July 6 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

• 371 BC – The Battle of Leuctra shatters Sparta’s reputation of military invincibility.
• 640 – Battle of Heliopolis: The Muslim Arab army under ‘Amr ibn al-‘As defeat the Byzantine forces near Heliopolis (Egypt).
• 1253 – Mindaugas is crowned King of Lithuania.
• 1348 – Pope Clement VI issues a papal bull protecting the Jews accused of having caused the Black Death.
• 1411 – Ming China’s Admiral Zheng He returns to Nanjing after the third treasure voyage and presents the Sinhalese king, captured during the Ming–Kotte War, to the Yongle Emperor.
• 1415 – Jan Hus is condemned by the assembly of the council in the cathedral as a heretic and sentenced to be burned at the stake. (See Deaths section.)
• 1438 – A temporary compromise between the rebellious Transylvanian peasants and the noblemen is signed in Kolozsmonostor Abbey.
• 1483 – Richard III is crowned King of England.
• 1484 – Portuguese sea captain Diogo Cão finds the mouth of the Congo River.
• 1495 – First Italian War: Battle of Fornovo: Charles VIII defeats the Holy League.
• 1535 – Sir Thomas More is executed for treason against King Henry VIII of England.
• 1557 – King Philip II of Spain, consort of Queen Mary I of England, sets out from Dover to war with France, which eventually resulted in the loss of the City of Calais, the last English possession on the continent, and Mary I never seeing her husband again.
• 1560 – The Treaty of Edinburgh is signed by Scotland and England.
• 1573 – Córdoba, Argentina, is founded by Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera.
• 1573 – French Wars of Religion: Siege of La Rochelle ends.
• 1614 – Raid on Żejtun: The south east of Malta, and the town of Żejtun, suffer a raid from Ottoman forces. This was the last unsuccessful attempt by the Ottomans to conquer the island of Malta.
• 1630 – Thirty Years’ War: Four thousand Swedish troops under Gustavus Adolphus land in Pomerania, Germany.
• 1685 – Battle of Sedgemoor: Last battle of the Monmouth Rebellion. troops of King James II defeat troops of James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth.
• 1751 – Pope Benedict XIV suppresses the Patriarchate of Aquileia and establishes from its territory the Archdiocese of Udine and Gorizia.
• 1777 – American Revolutionary War: Siege of Fort Ticonderoga: After a bombardment by British artillery under General John Burgoyne, American forces retreat from Fort Ticonderoga, New York.
• 1779 – Battle of Grenada: The French defeat British naval forces during the American Revolutionary War.
• 1801 – First Battle of Algeciras: Outnumbered French Navy ships defeat the Royal Navy in the fortified Spanish port of Algeciras.
• 1809 – The second day of the Battle of Wagram; France defeats the Austrian army in the largest battle to date of the Napoleonic Wars.
• 1854 – In Jackson, Michigan, the first convention of the United States Republican Party is held.
• 1885 – Louis Pasteur successfully tests his vaccine against rabies on Joseph Meister, a boy who was bitten by a rabid dog.
• 1887 – David Kalākaua, monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii, is forced to sign the Bayonet Constitution, which transfers much of the king’s authority to the Legislature of the Kingdom of Hawaii.
• 1892 – Three thousand eight hundred striking steelworkers engage in a day-long battle with Pinkerton agents during the Homestead Strike, leaving ten dead and dozens wounded.
• 1917 – World War I: Arabian troops led by T. E. Lawrence (“Lawrence of Arabia”) and Auda ibu Tayi capture Aqaba from the Ottoman Empire during the Arab Revolt.
• 1918 – The Left SR uprising in Russia starts with the assassination of German ambassador Wilhelm von Mirbach by Cheka members.
• 1919 – The British dirigible R34 lands in New York, completing the first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by an airship.
• 1933 – The first Major League Baseball All-Star Game is played in Chicago’s Comiskey Park. The American League defeated the National League 4–2.
• 1936 – A major breach of the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal in England sends millions of gallons of water cascading 200 feet (61 m) into the River Irwell.
