📜 This Day in History
September 21
- 1170Norman invasion of Ireland: English and Irish forces conquered Dublin, forcing Ascall mac Ragnaill, the last Norse–Gaelic king of Dublin, into exile.
- 1897In response to a letter written by eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon, The New York Sun published an editorial by Francis Pharcellus Church stating, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus".
1937J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy children's novel The Hobbit, which later served as a prelude to The Lord of the Rings, was first published.- 1968The Soviet Union's Zond 5 landed in the Indian Ocean, becoming the first spacecraft to safely return to Earth after travelling around the Moon.
- 2001Several British Muslim youths in Peterborough, England, murdered 17-year-old Ross Parker, leading to debate over whether the British media failed to cover racially motivated crimes with white victims.
- 2013Unidentified gunmen began a three-day attack on the upmarket Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, resulting in the deaths of 67 people with at least another 175 wounded.
