Events in History
- 959 Erachus becomes bishop of Luik
- 1192 Minamoto Yoritomo becomes Seii Tai Shōgun and the de facto ruler of Japan. (Traditional Japanese date: July 12, 1192)
Event of Interest
1264 Kublai Khan accepts the surrender of his younger brother Ariq Böke at Xanadu, at the end of the Mongol civil war
Kublai Khan
- 1321 160 Jews of Chincon France, burned at stake
Event of Interest
1541 Ottoman Turks under Suleiman the Magnificent capture Buda, the capital of the Hungarian Kingdom and go on to dominate central Hungary for 150 years
Suleiman the Magnificent
Event of Interest
1560 Tycho Brahe becomes interested in astronomy
Tycho Brahe
- 1573 Spain begin siege of Alkmaar in the Netherlands
- 1598 -22] Deed of Transfers proclaims Netherlands independence
- 1673 Sea battle at Kijkduin: De Ruyter defeats English & French fleet
- 1680 Pueblo Indians takes possession of Santa Fé from Spanish
- 1689 Battle of Dunkeld fought in Scotland between supporters of King James VII of Scotland and troops of William of Orange
- 1703 The Edirne Event: Turkish army removes Sultan Mustafa II, lessening the power of the sultans
- 1718 Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI, Turkey and Venice sign peace treaty
- 1760 The church (later cathedral) of "Our Lady of Candlemas of Mayagüez (Puerto Rico)" is founded, establishing the basis for the founding of the city.
Coup d'état
1772 King Gustav III of Sweden completes a coup d'etat by adopting a new Constitution and installing himself as an enlightened despot, ending 50 years of parliamentary rule
Gustav III
Victory in Battle
1808 Battle of Vimeiro: British and Portuguese forces led by General Arthur Wellesley defeat French force under Major-General Jean-Andoche Junot near the village of Vimeiro, Portugal, the first Anglo-Portuguese victory of the Peninsular War.
Arthur Wellesley
Event of Interest
1831 Former slave Nat Turner leads uprising against slavery
Nat Turner
- 1841 John Hampton patents venetian blind
- 1842 The city of Hobart, Tasmania, is founded.
- 1852 Tlingit Indians destroy Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory.
- 1856 America's first consul to Japan, Townsend Harris, arrives in Shimoda. (Traditional Japanese date: July 21, 1856)
- 1858 1st Lincoln-Douglas debate in Illinois
- 1862 The Vienna Stadtpark opens its gates.
- 1863 Raid at Lawrence KS by William Quantrill
- 1864 BBT Charleston, South Carolina [->DEC 31]
- 1864 Battle at Globe Tavern, Virginia, ends after 2500 casualties
- 1864 Battle of Grubbs Crossroads, Kentucky
- 1864 Battle of Summit Point, Virginia
- 1864 Major General Nathan B. Forrest's assault on Memphis, Tennessee
- 1878 American Bar Association organizes at Sarasota, NY
- 1879 The Virgin Mary, along with St. Joseph and St. John the Evangelist, reportedly appears to the people of Knock, County Mayo, Ireland.