• 1937 – Spanish Civil War: Battle of Brunete: The battle begins with Spanish Republican troops going on the offensive against the Nationalists to relieve pressure on Madrid.
• 1939 – Anti-Jewish legislation in prewar Nazi Germany closes the last remaining Jewish enterprises.
• 1940 – Story Bridge, a major landmark in Brisbane, as well as Australia’s longest cantilever bridge is formally opened.
• 1941 – The German army launches its offensive to encircle several Soviet armies near Smolensk.
• 1942 – Anne Frank and her family go into hiding in the “Secret Annexe” above her father’s office in an Amsterdam warehouse.
• 1944 – Jackie Robinson refuses to move to the back of a bus, leading to a court-martial.
• 1944 – The Hartford circus fire, one of America’s worst fire disasters, kills approximately 168 people and injures over 700 in Hartford, Connecticut.
• 1947 – Referendum held in Sylhet to decide its fate in the Partition of India.
• 1947 – The AK-47 goes into production in the Soviet Union.
• 1957 – Althea Gibson wins the Wimbledon championships, becoming the first black athlete to do so.
• 1957 – John Lennon and Paul McCartney meet for the first time, as teenagers at Woolton Fete, three years before forming the Beatles.
• 1962 – As a part of Operation Plowshare, the Sedan nuclear test takes place.
• 1962 – The Late Late Show, the world’s longest-running chat show by the same broadcaster, airs on RTÉ One for the first time.
• 1964 – Malawi declares its independence from the United Kingdom.
• 1966 – Malawi becomes a republic, with Hastings Banda as its first President.
• 1967 – Nigerian Civil War: Nigerian forces invade Biafra, beginning the war.
• 1975 – The Comoros declares independence from France.
• 1986 – Davis Phinney becomes the first American cyclist to win a road stage of the Tour de France.
• 1988 – The Piper Alpha drilling platform in the North Sea is destroyed by explosions and fires. One hundred sixty-seven oil workers are killed, making it the world’s worst offshore oil disaster in terms of direct loss of life.
• 1989 – The Tel Aviv–Jerusalem bus 405 suicide attack: Sixteen bus passengers are killed when a member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad took control of the bus and drove it over a cliff.
• 1990 – The Electronic Frontier Foundation is founded.
• 1995 – In the Bosnian War, under the command of General Ratko Mladić, Serbia begins its attack on the Bosnian town of Srebrenica.
• 1997 – The Troubles: In response to the Drumcree dispute, five days of mass protests, riots and gun battles begin in Irish nationalist districts of Northern Ireland.
• 1998 – Hong Kong International Airport opens in Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong, replacing Kai Tak Airport as the city’s international airport.
• 2003 – The 70-metre Yevpatoria Planetary Radar sends a METI message (Cosmic Call 2) to five stars: Hip 4872, HD 245409, 55 Cancri (HD 75732), HD 10307 and 47 Ursae Majoris (HD 95128). The messages will arrive to these stars in 2036, 2040, 2044, and 2049, respectively.
• 2006 – The Nathu La pass between India and China, sealed during the Sino-Indian War, re-opens for trade after 44 years.
• 2013 – At least 42 people are killed in a shooting at a school in Yobe State, Nigeria.
• 2013 – A Boeing 777 operating as Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashes at San Francisco International Airport, killing three and injuring 181 of the 307 people on board.
• 2013 – A 73-car oil train derails in the town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec and explodes into flames, killing at least 47 people and destroying more than 30 buildings in the town’s central area.

