1841: During the Opium War against China, British naval and land forces took possession of Chusan.

1916: During an attack in France, two British battalions suffered heavily, and one lost its commanding officer to a serious wound. Lieutenant-Colonel Bradford, commanding the other battalion, from the Durham Light Infantry, took charge of both units, and, despite an appallingly confused situation with threats to his front and flanks, not only held the ground already secured, but succeeded in making a further advance. He received the Victoria Cross.

1917: Near Polygon Wood in Belgium, a German attack well supported by artillery threatened to break through the British positions. Lieutenant-Colonel Bent, Leicestershire Regiment, organised a small ad hoc force to mount a counter-attack. Under his leadership, they halted the German advance, but Bent was killed leading a charge. He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1918: Damascus fell to Allenby's British, ANZAC and Arab forces. On the Western Front, three VCs were won. Lieutenant Gorle, Royal Field Artillery, advanced with an 18 pounder gun team alongside the infantry, repeatedly duelling with machine-gun nests at very close range. Sergeant Riggs, York & Lancaster Regiment, was killed after leading a series of successful attacks in the face of unbroken barbed wire and a concentration of machine-guns. And Sergeant Merrifield, 1st Central Ontario Regiment, attacked alone two machine-gun posts, then, despite having been badly wounded in the process, continued to lead his platoon in an assault until his injuries finally forced his evacuation.

1925: The first University Air Squadron was established by the RAF, at Cambridge University. The university squadrons proved a valuable part of the system of reserve and auxiliary training units established by the RAF between the wars, producing many future aircrew.

1940:There were three significant daylight Luftwaffe attacks in the south-east. Night targets included London, Liverpool and Manchester.