| 6 February 1266 | Sicily, Italy [political events] | Charles of Anjou defeats and kills Manfred, former king of Sicily, at Benevento, southern Italy. From this point until the death of Robert of Naples in 1343 the Angevin dynasty is the dominant power in Italy. |
| 6 February 1508 | Holy Roman Empire [political events] | The Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I proclaims, in the cathedral of Trento (Trent) in northern Italy, that he will no longer seek coronation, but will adopt, with Pope Julius II's consent, the title ‘Emperor Elect’ (Latin imperator electus, German erwählter Kaiser). |
| 6 February 1626 | France [treaties] | The Peace of La Rochelle is signed between the Huguenot (French Protestant) rebels and the French crown, through the mediation of the English ambassador. |
| 6 February 1651 | France [crime and punishment] | Cardinal Jules Mazarin is dismissed and a few days later flees from Paris, France, after a fortnight-long siege of the Palais-Royal by the mob, motivated by the demands of the Parlement for his dismissal and the release of Louis II de Bourbon, Prince of Condé, and other Fronde leaders. Condé is subsequently released. |
| 6 February 1665 | England [births and deaths] | Queen Anne, last Stuart monarch of Great Britain and Ireland 1702–14, born in London, England (–1714). |
| 6 February 1685 | UK [births and deaths] | Charles II, King of Great Britain and Ireland 1660–85, who was restored to the throne after the Puritan Commonwealth, dies in London, England (54). |
| 6 February 1685 | UK [administration] | James II succeeds as king of England on the death of his brother Charles II. |
| 6 February 1695 | Ottoman Empire [administration] | Mustafa II succeeds as sultan of the Ottoman Empire on the death of Ahmad II. |
| 6 February 1720 | France, Holy Roman Empire, UK, United Netherlands, Spain, Italy [treaties] | A peace treaty is signed between the Quadruple Alliance (France, the Holy Roman Empire, Britain, and the United Netherlands) and Spain. The Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VI, gives up his claim to Spain while King Philip V of Spain renounces his claim to Italy, provided the Emperor allows Charles, Philip and Elizabeth Farnese's son, to succeed to the Italian dukedoms of Parma and Tuscany (including the city of Piacenza). The Duke of Savoy obtains Sardinia from the Emperor in exchange for Sicily. |
| 6 February 1778 | France, America, UK [American Revolution] | France and the American colonists sign a treaty of amity and commerce and a treaty of alliance. In response, Britain declares war on France. |
| 6 February 1819 | UK, Singapore [political events] | The British East India Company, represented by Thomas Stamford Raffles, establishes a trading post in Singapore by treaty with the local ruler, the sultan of Johore. The preliminary treaty was concluded on 30 January. Despite opposition from the Dutch East India Company, the new post ensures British access to the trade of the China Sea. |
| 6 February 1895 | USA [births and deaths] | (George Herman) ‘Babe’ Ruth, US professional baseball player, born in Baltimore, Maryland (–1948). |
| 6 February 1911 | [births and deaths] | Ronald Reagan, 40th president of the USA 1981–89, a Republican, born in Tampico, Illinois. |
| 6 February 1922 | [Catholicism] | Following the death of Pope Benedict XV on 22 January, the Italian clergyman Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti is elected Pope Pius XI. |
| 6 February 1952 | UK [political events] | Following the death of King George VI of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, he is succeeded by his daughter Queen Elizabeth II, who is on a visit to Kenya at the time (proclaimed on 8 February). |
| 6 February 1957 | Israel, Egypt [wars] | Israeli troops hand over the ‘Gaza Strip’, Egyptian territory to the southwest of Israel seized in 1956, to a United Nations (UN) force. |
| 6 February 1993 | USA [births and deaths] | Arthur Ashe, US tennis player and the first black man to win a major men's singles championship, dies in New York City (49). |
| 6 February 1994 | USA [births and deaths] | Jack Kirby, US comic book artist who created over 400 characters including Spiderman, the Incredible Hulk, and Captain America, dies in Thousand Oaks, California (76). |
| 6 February 2000 | Finland [elections] | Foreign Minister Tarja Halonen of the Social Democratic Party is elected Finland's first woman president. |
| 6 February 2002 | UK [political events] | Queen Elizabeth II completes 50 years as monarch of Britain. |
