1698 - In an effort to move his people away from Asiatic customs, Tsar Peter I of Russia imposes a tax on beards; All men except priests and peasants, are required to pay a tax of one hundred rubles a year and the commoners had to pay one kopek each.
1914 - World War I: First Battle of the Marne begins - Northeast of Paris, the French 6th Army under General Michel-Joseph Maunoury attack German forces who are advancing on the capital. Over 2 million troops will fight in the battle and 100,000 will be killed or wounded in this significant Allied victory.
1988 - With US$2 billion in federal aid, the Robert M. Bass Group agrees to buy the United States's largest bankrupt thrift, American Savings and Loan Association.
