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1469

August 1 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 30 BC – Octavian (later known as Augustus) enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Republic.
  • AD 69 – Batavian rebellion: The Batavians in Germania Inferior (Netherlands) revolt under the leadership of Gaius Julius Civilis.
  • 527 – Justinian I becomes the sole ruler of the Byzantine Empire.
  • 607 – Ono no Imoko is dispatched as envoy to the Sui court in China (Traditional Japanese date: July 3, 607).
  • 902 – Taormina, the last Byzantine stronghold in Sicily, is captured by the Aghlabids army, concluding the Muslim conquest of Sicily.
  • 1203 – Isaac II Angelos, restored Eastern Roman Emperor, declares his son Alexios IV Angelos co-emperor after pressure from the forces of the Fourth Crusade.
  • 1291 – The Old Swiss Confederacy is formed with the signature of the Federal Charter.
  • 1469 – Louis XI of France founds the chivalric order called the Order of Saint Michael in Amboise.
  • 1498 – Christopher Columbus becomes the first European to visit what is now Venezuela.
  • 1571 – The Ottoman conquest of Cyprus is concluded, by the surrender of Famagusta.
  • 1620 – Speedwell leaves Delfshaven to bring pilgrims to America by way of England.
  • 1664 – Ottoman forces are defeated in the battle of Saint Gotthard by an Austrian army led by Raimondo Montecuccoli, resulting in the Peace of Vasvár.
  • 1714 – George, Elector of Hanover, becomes King George I of Great Britain, marking the beginning of the Georgian era of British history.
  • 1759 – Seven Years’ War: The Battle of Minden, an allied Anglo-German army victory over the French. In Britain this was one of a number of events that constituted the Annus Mirabilis of 1759 and is celebrated as Minden Day by certain British Army regiments.
  • 1774 – British scientist Joseph Priestley discovers oxygen gas, corroborating the prior discovery of this element by German-Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele.
  • 1798 – French Revolutionary Wars: Battle of the Nile (Battle of Aboukir Bay): Battle begins when a British fleet engages the French Revolutionary Navy fleet in an unusual night action.
  • 1800 – The Acts of Union 1800 are passed which merge the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
  • 1801 – First Barbary War: The American schooner USS Enterprise captures the Tripolitan polacca Tripoli in a single-ship action off the coast of modern-day Libya.
  • 1834 – Slavery is abolished in the British Empire as the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 comes into force, although it remains legal in the possessions of the East India Company until the passage of the Indian Slavery Act, 1843.
  • 1842 – The Lombard Street riot erupts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
  • 1849 – Joven Daniel wrecks at the coast of Araucanía, Chile, leading to allegations that local Mapuche tribes murdered survivors and kidnapped Elisa Bravo.
  • 1855 – The first ascent of Monte Rosa, the second highest summit in the Alps.
  • 1876 – Colorado is admitted as the 38th U.S. state.
  • 1893 – Henry Perky patents shredded wheat.
  • 1894 – The First Sino-Japanese War erupts between Japan and China over Korea.
  • 1907 – The start of the first Scout camp on Brownsea Island, the origin of the worldwide Scouting movement.
  • 1911 – Harriet Quimby takes her pilot’s test and becomes the first U.S. woman to earn an Aero Club of America aviator’s certificate.
  • 1914 – The German Empire declares war on the Russian Empire at the opening of World War I. The Swiss Army mobilizes because of World War I.
  • 1927 – The Nanchang Uprising marks the first significant battle in the Chinese Civil War between the Kuomintang and Chinese Communist Party. This day is commemorated as the anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army.
  • 1933 – Anti-Fascist activists Bruno Tesch, Walter Möller, Karl Wolff, and August Lütgens are executed by the Nazi regime in Altona.
  • 1936 – The Olympics opened in Berlin with a ceremony presided over by Adolf Hitler.
  • 1937 – Josip Broz Tito reads the resolution “Manifesto of constitutional congress of KPH” to the constitutive congress of KPH (Croatian Communist Party) in woods near Samobor.
  • 1943 – World War II: Operation Tidal Wave also known as “Black Sunday”, was a failed American attempt to destroy Romanian oil fields.
  • 1944 – World War II: The Warsaw Uprising against the Nazi German occupation breaks out in Warsaw, Poland.
  • 1946 – Leaders of the Russian Liberation Army, a force of Russian prisoners of war that collaborated with Nazi Germany, are executed in Moscow, Soviet Union for treason.
  • 1950 – Guam is organized as a United States commonwealth as President Harry S. Truman signs the Guam Organic Act.
  • 1957 – The United States and Canada form the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
  • 1960 – Dahomey (later renamed Benin) declares independence from France.
  • 1960 – Islamabad is declared the federal capital of the Government of Pakistan.
  • 1961 – U.S. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara orders the creation of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), the nation’s first centralized military espionage organization.
  • 1964 – The former Belgian Congo is renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
  • 1965 – Frank Herbert’s novel, Dune was published for the first time. It was named as the world’s best-selling science fiction novel in 2003.
  • 1966 – Charles Whitman kills 16 people at the University of Texas at Austin before being killed by the police.
  • 1966 – Purges of intellectuals and imperialists becomes official China policy at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution.
  • 1968 – The coronation is held of Hassanal Bolkiah, the 29th Sultan of Brunei.
  • 1971 – The Concert for Bangladesh, organized by former Beatle George Harrison, is held at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
  • 1974 – Cyprus dispute: The United Nations Security Council authorizes the UNFICYP to create the “Green Line”, dividing Cyprus into two zones.
  • 1980 – Vigdís Finnbogadóttir is elected President of Iceland and becomes the world’s first democratically elected female head of state.
  • 1980 – A train crash kills 18 people in County Cork, Ireland.
  • 1981 – MTV begins broadcasting in the United States and airs its first video, “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles.
  • 1984 – Commercial peat-cutters discover the preserved bog body of a man, called Lindow Man, at Lindow Moss, Cheshire, England.
  • 1988 – A British soldier was killed in the Inglis Barracks bombing in London, England.
  • 1993 – The Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993 comes to a peak.
  • 1998 – The establishment of Muslim Medics, one of the largest student-led societies in Imperial College London that provides both academic and wellbeing support to medical students of all backgrounds.
  • 2004 – A supermarket fire kills 396 people and injures 500 others in Asunción, Paraguay.
  • 2007 – The I-35W Mississippi River bridge spanning the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota, collapses during the evening rush hour, killing 13 people and injuring 145.
  • 2008 – The Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Railway begins operation as the fastest commuter rail system in the world.
  • 2008 – Eleven mountaineers from international expeditions died on K2, the second-highest mountain on Earth in the worst single accident in the history of K2 mountaineering.
  • 2017 – A suicide attack on a mosque in Herat, Afghanistan kills 20 people.