- 1888 American inventor William Seward Burroughs patents the adding machine
- 1891 Dutch Mackay government resigns
- 1897 Oldsmobile first manufactured by Olds Motor Vehicle Co. in Lansing, Michigan
- 1911 "Mona Lisa" stolen from the Louvre by Vincenzo Perugia (Recovered in 1913)
- 1912 Francis Carter-Cotton chosen 1st chancellor of University of British Columbia
- 1914 Belgium: German troops occupy Tamines
- 1914 French offensive in the Ardennen/Sambre
- 1915 Italy declares war on Turkey in World War One
- 1916 Sir Roger Casement, an Ulster Protestant and ardent Irish nationalist, arrested by the British
- 1926 -22] Uprising against Greek president and dictator Pangalos
- 1927 4th Pan-African Congress meets (NYC)
- 1929 Chicago Cardinals become 1st pro football team to train out of town
- 1930 Prohibition of Wieringermeer finished
- 1932 Wes Ferrell is 1st to win 20 games in each of his 1st 4 seasons
- 1938 Italy bars all Jewish teachers in Public & High School
- 1942 World War II: German soldiers plant the Nazi flag on Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus
- 1942 Transport #22 departs with French Jews to nazi-Germany
- 1943 Gromyko named USSR-ambassador in Washington
- 1943 Japan leaves Aleutian Islands
- 1944 Germans storm up Hill 262 (Mont Ormel) Normandy
- 1944 Raid on Jewish children's house in Secrétan/St-Mandé
- 1944 US 12nd Army Corps occupies Sens
- 1945 US President Harry Truman ends Lend-Lease program
- 1949 Philadelphia fans cause A's to forfeit game when they riot over a trapped line drive by Rich Ashburn, Giants leading 4-2 in 9th declared winners
- 1953 Marion Carl in Douglas Skyrocket reaches record 25,370 m
- 1953 Sultan Sidi Mohammed Am Joessoef V of Morocco deposed
Event of Interest
1955 Emmett Till arrives in Money, Mississippi, a week before he is murdered
Emmett Till
Event of Interest
1961 Kenyan political activist Jomo Kenyatta released from jail after 9 years. Imprisoned during 1952 Mau Mau rebellion with other nationalist leaders by British authorities
Jomo Kenyatta
- 1962 Verne Gagne beats Mister M (doctor X) in Minn, to become NWA champ
- 1963 Jerry Lynch's record 15th pinch-hit HR gives Pirates a 7-6 win
- 1963 Martial law declared in South Vietnam, following raids on Buddhist pagodas
- 1965 Gemini 5 launched into Earth orbit (2 astronauts)
- 1965 Romania adopts constitution
- 1965 The Crusher beats Mad Dog Vachon in St Paul, to become NWA champ
- 1967 China reports downing of 2 US bombers
- 1967 Liquid gas tanker explodes in Martelange Belgium, 22 killed
- 1967 Mikis Theodorakis arrested in Greece
- 1968 After 5 years Soviet Union once again jams Voice of America radio
- 1968 Democratic Convention opens in Chicago, goes on to nominate Hubert Humphrey
- 1968 Marine James Anderson Jr is 1st African American to win Medal of Honor
Warsaw Pact Invasion of Czechoslovakia
1968 Warsaw Pact forces complete their invasion of Czechoslovakia by arresting the Czech leader Alexander Dubček and forcing him to sign the Moscow Protocols
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- 1968 William Dana reaches 80 km (last high-altitude X-15 flight)
- 1969 Fire in Al-Aksa-mosque in Jerusalem
- 1969 First Gap clothing store opens in Ocean Avenue, San Francisco
- 1970 The Social and Democratic Labour Party (SDLP) is established with Gerry Fitt as the first leader of the party
- 1972 1st hot air balloon flight over Alps
- 1972 British dock strike ends after dockers accept an amended Jones-Adlington Agreement
- 1972 Grace Slick maced by police when a band official called cops, pigs
- 1972 Republican convention opens in Miami Beach
