1532    Sir Thomas More resigns as Lord Chancellor of England.

1535    Sir Thomas More is executed for treason against King Henry VIII of England.

1579    Sir Francis Drake claims a land he calls ''Nova Albion'' (modern California) for England.

1580    Sir Francis Drake finishes his circumnavigation of the Earth.

1894    The Manchester Ship Canal in England is officially opened by Queen Victoria, who knights its designer Sir Edward Leader Williams.

1950    Sir Thomas Blamey becomes the only Australian-born Field Marshal in Australian history.