Today’s Highlights

On Feb. 6, 1952, Britain’s King George VI, 56, died at Sandringham House in Norfolk, England; he was succeeded as monarch by his 25-year-old eldest daughter, who became Queen Elizabeth II.

On this date

1778: During the American Revolutionary War, the United States won official recognition and military support from France with the signing of a Treaty of Alliance in Paris.

1862: During the Civil War, Fort Henry in Tennessee fell to Union forces.

1899: A peace treaty between the United States and Spain was ratified by the U.S. Senate; the treaty ended the Spanish-American War and ceded the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam to the United States.

1921: “The Kid,” Charlie Chaplin’s first feature-length film, was released across the United States.

1998: Washington National Airport was renamed Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, honoring the former president on his 87th birthday.

2008: The Bush White House defended the use of the interrogation technique known as waterboarding, saying it was legal, not torture, and had saved American lives.

2013: Toy maker Hasbro Inc. announced that Monopoly fans had voted online to add a cat token to the board game, replacing the iron.

Today’s birthdays

Actor Mike Farrell is 86. Former NBC News anchorman Tom Brokaw is 85. Singer Fabian is 82. Actor Kathy Najimy is 68. Rock singer Axl Rose (Guns N’ Roses) is 63. Singer Rick Astley is 59.