- 1972 US orbiting astronomy observatory Copernicus launched
- 1975 3 truck pile up kills 10, injures 26 on French highway
- 1975 Rick & Paul Reuschel become 1st brothers to pitch a combined shut out
- 1975 US lightens trade embargo against Cuba
- 1976 Al Bumbry hits 17th inside-the-park HR in Oriole history
- 1976 Battle, East Sussex: Mary Langdon becomes 1st British firewoman
- 1976 "Operation Paul Bunyan" begins in retaliation for the "Korean axe murder incident" 3 days prior. 110 troops, 27 helicopters, 3 B-52 bombers are deployed to the Korean Demilitarized Zone to cut down a poplar blocking the view of UN observers
- 1978 1st gay theme telefilm - Matlovich vs US Air Force
- 1980 Linda Ronstadt opens in "Pirates of Penzance" on Broadway
- 1982 Palestinian terrorists are dispersed from Beirut
- 1983 110°F (43°C) at Fayetteville, North Carolina (state record)
- 1985 Mary Decker Slaney runs mile in world record 4:16.71
- 1985 NY Lotto pays $41 million to three winner (#s are 14-17-22-23-30-47)
- 1986 Surinames Ronnie Brunswijks Jungle commandos kill 2 government officials
- 1986 Lake Nyos volcanic eruption in Cameroon releases a poisonous gas cloud of carbon dioxide, killing 1,746 people and 3,500 livestock
Birthdays in History
- 1165 Philip II Augustus, 1st great Capetian king of France (1179-1223), born in Gonesse, France (d. 1223)
- 1535 Shimazu Yoshihiro, Japanese samurai and warlord, born in Kagoshima, Japan (d. 1619)
- 1567 Francois de Sales, French bishop of Geneva, writer and saint, born in Sainte-Mondane, France (d. 1622)
- 1597 Roger Twysden, English antiquarian and royalist, born in East Peckham, Kent, England (d. 1672)
- 1643 Afonso VI, mentally ill King of Portugal (1656-67), born in Ribeira Palace, Lisbon, Portugal (d. 1683)
- 1660 Hubert Gautier, French engineer, wrote 1st book on bridge building, born in Nîmes, France (d. 1737)
- 1665 Giacomo F. Maraldi, French-Italian astronomer and mathematician, born in Perinaldo, Italy (d. 1729)
- 1670 James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick, French military leader, born in Moulins, France (d. 1734)
- 1721 Lucretia Wilhelmina van Merken, Dutch poet, born in Amsterdam (d. 1789)
- 1725 Jean-Baptiste Greuze, French painter, born in Tournus, France (d. 1805)
- 1754 William Murdoch, Scottish inventor (oscillating cylinder steam engine), born in Cumnock, East Ayrshire, Scotland (d. 1839)
- 1754 Banastre Tarleton, British soldier and politician (Waxhaws Massacre), born in Liverpool, England (d. 1833)
- 1765 William IV, King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1830-37), born in Buckingham House, London (d. 1837)
- 1780 Jernej Kopitar, Slovene philologist and linguist (Slovenian Grammar), born in Repnje, Slovenia (d. 1844)
- 1789 Augustin-Louis Cauchy, French mathematician and physicist, born in Paris (d. 1857)
- 1798 Jules Michelet, French historian (History of France, L'Amour), born in Paris (d. 1874)
- 1800 Hiram Walden, American politician, born in Pawlet, Vermont (d. 1880)
- 1801 Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, Dutch statesman and historian, born in Voorburg, Netherlands (d. 1876)
- 1810 Thomas Jefferson McKean, American Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Burlington, Pennsylvania (d. 1870)
- 1811 William Kelly, American inventor (pneumatic process of steelmaking), born in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania (d. 1888)
- 1813 Jean Stas, Belgian chemist, born in Leuven, Belgium (d. 1891)
- 1816 Charles Frédéric Gerhardt, French chemist, born in Strasbourg, France (d. 1856)