Births on August 1

  • 10 BC – Claudius, Roman emperor (d. 54)
  • 126 – Pertinax, Roman emperor (d. 193)
  • 845 – Sugawara no Michizane, Japanese scholar and politician (d. 903)
  • 992 – Hyeonjong, Korean king (d. 1031)
  • 1068 – Taizu, Chinese emperor (d. 1123)
  • 1313 – Kōgon, Japanese emperor (d. 1364)
  • 1377 – Go-Komatsu, Japanese emperor (d. 1433)
  • 1385 – John FitzAlan, 13th Earl of Arundel (d. 1421)
  • 1410 – Jan IV, count of Nassau-Dillenburg (d. 1475)
  • 1492 – Wolfgang, German prince (d. 1566)
  • 1520 – Sigismund II, Polish king (d. 1572)
  • 1545 – Andrew Melville, Scottish theologian and scholar (d. 1622)
  • 1555 – Edward Kelley, English spirit medium (d. 1597)
  • 1579 – Luis Vélez de Guevara, Spanish author and playwright (d. 1644)
  • 1626 – Sabbatai Zevi, Montenegrin rabbi and theorist (d. 1676)
  • 1630 – Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford of Chudleigh, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (d. 1673)
  • 1659 – Sebastiano Ricci, Italian painter (d. 1734)
  • 1713 – Charles I, German duke and prince (d. 1780)
  • 1714 – Richard Wilson, Welsh painter and academic (d. 1782)
  • 1738 – Jacques François Dugommier, French general (d. 1794)
  • 1744 – Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, French soldier, biologist, and academic (d. 1829)
  • 1770 – William Clark, American soldier, explorer, and politician, 4th Governor of Missouri Territory (d. 1838)
  • 1778 – Mary Jefferson Eppes, daughter of Thomas Jefferson who died in childbirth (d. 1804)
  • 1779 – Francis Scott Key, American lawyer, author, and poet (d. 1843)
  • 1779 – Lorenz Oken, German-Swiss botanist, biologist, and ornithologist (d. 1851)
  • 1809 – William B. Travis, American colonel and lawyer (d. 1836)
  • 1815 – Richard Henry Dana, Jr., American lawyer and politician (d. 1882)
  • 1818 – Maria Mitchell, American astronomer and academic (d. 1889)
  • 1819 – Herman Melville, American novelist, short story writer, and poet (d. 1891)
  • 1831 – Antonio Cotogni, Italian opera singer and educator (d. 1918)
  • 1843 – Robert Todd Lincoln, American lawyer and politician, 35th United States Secretary of War (d. 1926)
  • 1856 – George Coulthard, Australian footballer and cricketer (d. 1883)
  • 1858 – Gaston Doumergue, French lawyer and politician, 13th President of France (d. 1937)
  • 1858 – Hans Rott, Austrian organist and composer (d. 1884)
  • 1860 – Bazil Assan, Romanian engineer and explorer (d. 1918)
  • 1861 – Sammy Jones, Australian cricketer (d. 1951)
  • 1865 – Isobel Lilian Gloag, English painter (d. 1917)
  • 1871 – John Lester, American cricketer and soccer player (d. 1969)
  • 1877 – George Hackenschmidt, Estonian-English wrestler and strongman (d. 1968)
  • 1878 – Konstantinos Logothetopoulos, Greek physician and politician, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1961)
  • 1881 – Otto Toeplitz, German mathematician and academic (d. 1940)
  • 1885 – George de Hevesy, Hungarian-German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1966)
  • 1889 – Walter Gerlach, German physicist and academic (d. 1979)
  • 1891 – Karl Kobelt, Swiss lawyer and politician, 52nd President of the Swiss Confederation (d. 1968)
  • 1893 – Alexander of Greece (d. 1920)
  • 1894 – Ottavio Bottecchia, Italian cyclist (d. 1927)
  • 1898 – Morris Stoloff, American composer and musical director (d. 1980)
  • 1899 – Raymond Mays, English race car driver and businessman (d. 1980)
  • 1900 – Otto Nothling, Australian cricketer and rugby player (d. 1965)
  • 1901 – Francisco Guilledo, Filipino boxer (d. 1925)
  • 1903 – Paul Horgan, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1995)
  • 1905 – Helen Sawyer Hogg, American-Canadian astronomer and academic (d. 1993)
  • 1907 – Eric Shipton, Sri Lankan-English mountaineer and explorer (d. 1977)
  • 1910 – James Henry Govier, English painter and illustrator (d. 1974)
  • 1910 – Walter Scharf, American pianist and composer (d. 2003)
  • 1910 – Gerda Taro, German war photographer (d. 1937)
  • 1911 – Jackie Ormes, American journalist and cartoonist (d. 1985)
  • 1912 – David Brand, Australian politician, 19th Premier of Western Australia (d. 1979)
  • 1912 – Gego, German-Venezuelan sculptor and academic (d. 1994)
  • 1912 – Henry Jones, American actor (d. 1999)
  • 1914 – Jack Delano, American photographer and composer (d. 1997)
  • 1914 – Alan Moore, Australian painter and educator (d. 2015)
  • 1914 – J. Lee Thompson, English-Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2002)
  • 1916 – Fiorenzo Angelini, Italian cardinal (d. 2014)
  • 1916 – Anne Hébert, Canadian author and poet (d. 2000)
  • 1918 – T. J. Jemison, American minister and activist (d. 2013)
  • 1919 – Stanley Middleton, English author (d. 2009)
  • 1920 – Raul Renter, Estonian economist and chess player (d. 1992)
  • 1921 – Jack Kramer, American tennis player, sailor, and sportscaster (d. 2009)
  • 1921 – Pat McDonald, Australian actress (d. 1990)
  • 1922 – Arthur Hill, Canadian-American actor (d. 2006)
  • 1923 – Val Bettin, American actor
  • 1924 – Abdullah of Saudi Arabia (d. 2015)
  • 1924 – Frank Havens, American canoeist (d. 2018)
  • 1924 – Marcia Mae Jones, American actress and singer (d. 2007)
  • 1924 – Frank Worrell, Barbadian cricketer (d. 1967)
  • 1925 – Ernst Jandl, Austrian poet and author (d. 2000)
  • 1926 – George Hauptfuhrer, American basketball player and lawyer (d. 2013)
  • 1926 – Hannah Hauxwell, English TV personality (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – María Teresa López Boegeholz, Chilean oceanographer (d. 2006)
  • 1927 – Anthony G. Bosco, American bishop (d. 2013)
  • 1928 – Jack Shea, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1929 – Hafizullah Amin, Afghan educator and politician, Afghan Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1979)
  • 1929 – Ann Calvello, American roller derby racer (d. 2006)
  • 1929 – Leila Abashidze, Georgian actress (d. 2018)
  • 1930 – Lionel Bart, English composer (d. 1999)
  • 1930 – Pierre Bourdieu, French sociologist, anthropologist, and philosopher (d. 2002)
  • 1930 – Julie Bovasso, American actress and writer (d. 1991)
  • 1930 – Lawrence Eagleburger, American lieutenant and politician, 62nd United States Secretary of State (d. 2011)
  • 1930 – Károly Grósz, Hungarian politician, 51st Prime Minister of Hungary (d. 1996)
  • 1930 – Geoffrey Holder, Trinidadian-American actor, singer, dancer, and choreographer (d. 2014)
  • 1931 – Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1931 – Trevor Goddard, South African cricketer (d. 2016)
  • 1932 – Meir Kahane, American-Israeli rabbi and activist, founded the Jewish Defense League (d. 1990)
  • 1932 – Meena Kumari, Indian actress (d. 1972)
  • 1933 – Dom DeLuise, American actor, singer, director, and producer (d. 2009)
  • 1933 – Masaichi Kaneda, Japanese baseball player and manager (d. 2019)
  • 1933 – Teri Shields, American actress, producer, and agent (d. 2012)
  • 1933 – Dušan Třeštík, Czech historian and author (d. 2007)
  • 1934 – John Beck, New Zealand cricketer (d. 2000)
  • 1934 – Derek Birdsall, English graphic designer
  • 1935 – Geoff Pullar, English cricketer (d. 2014)
  • 1936 – W. D. Hamilton, Egyptian born British biologist, psychologist, and academic (d. 2000)
  • 1936 – Yves Saint Laurent, Algerian-French fashion designer, co-founded Yves Saint Laurent (d. 2008)
  • 1936 – Laurie Taylor, English sociologist, radio host, and academic
  • 1937 – Al D’Amato, American lawyer and politician
  • 1939 – Bob Frankford, English-Canadian physician and politician (d. 2015)
  • 1939 – Terry Kiser, American actor
  • 1939 – Stephen Sykes, English bishop and theologian (d. 2014)
  • 1939 – Robert James Waller, American author and photographer (d. 2017)
  • 1940 – Mervyn Kitchen, English cricketer and umpire
  • 1940 – Henry Silverman, American businessman, founded Cendant
  • 1940 – Mahmoud Dowlatabadi, Iranian writer and actor
  • 1941 – Ron Brown, American captain and politician, 30th United States Secretary of Commerce (d. 1996)
  • 1941 – Étienne Roda-Gil, French songwriter and screenwriter (d. 2004)
  • 1942 – Jerry Garcia, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1995)