Births on July 6

• 1387 – Queen Blanche I of Navarre (d. 1441)
• 1423 – Antonio Manetti, Italian mathematician and architect (d. 1497)
• 1580 – Johann Stobäus, German lute player and composer (d. 1646)
• 1623 – Jacopo Melani, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1676)
• 1678 – Nicola Francesco Haym, Italian cellist and composer (d. 1729)
• 1686 – Antoine de Jussieu, French biologist and academic (d. 1758)
• 1701 – Mary, Countess of Harold, English aristocrat and philanthropist (d. 1785)
• 1736 – Daniel Morgan, American general and politician (d. 1802)
• 1747 – John Paul Jones, Scottish-American captain (d. 1792)
• 1766 – Alexander Wilson, Scottish-American poet, ornithologist, and illustrator (d. 1813)
• 1781 – Stamford Raffles, English politician, founded Singapore (d. 1826)
• 1782 – Maria Luisa of Spain (d. 1824)
• 1785 – William Hooker, English botanist and academic (d. 1865)
• 1789 – María Isabella of Spain (d. 1846)
• 1796 – Nicholas I of Russia (d. 1855)
• 1797 – Henry Paget, 2nd Marquess of Anglesey (d. 1869)
• 1799 – Louisa Caroline Huggins Tuthill, American author (d. 1879)
• 1817 – Albert von Kölliker, Swiss anatomist and physiologist (d. 1905)
• 1818 – Adolf Anderssen, German chess player (d. 1879)
• 1823 – Sophie Adlersparre, Swedish publisher, writer, and women’s rights activist (d. 1895)
• 1829 – Frederick VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein (d. 1880)
• 1831 – Sylvester Pennoyer, American lawyer and politician, 8th Governor of Oregon (d. 1902)
• 1832 – Maximilian I of Mexico (d. 1867)
• 1837 – R. G. Bhandarkar, Indian orientalist and scholar (d. 1925)
• 1838 – Vatroslav Jagić, Croatian philologist and scholar (d. 1923)
• 1840 – José María Velasco Gómez, Mexican painter and academic (d. 1912)
• 1843 – John Downer, Australian politician, 16th Premier of South Australia (d. 1915)
• 1856 – George Howard Earle, Jr., American lawyer and businessman (d. 1928)
• 1858 – William Irvine, Irish-Australian politician, 21st Premier of Victoria (d. 1943)
• 1865 – Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, Swiss composer and educator (d. 1950)
• 1868 – Princess Victoria of the United Kingdom (d. 1935)
• 1873 – Dimitrios Maximos, Greek banker and politician, 140th Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1955)
• 1877 – Arnaud Massy, French golfer (d. 1950)
• 1878 – Eino Leino, Finnish poet and journalist (d. 1926)
• 1883 – Godfrey Huggins, Prime Minister of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (d. 1971)
• 1884 – Harold Stirling Vanderbilt, American businessman and sailor (d. 1970)
• 1885 – Ernst Busch, German field marshal (d. 1945)
• 1886 – Marc Bloch, French historian and academic (d. 1944)
• 1887 – Marc Chagall, Belarusian-French painter and poet (d. 1985)
• 1887 – Annette Kellerman, Australian swimmer and actress (d. 1975)
• 1890 – Dhan Gopal Mukerji, Indian-American author and scholar (d. 1936)
• 1892 – Will James, American author and illustrator (d. 1942)
• 1897 – Richard Krautheimer, German-American historian and scholar (d. 1994)
• 1898 – Hanns Eisler, German-Austrian soldier and composer (d. 1962)
• 1899 – Susannah Mushatt Jones, American supercentarian (d. 2016)
• 1900 – Frederica Sagor Maas, American author and screenwriter (d. 2012)
• 1900 – Elfriede Wever, German Olympic runner (d. 1941)
• 1903 – Hugo Theorell, Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1982)
• 1904 – Robert Whitney, American conductor and composer (d. 1986)
• 1904 – Erik Wickberg, Swedish 9th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1996)
• 1905 – Juan O’Gorman, Mexican painter and architect (d. 1982)
• 1907 – Frida Kahlo, Mexican painter and educator (d. 1954)
• 1907 – George Stanley, Canadian soldier, historian, and author, designed the flag of Canada (d. 2002)
