1966 CE

The Cultural Revolution begins in Communist China as Mao Zedong mobilizes the Red Guards; the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England sees the host nation defeat West Germany; the Beach Boys release Pet Sounds, produced by Brian Wilson, an album considered a masterpiece; the Aberfan disaster kills 144 people in Wales when a colliery spoil tip collapses; the University of Texas tower shooting kills sixteen; Gemini 8 performs the first orbital docking with the Agena target vehicle; the 1966 flood of the Arno devastates Florence, Italy; Star Trek premieres on NBC; and the Buddhist Uprising in South Vietnam intensifies amid the Vietnam War.

In the 1960s, the 20th century.

1966 at a glance

World population: about 3.40 billion Our World in Data
United States: Lyndon B. Johnson (President) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
United Kingdom: Elizabeth II (Queen); Harold Wilson (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
Soviet Union: Leonid Brezhnev (First Secretary; General Secretary); Nikolai Podgorny (Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet); Alexei Kosygin (Chairman of the Council of Ministers) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
People's Republic of China: Mao Zedong (Chairman; Paramount Leader); Liu Shaoqi (President); Zhou Enlai (Premier) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
France: Charles de Gaulle (President); Georges Pompidou (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
East Germany: Walter Ulbricht (Chairmen of the State Council); Willi Stoph (Chairman) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
West Germany: Heinrich Lübke (President); Ludwig Erhard, then Kurt Georg Kiesinger (Chancellor) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
$1 in 1966: $10.38 in September 2026 dollars BLS CPI-U
Most weeks at No. 1 in 1966: “The Ballad of the Green Berets” by SSgt. Barry Sadler, 5 weeks Wikipedia rev. 1374820055

Who led every country in 1966 →Born in 1966? What it cost, who led, what was No. 1 →

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

10 January – Ayub Khan and Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri sign the Tashkent Declaration to resolve the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.Pakistan source
January 21 – Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro resigns due to a power struggle in his party.source
January 26 – 1966 Liberal Party of Australia leadership election: Harold Holt is elected leader of the Liberal Party of Australia unopposed when Sir Robert Menzies retires after an unprecedented 16 years in office; consequently Holt becomes Prime Minister of Australia six days later.source
January 27 – Britain's Labour Party unexpectedly retains the parliamentary seat of Hull North in a by-election, with a swing of 4.5% to their candidate from the opposition Conservatives, and a majority up from 1,181 at the 1964 General Election to 5,351.source
29 January – The Luxembourg Compromise is reached to resolve an impasse in the European Union.Luxembourg source
February 1 – Around 2,600 political prisoners are released by East Germany, in return for "donations" worth approximately $10,000 a head from West Germany.source
February 7 – Lyndon B. Johnson of the United States and Nguyễn Cao Kỳ of South Vietnam convene with other officials in a summit in Honolulu, Hawaii to discuss the course of the Vietnam War.source
15 February – President of South Korea Park Chung-hee visited Taiwan.Taiwan source
February 20 – While Soviet author and translator Valery Tarsis is abroad, the Soviet Union negates his citizenship.source
March 11 – Transition to the New Order in Indonesia: President Sukarno gives all executive powers to General Suharto by signing the Supersemar order.source
March 31 – The British Labour Party led by Harold Wilson wins the 1966 United Kingdom general election, gaining a 96-seat majority (compared with a single seat majority when the election was called on February 28).source
April 26 – A new government is formed in the Republic of the Congo, led by Ambroise Noumazalaye.source
May 28 – The Indonesian and Malaysian governments declare that the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation is over (a treaty is signed on August 11).source
28 May – The Malaysian and Indonesian governments declared that the confrontation was over. The peace treaty was signed in Bangkok, Thailand.Malaysia source
June 2 – Joaquín Balaguer is elected president of the Dominican Republic.source
June 18 – CIA chief William Raborn resigns; Richard Helms becomes his successor.source
July 1 – Joaquín Balaguer becomes president of the Dominican Republic.source
July 4 – Philippine Republic DayPhilippines source
10 July - 1966 Albanian parliamentary electionAlbania source
July 14 – Gwynfor Evans, President of Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalist party, becomes Member of the United Kingdom Parliament for Carmarthen, taking the previously Labour-held Welsh seat at a by-election with a majority of 2,435 on an 18% swing and giving his party its first representation at Westminster in its forty-one year history.source
July 26 – Lord Gardiner issues the Practice Statement in the House of Lords of the United Kingdom, stating that the House, when acting in a judicial capacity, is not bound to follow its own previous precedent.source
August 11 – Indonesia and Malaysia issue a joint peace declaration, formally ending the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation which began in 1963.source
23 August – The sea curfew is lifted after the end of Confrontation, a decision widely applauded by villagers.Singapore source
August 30 – France offers independence to French Somaliland (Djibouti from 1977).source
September 12 – B. J. Vorster becomes the new Prime Minister of South Africa.source
September 30 – The Bechuanaland Protectorate in Africa achieves independence from the United Kingdom as Botswana, with Seretse Khama as its first President.source
October 4 – Basutoland becomes independent of the United Kingdom and takes the name Lesotho.source
November 10 – Seán Lemass retires as Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland, to be replaced in the role by fellow Fianna Fáil member Jack Lynch.source
November 26 – 1966 Australian federal election: Harold Holt's Liberal/Country Coalition government is re-elected with a significantly increased majority, defeating the Labor Party led by Arthur Calwell. Calwell resigns as Labor leader shortly after; he will be replaced by his deputy and future Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.source
December 16 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights are adopted by the General Assembly, as Resolution 2200 A (XXI).source
December 19 - South Vietnam becomes one of the founding members of the Asian Development Bank.Vietnam source
December 31 – East German Premier Walter Ulbricht discusses negotiations about German reunification.source

Conflict & Security

January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo is deposed by a military coup in the Republic of Upper Volta (modern-day Burkina Faso).source
January 10 – The House of Representatives of the US state of Georgia refuses to allow African-American representative Julian Bond to take his seat, because of his anti-war stance.source
January 15 – 1966 Nigerian coup d'état: A bloody military coup is staged in Nigeria, deposing the civilian government and resulting in the death of Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa.source
5 February – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, general secretary of the East Pakistan Awami League, announces the Six Point Program calling for limiting the federal government to defence and foreign affairs.Pakistan source
February 23 – 1966 Syrian coup d'état: An intra-party military coup in Syria replaces the previous government of Amin al-Hafiz by one led by Salah Jadid.source
February 24 – A coup led by the police and military of Ghana raises the National Liberation Council to power while president Kwame Nkrumah is abroad.source
March 29 – The 23rd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union is held: Leonid Brezhnev demands that U.S. troops leave Vietnam, and announces that Chinese-Soviet relations are not satisfactory.source
April 5 – During the Buddhist Uprising, South Vietnamese military prime minister Nguyễn Cao Kỳ personally attempts to lead the capture of the restive city of Đà Nẵng before backing down.source
April 21 – Haile Selassie visits Jamaica for the first time, meeting with Rasta leaders.source
May 12 – Radio Peking claims that U.S. planes have shot down a Chinese plane over Yunnan (the U.S. denies the story the next day).source
May 15 – The South Vietnamese army besieges Da Nang.source
May 24 – Battle of Mengo Hill: Ugandan army troops arrest Mutesa II of Buganda and occupy his palace.source
May 25 – No. 9 Squadron RAAF becomes part of the 4,500 strong Australian Task Force assigned to duties in Vietnam, leaving for Southeast Asia aboard the aircraft carrier HMAS Sydney.source
1 June - 1966–67 Balkans Cup: Albania defeats Bulgaria 2-0 at Qemal Stafa Stadium, TiranaAlbania source
June 15 - Vietnam War: Battle of Hill 488 - A small United States Marine Corps reconnaissance platoon inflicts large casualties on regular North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong fighters before withdrawing with fourteen dead.Vietnam source
June 17 – An Air France personnel strike begins.source
June 28 – Argentine Revolution: In Argentina, a military junta calling itself Revolución Argentina deposes president Arturo Umberto Illia in a coup and appoints General Juan Carlos Onganía to power.source
28 June – The "Aid Vietnam Committee" of the Parti Rakyat Singapura and Barisan Sosialis announced that they will be planning a rally on 4 July to protest against the American involvement in the Vietnam War.Singapore source
July 23 – Katangese troops in Stanleyville, Congo, revolt for several weeks in support of the exiled minister Moise Tshombe.source
July 24 – A USAF F-4C Phantom #63-7599 is shot down by a North Vietnamese SAM-2 45 mi northeast of Hanoi, the first loss of a U.S. aircraft to a Vietnamese surface-to-air missile in the Vietnam War.source
July 29 – 1966 Nigerian counter-coup: Army officers from the north of Nigeria execute head of state General Aguiyi-Ironsi and install Yakubu Gowon.source
August 16 – The national government begins the deployment of the Philippine Civic Action Group (PHILCAG) to South Vietnam, dispatching the first detachment of 100 men. This would be followed by other batches, reaching a total strength of 2,048 on October 19.Philippines source
August 18 – Vietnam War – Battle of Long Tan: D Company, 6th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment, meets and defeats a Viet Cong force estimated to be four times larger, in Phuoc Tuy Province, Republic of Vietnam.source
August 26 – The first battle of the South African Air Force and the South African Police with PLAN, the armed wing of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), takes place at Ongulumbashe during Operation Blue Wildebeest, triggering the South African Border War which continues until 1989.source
August - The Battle of Nam Bac begins.Laos source
September 9 – NATO decides to move Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe to Belgium.source
September 13 – Cultural Revolution in China: Clashes between the Chinese Communist Party and the Red Guards are reported by TASS in the Soviet Union.source
15 September – The governor of Sarawak declared a state of emergency in Sarawak during the 1966 Sarawak constitutional crisis.Malaysia source
October 15 – Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton found the Black Panther Party in the United States.source
November 2 – North Korean commandos ambush a UN command control consisting of 2nd Infantry Division soldiers south of the Korean Demilitarized Zone.source
December 5 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Bond v. Floyd that the Georgia House of Representatives must seat Julian Bond, having violated his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.source
Beginning of Korean DMZ Conflict (1966–69)North Korea source