  • 1942 – Giancarlo Giannini, Italian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1944 – Dmitry Nikolayevich Filippov, Russian banker and politician (d. 1998)
  • 1945 – Douglas Osheroff, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1946 – Boz Burrell, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and guitarist (d. 2006)
  • 1946 – Rick Coonce, American drummer (d. 2011)
  • 1946 – Richard O. Covey, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut
  • 1946 – Fiona Stanley, Australian epidemiologist and academic
  • 1947 – Lorna Goodison, Jamaican poet and author
  • 1947 – Chantal Montellier, French comics creator and artist
  • 1948 – Avi Arad, Israeli-American screenwriter and producer, founded Marvel Studios
  • 1948 – Cliff Branch, American football player
  • 1948 – David Gemmell, English journalist and author (d. 2006)
  • 1949 – Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Kyrgyzstani politician, 2nd President of Kyrgyzstan
  • 1949 – Jim Carroll, American poet, author, and musician (d. 2009)
  • 1949 – Ray Nettles, American football player (d. 2009)
  • 1950 – Roy Williams, American basketball player and coach
  • 1951 – Tim Bachman, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1951 – Tommy Bolin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1976)
  • 1951 – Pete Mackanin, American baseball player, coach, and manager
  • 1952 – Zoran Đinđić, Serbian philosopher and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Serbia (d. 2003)
  • 1953 – Robert Cray, American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1953 – Howard Kurtz, American journalist and author
  • 1954 – Trevor Berbick, Jamaican-Canadian boxer (d. 2006)
  • 1954 – James Gleick, American journalist and author
  • 1954 – Benno Möhlmann, German footballer and manager
  • 1957 – Taylor Negron, American actor and screenwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1958 – Rob Buck, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 2000)
  • 1958 – Michael Penn, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1958 – Kiki Vandeweghe, American basketball player and coach
  • 1959 – Joe Elliott, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1960 – Chuck D, American rapper and songwriter
  • 1960 – Suzi Gardner, American rock singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1962 – Jacob Matlala, South African boxer (d. 2013)
  • 1963 – Demián Bichir, Mexican-American actor and producer
  • 1963 – Coolio, American rapper, producer, and actor
  • 1963 – John Carroll Lynch, American actor
  • 1963 – Koichi Wakata, Japanese astronaut and engineer
  • 1963 – Dean Wareham, New Zealand singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1964 – Adam Duritz, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1964 – Fiona Hyslop, Scottish businesswoman and politician
  • 1964 – Augusta Read Thomas, American composer, conductor and educator
  • 1965 – Brandt Jobe, American golfer
  • 1965 – Sam Mendes, English director and producer
  • 1966 – James St. James, American club promoter and author
  • 1967 – Gregg Jefferies, American baseball player and coach
  • 1967 – José Padilha, Brazilian director, producer and screenwriter
  • 1968 – Stacey Augmon, American basketball player and coach
  • 1968 – Dan Donegan, American heavy metal guitarist and songwriter
  • 1968 – Shigetoshi Hasegawa, Japanese baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1969 – Andrei Borissov, Estonian footballer and manager
  • 1969 – Kevin Jarvis, American baseball player and scout
  • 1969 – Graham Thorpe, English cricketer and journalist
  • 1970 – Quentin Coryatt, American football player
  • 1970 – David James, English footballer and manager
  • 1970 – Eugenie van Leeuwen, Dutch cricketer
  • 1972 – Nicke Andersson, Swedish singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1972 – Christer Basma, Norwegian footballer and coach
  • 1972 – Todd Bouman, American football player and coach
  • 1972 – Thomas Woods, American historian, economist, and academic
  • 1973 – Gregg Berhalter, American soccer player and coach
  • 1973 – Veerle Dejaeghere, Belgian runner
  • 1973 – Edurne Pasaban, Spanish mountaineer
  • 1974 – Cher Calvin, American journalist
  • 1974 – Marek Galiński, Polish cyclist (d. 2014)
  • 1974 – Tyron Henderson, South African cricketer
  • 1974 – Dennis Lawrence, Trinidadian footballer and coach
  • 1974 – Beckie Scott, Canadian skier
  • 1975 – Vhrsti, Czech author and illustrator
  • 1976 – Don Hertzfeldt, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and voice actor
  • 1976 – Søren Jochumsen, Danish footballer
  • 1976 – Nwankwo Kanu, Nigerian footballer
  • 1976 – David Nemirovsky, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1976 – Hasan Şaş, Turkish footballer and manager
  • 1976 – Cristian Stoica, Romanian-Italian rugby player
  • 1977 – Marc Denis, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
  • 1977 – Haspop, French-Moroccan dancer, choreographer, and actor
  • 1977 – Darnerien McCants, American-Canadian football player
  • 1977 – Damien Saez, French singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1977 – Yoshi Tatsu, Japanese wrestler and boxer
  • 1978 – Andy Blignaut, Zimbabwean cricketer
  • 1978 – Björn Ferry, Swedish biathlete
  • 1978 – Dhani Harrison, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1978 – Chris Iwelumo, Scottish footballer
  • 1978 – Edgerrin James, American football player
  • 1979 – Junior Agogo, Ghanaian footballer
  • 1979 – Nathan Fien, Australian-New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1979 – Jason Momoa, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1980 – Mancini, Brazilian footballer
  • 1980 – Romain Barras, French decathlete
  • 1980 – Esteban Paredes, Chilean footballer
  • 1981 – Dean Cox, Australian footballer
  • 1981 – Pia Haraldsen, Norwegian journalist and author
  • 1981 – Christofer Heimeroth, German footballer
  • 1981 – Stephen Hunt, Irish footballer
  • 1981 – Jamie Jones-Buchanan, English rugby player
  • 1982 – Basem Fathi, Jordanian footballer
  • 1982 – Montserrat Lombard, English actress, director, and screenwriter
  • 1983 – Bobby Carpenter, American football player
  • 1983 – Craig Clarke, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1983 – Julien Faubert, French footballer
  • 1983 – David Gervasi, Swiss decathlete
  • 1984 – Steve Feak, American game designer
  • 1984 – Francesco Gavazzi, Italian cyclist
  • 1984 – Brandon Kintzler, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Bastian Schweinsteiger, German footballer
  • 1985 – Stuart Holden, Scottish-American soccer player
  • 1985 – Adam Jones, American baseball player
  • 1985 – Cole Kimball, American baseball player
  • 1985 – Tendai Mtawarira, South African rugby player
  • 1985 – Kris Stadsgaard, Danish footballer
  • 1985 – Dušan Švento, Slovak footballer
  • 1986 – Damien Allen, English footballer
  • 1986 – Anton Strålman, Swedish ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Andrew Taylor, English footballer
  • 1986 – Elena Vesnina, Russian tennis player
  • 1986 – Mike Wallace, American football player
  • 1987 – Iago Aspas, Spanish footballer
  • 1987 – Karen Carney, English women’s football winger
  • 1987 – Sébastien Pocognoli, Belgian footballer
  • 1987 – Lee Wallace, Scottish footballer
  • 1988 – Mustafa Abdellaoue, Norwegian footballer
  • 1988 – Patryk Małecki, Polish footballer
  • 1988 – Bodene Thompson, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1989 – Madison Bumgarner, American baseball player
  • 1989 – Tiffany Hwang, Korean American singer, songwriter, and actress
  • 1990 – Aledmys Díaz, Cuban baseball player
  • 1990 – Jean Hugues Gregoire, Mauritian swimmer
  • 1990 – Elton Jantjies, South African rugby player
  • 1991 – Piotr Malarczyk, Polish footballer
  • 1991 – Marco Puntoriere, Italian footballer
  • 1992 – Austin Rivers, American basketball player
  • 1992 – Mrunal Thakur, Indian actress
  • 1993 – Álex Abrines, Spanish basketball player
  • 1993 – Leon Thomas III, American actor and singer
  • 1994 – Sergeal Petersen, South African rugby player
  • 1994 – Ayaka Wada, Japanese singer
  • 1996 – Katie Boulter, English tennis player
  • 2001 – Park Si-eun, South Korean actress