• 1908 – Anton Muttukumaru, Sri Lankan general and diplomat (d. 2001)
• 1909 – Eric Reece, Australian politician, 32nd Premier of Tasmania (d. 1999)
• 1910 – René Le Grèves, French cyclist (d. 1946)
• 1911 – June Gale, American actress (d. 1996)
• 1912 – Heinrich Harrer, Austrian geographer and mountaineer (d. 2006)
• 1912 – Molly Yard, American feminist (d. 2005)
• 1913 – Vance Trimble, American journalist and author
• 1914 – Vince McMahon Sr., American wrestling promoter, founded WWE (d. 1984)
• 1914 – Ernest Kirkendall, American chemist and metallurgist (d. 2005)
• 1915 – Leonard Birchall, Royal Canadian Air Force pilot (d. 2004)
• 1916 – Harold Norse, American poet and author (d. 2009)
• 1916 – Don R. Christensen, American animator, cartoonist, illustrator, writer and inventor (d. 2006)
• 1917 – Arthur Lydiard, New Zealand runner and coach (d. 2004)
• 1918 – Sebastian Cabot, English-Canadian actor (d. 1977)
• 1918 – Herm Fuetsch, American professional basketball player (d. 2010)
• 1918 – Francisco Moncion, Dominican-American ballet dancer, charter member of the New York City Ballet (d.1995)
• 1919 – Ernst Haefliger, Swiss tenor and educator (d. 2007)
• 1919 – Edward Kenna, Australian Second World War recipient of the Victoria Cross (d. 2009)
• 1919 – Ray Dowker, New Zealand cricketer (d. 2004)
• 1921 – Allan MacEachen, Canadian economist and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Canada (d. 2017)
• 1921 – Billy Mauch, American actor (d. 2006)
• 1921 – Bobby Mauch, American actor (d. 2007)
• 1921 – Nancy Reagan, American actress and activist, 42nd First Lady of the United States (d. 2016)
• 1922 – William Schallert, American actor; president (1979–81) of the Screen Actors Guild (d. 2016)
• 1923 – Wojciech Jaruzelski, Polish general and politician, 1st President of Poland (d. 2014)
• 1924 – Mahim Bora, Indian writer and educationist, recipients of the Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian honour (d. 2016)
• 1924 – Louie Bellson, American drummer, composer, and bandleader (d. 2009)
• 1925 – Merv Griffin, American actor, singer, and producer, created Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! (d. 2007)
• 1925 – Bill Haley, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1981)
• 1925 – Gazi Yaşargil, Turkish neurosurgeon and academic
• 1926 – Sulev Vahtre, Estonian historian and academic (d. 2007)
• 1926 – Armando Silvestre, Mexican-American actor
• 1927 – Jan Hein Donner, Dutch chess player and journalist (d. 1988)
• 1927 – Janet Leigh, American actress and author (d. 2004)
• 1928 – Bernard Malgrange, French mathematician
• 1929 – Hélène Carrère d’Encausse, French politician historian
• 1930 – George Armstrong, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1930 – Ian Burgess, English racing driver (d. 2012)
• 1931 – Della Reese, American actress and singer (d. 2017)
• 1931 – László Tábori, Hungarian runner and coach (d. 2018)
• 1932 – Herman Hertzberger, Dutch architect and academic
• 1935 – Candy Barr, American model, dancer, and actress (d. 2005)
• 1935 – Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
• 1936 – Dave Allen, Irish comedian, actor, and screenwriter (d. 2005)
• 1937 – Vladimir Ashkenazy, Russian-Icelandic pianist and conductor
• 1937 – Ned Beatty, American actor
• 1937 – Gene Chandler, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1937 – Bessie Head, Botswanan writer
• 1937 – Michael Sata, Zambian police officer and politician, 5th President of Zambia (d. 2014)
• 1939 – Jet Harris, English bass player (d. 2011)
• 1939 – Mary Peters, English-Irish pentathlete and shot putter
• 1939 – Bruce Hunter, American swimmer (d. 2018)
• 1940 – Jeannie Seely, Grammy Award-winning country music singer-songwriter and Grand Ole Opry member
• 1940 – Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kazakh politician, 1st President of Kazakhstan
