What Happened on June 22?

June 22 is World Rainforest Day — and the date Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, President Roosevelt signed the GI Bill in 1944, Galileo recanted before the Inquisition in 1633, and the Empire Windrush arrived in Britain in 1948.

• 1633 — Galileo Galilei abjures his support for Copernican astronomy

  On June 22, 1633, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei formally recanted his belief that Earth orbits the Sun before the Roman Inquisition — though science later proved him right. Read the full story →

• 1870 — Congress creates the U.S. Department of Justice

  On June 22, 1870, Congress established the Department of Justice to handle federal legal affairs and enforce civil rights after the Civil War. Read the full story →

• 1941 — Germany launches Operation Barbarossa — invading the Soviet Union

  On June 22, 1941, over three million Axis troops stormed across the Soviet border in the largest invasion force in history — opening the Eastern Front of World War II. Read the full story →

• 1944 — President Roosevelt signs the GI Bill

  On June 22, 1944, FDR signed the Servicemen's Readjustment Act — the GI Bill — giving World War II veterans college tuition, job training, and home loans. Read the full story →

• 1948 — The Empire Windrush brings Caribbean migrants to Britain

  On June 22, 1948, the ship HMT Empire Windrush docked at Tilbury, England, carrying roughly 800 passengers from the Caribbean — beginning postwar Black British community growth. Read the full story →

Famous birthdays

Meryl Streep (1949) · Cyndi Lauper (1953) · Kris Kristofferson (1936–2024) · Carson Daly (1973)

Days & observances

World Rainforest Day · Windrush Day (United Kingdom) · National Onion Rings Day · National Chocolate Éclair Day