Deaths on August 1

  • 30 BC – Mark Antony, Roman general and politician (b. 83 BC)
  • 371 – Eusebius of Vercelli, Italian bishop and saint (b. 283)
  • 527 – Justin I, Byzantine emperor (b. 450)
  • 873 – Thachulf, duke of Thuringia
  • 946 – Ali ibn Isa al-Jarrah, Abbasid vizier (b. 859)
  • 946 – Lady Xu Xinyue, Chinese queen (b. 902)
  • 953 – Yingtian, Chinese Khitan empress (b. 879)
  • 984 – Æthelwold, bishop of Winchester
  • 1098 – Adhemar of Le Puy, French papal legate
  • 1137 – Louis VI, king of France (b. 1081)
  • 1146 – Vsevolod II of Kiev, Russian prince
  • 1227 – Shimazu Tadahisa, Japanese warlord (b. 1179)
  • 1252 – Giovanni da Pian del Carpine, Italian archbishop and explorer (b. 1180)
  • 1299 – Conrad de Lichtenberg, Bishop of Strasbourg (b. 1240)
  • 1402 – Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, English politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. 1341)
  • 1457 – Lorenzo Valla, Italian author and educator (b. 1406)
  • 1464 – Cosimo de’ Medici, Italian ruler (b. 1386)
  • 1494 – Giovanni Santi, artist and father of Raphael (b. c. 1435)
  • 1541 – Simon Grynaeus, German theologian and scholar (b. 1493)
  • 1543 – Magnus I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg (b. 1488)
  • 1546 – Peter Faber, French Jesuit theologian (b. 1506)
  • 1557 – Olaus Magnus, Swedish archbishop, historian, and cartographer (b. 1490)
  • 1580 – Albrecht Giese, Polish-German politician and diplomat (b. 1524)
  • 1589 – Jacques Clément, French assassin of Henry III of France (b. 1567)
  • 1603 – Matthew Browne, English politician (b. 1563)
  • 1714 – Anne, Queen of Great Britain (b. 1665)
  • 1787 – Alphonsus Maria de’ Liguori, Italian bishop and saint (b. 1696)
  • 1795 – Clas Bjerkander, Swedish meteorologist, botanist, and entomologist (b. 1735)
  • 1796 – Sir Robert Pigot, 2nd Baronet, English colonel and politician (b. 1720)
  • 1798 – François-Paul Brueys d’Aigalliers, French admiral (b. 1753)
  • 1807 – John Boorman, English cricketer (b. c. 1754)
  • 1807 – John Walker, English actor, philologist, and lexicographer (b. 1732)
  • 1808 – Lady Diana Beauclerk, English painter and illustrator (b. 1734)
  • 1812 – Yakov Kulnev, Russian general (b. 1763)
  • 1851 – William Joseph Behr, German publicist and academic (b. 1775)
  • 1863 – Jind Kaur Majarani (Regent) of the Sikh Empire (b. 1817)
  • 1866 – John Ross, American tribal chief (b. 1790)
  • 1869 – Peter Julian Eymard, French Priest and Founder Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament (b. 1811)
  • 1869 – Richard Dry, Australian politician, 7th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1815)
  • 1903 – Calamity Jane, American frontierswoman and scout (b. 1853)
  • 1911 – Edwin Austin Abbey, American painter and illustrator (b. 1852)
  • 1911 – Samuel Arza Davenport, American lawyer and politician (b. 1843)
  • 1918 – John Riley Banister, American cowboy and police officer (b. 1854)
  • 1920 – Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Indian lawyer and journalist (b. 1856)
  • 1921 – T.J. Ryan, Australian politician, 19th Premier of Queensland (b. 1876)
  • 1922 – Donát Bánki, Hungarian engineer (b. 1856)
  • 1929 – Syd Gregory, Australian cricketer (b. 1870)
  • 1938 – Edmund C. Tarbell, American painter and academic (b. 1862)
  • 1943 – Lydia Litvyak, Russian lieutenant and pilot (b. 1921)
  • 1944 – Manuel L. Quezon, Filipino soldier, lawyer, and politician, 2nd President of the Philippines (b. 1878)
  • 1959 – Jean Behra, French race car driver (b. 1921)
  • 1963 – Theodore Roethke, American poet (b. 1908)
  • 1966 – Charles Whitman, American murderer (b. 1941)
  • 1967 – Richard Kuhn, Austrian-German biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1900)
  • 1970 – Frances Farmer, American actress (b. 1913)
  • 1970 – Doris Fleeson, American journalist (b. 1901)
  • 1970 – Otto Heinrich Warburg, German physician and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1883)
  • 1973 – Gian Francesco Malipiero, Italian composer and educator (b. 1882)
  • 1973 – Walter Ulbricht, German soldier and politician (b. 1893)
  • 1974 – Ildebrando Antoniutti, Italian cardinal (b. 1898)
  • 1977 – Francis Gary Powers, American captain and pilot (b. 1929)
  • 1980 – Patrick Depailler, French race car driver (b. 1944)
  • 1980 – Strother Martin, American actor (b. 1919)
  • 1981 – Paddy Chayefsky, American author, playwright, and screenwriter (b. 1923)
  • 1982 – T. Thirunavukarasu, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (b. 1933)
  • 1989 – John Ogdon, English pianist and composer (b. 1937)
  • 1990 – Norbert Elias, German-Dutch sociologist, author, and academic (b. 1897)
  • 1996 – Tadeusz Reichstein, Polish-Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
  • 1996 – Lucille Teasdale-Corti, Canadian physician and surgeon (b. 1929)
  • 1998 – Eva Bartok, Hungarian-British actress (b. 1927)
  • 2001 – Korey Stringer, American football player (b. 1974)
  • 2003 – Guy Thys, Belgian footballer, coach, and manager (b. 1922)
  • 2003 – Marie Trintignant, French actress and screenwriter (b. 1962)
  • 2004 – Philip Abelson, American physicist and author (b. 1913)
  • 2005 – Al Aronowitz, American journalist (b. 1928)
  • 2005 – Wim Boost, Dutch cartoonist and educator (b. 1918)
  • 2005 – Constant Nieuwenhuys, Dutch painter and sculptor (b. 1920)
  • 2005 – Fahd of Saudi Arabia (b. 1923)
  • 2006 – Bob Thaves, American illustrator (b. 1924)
  • 2006 – Iris Marion Young, American political scientist and activist (b. 1949)
  • 2007 – Tommy Makem, Irish singer-songwriter and banjo player (b. 1932)
  • 2008 – Gertan Klauber, Czech-English actor (b. 1932)
  • 2008 – Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Indian lawyer and politician (b. 1916)
  • 2009 – Corazon Aquino, Filipino politician, 11th President of the Philippines (b. 1933)
  • 2010 – Lolita Lebrón, Puerto Rican-American activist (b. 1919)
  • 2010 – Eric Tindill, New Zealand rugby player and cricketer (b. 1910)
  • 2012 – Aldo Maldera, Italian footballer and agent (b. 1953)
  • 2012 – Douglas Townsend, American composer and musicologist (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Barry Trapnell, English cricketer and academic (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – John Amis, English journalist and critic (b. 1922)
  • 2013 – Gail Kobe, American actress and producer (b. 1932)
  • 2013 – Babe Martin, American baseball player (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – Toby Saks, American cellist and educator (b. 1942)
  • 2013 – Wilford White, American football player (b. 1928)
  • 2014 – Valyantsin Byalkevich, Belarusian footballer and manager (b. 1973)
  • 2014 – Jan Roar Leikvoll, Norwegian author (b. 1974)
  • 2014 – Charles T. Payne, American soldier (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Mike Smith, English radio and television host (b. 1955)
  • 2015 – Stephan Beckenbauer, German footballer and manager (b. 1968)
  • 2015 – Cilla Black, English singer and actress (b. 1943)
  • 2015 – Bernard d’Espagnat, French physicist, philosopher, and author (b. 1921)
  • 2015 – Bob Frankford, English-Canadian physician and politician (b. 1939)
  • 2015 – Hong Yuanshuo, Chinese footballer and manager (b. 1948)
  • 2016 – Queen Anne of Romania (b. 1923)

Holidays and observances on August 1

  • Armed Forces Day (Lebanon)
  • Armed Forces Day (China) or Anniversary of the Founding of the People’s Liberation Army (People’s Republic of China)
  • Azerbaijani Language and Alphabet Day (Azerbaijan)
  • Celebration of the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 which ended the slavery in the British Empire, generally celebrated as a part of Carnival, as the Caribbean Carnival takes place at this time (British West Indies):
    • Earliest day on which Caribana celebration can fall, celebrated on the first Weekend of August. (Toronto)
    • Earliest day on which Emancipation Day can fall, celebrated on the first Monday of August. (Anguilla, the Bahamas, British Virgin Islands)
    • Emancipation Day (Barbados, Bermuda, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Abgar V of Edessa (Syrian Church)
    • Alphonsus Maria de’ Liguori
    • Æthelwold of Winchester
    • Bernard Võ Văn Duệ (one of Vietnamese Martyrs)
    • Blessed Gerhard Hirschfelder
    • Eusebius of Vercelli
    • Exuperius of Bayeux
    • Felix of Girona
    • Peter Apostle in Chains
    • Procession of the Cross and the beginning of Dormition Fast (Eastern Orthodoxy)
    • The Holy Maccabees
    • August 1 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which August Bank Holiday (Ireland) can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August.
  • Earliest day on which Civic Holiday can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August. (Canada)
  • Earliest day on which Commerce Day, or Frídagur verslunarmanna, can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August. (Iceland)
  • Earliest day on which Constitution Day (Cook Islands) can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August.
  • Earliest day on which Farmers’ Day can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August. (Zambia)
  • Earliest day on which International Beer Day can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Friday of August.
  • Earliest day on which Friendship Day can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Sunday of August. (United States)
  • Earliest day on which Kadooment Day can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August (Barbados)
  • Earliest day on which Labor Day (Samoa) can fall, while August 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday of August (Samoa)
  • Minden Day (United Kingdom)
  • National Day, celebrates the independence of Benin from France in 1960.
  • National Day, commemorates Switzerland becoming a single unit in 1291.
  • Official Birthday and Coronation Day of the King of Tonga (Tonga)
  • Parents’ Day (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
  • Statehood Day (Colorado)
  • Swiss National Day (Switzerland)
  • The beginning of autumn observances in the Northern hemisphere and spring observances in the Southern hemisphere (Neopagan Wheel of the Year):
    • Lughnasadh in the Northern hemisphere, Imbolc in the Southern hemisphere; traditionally begins on the eve of August 1. (Gaels, Ireland, Scotland, Neopagans)
    • Lammas (England, Scotland, Neopagans)
    • Pachamama Raymi (Quechuan in Ecuador and Peru)
  • The first day of Carnaval del Pueblo (Burgess Park, London, England)
  • Victory Day (Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam)
  • World Scout Scarf Day
  • Yorkshire Day (Yorkshire, England)