• 1941 – David Crystal, British linguist, author, and academic
• 1941 – Reinhard Roder, German footballer and manager
• 1943 – Tamara Sinyavskaya, Russian soprano
• 1944 – Gunhild Hoffmeister, German runner
• 1946 – George W. Bush, American businessman and politician, 43rd President of the United States
• 1946 – Fred Dryer, American football player and actor
• 1946 – Peter Singer, Australian philosopher and academic
• 1946 – Sylvester Stallone, American actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1947 – Roy Señeres, Filipino diplomat and politician (d. 2016)
• 1948 – Nathalie Baye, French actress
• 1948 – Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Canadian academic and politician, 26th Canadian Minister of Veterans Affairs
• 1948 – Brad Park, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach
• 1949 – Noli de Castro, Filipino journalist and politician, 14th Vice President of the Philippines
• 1949 – Phyllis Hyman, American singer-songwriter and actress (d. 1995)
• 1949 – Michael Shrieve, American composer, drummer, and percussionist
• 1950 – John Byrne, English-American author and illustrator
• 1951 – Lorna Golding, Former First Lady of Jamaica
• 1951 – Geoffrey Rush, Australian actor and producer
• 1952 – Hilary Mantel, English author and critic
• 1953 – Nanci Griffith, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1953 – Kaiser Kalambo, Zambian footballer and manager (d. 2014)
• 1953 – Robert Ménard, French politician and former journalist
• 1954 – Allyce Beasley, American actress
• 1954 – Willie Randolph, American baseball player and manager
• 1958 – Jennifer Saunders, English actress, comedian and screenwriter
• 1959 – Richard Dacoury, French basketball player
• 1960 – Maria Wasiak, Polish businesswoman and politician, Polish Minister of Infrastructure and Development
• 1961 – Robin Antin, American dancer, choreographer, and businesswoman
• 1962 – Todd Bennett, English runner and coach (d. 2013)
• 1962 – Peter Hedges, American author, screenwriter, and director
• 1967 – Heather Nova, Bermudian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1970 – Inspectah Deck, American rapper and producer
• 1970 – Martin Smith, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1972 – Daniel Andrews, Australian politician, 48th Premier of Victoria
• 1972 – Laurent Gaudé, French author and playwright
• 1972 – Greg Norton, American baseball player and coach
• 1972 – Zhanna Pintusevich-Block, Ukrainian sprinter
• 1974 – Zé Roberto, Brazilian footballer
• 1975 – 50 Cent, American rapper, producer, and actor
• 1975 – Sebastián Rulli, Argentine-Mexican actor and model
• 1975 – Amir-Abbas Fakhravar, Iranian journalist and activist
• 1976 – Rory Delap, English-Irish footballer
• 1976 – Ioana Dumitriu, Romanian-American mathematician and academic
• 1977 – Max Mirnyi, Belarusian tennis player
• 1977 – Makhaya Ntini, South African cricketer
• 1978 – Adam Busch, American actor, director, and producer
• 1978 – Tamera Mowry, American actress and producer
• 1978 – Tia Mowry, American actress and producer
• 1978 – Kevin Senio, New Zealand rugby player
• 1979 – Nic Cester, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1979 – Kevin Hart, American comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1980 – Joell Ortiz, American rapper
• 1980 – Eva Green, French actress and model
• 1981 – Nnamdi Asomugha, American football player
• 1981 – Roman Shirokov, Russian footballer
• 1982 – Brandon Jacobs, American football player
• 1982 – Misty Upham, American actress (d. 2014)
• 1983 – Gregory Smith, Canadian actor, director, and producer
• 1984 – Zhang Hao, Chinese figure skater
• 1985 – Ranveer Singh, Indian film actor
• 1986 – David Karp, American businessman, founded Tumblr