Exploration & Expansion

January 20 - The Radio Caroline ship Mi Amigo runs aground on the beach at Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, UK.source
January 26 – Disappearance of the Beaumont children: Three children disappear on their way to Glenelg, South Australia, never to be seen again. Their fate remains unknown.source
18 July – Old Man of Hoy first climbed, by Chris Bonington, Rusty Baillie and Tom Patey.Scotland source
7 August – The Storskog border control between Norway and the Soviet Union is opened. It remains the only legal border crossing from Norway to Russia till this day.Norway source
August 22 – Frontier Tea Product Manufacturing, as predecessor of Ito En founded in Shizuoka City.Japan source
November 15 – Two young couples in Point Pleasant, West Virginia reportedly see a strange moth-like creature better known as the Mothman.United States source
December 19 – The Asian Development Bank begins operations.source
Japan replaces Great Britain as Australia's largest trading partner.Australia source
Expeditions by Margaret AtwoodCanada source
30-31 October – US President Lyndon Baines Johnson visited Malaysia, being the first American president to do so. On 31 October, President Johnson visited Kampung Labu Jaya village (now FELDA LB Johnson) in Negeri Sembilan state.Malaysia source
Auckland Trotting Cup: Waitaki HanoverNew Zealand source

Religion & Belief

1 January - Start of The Troubles as retrospectively defined by the UK Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 for the purposes of the act.Northern Ireland source
March 4 – In an interview with London Evening Standard reporter Maureen Cleave, John Lennon of the Beatles states: "We're more popular than Jesus now."source
23 March - Sheikh Mujibur Rahman formally announces the Six Point Program.Pakistan source
March 24 – Pope Paul VI meets Michael Ramsey, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in Rome, and gives him an episcopal ring.source
April 27 – Pope Paul VI and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko meet in the Vatican (the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic Church and the Soviet Union).source
13 May – Belgian bishops issue a declaration rejecting calls to remove the French-language section of the Catholic University of Leuven from the city of Leuven.Belgium source
22 May - Taça de Portugal FinalPortugal source
June 14 – The Vatican abolishes the Index Librorum Prohibitorum.source
5 July – The Australian Workers' Union affiliates with the Australian Council of Trade Unions.Australia source
August 11 – the Beatles hold a press conference in Chicago, during which John Lennon apologizes for his "more popular than Jesus" remark, saying, "I didn't mean it as a lousy anti-religious thing."source
24 August – The National Pledge is recited for the first time, which is written by S. Rajaratnam.Singapore source
October 5 – UNESCO signs the Recommendation Concerning the Status of Teachers. This event is to be celebrated as World Teachers' Day.source
October – Shmuel Yosef Agnon receives the Nobel Prize in Literature, becoming the first Israeli Nobel laureate.Israel source
The World Buddhist Sangha Council is convened by Theravadins in Sri Lanka, with the hope of bridging differences and working together.source
Sultan of Kelantan: Sultan Yahya PetraMalaysia source