August 1 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 27 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 1054 – Siward, Earl of Northumbria, invades Scotland and defeats Macbeth, King of Scotland somewhere north of the Firth of Forth.
  • 1189 – Friedrich Barbarossa arrives at Niš, the capital of Serbian King Stefan Nemanja, during the Third Crusade.
  • 1202 – Georgian–Seljuk wars: At the Battle of Basian the Kingdom of Georgia defeats the Sultanate of Rum.
  • 1214 – Battle of Bouvines: Philip II of France decisively defeats Imperial, English and Flemish armies, effectively ending John of England’s Angevin Empire.
  • 1299 – According to Edward Gibbon, Osman I invades the territory of Nicomedia for the first time, usually considered to be the founding day of the Ottoman state.
  • 1302 – Battle of Bapheus: Decisive Ottoman victory over the Byzantines opening up Bithynia for Turkish conquest.
  • 1549 – The Jesuit priest Francis Xavier’s ship reaches Japan.
  • 1663 – The English Parliament passes the second Navigation Act requiring that all goods bound for the American colonies have to be sent in English ships from English ports. After the Acts of Union 1707, Scotland would be included in the Act.
  • 1689 – Glorious Revolution: The Battle of Killiecrankie is a victory for the Jacobites.
  • 1694 – A Royal charter is granted to the Bank of England.
  • 1775 – Founding of the U.S. Army Medical Department: The Second Continental Congress passes legislation establishing “an hospital for an army consisting of 20,000 men.”
  • 1778 – American Revolution: First Battle of Ushant: British and French fleets fight to a standoff.
  • 1789 – The first U.S. federal government agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, is established (it will be later renamed Department of State).
  • 1794 – French Revolution: Maximilien Robespierre is arrested after encouraging the execution of more than 17,000 “enemies of the Revolution”.
  • 1816 – Battle of Negro Fort: The battle ends when a hot shot cannonball fired by US Navy Gunboat No. 154 explodes the Fort’s Powder Magazine, killing approximately 275. It is considered the deadliest single cannon shot in US history.
  • 1857 – Siege of Arrah begins: Sixty-eight men hold out for eight days against a force of 2,500 to 3,000 mutinying sepoys and 8,000 irregular forces.
  • 1865 – Welsh settlers arrive at Chubut in Argentina.
  • 1866 – The first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable is successfully completed, stretching from Valentia Island, Ireland, to Heart’s Content, Newfoundland.
  • 1880 – Second Anglo-Afghan War: Battle of Maiwand: Afghan forces led by Mohammad Ayub Khan defeat the British Army in battle near Maiwand, Afghanistan.
  • 1890 – Vincent van Gogh shoots himself and dies two days later.
  • 1900 – Kaiser Wilhelm II makes a speech comparing Germans to Huns; for years afterwards, “Hun” would be a disparaging name for Germans.
  • 1917 – World War I: The Allies reach the Yser Canal at the Battle of Passchendaele.
  • 1919 – The Chicago Race Riot erupts after a racial incident occurred on a South Side beach, leading to 38 fatalities and 537 injuries over a five-day period.
  • 1921 – Researchers at the University of Toronto, led by biochemist Frederick Banting, prove that the hormone insulin regulates blood sugar.
  • 1929 – The Geneva Convention of 1929, dealing with treatment of prisoners-of-war, is signed by 53 nations.
  • 1940 – The animated short A Wild Hare is released, introducing the character of Bugs Bunny.
  • 1942 – World War II: Allied forces successfully halt the final Axis advance into Egypt.
  • 1949 – Initial flight of the de Havilland Comet, the first jet-powered airliner.
  • 1953 – Cessation of hostilities is achieved in the Korean War when the United States, China, and North Korea sign an armistice agreement. Syngman Rhee, President of South Korea, refuses to sign but pledges to observe the armistice.
  • 1955 – The Austrian State Treaty restores Austrian sovereignty.
  • 1955 – El Al Flight 402 is shot down by two fighter jets after straying into Bulgarian air space. All 58 people onboard are killed.
  • 1959 – The Continental League is announced as baseball’s “3rd major league” in the United States.
  • 1964 – Vietnam War: Five thousand more American military advisers are sent to South Vietnam bringing the total number of United States forces in Vietnam to 21,000.
  • 1974 – Watergate scandal: The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee votes 27 to 11 to recommend the first article of impeachment (for obstruction of justice) against President Richard Nixon.
  • 1975 – Mayor of Jaffna and former MP Alfred Duraiappah is shot dead.
  • 1976 – Former Japanese prime minister Kakuei Tanaka is arrested on suspicion of violating foreign exchange and foreign trade laws in connection with the Lockheed bribery scandals.
  • 1981 – While landing at Chihuahua International Airport, Aeromexico Flight 230 overshoots the runway. Thirty-two of the 66 passengers and crew on board the DC-9 are killed.[2]
  • 1983 – Black July: Eighteen Tamil political prisoners at the Welikada high security prison in Colombo are massacred by Sinhalese prisoners, the second such massacre in two days.
  • 1987 – RMS Titanic Inc. begins the first expedited salvage of wreckage of the RMS Titanic.
  • 1989 – While attempting to land at Tripoli International Airport in Libya, Korean Air Flight 803 crashes just short of the runway. Seventy-five of the 199 passengers and crew and four people on the ground are killed, in the second accident involving a DC-10 in less than two weeks, the first being United Airlines Flight 232.
  • 1990 – The Supreme Soviet of the Belarusian Soviet Republic declares independence of Belarus from the Soviet Union. Until 1996 the day is celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus; after a referendum held that year the celebration of independence is moved to June 3.
  • 1990 – The Jamaat al Muslimeen attempt a coup d’état in Trinidad and Tobago.
  • 1995 – The Korean War Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C..
  • 1996 – In Atlanta, United States, a pipe bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Summer Olympics.
  • 1997 – About 50 people are killed in the Si Zerrouk massacre in Algeria.
  • 2002 – Ukraine airshow disaster: A Sukhoi Su-27 fighter crashes during an air show at Lviv, Ukraine killing 77 and injuring more than 500 others, making it the deadliest air show disaster in history.
  • 2005 – After an incident during STS-114, NASA grounds the Space Shuttle, pending an investigation of the continuing problem with the shedding of foam insulation from the external fuel tank.
  • 2015 – At least seven people are killed and many injured after gunmen attack an Indian police station in Punjab.
  • 2016 – At a news conference in Florida, U.S. Presidential Candidate Donald Trump publicly appealed to Russia to find and release private emails from Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton; a Special Counsel investigation (2017–2019) later alleged that Russian operatives began hacking into servers at the Democratic National Committee on that same day, leading to the July 13, 2018 indictment of 12 Russian intelligence officers.[3]