- 1821 William Barksdale, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), born in Smyrna, Tennessee (d. 1863)
- 1824 John Sanford Mason, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Steubenville, Ohio (d. 1897)
- 1826 Karl Gegenbaur, German anatomist, born in Würzburg, Germany (d. 1903)
- 1871 Leonid Andreyev, Russian journalist and writer (Red Laugh, Seven Hangs), born in Oryol, Russia (d. 1919)
- 1872 Aubrey Beardsley, English artist (Salome), born in Brighton, England (d. 1898)
- 1874 Herman Adriaan van Karnebeek, Dutch minister of Foreign affairs (1918-27), born in The Hague, Netherlands (d. 1942)
- 1875 Maurice Lippens, Belgian governor of Congo (1921-23), born in Ghent, Belgium (d. 1956)
Claude Grahame-White
1879 Claude Grahame-White, English aviation pioneer who was the 1st to make a night flight, born in Bursledon, England (d. 1959)
Claude Grahame-White
Bugs Moran
1891 [George] Bugs Moran, American gangster, born in St. Paul, Minnesota (d. 1957)
Bugs Moran
- 1896 Raymond Herreman, Belgian poet, journalist and writer (Jericho's Rose), born in Menen, Belgium (d. 1971)
- 1906 Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, French advertising magnate and Founder of Publicis Groupe, born in Enghien-les-Bains, France (d. 1996)
- 1907 Roy K. Marshall, American astronomer and TV scientist (Nature of Things)
- 1908 M. M. Kaye, British writer (The Far Pavilions), born in Shimla, India (d. 2004)
- 1909 C. Dillon Douglas, US Secretary of Treasury (1961-65), born in Geneva, Switzerland (d. 2003)
- 1909 Nikolay Bogolyubov, Russian mathematician, born in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia (d. 1992)
- 1913 Victor Rosow, Russian dramatist, born in Yaroslavl (d. 2004)
- 1914 Dallas Pratt, American collector (The American Museum in Britain), born in Islip, New York (d. 1994)
- 1915 Joshua Hassan, first Chief Minister of Gibraltar (1964-69, 72-87), born in Gibraltar (d. 1997)
- 1916 William John Raff Hooper, British cartoonist (Percy Prune), born in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England (d. 1996)
- 1920 Christopher R. Milne, son of Alan A. Milne (Winnie the Pooh), born in Chelsea, London (d. 1996)
- 1923 Arthur "Art" Janov, American psychologist and psychotherapist notable for creating primal therapy (The Primal Scream), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2017)
- 1924 Gerald D. Lascelles, son of English princess Mary, born in Goldsborough Hall, Yorkshire (d. 1952)
- 1927 Thomas Monson, 16th president of the (Mormon) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, born in Salt Lake City, Utah (d. 2018)
- 1928 Mário Pinto de Andrade, Angolan poet and politician who founded the Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), born in Golungo Alto, Portuguese Angola (d. 1990)
- 1929 Ahmed "Kathy" Kathrada, South African anti-apartheid activist and politician, born in Schweizer-Reneke (d. 2017)
- 1929 X. J. Kennedy, American poet and author (Nude Descending a Staircase), born in New Jersey, Iowa
- 1930 Margaret Rose Countess of Snowdon, Sister of Queen Elizabeth II , born in London, England
- 1936 Mart Crowley, American playwright (Boys in the Band), born in Vicksburg, Mississippi
- 1936 Radish Tordia, Georgian painter of Figurative Art, born in Abasha, Georgia
- 1937 Robert Stone, American novelist (Dog Soldiers, WUSA), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2015)
- 1937 Donald Campbell Dewar, Scottish politician (1st minister of Scotland's first Parliament in almost 300yrs), born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 2000)
- 1939 Festus Mogae, 3rd President of Botswana (1998-2008), born in Serowe, Bechuanaland, Botswana