• 1987 – Sophie Auster, American singer-songwriter and actress
• 1987 – Manteo Mitchell, American runner
• 1987 – Kate Nash, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
• 1987 – Caroline Trentini, Brazilian model
• 1988 – Kevin Fickentscher, Swiss footballer
• 1990 – Magaye Gueye, French footballer
• 1992 – Manny Machado, Dominican-American baseball player

Deaths on July 6

• 371 BC – Cleombrotus I, Spartan king
• 649 – Goar of Aquitaine, French bishop
• 887 – Wang Chongrong, Chinese warlord
• 918 – William I, duke of Aquitaine (b. 875)
• 1017 – Genshin, Japanese scholar (b. 942)
• 1070 – Godelieve, Flemish saint (b. 1049)
• 1189 – Henry II, king of England (b. 1133)
• 1218 – Odo III, duke of Burgundy (b. 1166)
• 1249 – Alexander II, king of Scotland (b. 1198)
• 1415 – Jan Hus, Czech priest, philosopher, and reformer (b. 1369)
• 1476 – Regiomontanus, German mathematician and astrologer (b. 1436)
• 1480 – Antonio Squarcialupi, Italian composer (b. 1416)
• 1533 – Ludovico Ariosto, Italian poet and playwright (b. 1474)
• 1535 – Thomas More, English lawyer and politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (b. 1478)
• 1553 – Edward VI, king of England and Ireland (b. 1537)
• 1583 – Edmund Grindal, English archbishop (b. 1519)
• 1585 – Thomas Aufield, English priest and martyr (b. 1552)
• 1614 – Man Singh I, Rajput Raja of Amer (b. 1550)
• 1684 – Peter Gunning, English bishop (b. 1614)
• 1758 – George Howe, 3rd Viscount Howe, English general and politician (b. 1725)
• 1768 – Conrad Beissel, German-American religious leader (b. 1690)
• 1802 – Daniel Morgan, American general and politician (b. 1736)
• 1809 – Antoine Charles Louis de Lasalle, French general (b. 1775)
• 1813 – Granville Sharp, English activist (b. 1735)
• 1815 – Samuel Whitbread, English politician (b. 1764)
• 1835 – John Marshall, American captain and politician, 4th United States Secretary of State (b. 1755)
• 1854 – Georg Ohm, German physicist and mathematician (b. 1789)
• 1868 – Harada Sanosuke, Japanese captain (b. 1840)
• 1893 – Guy de Maupassant, French short story writer, novelist, and poet (b. 1850)
• 1901 – Chlodwig Carl Viktor, German prince and chancellor (b. 1819)
• 1902 – Maria Goretti, Italian martyr and saint (b. 1890)
• 1904 – Abai Qunanbaiuly, Kazakh poet and philosopher (b. 1845)
• 1907 – August Johann Gottfried Bielenstein, German linguist and theologian (b. 1826)
• 1916 – Odilon Redon, French painter and illustrator (b. 1840)
• 1918 – Wilhelm von Mirbach, German diplomat (b. 1871)
• 1922 – Maria Teresia Ledóchowska, Polish-Austrian nun and missionary (b. 1863)
• 1932 – Kenneth Grahame, Scottish-English author (b. 1859)
• 1934 – Nestor Makhno, Ukrainian commander (b. 1888)
• 1946 – Horace Pippin, American painter (b. 1888)
• 1947 – Adolfo Müller-Ury, Swiss-American painter (b. 1862)
• 1952 – Louis-Alexandre Taschereau, Canadian lawyer and politician, 14th Premier of Quebec (b. 1867)
• 1959 – George Grosz, German painter and illustrator (b. 1893)
• 1960 – Aneurin Bevan, Welsh-English politician, Secretary of State for Health (b. 1897)
• 1961 – Scott LaFaro, American bassist (b. 1936)
• 1961 – Woodall Rodgers, American lawyer and politician, Mayor of Dallas (b. 1890)
• 1962 – Paul Boffa, Maltese soldier and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Malta (b. 1890)
• 1962 – William Faulkner, American novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
• 1962 – Joseph August, archduke of Austria (b. 1872)
• 1963 – George, duke of Mecklenburg (b. 1899)
• 1964 – Claude V. Ricketts, American admiral (b. 1906)
• 1966 – Sad Sam Jones, American baseball player and manager (b. 1892)
• 1967 – Hilda Taba, Estonian architect and educator (b. 1902)
• 1971 – Louis Armstrong, American singer and trumpet player (b. 1901)
• 1973 – Otto Klemperer, German-American conductor and composer (b. 1885)