Economy & Finance

1 January – New Zealand Australia Free Trade Agreement comes into force.New Zealand source
February 14 – The Australian dollar is introduced at a rate of 2 dollars per pound, or 10 shillings per dollar.source
14 February – Decimalisation of the Australian currency; the Australian dollar replaces the Australian pound at the rate of ten shillings to the dollar.Australia source
March 1 – The British Government announces plans for the decimalisation of the pound sterling (hitherto denominated in 20 shillings and 240 pence to the £), to come into force on 15 February 1971 (Decimal Day).source
21 March – The Economic and Social Council is created to aid industrial relations between employers, employees, and the government.Luxembourg source
April 18 – China declares that it will stop economic aid to Indonesia.source
May 7 – Irish bank workers go on strike.source
9 May – Registration starts for the National Registration Identity Card (NRIC), which comes in laminated plastic.Singapore source
6 June - First Indira Gandhi ministry devalues Indian rupee by 57%.India source
13 September: President Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco signs the law establishing the Severance Indemnity Fund, in order to protect dismissed workers, without just cause.Brazil source
October 4 – Israel applies for membership in the European Economic Community, which is never granted.source
October 14 – Closure of Intra Bank begins a crisis in the Lebanese banking system.source
November 17 – The U.N. General Assembly decides to found the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.source
December 17 – South Africa does not join the trade embargo against Rhodesia.source
December 17 – South Africa refuses to join the trade embargo against Rhodesia.South Africa source
Date unknown: German company Hannover Re was founded.Germany source

Technology & Infrastructure

3 January – First pipeline of Turkey between Batman and İskenderunTurkey source
24 March – The beginning of the Israeli Educational Television broadcasts.Israel source
April 21 – The opening of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is televised for the first time.source
April 24 – Uniform daylight saving time is first observed in most parts of North America.source
May 4 – Fiat signs a contract with the Soviet government to build a car factory in the Soviet Union.source
4 May – SS Al-Abbas, the first ocean-going vessel constructed by the Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works is launched.Pakistan source
17 July – The completion of Touliao Guesthouse construction in Daxi Township, Taoyuan County.Taiwan source
August 5 – The Caesars Palace hotel and casino opens in Las Vegas, United States.source
August 6 – The Salazar Bridge (later the 25 de Abril Bridge) opens in Lisbon, Portugal.source
26 August – A new TV studio is officially opened for Radio and Television Singapore in Caldecott Hill.Singapore source
October 5 – Spain closes its Gibraltar border to vehicular traffic.source
October 14 – The city of Montreal inaugurates the Montreal Metro system.source
October 27 – Walt Disney records his final filmed appearance prior to his death, detailing his plans for EPCOT, a utopian planned city to be built in Florida.source
November 26 – In the Canadian Football League, the Saskatchewan Roughriders defeat the Ottawa Rough Riders to win the 54th Grey Cup at Vancouver's Empire Stadium 29–14. Saskatchewan are led by quarterback Ron Lancaster.source
1 December – First Malaysia Plan was implemented.Malaysia source
December 18 – How the Grinch Stole Christmas, narrated by Boris Karloff, is shown for the first time on CBS in the United States. It becomes a Christmas tradition.source
Divis Tower in Belfast is built.Northern Ireland source

Science & Discovery

13 January - Archipiélago de Juan Fernández National Park receive new names: Robinson Crusoe (formerly Mas a Tierra) and Alexander Selkirk (formerly Más Afuera)Chile source
February 3 – The unmanned Soviet Luna 9 spacecraft makes the first controlled rocket-assisted landing on the Moon.source
March 1 – Soviet space probe Venera 3 crashes on Venus, becoming the first spacecraft to land on another planet's surface.source
March 15 – The decennial census is held in Romania, and counted the population of Romania on that date.Romania source
March 16 – NASA spacecraft Gemini 8 (David Scott, Neil Armstrong) conducts the first docking in space, with an Agena target vehicle.source
March 31 – The Soviet Union launches Luna 10, which becomes the first space probe to enter orbit around the Moon.source
April 3 – Luna 10 is the first manmade object to enter lunar orbit.source
April 30 – Regular hovercraft service begins over the English Channel (discontinued in 2000).source
May 4 – May 1966 lunar eclipse: A penumbral lunar eclipse takes place, the 64th lunar eclipse of Lunar Saros 111.source
May 25 – Explorer program: Satellite Explorer 32 (Atmosphere Explorer-B) is launched from the United States.source
May 28 – Boat ride It's a Small World opens at Disneyland.source
June 2 – Surveyor program: Surveyor 1 lands in Oceanus Procellarum on the Moon, becoming the first U.S. spacecraft to soft-land on another world.source
June 5 – Gemini 9A: Gene Cernan completes the second U.S. spacewalk (2 hours, 7 minutes).source
12 July – Indira Gandhi visits Moscow.India source
July 18 – Gemini 10 (John Young, Michael Collins) is launched from the United States. After docking with an Agena target vehicle, the astronauts set a world altitude record of 474 miles (763 km).source
July 24 – U.N. Secretary General U Thant visits Moscow.source
August 2 – Tallinn Old Town Conservation Area was established.Estonia source
August 10 – Lunar Orbiter 1, the first U.S. spacecraft to orbit the Moon, is launched.source
16 August – The Iraqi fighter pilot Munir Redfa defects to Israel by flying a MiG-21 of the Iraqi Air Force to Israel. The MiG-21 fighter is evaluated by the Israeli Air Force. Knowledge obtained from analysis of the aircraft was instrumental to the successes achieved by the Israeli Air Force in its future encounters with Arab MiG-21s.Israel source
September 12 – Gemini 11 (Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr., Richard F. Gordon Jr) is launched from the United States. The crew performed the first direct-ascent (first orbit) rendezvous with an Agena Target Vehicle, docking with it.source
November 6 – Lunar Orbiter 2 is launched.source
November 12 – A total solar eclipse occurs, the 20th solar eclipse of Solar Saros 142.source
November 15 - Gemini 12 (James A. Lovell, Buzz Aldrin) splashes down safely in the Atlantic Ocean, 600 km east of the Bahamas.source
November 17 – A spectacular Leonid meteor shower passes over Arizona, at the rate of 2,300 a minute for 20 minutes.source
9 December – Australia negotiates an agreement for an American spy satellite base to be established at Pine Gap in the Northern Territory, with federal minister for external affairs Paul Hasluck signing a treaty with the United States chargé d'affaires.Australia source
Long-term potentiation (LTP), the putative cellular mechanism of learning and memory, is first observed by Terje Lømo in Oslo, Norway.source
James K. Baxter wins the Robert Burns Fellowship.New Zealand source

