Historical Events on February 6 Across the Years
February 6 marks several historical events including the death of King George VI, the signing of the Treaty of Alliance during the American Revolutionary War, and a recent devastating earthquake in Turkiye.
On February 6, numerous significant events unfolded across history. In 1952, Britain's King George VI, aged 56, passed away at Sandringham House in Norfolk, England, leading to his 25-year-old eldest daughter becoming Queen Elizabeth II.
In 1778, during the American Revolutionary War, the United States secured official recognition and military support from France with the signing of a Treaty of Alliance in Paris.
During the Civil War in 1862, Fort Henry in Tennessee surrendered to Union forces.
In 1899, a peace treaty was ratified by the U.S. Senate, officially ending the Spanish-American War and transferring the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam to the United States.
In 1921, Charlie Chaplin's first feature-length film, "The Kid," premiered across the United States.
In 1998, Washington National Airport was renamed Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in honor of the former president's 87th birthday.
In 2008, the Bush White House defended the controversial interrogation technique known as waterboarding, asserting its legality and its role in saving American lives.
In 2013, Hasbro Inc. announced that Monopoly fans voted online to incorporate a cat token into the game, replacing the iron.
By 2022, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 70th anniversary on the British throne, marking an unprecedented reign that established her as a symbol of stability in the United Kingdom.
Most recently in 2023, a devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Turkiye and Syria, causing extensive destruction, toppling buildings, and trapping residents, with the eventual death toll exceeding 50,000.