Births on July 27

  • 1452 – Ludovico Sforza, Italian son of Francesco I Sforza (d. 1508)
  • 1452 – Lucrezia Crivelli, mistress of Ludovico Sforza (d. 1508)
  • 1502 – Francesco Corteccia, Italian composer (d. 1571)
  • 1578 – Frances Howard, Duchess of Richmond (d. 1639)
  • 1612 – Murad IV, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1640)
  • 1625 – Edward Montagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich (d. 1672)
  • 1667 – Johann Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician and academic (d. 1748)
  • 1733 – Jeremiah Dixon, English surveyor and astronomer (d. 1779)
  • 1740 – Jeanne Baré, French explorer (d. 1803)
  • 1741 – François-Hippolyte Barthélémon, French-English violinist and composer (d. 1808)
  • 1752 – Samuel Smith, American general and politician (d. 1839)
  • 1768 – Charlotte Corday, French assassin of Jean-Paul Marat (d. 1793)
  • 1768 – Joseph Anton Koch, Austrian painter (d. 1839)
  • 1773 – Jacob Aall, Norwegian economist and politician (d. 1844)
  • 1777 – Thomas Campbell, Scottish-French poet and academic (d. 1844)
  • 1777 – Henry Trevor, 21st Baron Dacre, English general (d. 1853)
  • 1781 – Mauro Giuliani, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1828)
  • 1784 – Denis Davydov, Russian general and poet (d. 1839)
  • 1812 – Thomas Lanier Clingman, American general and politician (d. 1897)
  • 1818 – Agostino Roscelli, Italian priest and saint (d. 1902)
  • 1824 – Alexandre Dumas, fils, French novelist and playwright (d. 1895)
  • 1833 – Thomas George Bonney, English geologist, mountaineer, and academic (d. 1923)
  • 1834 – Miguel Grau Seminario, Peruvian admiral (d. 1879)
  • 1835 – Giosuè Carducci, Italian poet and educator, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1907)
  • 1848 – Loránd Eötvös, Hungarian physicist and politician, Minister of Education of Hungary (d. 1919)
  • 1848 – Friedrich Ernst Dorn, German physicist (d.1916)
  • 1853 – Vladimir Korolenko, Ukrainian journalist, author, and activist (d. 1921)
  • 1853 – Elizabeth Plankinton, American philanthropist (d. 1923)
  • 1854 – Takahashi Korekiyo, Japanese accountant and politician, 20th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1936)
  • 1857 – José Celso Barbosa, Puerto Rican physician, sociologist, and politician (d. 1921)
  • 1857 – Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge, English Egyptologist, Orientalist, and philologist (d.1934)
  • 1858 – George Lyon, Canadian golfer and cricketer (d. 1938)
  • 1866 – António José de Almeida, Portuguese physician and politician, 6th President of Portugal (d. 1929)
  • 1867 – Enrique Granados, Spanish pianist and composer (d. 1916)
  • 1870 – Hilaire Belloc, French-born British writer and historian (d. 1953)
  • 1872 – Stanislav Binički, Serbian composer, conductor, and pedagogue. (d. 1942)
  • 1879 – Francesco Gaeta, Italian poet (d. 1927)
  • 1877 – Ernő Dohnányi, Hungarian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1960)
  • 1881 – Hans Fischer, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1945)
  • 1882 – Geoffrey de Havilland, English pilot and engineer, founded the de Havilland Aircraft Company (d. 1965)
  • 1886 – Ernst May, German architect and urban planner (d. 1970)
  • 1889 – Vera Karalli, Russian ballerina, choreographer, and actress (d. 1972)
  • 1890 – Benjamin Miessner, American radio engineer and inventor (d. 1976)
  • 1890 – Armas Taipale, Finnish discus thrower and shot putter (d. 1976)
  • 1891 – Jacob van der Hoeden, Dutch-Israeli veterinarian and academic (d. 1968)
  • 1893 – Ugo Agostoni, Italian cyclist (d. 1941)
  • 1894 – Mientje Kling, Dutch actress (d. 1966)
  • 1896 – Robert George, Scottish air marshal and politician, 24th Governor of South Australia (d. 1967)
  • 1896 – Henri Longchambon, French lawyer and politician (d. 1969)
  • 1899 – Percy Hornibrook, Australian cricketer (d. 1976)
  • 1902 – Yaroslav Halan, Ukrainian playwright and publicist (d. 1949)
  • 1903 – Nikolay Cherkasov, Russian actor (d. 1966)
  • 1903 – Michail Stasinopoulos, Greek jurist and politician, President of Greece (d. 2002)
  • 1903 – Mārtiņš Zīverts, Latvian playwright (d. 1990)
  • 1904 – Lyudmila Rudenko, Soviet chess player (d. 1986)
  • 1905 – Leo Durocher, American baseball player and manager (d. 1991)
  • 1906 – Jerzy Giedroyc, Polish author and activist (d. 2000)
  • 1906 – Herbert Jasper, Canadian psychologist and neurologist (d. 1999)
  • 1907 – Ross Alexander, American stage and film actor (d. 1937)
  • 1907 – Carl McClellan Hill, African American educator and academic administrator (d. 1995)
  • 1907 – Irene Fischer, Austrian-American geodesist and mathematician (d. 2009)
  • 1908 – Joseph Mitchell, American journalist and author (d. 1996)
  • 1910 – Julien Gracq, French author and critic (d. 2007)
  • 1910 – Lupita Tovar, Mexican-American actress (d. 2016)
  • 1911 – Rayner Heppenstall, English author and poet (d. 1981)
  • 1912 – Vernon Elliott, English bassoon player, composer, and conductor (d. 1996)
  • 1913 – George L. Street III, American captain, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2000)
  • 1914 – August Sang, Estonian poet and translator (d. 1969)
  • 1915 – Mario Del Monaco, Italian tenor (d. 1982)
  • 1915 – Josef Priller, German colonel and pilot (d. 1961)
  • 1916 – Elizabeth Hardwick, American literary critic, novelist, and short story writer (d. 2007)
  • 1916 – Skippy Williams, American saxophonist and arranger (d. 1994)
  • 1916 – Keenan Wynn, American actor (d. 1986)
  • 1918 – Leonard Rose, American cellist and educator (d. 1984)
  • 1920 – Henry D. “Homer” Haynes, American comedian and musician (Homer and Jethro) (d. 1971)
  • 1921 – Garry Davis, American pilot and activist, created the World Passport (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Émile Genest, Canadian-American actor (d. 2003)
  • 1922 – Adolfo Celi, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1986)
  • 1922 – Norman Lear, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1923 – Mas Oyama, South Korean-Japanese martial artist (d. 1994)
  • 1924 – Vincent Canby, American historian and critic (d. 2000)
  • 1924 – Otar Taktakishvili, Georgian composer and conductor (d. 1989)
  • 1927 – Guy Carawan, American singer and musicologist (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Pierre Granier-Deferre, French director and screenwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1927 – Will Jordan, American comedian and actor (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – C. Rajadurai, Sri Lankan journalist and politician, 1st Mayor of Batticaloa
  • 1927 – John Seigenthaler, American journalist and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1928 – Joseph Kittinger, American colonel and pilot
  • 1929 – Jean Baudrillard, French sociologist and philosopher (d. 2007)
  • 1929 – Harvey Fuqua, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2010)
  • 1929 – Jack Higgins, English author and academic
  • 1929 – Marc Wilkinson, French-Australian composer and conductor
  • 1930 – Joy Whitby, English director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1930 – Shirley Williams, English academic and politician, Secretary of State for Education
  • 1931 – Khieu Samphan, Cambodian academic and politician, 28th Prime Minister of Cambodia
  • 1931 – Jerry Van Dyke, American actor (d. 2018)
  • 1932 – Forest Able, American basketball player
  • 1932 – Diane Webber, American model, dancer and actress
  • 1933 – Nick Reynolds, American singer and bongo player (d. 2008)
  • 1933 – Ted Whitten, Australian footballer and journalist (d. 1995)
  • 1935 – Hillar Kärner, Estonian chess player
  • 1935 – Billy McCullough, Northern Irish footballer
  • 1936 – J. Robert Hooper, American businessman and politician (d. 2008)
  • 1937 – Anna Dawson, English actress and singer
  • 1937 – Don Galloway, American actor (d. 2009)
  • 1937 – Robert Holmes à Court, South African-Australian businessman and lawyer (d. 1990)
  • 1938 – Gary Gygax, American game designer, co-created Dungeons & Dragons (d. 2008)
  • 1939 – William Eggleston, American photographer and academic
  • 1939 – Michael Longley, Northern Irish poet and academic
  • 1939 – Paulo Silvino, Brazilian comedian, composer and actor (d. 2017)
  • 1940 – Pina Bausch, German dancer and choreographer (d. 2009)
  • 1941 – Christian Boesch, Austrian opera singer
  • 1941 – Johannes Fritsch, German viola player and composer (d. 2010)
  • 1942 – Édith Butler, Canadian singer-songwriter
  • 1942 – John Pleshette, American actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1942 – Dennis Ralston, American tennis player
  • 1943 – Jeremy Greenstock, English diplomat, British Ambassador to the United Nations
  • 1944 – Bobbie Gentry, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1944 – Jean-Marie Leblanc, French cyclist and journalist
  • 1944 – Barbara Thomson, English saxophonist and composer
  • 1945 – Edmund M. Clarke, American computer scientist
  • 1946 – Peter Reading, English poet and author (d. 2011)
  • 1947 – Kazuyoshi Miura, Japanese businessman (d. 2008)
  • 1947 – Betty Thomas, American actress, director, and producer
  • 1948 – Peggy Fleming, American figure skater and sportscaster
  • 1948 – James Munby, English lawyer and judge
  • 1948 – Henny Vrienten, Dutch singer-songwriter and bass player
  • 1949 – Maury Chaykin, American-Canadian actor (d. 2010)
  • 1949 – André Dupont, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1949 – Rory MacDonald, Scottish singer-songwriter and bass player
  • 1949 – Maureen McGovern, American singer and actress
  • 1949 – Robert Rankin, English author and illustrator
  • 1950 – Simon Jones, English actor
  • 1951 – Roseanna Cunningham, Scottish lawyer and politician, Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs
  • 1951 – Bob Diamond, American-English banker and businessman
  • 1951 – Rolf Thung, Dutch tennis player
  • 1952 – Marvin Barnes, American basketball player (d. 2014)
  • 1952 – Roxanne Hart, American actress
  • 1953 – Chung Dong-young, South Korean journalist and politician, 31st South Korean Minister of Unification
  • 1953 – Yahoo Serious, Australian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1954 – Philippe Alliot, French race car driver and sportscaster
  • 1954 – G. S. Bali, Indian lawyer and politician
  • 1954 – Ricardo Uceda, Peruvian journalist and author
  • 1954 – Mark Stanway, English keyboard player Magnum
  • 1955 – Cat Bauer, American journalist, author, and playwright
  • 1955 – Allan Border, Australian cricketer and coach
  • 1955 – John Howell, English journalist and politician
  • 1955 – Bobby Rondinelli, American drummer
  • 1956 – Carol Leifer, American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer
  • 1957 – Bill Engvall, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1958 – Christopher Dean, English figure skater and choreographer
  • 1958 – Kimmo Hakola, Finnish composer
  • 1959 – Joe DeSa, American baseball player (d. 1986)
  • 1959 – Hugh Green, American football player
  • 1959 – Yiannos Papantoniou, French-Greek economist and politician, Greek Minister of National Defence
  • 1960 – Jo Durie, English tennis player and sportscaster
  • 1960 – Conway Savage, Australian singer-songwriter and keyboard player (d. 2018)
  • 1960 – Emily Thornberry, English lawyer and politician
  • 1961 – Ed Orgeron, American football coach[4]
  • 1962 – Neil Brooks, Australian swimmer
  • 1962 – Karl Mueller, American bass player (d. 2005)
  • 1963 – Donnie Yen, Chinese-Hong Kong actor, director, producer, and martial artist
  • 1964 – Rex Brown, American bass player and songwriter
  • 1965 – José Luis Chilavert, Paraguayan footballer
  • 1966 – Steve Tilson, English footballer and manager
  • 1967 – Rahul Bose, Indian journalist, actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1967 – Juliana Hatfield, American singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1967 – Hans Mathisen, Norwegian guitarist and composer
  • 1967 – Neil Smith, English cricketer
  • 1967 – Craig Wolanin, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1968 – Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Italian actress and producer
  • 1968 – Tom Goodwin, American baseball player and coach
  • 1968 – Sabina Jeschke, Swedish-German engineer and academic
  • 1968 – Julian McMahon, Australian actor and producer
  • 1968 – Ricardo Rosset, Brazilian race car driver
  • 1969 – Triple H, American wrestler and actor
  • 1969 – Jonty Rhodes, South African cricketer and coach
  • 1970 – Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Danish actor and producer
  • 1970 – David Davies, English-Welsh politician
  • 1971 – Matthew Johns, Australian rugby league player, sportscaster and television host
  • 1972 – Clint Robinson, Australian kayaker[5]
  • 1972 – Maya Rudolph, American actress
  • 1972 – Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, Malaysian surgeon and astronaut
  • 1973 – Cassandra Clare, American journalist and author
  • 1973 – Erik Nys, Belgian long jumper
  • 1973 – Gorden Tallis, Australian rugby league player and coach
  • 1974 – Eason Chan, Hong Kong singer, actor, and producer
  • 1974 – Pete Yorn, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1975 – Serkan Çeliköz, Turkish keyboard player and songwriter
  • 1975 – Shea Hillenbrand, American baseball player
  • 1975 – Fred Mascherino, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1975 – Alessandro Pistone, Italian footballer
  • 1975 – Alex Rodriguez, American baseball player
  • 1976 – Demis Hassabis, English computer scientist and academic
  • 1976 – Scott Mason, Australian cricketer (d. 2005)
  • 1977 – Foo Swee Chin, Singaporean illustrator
  • 1977 – Björn Dreyer, German footballer
  • 1977 – Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Irish actor
  • 1978 – Diarmuid O’Sullivan, Irish hurler and manager
  • 1979 – Marielle Franco, Brazilian politician, feminist, and human rights activist (d. 2018)
  • 1979 – Jorge Arce, Mexican boxer
  • 1979 – Sidney Govou, French footballer
  • 1979 – Shannon Moore, American wrestler and singer
  • 1980 – Allan Davis, Australian cyclist
  • 1980 – Wesley Gonzales, Filipino basketball player
  • 1981 – Susan King Borchardt, American basketball player
  • 1981 – Collins Obuya, Kenyan cricketer
  • 1981 – Dash Snow, American painter and photographer (d. 2009)
  • 1981 – Christopher Weselek, German rugby player
  • 1982 – Neil Harbisson, English-Catalan painter, composer, and activist
  • 1983 – Lorik Cana, Albanian footballer
  • 1983 – Martijn Maaskant, Dutch cyclist
  • 1983 – Goran Pandev, Macedonian footballer
  • 1983 – Soccor Velho, Indian footballer (d. 2013)
  • 1984 – Antoine Bethea, American football player
  • 1984 – Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Japanese baseball player
  • 1984 – Max Scherzer, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Taylor Schilling, American actress
  • 1984 – Kenny Wormald, American actor, dancer, and choreographer
  • 1985 – Husain Abdullah, American football player
  • 1985 – Matteo Pratichetti, Italian rugby player
  • 1985 – Ajmal Shahzad, English cricketer
  • 1986 – DeMarre Carroll, American basketball player
  • 1986 – Ryan Flaherty, American baseball player
  • 1986 – Ryan Griffen, Australian footballer
  • 1987 – Jacoby Ford, American football player
  • 1987 – Marek Hamšík, Slovak footballer
  • 1987 – Jordan Hill, American basketball player
  • 1987 – Sarah Parsons, American ice hockey player
  • 1988 – Adam Biddle, Australian footballer
  • 1988 – Yoervis Medina, Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1988 – Ryan Tannehill, American football player
  • 1989 – Maya Ali, Pakistani actress
  • 1990 – Nick Hogan, American race car driver and actor
  • 1990 – Paolo Hurtado, Peruvian footballer
  • 1990 – Cheyenne Kimball, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1990 – Stephen Li-Chung Kuo, Taiwanese-American figure skater
  • 1990 – Kriti Sanon, Indian actress
  • 1991 – Rena Matsui, Japanese actress and singer
  • 1993 – Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Australian rugby league player
  • 1993 – Max Power, English footballer
  • 1993 – Jordan Spieth, American golfer
  • 2001 – Shin Ki-joon, South Korean actor