Health & Medicine

January 24 – President Ferdinand Marcos, in his emergency address to the country, says, "We are in crisis!"Philippines source
25 January – Saul Adler (born 1895), Russian (Belarus)-born Israeli physician, microbiologist and parasitology expert.Israel source
February 11 – District Six in Cape Town is declared a White Group Area by the government.South Africa source
April 21 – An artificial heart is installed in the chest of Marcel DeRudder in a Houston, Texas, hospital.source
May 24 – The Nigerian government forbids all political activity in the country until January 17, 1969.source
July 29 – Bob Dylan is injured in a motorcycle accident near his home in Woodstock, New York. He is not seen in public for over a year.source
August 1 – Sniper Charles Whitman kills 15 people and wounds 31 from roof of the University of Texas at Austin Main Building tower in the United States, after earlier killing his wife and mother.source
August 1 – Sniper Charles Whitman kills 13 people and wounds 31 from atop the University of Texas at Austin Main Building tower, after earlier killing his wife and mother.United States source
8 September – Roger Ingebrigtsen, politician.Norway source
October 6 – LSD is made illegal in the United States and controlled so strictly that not only are possession and recreational use criminalized, but all legal scientific research programs on the drug in the country are shut down as well.source
October 7 – The Soviet Union declares that all Chinese students must leave the country before the end of October.source
Decree 770 is personally sanctioned by Ceaușescu, and signed by the communist Romanian government in 1967.Romania source
In or about this year, one person returning to Haiti from the Congo is thought to have first brought HIV to the Americas.source
The Government of Queensland grants sand mining leases on Fraser Island without holding the required public hearings.Australia source
Estimated population as of 31 December: 2,711,300.New Zealand source

Crime & Justice

February 10 – Soviet fiction writers Yuli Daniel and Andrei Sinyavsky are sentenced to five and seven years, respectively, for "anti-Soviet" writings.Soviet Union source
March 20 – Football's FIFA World Cup Trophy is stolen while on exhibition in London; it is found seven days later by a mongrel dog named "Pickles" and his owner David Corbett, wrapped in newspaper in a south London garden.source
16 April – Two top Barisan Sosialis leaders and MPs, Chia Thye Poh and Koo Young were arrested on sedition charge.Singapore source
April 19 – Moors murders: Ian Brady and Myra Hindley go on trial at Chester Crown Court in north west England for the murders of 3 children who vanished between November 1963 and October 1965.source
May 6 – The Moors murders trial ends in the UK with Ian Brady being found guilty on all three counts of murder and sentenced to three concurrent terms of life imprisonment. Myra Hindley is convicted on two counts of murder and of being an accessory in the third murder committed by Brady, receiving two concurrent terms of life imprisonment and a seven-year fixed term for being an accessory.source
May 19 – Gertrude Baniszewski is found guilty of torturing and murdering 16-year-old Sylvia Likens in Indianapolis, United States, and is sentenced to life in prison (she is released on parole in December 1985).source
19 May - 1964–66 Balkans Cup: Albania is defeated by Romania 1-2 at Selman Stërmasi Stadium, TiranaAlbania source
June 6 – Civil rights activist James Meredith is shot by a sniper while traversing Mississippi in the March Against Fear.source
6 June: Brazilian Communist Party leader Luís Carlos Prestes is sentenced to 14 years in prison.Brazil source
June 13 – Miranda v. Arizona: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them.source
26 June - Ulster Volunteer Force engages in three sectarian murders.Northern Ireland source
July 3 – 31 people are arrested when a demonstration by approximately 4,000 anti-Vietnam War protesters in front of the United States Embassy in London in Grosvenor Square turns violent.source
July 13 – In Chicago, United States, Richard Speck breaks into a nurses' dormitory and murders eight of the nine student nurses who live there.source
July 16 – Arkangel de la Muerte, professional wrestler (died 2018)Mexico source
September 6 – South African Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd is stabbed to death in Parliament by Dimitri Tsafendas.source
September 30 – Baldur von Schirach and Albert Speer are released from Spandau Prison in West Berlin.source
December 31 – Eight paintings worth millions of pounds are stolen from Dulwich Picture Gallery in London, but are recovered locally within a week.source
Sultan of Pahang: Sultan Abu BakarMalaysia source
2nd Conference of the Workers' Party of KoreaNorth Korea source

