This Day in History - 21st June

1675The laying of the foundation stone of the new St Paul's Cathedral in London. The cathedral was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and the site faced that of the church destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666.

1706The birth of John Dollond, English optician. Dollond & Aitchison opticians was established in 1750.

1809 The death (aged 39, at Stamford, Lincolnshire) of Daniel Lambert, a jailer and animal breeder from Leicester who was famous for his unusually large size. 

1854The first Victoria Cross, Britain's highest medal for bravery, was awarded to Charles Lucas, who was awarded it during the Crimean War for conspicuous bravery. The medal was made from metal from a cannon captured at Sebastopol. The Victoria Cross was extended to colonial troops in 1867 and to date a total of 1,356 Victoria Crosses have been awarded.

1898A reporter covering the launch of HMS Albion on the Thames was in such a hurry to file his story that he missed the fact that 38 people drowned when a temporary jetty collapsed.

1919German sailors scuttled 72 warships at Scapa Flow in the Orkneys even though Germany had surrendered. It was the greatest act of self-destruction in modern military history.

1937First televising of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships.

1948The first stored programme to run on a computer was put through its paces on the Small Scale Experimental Machine, known as Baby, at Manchester University.

1954The birth, in Oldham, Lancashire of actress Anne Kirkbride, best known for her long-running role as Deirdre Barlow in Coronation Street, which she played for 42 years from 1972 until her death in 2014.

1969The BBC TV broadcast 'Royal Family' - a documentary going behind the public facade of the British Royal Family. This was the first time anyone had seen Queen Elizabeth II, her husband the Duke of Edinburgh and their children other than on official engagements.

1970Tony Jacklin won the US Open at Hazeltine Golf Club, Minnesota. He was the first Briton to win since Ted Ray in 1920.

1982Diana, Princess of Wales, gave birth to a boy, (Prince William) sixteen hours after checking in to St Mary's Hospital, in London.

1991British Gas chairman Robert Evans came under fire for accepting a pay increase of 66%, taking his annual wage to £370,000.

1996Britain and other members of the EU reached an agreement for the phased lifting of the ban on British beef. French farmers, however, blockaded two channel ports.