Deaths on July 27

  • 903 – Abdallah II of Ifriqiya, Aghlabid emir
  • 959 – Chai Rong, emperor of Later Zhou
  • 1144 – Salomea of Berg, High Duchess consort of Poland[6]
  • 1061 – Nicholas II, pope of the Catholic Church
  • 1101 – Conrad II, king of Italy (b. 1074)
  • 1101 – Hugh d’Avranches, Earl of Chester (b. c. 1047)
  • 1158 – Geoffrey VI, Count of Anjou (b. 1134)
  • 1276 – James I of Aragon (b. 1208)
  • 1365 – Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria (b. 1339)
  • 1382 – Joanna I of Naples (b. 1326)
  • 1510 – Giovanni Sforza, Italian condottiere (b. 1466)
  • 1469 – William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (b. 1423)
  • 1656 – Salomo Glassius, German theologian and critic (b. 1593)
  • 1675 – Henri de la Tour d’Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne, French general (b. 1611)
  • 1689 – John Graham, 1st Viscount Dundee, Scottish general (b. c. 1648)[7]
  • 1759 – Pierre Louis Maupertuis, French mathematician and philosopher (b. 1698)
  • 1770 – Robert Dinwiddie, Scottish merchant and politician, Colonial Governor of Virginia (b. 1693)
  • 1841 – Mikhail Lermontov, Russian poet and painter (b. 1814)
  • 1844 – John Dalton, English physicist, meteorologist, and chemist (b. 1776)
  • 1863 – William Lowndes Yancey, American journalist and politician (b. 1813)
  • 1865 – Jean-Joseph Dassy, French painter and lithographer (b. 1791)
  • 1875 – Aleksander Kunileid, Estonian composer and educator (b. 1845)
  • 1876 – Albertus van Raalte, Dutch-born American minister and author (b. 1811)
  • 1883 – Montgomery Blair, American lieutenant and politician, 20th United States Postmaster General (b. 1813)
  • 1916 – Charles Fryatt, English captain (b. 1872)
  • 1916 – William Jonas, English footballer (d. 1890)
  • 1917 – Emil Theodor Kocher, Swiss physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1841)
  • 1921 – Myrddin Fardd, Welsh writer and antiquarian scholar (b. 1836)
  • 1924 – Ferruccio Busoni, Italian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1866)
  • 1931 – Auguste Forel, Swiss neuroanatomist and psychiatrist (b. 1848)
  • 1938 – Tom Crean, Irish seaman and explorer (b. 1877)
  • 1941 – Alfred Henry O’Keeffe, New Zealand painter and educator (b. 1858)
  • 1942 – Karl Pärsimägi, Estonian painter (b. 1902)
  • 1946 – Gertrude Stein, American novelist, poet, and playwright (b. 1874)
  • 1948 – Woolf Barnato, English race car driver and businessman (b. 1898)
  • 1948 – Joe Tinker, American baseball player and manager (b. 1880)
  • 1948 – Dorothea Bleek, South African anthropologist and philologist (b. 1873)
  • 1951 – Paul Kogerman, Estonian chemist and politician, 22nd Estonian Minister of Education (b. 1891)
  • 1958 – Claire Lee Chennault, American general and pilot (b. 1893)
  • 1960 – Julie Vinter Hansen, Danish-Swiss astronomer and academic (b. 1890)
  • 1962 – Richard Aldington, English poet and author (b. 1892)
  • 1962 – James H. Kindelberger, American pilot and businessman (b. 1895)
  • 1963 – Hooks Dauss, American baseball player (b. 1889)
  • 1963 – Garrett Morgan, African-American inventor (b. 1877)
  • 1964 – Winifred Lenihan, American actress, writer, and director (b. 1898)
  • 1965 – Daniel-Rops, French historian and author (b. 1901)
  • 1968 – Babe Adams, American baseball player and manager (b. 1882)
  • 1970 – António de Oliveira Salazar, Portuguese economist and politician, 100th Prime Minister of Portugal (b. 1889)
  • 1971 – Charlie Tully, Irish footballer and manager (b. 1924)
  • 1975 – Alfred Duraiappah, Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer and politician (d. 1926)
  • 1978 – Bob Heffron, New Zealand-Australian miner and politician, 30th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1890)
  • 1978 – Willem van Otterloo, Dutch cellist, composer, and conductor (b. 1907)
  • 1980 – Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Iranian king (b. 1919)
  • 1981 – William Wyler, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1902)
  • 1984 – James Mason, English actor (b. 1909)
  • 1985 – Smoky Joe Wood, American baseball player and coach (b. 1889)
  • 1987 – Travis Jackson, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1903)
  • 1988 – Frank Zamboni, American inventor and businessman, founded the Zamboni Company (b. 1901)
  • 1990 – Bobby Day, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (b. 1928)
  • 1990 – René Toribio, Guadeloupean politician (b. 1912)
  • 1991 – John Friedrich, German-Australian engineer and conman (b. 1950)
  • 1992 – Max Dupain, Australian photographer and educator (b. 1911)
  • 1992 – Tzeni Karezi, Greek actress and screenwriter
  • 1993 – Reggie Lewis, American basketball player (b. 1965)
  • 1994 – Kevin Carter, South African photographer and journalist (b. 1960)
  • 1995 – Melih Esenbel, Turkish politician and diplomat, 20th Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1915)
  • 1995 – Rick Ferrell, American baseball player and coach (b. 1905)
  • 1995 – Miklós Rózsa, Hungarian-American composer and conductor (b. 1907)
  • 1998 – Binnie Barnes, English-American actress (b. 1903)
  • 1999 – Aleksandr Danilovich Aleksandrov, Russian mathematician, physicist, and mountaineer (b. 1912)
  • 1999 – Harry Edison, American trumpet player (b. 1915)
  • 2000 – Gordon Solie, American sportscaster (b. 1929)
  • 2001 – Rhonda Sing, Canadian wrestler (b. 1961)
  • 2001 – Leon Wilkeson, American bass player and songwriter (b. 1952)
  • 2003 – Vance Hartke, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician (b. 1919)
  • 2003 – Bob Hope, English-American actor, comedian, television personality, and businessman (b. 1903)
  • 2005 – Al Held, American painter and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2005 – Marten Toonder, Dutch author and illustrator (b. 1912)
  • 2006 – Maryann Mahaffey, American academic and politician (b. 1925)
  • 2007 – James Oyebola, Nigerian-English boxer (b. 1961)
  • 2008 – Youssef Chahine, Egyptian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 2008 – Horst Stein, German-born Swiss conductor (b. 1928)
  • 2008 – Isaac Saba Raffoul, Mexican businessman (b. 1923)
  • 2010 – Maury Chaykin, American-Canadian actor (b. 1949)
  • 2010 – Jack Tatum, American football player (b. 1948)
  • 2012 – Norman Alden, American actor (b. 1924)
  • 2012 – R. G. Armstrong, American actor and playwright (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Darryl Cotton, Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1949)
  • 2012 – Geoffrey Hughes, English actor (b. 1944)
  • 2012 – Tony Martin, American actor and singer (b. 1913)
  • 2012 – Jack Taylor, English footballer and referee (b. 1930)
  • 2013 – Fernando Alonso, Cuban dancer, co-founded the Cuban National Ballet (b. 1914)
  • 2013 – Lindy Boggs, American politician and diplomat, 5th United States Ambassador to the Holy See (b. 1916)
  • 2013 – Bud Day, American colonel and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Kidd Kraddick, American radio host (b. 1959)
  • 2013 – Ilya Segalovich, Russian businessman, co-founded Yandex (b. 1964)
  • 2014 – Richard Bolt, New Zealand air marshal and pilot (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – George Freese, American baseball player and coach (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Wallace Jones, American basketball player and coach (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Francesco Marchisano, Italian cardinal (b. 1929)
  • 2014 – Paul Schell, American lawyer and politician, 50th Mayor of Seattle (b. 1937)
  • 2015 – Rickey Grundy, American singer-songwriter (b. 1959)
  • 2015 – A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Indian engineer, academic, and politician, 11th President of India (b. 1931)
  • 2015 – Samuel Pisar, Polish-born American lawyer and author (b. 1929)
  • 2015 – Anthony Shaw, English general (b. 1930)
  • 2016 – Einojuhani Rautavaara, Finnish composer (b.1928)[8]
  • 2016 – James Alan McPherson, American short story writer and essayist (b. 1943)[9]
  • 2016 – Jerry Doyle, American actor and talk show host (b. 1956)[10]
  • 2016 – Piet de Jong, Dutch politician and naval officer, Minister of Defence (1963–67), Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1967–71) (b. 1915)[11]
  • 2017 – Sam Shepard, American playwright, actor, author, screenwriter, and director (b.1943)[12]
  • 2018 – Marco Aurelio Denegri, Peruvian literature critic, television host and sexologist[13]
  • 2018 – Rahim Uddin Bharosha, Bangladeshi politician (b. 1934)