Disasters & Accidents

January 17 – 1966 Palomares B-52 crash: A U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber collides with a KC-135 Stratotanker over Spain, dropping three 70-kiloton hydrogen bombs near the town of Palomares, and one into the sea. Carl Brashear, the first African-American United States Navy diver, is involved in an accident during the recovery of the latter, which results in the amputation of his leg.source
January 17 – 1966 Palomares B-52 crash: A USAF B-52 bomber collides with a KC-135 Stratotanker over Spain, dropping three 70-kiloton hydrogen bombs near the town of Palomares, and one into the sea. Carl Brashear, the first African American United States Navy diver, is involved in an accident during the recovery of the latter which results in the amputation of his leg.United States source
January 24 – Air India Flight 101 crashes into Mont Blanc, killing all 117 people on board, including Homi J. Bhabha, chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Commission.source
24 January - Air India Flight 101 crashed into Mont Blanc killing the 117 passengers including Homi J. Bhabha who was in the flight. There was a similar aviation accident in the same spot in 1950.India source
31 January – Clashes between gendarmes and demonstrators from the closing Zwartberg mine leave two colliers dead.Belgium source
February 7 – The Great Fire of Iloilo, Philippines, breaks out in a lumber yard and burns for almost half a day, destroying nearly three-quarters of the City Proper area and causing 50 million pesos in total property damage.source
March 4 – Canadian Pacific Air Lines Flight 402 crashes during a night landing in poor visibility at Tokyo International Airport in Japan, killing 64 of 72 people on board.source
March 5 – BOAC Flight 911 crashes in severe clear-air turbulence over Mount Fuji soon after taking off from Tokyo International Airport in Japan, killing all 124 people on board.source
March 5 - BOAC Flight 911 crashes while encountering severe Clear-air turbulence over Mount Fuji shortly after taking off from Tokyo International Airport, killing all 124 on board.Japan source
March 8 – Nelson's Pillar in O'Connell Street, Dublin, is clandestinely blown up by former Irish Republican Army volunteers marking this year's 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising.source
March – The DKW automobile ceases production in Germany.source
June 8 – A North American XB-70 Valkyrie strategic bomber prototype is destroyed in a mid-air collision with an F-104 Starfighter chase plane during a photo shoot. NASA pilot Joseph A. Walker and USAF test pilot Carl Cross are both killed.source
4 July – An Air New Zealand Douglas DC-8 on a training flight crashes on takeoff from Auckland Airport, killing two of the five crew members.New Zealand source
10 July – The Easybeats leave for London. Their departure is delayed when they were among the 100 passengers forced to disembark their plane at Kingsford Smith Airport when an anonymous caller claimed a bomb was on the aircraft.Australia source
July 31 – Loss of MV Darlwyne: a pleasure cruiser disappears off the Cornwall coast of England with the loss of all 31 aboard.source
August 6 – Braniff International Airways Flight 250 crashes in Falls City, Nebraska, United States, killing all 42 of those on board.source
August 11 – A Lisunov Li-2 airliner, operated by Tarom crashed in the Lotriora Valley in Romania, near the city of Sibiu, killing all 24 people on board.Romania source
September 1 – 98 British tourists die when Britannia Airways Flight 105 crashes in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia.source
16 September – Ole Petter Pollen, yacht racer.Norway source
October 1 – West Coast Airlines Flight 956 crashes with 18 fatal injuries and no survivors 5.5 mi south of Wemme, Oregon, the first loss of a DC-9.source
October 26 – A fire aboard the US aircraft carrier USS Oriskany in the Gulf of Tonkin kills 44 crewmen.source
November 11 – A mine kills three Israeli paratroopers on the West Bank border.source
November 24 – TABSO Flight 101, from Sofia, Bulgaria, crashes near Bratislava, Czechoslovakia, killing all 82 people on board.source
November 29 – The SS Daniel J. Morrell sinks in a storm on Lake Huron, killing 28 of 29 crewmen.source
December 8 – The Typaldos Line's ferry SS Heraklion sinks in rough seas in the Aegean Sea near Crete, leaving 217 dead.source

