October 18 is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 74 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events
Up to 1900
320 - Pappus of Alexandria, Greek philosopher, observes a solar eclipse and writes a commentary on The Great Astronomer.
629 - King Dagobert is crowned King of the Franks.
1009 – The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the "mad" Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, who hacks the Church's foundations down to bedrock.
1016 – The Danes defeat the Saxons in the Battle of Ashingdon.
1561 – Fourth Battle of Kawanakajima: Takeda Shingen beats Uesugi Kenshin in the climax of their ongoing conflicts
1599 - Michael the Brave, Prince of Wallachia defeats the army of Andrew Bathory in the Battle of Selimbar, leading to the first recorded unification of the Romanian people.
1977 – German Autumn: a set of events revolving around the kidnapping of Hanns-Martin Schleyer and the hijacking of a Lufthansa flight by the Red Army Faction (RAF) comes to an end when Schleyer is executed and various RAF members commit suicide. The German government states that it would never again negotiate with terrorists.