Verde
Astronauts Tom Stafford and Aleksei Leonov shake hands when their Apollo and Soyuz craft successfully dock in space
Czech choreographer Jiri Kylián becomes director of the Netherlands Dance Theatre in The Hague
US director Steven Spielberg has a major success with his second feature film, Jaws
The island of Papua New Guinea wins independence from Australia
School friends Bill Gates and Paul Allen found a software firm, calling it Microsoft
Excavation of the 5200-year-old passage grave at Newgrange in Ireland is completed
Austrian racing driver Niki Lauda wins the first of three Formula One world championship titles
