The Calendar of Literary Facts contains more than 6,500 events in literary history.

Voltaire returns to Paris after being exiled for 28 years.

Explore: Voltaire

Sidney Sheldon is born

Explore: Bloodline, Tell Me Your Dreams

Maryse Conde is born

Explore: I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem, Maryse Condé

John Buchan dies

Explore: The Thirty-nine Steps

Sylvia Plath dies

Explore: The Bell Jar, Lady Lazarus, Sylvia Plath

Ketti Frings dies

Frank Herbert dies

Explore: Soul Catcher, Dune, Frank Herbert

South African Black Nationalist Nelson Mandela is freed from prison after 27 years of confinement

Explore: Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela