1615day.year
Siege of Osaka: Forces under Tokugawa Ieyasu take Osaka Castle in Japan.
In 1615, Tokugawa Ieyasu's forces captured Osaka Castle, effectively ending the last resistance of the Toyotomi clan.
During the summer of 1615, shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu launched the decisive siege of Osaka Castle in Japan.
After intense bombardment and fierce hand-to-hand combat, Ieyasu's army breached the castle defenses on June 4.
The fall of Osaka Castle marked the collapse of the Toyotomi clan, the last major rival to Tokugawa rule.
In consolidating his authority, Ieyasu established the Tokugawa shogunate's unchallenged control over Japan.
This victory ushered in the Edo period, characterized by over two centuries of relative peace and stability.
The siege remains one of Japan's most famous samurai battles, often depicted in art and literature.
1615
Siege of Osaka
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Osaka Castle
1745day.year
Battle of Hohenfriedberg: Frederick the Great's Prussian army decisively defeated an Austrian army under Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine during the War of the Austrian Succession.
At the Battle of Hohenfriedberg in 1745, Frederick the Great's Prussian forces routed the Austrians under Prince Charles of Lorraine.
On June 4, 1745, during the War of the Austrian Succession, King Frederick II of Prussia engaged Austrian forces near Hohenfriedberg.
Employing rapid flanking maneuvers, the Prussian army surprised and overwhelmed Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine's troops.
The victory saw Prussian cavalry charge through enemy lines, capturing banners and artillery pieces.
It cemented Frederick the Great's reputation as a brilliant military strategist in Europe.
The triumph boosted Prussian morale and secured Silesia under Prussian control for years to come.
Hohenfriedberg is celebrated as one of Frederick's finest battlefield achievements.
1745
Battle of Hohenfriedberg
Frederick the Great
Prussian
Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine
War of the Austrian Succession
1859day.year
Italian Independence wars: In the Battle of Magenta, the French army, under Louis-Napoleon, defeat the Austrian army.
At the Battle of Magenta, Napoleon III's forces routed the Austrians, bolstering the cause of Italian unification.
On June 4, 1859, during the Italian Wars of Independence, French troops under Emperor Napoleon III engaged Austrian forces at Magenta.
The battle resulted in a decisive French victory, forcing the Austrians to retreat toward the Quadrilateral.
This triumph boosted the Piedmont-Sardinia alliance and energized supporters of Italian unification.
Casualties were heavy on both sides, but the win proved a turning point in the Second Italian War.
The battle's outcome laid groundwork for the 1860 annexation of Lombardy to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Magenta remains a symbol of Franco-Italian cooperation in the Risorgimento.
1859
Italian Independence wars
Battle of Magenta
Louis-Napoleon
1862day.year
American Civil War: Confederate troops evacuate Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River, leaving the way clear for Union troops to take Memphis, Tennessee.
During the Civil War, Confederates abandon Fort Pillow, allowing Union forces an open route to capture Memphis.
In 1862, Confederate soldiers evacuated Fort Pillow on the bluffs above the Mississippi River.
Their withdrawal cleared the way for Union naval and ground forces to advance on Memphis, Tennessee.
Memphis held strategic value as a major supply and transport hub for the Confederacy.
The fall of the city on June 6 further isolated Confederate territories west of the river.
Fort Pillow would later be the site of a tragic massacre in 1864, adding dark chapters to its history.
The 1862 evacuation highlighted Union control of the Mississippi and split the Confederacy.
1862
American Civil War
Confederate
Fort Pillow
Mississippi River
Union
Memphis, Tennessee
1916day.year
World War I: Russia opens the Brusilov Offensive with an artillery barrage of Austro-Hungarian lines in Galicia.
A major Eastern Front offensive of World War I launched by Russia against Austro-Hungarian positions in Galicia.
The Brusilov Offensive marked one of World War I’s largest Russian assaults on the Austro-Hungarian army.
Launched on June 4, 1916, it aimed to relieve pressure on the Western Front and aid the Allies.
General Aleksei Brusilov orchestrated a surprise artillery bombardment, breaking through heavily fortified trenches.
The initial success led to deep advances into Galicia, capturing thousands of prisoners.
It inflicted severe losses on Austro-Hungarian forces and reshaped the Eastern Front’s dynamics.
Despite logistical challenges and eventual counterattacks, the offensive weakened the Central Powers.
Many historians view it as Russia’s most effective military operation of the war.
1916
World War I
Russia
Brusilov Offensive
artillery
Austro-Hungarian
Galicia
1939day.year
The Holocaust: The MS St. Louis, a ship carrying 973 German Jewish refugees, is denied permission to land in Florida, in the United States, after already being turned away from Cuba. Forced to return to Europe, more than 200 of its passengers later die in Nazi concentration camps.
The MS St. Louis carrying Jewish refugees is denied entry to the U.S. and Cuba, forcing its return to Europe in 1939.
On June 4, 1939, the ocean liner MS St. Louis was refused permission to dock in Florida and Cuba.
The ship carried 973 German Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution.