- 1940 Ana Isabel Anderson-Imbert, Argentinian rheumatologist, born in Buenos Aires
- 1944 Doug Young, American national and world powerlifting champion, born in Abilene, Texas (d. 2005)
- 1944 Perry Christie, 3rd Prime Minister of the Bahamas, born in Nassau, Bahamas
- 1950 Arthur Bremer, American criminal who shot George Wallace in May 1972 leaving him paralyzed, born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- 1951 Eric Goles, Chilean mathematician and computer scientist, born in Antofagasta, Chile
- 1951 Margo Kane, Canadian playwright, born in Edmonton, Canada
- 1952 Jiří Paroubek, former Czech prime minister, born in Olomouc, Czech Republic
- 1957 Janice Thomas, WBL guard (NY Stars)
- 1963 Mohammed VI of Morocco, King of Morocco (1999-present), born in Rabat, Morocco
- 1971 Matthew Noonan, American Concert Organist
- 1971 Robert Harvey, Australian Rules Footballer (St Kilda Football Club), born in Seaford, Australia
Sergey Brin
1973 Sergey Brin, Russian-born American computer scientist and businessman (co-founded Google with Larry Page), born in Moscow, Soviet Union
Sergey Brin
- 1974 Amy Fisher, shot Mary Jo Buttafucco, born in Long Island, New York
Weddings in History
Wedding of Interest
1745 Future Russian Tsar Peter III marries Ekaterina Alexeievna later Catherine II (Catherine the Great)
Peter the Great
Catherine the Great
Wedding of Interest
1929 Painter Diego Rivera (42) weds fellow artist Frida Kahlo (22)
Frida Kahlo
Diego Rivera
Wedding of Interest
1976 Magazine publisher Larry Flynt (33) weds Althea Leasure (23)
Larry Flynt
- 2005 "Strictly Come Dancing" hostess Natasha Kaplinsky (32) weds investment banker Justin Bower at St. Margaret's Church in Somerset, England
Deaths in History
- 1131 Boudouin II van Bourg, king of Jerusalem, dies
- 1157 King Alfonso VII of Castile (b. 1104/1105)
- 1190 Godfried III, duke of Brabant (Grimbergse war), dies
- 1245 Alexander van Hales, English scholar, dies
- 1271 Alphonse of Toulouse, son of Louis VIII of France, dies at 50
- 1516 John III van Egmont, Viceroy of Holland, dies at 78
- 1581 Sakuma Nobumori, Japanese retainer and samurai (b. 1527)
Elizabeth Báthory
1614 Elizabeth Báthory, the world's most prolific female serial killer, dies at 54
Elizabeth Báthory
- 1629 Camillo Procaccini, Italian painter/etcher, dies
- 1673 Isaac Sweers, Dutch fleet admiral/Civil rights activist, dies at 51
- 1673 John de Love I, vice-admiral, dies in sea battle at about 54
- 1689 William Cleland, Scottish poet and soldier
- 1723 Dimitrie Cantemir, Romanian historian and Monarch of Moldova (1710-11), dies at 49
- 1762 Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, English writer (b. 1689)
- 1763 Charles Wyndham, 2nd Earl of Egremont, British statesman (b. 1710)
- 1785 Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, French sculptor (Child with Cage, Mercury Fastening his Sandals), dies at 71
- 1798 Corneille-François de Nélis, Flemish scholar and bishop of Antwerp, dies at 62
- 1813 Sophia Magdalena of Denmark, Queen consort of Sweden, dies at 67
- 1814 Benjamin Thompson, American physicist and inventor (Royal Institution of Great Britain), dies at 61
- 1824 John Taylor, philosopher (Jeffersonian Democracy), dies at 70
- 1836 Claude-Louis Navier, French engineer and physicist who specialized in mechanics (Navier–Stokes equations), dies at 51
- 1838 Adelbert von Chamisso, French writer (Peter Schlemihl), dies at 57
- 1864 John Calhoun Sanders, Confederate brigadier general, dies in battle at 24
- 1870 Ma Xinyi Viceroy of Liangjiang of the late Qing Dynasty in China (b. 1821)
