1815

Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated for a second time as Emperor of the French.

1870

The United States Department of Justice was created.

1937

Joe Louis began his reign as world heavyweight boxing champion by knocking out Jim Braddock in the eighth round of their fight in Chicago.

1941

Nazi Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, a massive and ultimately ill-fated invasion of the Soviet Union that would prove pivotal to the Allied victory over the Axis Powers.

1970

President Richard Nixon signed an extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that lowered the minimum voting age to 18.

1981

Mark David Chapman pleaded guilty to killing rock star John Lennon.

Birthdays

Singer-actor Kris Kristofferson is 88. Actor Klaus Maria Brandauer is 81. Fox News analyst Brit Hume is 81. Singer-musician Todd Rundgren is 76. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., is 75. Actor Meryl Streep is 75. Singer Alan Osmond is 75. Pop singer Cyndi Lauper is 71. Actor Tim Russ is 68. Actor-producer-writer Bruce Campbell is 66. Environmental activist Erin Brockovich is 64. Basketball Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler is 62. Author Dan Brown is 60.