Climate & Environment

11 February – Pierre Harmel proffers his resignation as prime minister due to internal policy divisions in his Christian Democrat–Socialist coalition.Belgium source
March 3 – A F5 tornado strikes Mississippi and Alabama, causing catastrophic damage over its 200 miles, and kills 57 peoplesource
13 March – The 8.0 Ms Hualien earthquake occurred off the Hualien County coast.Taiwan source
March 22 – in the Chinese city of Xingtai a magnitude 6.8 earthquake leaves more than 8,000 dead and 38,000 injured.source
April 26 – The magnitude 5.1 Tashkent earthquake affects the largest city in Soviet Central Asia with a maximum MSK intensity of VII (Very strong). Tashkent is mostly destroyed and 15–200 are killed.source
June 8 – 1966 Topeka tornado: Topeka, Kansas, is devastated by a tornado that registers as an "F5" on the Fujita scale, the first to exceed US$100 million in damages. Sixteen people are killed, hundreds more injured and thousands of homes damaged or destroyed, and the campus of Washburn University suffers catastrophic damage.source
July 5 – A moderate phreatomagmatic eruption at Mt. Tabaro results in tephra fallout and airborne projectiles, impacting the volcano island.Philippines source
August 19 – The 6.8 Mw Varto earthquake affects the town of Varto in eastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing at least 2,394–3,000 and injuring at least 1,420.source
19 August – The 6.8 Mw Varto earthquake shook the Muş Province with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing at least 2,394 and injuring up to 1,500.Turkey source
September 25 – Two typhoons Helen and Ida landed in Japan on same days, according to Japanese government official confirmed report, total 317 persons were human fatalities with 824 persons were hurt.Japan source
September 29 – Hurricane Inez strikes Hispaniola, leaving thousands dead and tens of thousands homeless in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.source
October 5 – An experimental breeder reactor at the Enrico Fermi Nuclear Generating Station in Michigan suffers a partial meltdown when its cooling system fails.source
2 November – The third wave of by-elections were held in three constituencies, namely Bukit Timah Constituency, Jurong Constituency and Joo Chiat Constituency.Singapore source
November 4 – 1966 flood of the Arno river in Italy hits Florence, flooding it to a maximum depth of 6.7 m, leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. In addition, a severe tidal flood hits Venice.source
10 November- The San Juan (Argentina) earthquake occurs, with a magnitude of 5.9 degrees on the Richter scale, which is felt in the cities of La Serena, Ovalle, Illapel, La Ligua and Los Andes.Chile source
Sultan of Johor: Sultan IsmailMalaysia source

Culture & Society

March 5 – Merci, Chérie by Udo Jürgens (music by Udo Jürgens, lyrics by Jürgens and Thomas Hörbiger) wins the Eurovision Song Contest 1966 (staged in Luxembourg) for Austria.source
5 March – Luxembourg City hosts the Eurovision Song Contest 1966 after France Gall's victory the previous year. Representing Luxembourg, Michèle Torr finishes tenth with the song Ce soir je t'attendais.Luxembourg source
March 10 – Crown Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands marries Claus von Amsberg. Some spectators demonstrate against the groom because he is German.source
April 8 – Buddhists in South Vietnam protest against the fact that the new government has not set a date for free elections.source
April 18 – The 38th Academy Awards ceremony is held in Santa Monica, California: The Sound of Music wins Best Picture.source
May 5 – The Montreal Canadiens defeat the Detroit Red Wings to win the Stanley Cup in ice hockey.source
May 16 – The Chinese Communist Party issues the 'May 16 Notice', marking the beginning of the Cultural Revolution.source
May 16 – The Beach Boys releases the album Pet Sounds.source
May 29 – Sports stadium Estadio Azteca officially opens in Mexico City in advance of the 1968 Summer Olympics.source
June 29 – The strike by the National Union of Seamen in the United Kingdom is called off.source
June 30 – The National Organization for Women (NOW) is founded in Washington, D.C.source
June 30 – Australia's semi-decennial census took place.source
4 July - 1966-67 Balkans Cup: Albania defeats Romania 1-2 at Francisc von Neuman Stadium, Arad, RomaniaAlbania source
8 July – The Anugerah Sukan Negara or National Sports Awards were introduced. Mani Jegathesan and Mary Rajamani won the first awards.Malaysia source
July 11 – The 1966 FIFA World Cup begins in England.source
July 29 – La Noche de los Bastones Largos: Junta takes over Argentine universities.source
July 30 – England beats West Germany 4–2 to win the 1966 FIFA World Cup at Wembley after extra time.source
August 5 – the Beatles releases the album Revolver, in the UK.source
August 22 – The United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC), predecessor of the United Farm Workers of America (UFW), is formed.source
August 22 – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is established.source
August 29 – the Beatles end their U.S. tour with a concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. It is their last performance as a live touring band.source
September 16 – In South Vietnam, Thích Trí Quang ends a 100-day hunger strike.source
September 16 – The Metropolitan Opera House opens at Lincoln Center in New York City with the world premiere of Samuel Barber's opera Antony and Cleopatra.source
October 6 – The Love Pageant Rally takes place in the Panhandle of Golden Gate Park (a narrow section that projects into San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district).source
27-30 October - His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej welcomed U.S. President Lyndon Johnson for a State Visit.Thailand source
November 2 – The Cuban Adjustment Act comes into force, allowing 123,000 Cubans the opportunity to apply for permanent residency in the United States.source
18 November – Instruction begins at the University of Chittagong with 7 teachers and 200 students in 4 departments: Bangla, English, history, and economics.Pakistan source
November 28 – Truman Capote's Black and White Ball ("The Party of the Century") is held in New York City.source
December 26 – The first Kwanzaa is celebrated by Maulana Karenga, founder of Organization US (a black nationalist group) and chair of Black Studies at California State University, Long Beach, from 1989 to 2002.source
Star Trek premieres starring Montreal actor William ShatnerCanada source
CS Mindelense won the Cape Verdean Football ChampionshipCape Verde source
The Cyprus Basketball Federation was established.Cyprus source