- 1876 Harry T. Hays, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 56
- 1888 Simon Vissering, Dutch minister of Finance (1879-81), dies at 70
- 1905 Jules Oppert, French-German Assyriologist (decodes characters), dies at 80
- 1921 Ernest Daudet, French journalist and writer (White Terror), dies at 84
Leon Trotsky
1940 Leon Trotsky, Russian Marxist revolutionary, political theorist and founder of the Red Army, assassinated at 62 by an ice-pick wielding Ramón Mercader
Leon Trotsky
- 1940 Hermann Obrecht, Swiss jurist, member of the Swiss Federal Council, dies at 58
- 1942 Kiyoano Ichiki, Japanese colonel (WWII), dies
- 1943 Henrik Pontoppidan, Danish writer (Peter Gelukkige, Nobel 1917), dies at 86
- 1947 Ettore Bugatti, Italian-French automobile designer and manufacturer (Automobiles E. Bugatti), dies at 65
- 1952 Isaac Sadeh, leader of Jewish commando forces, dies
- 1957 Harald Ulrik Sverdrup, Norwegian meteorologist and oceanographer (b. 1888)
- 1960 David Barnard Steinman, American civil engineer and bridge designer (Hudson, Triborough), dies at 74
- 1964 Palmiro Togliatti, Italian politician and founder of the Communist Party of Italy, dies of a cerebral hemorrhage at 71
- 1968 Vladimir Boudnik, Czech sculptor, commits suicide at about 45
- 1971 George Jackson, US prisoner, shot to death at 29
- 1974 Buford Pusser, American sheriff of McNairy County, Tennessee, dies at 36
- 1978 Charles Eames, American designer and architect, dies at 71
- 1982 Sobhuza II, king of Swaziland/Ngwane (1921-82), dies
- 1983 Benigno S Aquino Jr, Philippines opposition leader, killed at 50
- 1987 Karl Bruck, entertainer, dies
- 1988 H. G. Adler, German writer (The Journey), dies at 78
- 1991 Oswald von Nell-Breuning, German theologist and philosopher, dies at 101
- 1991 Wolfgang Hildesheimer, German-Swiss architect and writer (Mozart biog), dies at 74
- 1992 Theo van Tijn, Marxist/social-historian, dies at 65
- 1992 Dai Vernon [David Frederick Wingfield Verner], Canadian magician, dies at 98
- 1994 Danitra Vance, comedienne (SNL), dies of breast cancer at 35
- 1994 Hein Fentener van Vlissingen, eccentric millionaire, dies at 73
- 1995 Hilda Beatritz Guevara, daughter of Che Guevara, dies at 39
- 1995 Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, physicist (Nobel-1983), dies at 84
- 1996 Joyce Plesters, British conservation scientist, dies at 69
- 1996 Sidney George Gray, company secretary, dies at 82
- 1997 Misael Pastrana Borrero, President of Colombia (1970-74), dies
- 1999 Leo Castelli, Italian-American art dealer, dies at 91
- 2000 Daniel Lisulo, Prime Minister of Zambia (b. 1930)
- 2003 Kathy Wilkes, English philosopher and aid worker (b. 1946)
- 2004 Isaäc Arend Diepenhorst, Dutch lawyer and Minister of Education, dies at 88
- 2005 Marcus Schmuck, Austrian mountaineer (b. 1925)
- 2005 Dahlia Ravikovitch, Israeli poet (b. 1936)
- 2006 Paul Fentener van Vlissingen, Dutch businessman and philanthropist (b. 1941)
- 2007 Siobhan Dowd, British/Irish writer (b. 1960)
- 2007 Elizabeth P. Hoisington, American Brigadier General (one of the first two women to attain the rank of brigadier general), dies at 88
- 2007 Caroline Aigle, French first woman fighter pilot in the French Air Force aged 25, dies of cancer at 32
- 2009 Rex Shelley, Singaporean author (b. 1930)
- 2010 Rodolfo Enrique Fogwill, Argentinean writer (b. 1941)
- 2012 Georg Leber, German politician, dies at 91
- 2012 William Thurston, American mathematician, dies from melanoma at 65
- 2015 Bob Hepple, South African-born academic and Nelson Mandela's lawyer, dies at 81
- 2017 Thomas Meehan, American writer (Annie, The Producers, Hairspray), dies at 88