U.S. immigration quotas and political resistance prevented the passengers from disembarking.
Forced to return to Europe, many passengers later perished in Nazi concentration camps.
The tragedy exposed the international community's reluctance to accept Jewish refugees.
It remains a powerful symbol of the consequences of closed borders amid humanitarian crises.
1939
The Holocaust
MS St. Louis
German Jewish refugees
Florida
Cuba
Nazi
concentration camps
1940day.year
World War II: The Dunkirk evacuation ends: the British Armed Forces completes evacuation of 338,000 troops from Dunkirk in France. To rally the morale of the country, Winston Churchill delivers, only to the House of Commons, his famous "We shall fight on the beaches" speech.
The Dunkirk evacuation ends as over 338,000 Allied troops are rescued, accompanied by Churchill's stirring speech in 1940.
On June 4, 1940, the Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo, concluded successfully.
More than 338,000 British and Allied soldiers were evacuated from the beaches of France.
The daring rescue involved naval vessels, civilian boats, and relentless coordination under enemy fire.
That same day, Prime Minister Winston Churchill delivered his famous "We shall fight on the beaches" speech to Parliament.
His address rallied the British public during a dire phase of World War II.
The operation and speech became enduring symbols of British resilience and unity.
1940
World War II
Dunkirk evacuation
British Armed Forces
Dunkirk
Winston Churchill
House of Commons
We shall fight on the beaches
1942day.year
World War II: The Battle of Midway begins. Japanese Admiral Chūichi Nagumo orders a strike on Midway Island by much of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
The pivotal Battle of Midway begins as Japan strikes Midway Island during World War II in 1942.
On June 4, 1942, the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a massive air and naval assault on Midway Atoll.
Admiral Chūichi Nagumo commanded the operation aiming to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
The battle unfolded over several days in the central Pacific, marked by aircraft carrier engagements.
American codebreakers had anticipated the attack, allowing U.S. forces to prepare an ambush.
Midway turned into a decisive American victory, sinking four Japanese carriers and shifting naval power.
The battle halted Japanese expansion and is often considered the turning point in the Pacific War.
1942
Battle of Midway
Admiral
Chūichi Nagumo
Midway Island
Imperial Japanese Navy
1942day.year
World War II: Gustaf Mannerheim, the Commander-in-Chief of the Finnish Army, is granted the title of Marshal of Finland by the government on his 75th birthday. On the same day, Adolf Hitler arrives in Finland for a surprise visit to meet Mannerheim.
On his 75th birthday in 1942, Gustaf Mannerheim was named Marshal of Finland, and Adolf Hitler made a surprise visit to meet him.
Born in 1867, Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim served as Finland's military leader and statesman.
On June 4, 1942, the Finnish government honored his leadership by naming him Marshal of Finland on his 75th birthday.
The title symbolized Finland's resilience during the Winter War and Continuation War against the Soviet Union.
That same day, Adolf Hitler made an unexpected trip to Finland to personally congratulate Mannerheim and strengthen ties.
Their meeting underscored Finland's delicate position between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
Mannerheim remained a key figure in preserving Finnish sovereignty throughout World War II.
Gustaf Mannerheim
Finnish Army
Marshal of Finland
Adolf Hitler
Finland
for a surprise visit to meet Mannerheim
1944day.year
World War II: A hunter-killer group of the United States Navy captures the German Kriegsmarine submarine U-505: The first time a U.S. Navy vessel had captured an enemy vessel at sea since the 19th century.
On June 4, 1944, a US Navy hunter-killer group captured the German submarine U-505, the first such seizure at sea since the 19th century.
In a daring operation in the Atlantic, Task Group 22.3 intercepted and captured U-505, a German U-boat.
The action, executed by a hunter-killer group led by the escort carrier USS Guadalcanal, stunned naval strategists.
Seizing the submarine intact provided the Allies with invaluable Enigma codebooks and intelligence material.
It marked the first time a US Navy vessel had captured an enemy ship at sea since the 19th century.
The successful boarding and towing of U-505 boosted Allied anti-submarine warfare techniques.
The submarine now serves as a museum exhibit, commemorating this historic naval achievement.
1944
United States Navy
Kriegsmarine
U-505
1944day.year
World War II: The United States Fifth Army captures Rome, although much of the German Fourteenth Army is able to withdraw to the north.
On June 4, 1944, the United States Fifth Army entered Rome, liberating the Italian capital from German occupation.
As Allied forces pressed north through Italy, the US Fifth Army broke through German defenses at Anzio and advanced on Rome.
On June 4, troops from General Mark Clark's Fifth Army marched into the city, marking the first Axis capital to fall.
Despite heavy bombings and fortifications, German forces withdrew mostly intact and regrouped in the north.
The liberation of Rome boosted Allied morale and demonstrated the weakening of Axis control in Europe.
This victory came just two days before the D-Day landings in Normandy, linking Mediterranean and Western Front offensives.
However, the German Fourteenth Army's orderly retreat preserved manpower for later battles.
United States Fifth Army
captures Rome
German Fourteenth Army