Irish Free State established

Representatives of the British government and Irish leaders Arthur Griffith, Michael Collins, and others signed the Anglo-Irish Treaty this day in 1921, concluding the Irish War of Independence and establishing the Irish Free State. 1921. 

NASA released images—taken by the Mars Global Surveyor—that indicated the relatively recent presence of water on Mars. 2006. 

The Babri Masjid (“Mosque of Bābur”) in Ayodhya was destroyed by Hindu nationalists, leading to riots throughout India that killed more than 2,000 people. 1992. 

Gerald Ford was sworn in as vice president of the United States, succeeding Spiro Agnew, who had resigned. 1973. 

Finland declared itself independent of Russia, following the Bolshevik Revolution. 1917. 

A bust of Nefertiti was discovered during excavations at Tell el-Amarna, Egypt. The sculpture later went on display in a Berlin museum, and it became a source of controversy as an alleged plundered artifact, provoking calls for its repatriation. 1912. 

King Henry VI of England was born in Windsor, Berkshire.1421.