• 1975 – Reşat Ekrem Koçu, Turkish historian, scholar, and poet (b. 1905)
• 1976 – Zhu De, Chinese general and politician, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (b. 1886)
• 1976 – Fritz Lenz, German geneticist and physician (b. 1887)
• 1977 – Ödön Pártos, Hungarian-Israeli viola player and composer (b. 1907)
• 1978 – Babe Paley, American socialite and fashion style icon (b. 1915)
• 1979 – Van McCoy, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1940)
• 1986 – Jagjivan Ram, Indian lawyer and politician, 4th Deputy Prime Minister of India (b. 1908)
• 1989 – János Kádár, Hungarian mechanic and politician, Hungarian Minister of the Interior (b. 1912)
• 1991 – Mudashiru Lawal, Nigerian footballer (b. 1954)
• 1992 – Marsha P. Johnson, American drag queen performer and activist (b. 1945)
• 1994 – Ahmet Haxhiu, Kosovan activist (b. 1932)
• 1995 – Aziz Nesin, Turkish author and poet (b. 1915)
• 1997 – Chetan Anand, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
• 1998 – Roy Rogers, American cowboy, actor, and singer (b. 1911)
• 1999 – Joaquín Rodrigo, Spanish pianist and composer (b. 1901)
• 2000 – Władysław Szpilman, Polish pianist and composer (b. 1911)
• 2002 – Dhirubhai Ambani, Indian businessman, founded Reliance Industries (b. 1932)
• 2002 – John Frankenheimer, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1930)
• 2003 – Buddy Ebsen, American actor, singer, and dancer (b. 1908)
• 2003 – Çelik Gülersoy, Turkish lawyer, historical preservationist, writer and poet (b. 1930)
• 2004 – Thomas Klestil, Austrian politician, 10th President of Austria (b. 1932)
• 2004 – Syreeta Wright, American singer-songwriter (b. 1946)
• 2005 – Ed McBain, American author and screenwriter (b. 1926)
• 2005 – Claude Simon, Malagasy-French novelist and critic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1913)
• 2006 – Kasey Rogers, American actress (b. 1925)
• 2007 – Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, American author (b. 1939)
• 2009 – Vasily Aksyonov, Russian author and academic (b. 1932)
• 2009 – Robert McNamara, American businessman and politician, 8th United States Secretary of Defense (b. 1916)
• 2010 – Harvey Fuqua, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1929)
• 2011 – Carly Hibberd, Australian road racing cyclist (b. 1985)
• 2012 – Hani al-Hassan, Palestinian engineer and politician (b. 1939)
• 2013 – Lo Hsing Han, Burmese businessman, co-founded Asia World (b. 1935)
• 2014 – Alan J. Dixon, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 34th Illinois Secretary of State (b. 1927)
• 2015 – Jerry Weintraub, American film producer, and talent agent (b. 1937)
• 2018 – Shoko Asahara, founder of Japanese cult group Aum Shinrikyo (b. 1955)
• 2019 – João Gilberto, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist, pioneer of bossa nova music style (b. 1931)
• 2020 – Charlie Daniels, American singer-songwriter, fiddle-player and guitarist (b. 1936)
• 2020 – Ennio Morricone, Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpet player (b. 1928)

Holidays and observances on July 6

• The first day of San Fermín, which lasts until July 14. (Pamplona)
• Christian feast day:
  • Maria Goretti
  • Romulus of Fiesole
  • July 6 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Constitution Day (Cayman Islands)
• Day of the Capital (Kazakhstan)
• Independence Day (Comoros), celebrates the independence of the Comoros from France in 1975.
• Independence Day (Malawi), celebrates the independence of Malawi from United Kingdom in 1964.
• International Kissing Day (informally observed)
• Jan Hus Day (Czech Republic)
• Kupala Night (Poland, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine)
• National Fried Chicken Day (United States)
• Statehood Day (Lithuania)
• Teachers’ Day (Peru)