Births

March 18 – Jerry Cantrell, American guitarist and singersource
March 22 – Martha McSally, American politician and military pilotsource
April 17 – Vikram, Indian actorsource
May 16 – Janet Jackson, African-American R&B singersource
May 24 – Eric Cantona, French footballersource
3 June – Wasim Akram, cricketerPakistan source
18 June - Bounlap Khenkitisack, footballerLaos source
25 June – Dikembe Mutombo, basketball playerDemocratic Republic of the Congo source
June 30 – Mike Tyson, African-American boxersource
July 20 – Enrique Peña Nieto, President of Mexico (2012–2018), Governor of the State of Mexico (2005–2011)source
August 7 – Jimmy Wales, American-British entrepreneur, co-founder of Wikipediasource
September 27 – Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Member of the US House from Floridasource
October 9 – David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 2010–2016source
October 30 – Zoran Milanović, Croatian politician, President of Croatiasource
November 8 – Gordon Ramsay, British chef, restaurateur and television personalitysource
19 November – Nazir Razak – renowned banker, former CIMB Bank Chairman (2014–2020)Malaysia source
December 8 – Sinéad O'Connor, Irish singer (died 2023)source
December 10 – Kirsten Gillibrand, American politician; United States Senator (D-NY)source

Deaths

January 10 – Pakistani–Indian peace negotiations end successfully with the signing of the Tashkent Declaration, a day before the sudden death of Indian prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.source
January 14 – Sergei Korolev, Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft designer (born 1907)source
January 22 – The military government of Nigeria announces that ex-prime minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was killed during the coup a week previously.source
31 January – Arthur E. Percival, known for surrendering to the Japanese on 15 February 1942 during World War II (born 1887).Singapore source
February 1 – Buster Keaton, American actor and film director (born 1895)source
February 26 – Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Indian pro-independence activist, Hindu nationalist (born 1883)source
April 10 – Evelyn Waugh, English author (born 1903)source
15 April – Habibullah Bahar Chowdhury, politician (born 1906)Pakistan source
May 15 – Maximiliano Hernández Martínez, 30th President of El Salvador (assassinated) (born 1882)source
June 2 – Four former cabinet ministers including Évariste Kimba are executed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for alleged involvement in a plot to kill Mobutu Sese Seko.source
2 June – Richard O. Winstedt, British orientalist and colonial administrator (born 1878).Malaysia source
June 30 – Giuseppe Farina, Italian racing driver (born 1906)source
August 3 – Lenny Bruce, American comedian (born 1925)source
September 6 – Margaret Sanger, American birth control advocate (born 1879)source
October 21 – Aberfan disaster in South Wales (U.K.): 144 (including 116 children) are killed by a collapsing coal spoil tip.source
December 15 – Walt Disney, American animated film producer and founder of The Walt Disney Company and Disneyland Resort (born 1901)source
19 December – Betty Kuuskemaa, actress (born 1879)Estonia source
December 31 – Nipo T. Strongheart, Native American filmmaker (born 1891)source