Holidays and observances on July 27

  • Christian feast day:
    • Arethas (Western Christianity)
    • Aurelius and Natalia and companions of the Martyrs of Córdoba.
    • Maurus, Pantalemon, and Sergius
    • Pantaleon
    • Seven Sleepers of Ephesus (Roman Martyrology)
      • National Sleepy Head Day (Finland)
    • Theobald of Marly
    • Blessed Titus Brandsma, O.Carm.
    • July 27 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War (North Korea)
  • Iglesia ni Cristo Day (the Philippines)
  • José Celso Barbosa Day (Puerto Rico)
  • Martyrs and Wounded Soldiers Day (Vietnam)
  • National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day (United States)

July 27 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 26 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

“Mordad 5th”—day 129th in the Iranian official calendar (236 days – 237 days in leap years – till the end of the year)

July 26 in History

  • 657 – First Fitna: In the Battle of Siffin, troops led by Ali ibn Abu Talib clash with those led by Muawiyah I.
  • 811 – Battle of Pliska: Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros I is killed and his heir Staurakios is seriously wounded.
  • 920 – Rout of an alliance of Christian troops from Navarre and Léon against the Muslims at the Battle of Valdejunquera.
  • 1309 – Henry VII is recognized King of the Romans by Pope Clement V.
  • 1469 – Wars of the Roses: The Battle of Edgecote Moor, pitting the forces of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick against those of Edward IV of England, takes place.
  • 1509 – The Emperor Krishnadevaraya ascends to the throne, marking the beginning of the regeneration of the Vijayanagara Empire.
  • 1529 – Francisco Pizarro González, Spanish conquistador, is appointed governor of Peru.
  • 1581 – Plakkaat van Verlatinghe (Act of Abjuration): The northern Low Countries declare their independence from the Spanish king, Philip II.
  • 1703 – During the Bavarian Rummel the rural population of Tyrol drove the Bavarian Prince-Elector Maximilian II Emanuel out of North Tyrol with a victory at the Pontlatzer Bridge and thus prevented the Bavarian Army, which was allied with France, from marching as planned on Vienna during the War of the Spanish Succession.
  • 1745 – The first recorded women’s cricket match takes place near Guildford, England.
  • 1758 – French and Indian War: The Siege of Louisbourg ends with British forces defeating the French and taking control of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence.
  • 1775 – The office that would later become the United States Post Office Department is established by the Second Continental Congress. Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania takes office as Postmaster General.
  • 1788 – New York ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 11th state of the United States.
  • 1803 – The Surrey Iron Railway, arguably the world’s first public railway, opens in south London, United Kingdom.
  • 1814 – The Swedish–Norwegian War begins.
  • 1822 – José de San Martín arrives in Guayaquil, Ecuador, to meet with Simón Bolívar.
  • 1822 – First day of the three-day Battle of Dervenakia, between the Ottoman Empire force led by Mahmud Dramali Pasha and the Greek Revolutionary force led by Theodoros Kolokotronis.
  • 1847 – Liberia declares its independence.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: George B. McClellan assumes command of the Army of the Potomac following a disastrous Union defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: Morgan’s Raid ends; At Salineville, Ohio, Confederate cavalry leader John Hunt Morgan and 360 of his volunteers are captured by Union forces.
  • 1882 – Premiere of Richard Wagner’s opera Parsifal at Bayreuth.
  • 1882 – The Republic of Stellaland is founded in Southern Africa.
  • 1887 – Publication of the Unua Libro, founding the Esperanto movement.
  • 1890 – In Buenos Aires, Argentina the Revolución del Parque takes place, forcing President Miguel Ángel Juárez Celman’s resignation.
  • 1891 – France annexes Tahiti.
  • 1892 – Dadabhai Naoroji is elected as the first Indian Member of Parliament in Britain.
  • 1897 – Anglo-Afghan War: The Pashtun fakir Saidullah leads an army of more than 10,000 to begin a siege of the British garrison in the Malakand Agency of the North West Frontier Province of India.
  • 1899 – Ulises Heureaux, the 27th President of the Dominican Republic, is assassinated.
  • 1908 – United States Attorney General Charles Joseph Bonaparte issues an order to immediately staff the Office of the Chief Examiner (later renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation).
  • 1918 – Emmy Noether’s paper, which became known as Noether’s theorem was presented at Göttingen, Germany, from which conservation laws are deduced for symmetries of angular momentum, linear momentum, and energy.
  • 1936 – Spanish Civil War: Germany and Italy decide to intervene in the war in support for Francisco Franco and the Nationalist faction.
  • 1936 – King Edward VIII, in one of his few official duties before he abdicates the throne, officially unveils the Canadian National Vimy Memorial.
  • 1937 – Spanish Civil War: End of the Battle of Brunete with the Nationalist victory.
  • 1941 – World War II: In response to the Japanese occupation of French Indochina, the United States, Britain and the Netherlands freeze all Japanese assets and cut off oil shipments.
  • 1944 – World War II: The Red Army enters Lviv, a major city in western Ukraine, capturing it from the Nazis. Only 300 Jews survive out of 160,000 living in Lviv prior to occupation.
  • 1945 – The Labour Party wins the United Kingdom general election of July 5 by a landslide, removing Winston Churchill from power.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Potsdam Declaration is signed in Potsdam, Germany.
  • 1945 – World War II: HMS Vestal is the last British Royal Navy ship to be sunk in the war.
  • 1945 – World War II: The USS Indianapolis arrives at Tinian with components and enriched uranium for the Little Boy nuclear bomb.
  • 1946 – Aloha Airlines begins service from Honolulu International Airport.
  • 1947 – Cold War: U.S. President Harry S. Truman signs the National Security Act of 1947 into United States law creating the Central Intelligence Agency, United States Department of Defense, United States Air Force, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the United States National Security Council.
  • 1948 – U.S. President Harry S. Truman signs Executive Order 9981, desegregating the military of the United States.
  • 1951 – Walt Disney’s 13th animated film, Alice in Wonderland, premieres in London, England, United Kingdom.
  • 1952 – King Farouk of Egypt abdicates in favor of his son Fuad.
  • 1953 – Cold War: Fidel Castro leads an unsuccessful attack on the Moncada Barracks, thus beginning the Cuban Revolution. The movement took the name of the date: 26th of July Movement
  • 1953 – Arizona Governor John Howard Pyle orders an anti-polygamy law enforcement crackdown on residents of Short Creek, Arizona, which becomes known as the Short Creek raid.
  • 1953 – Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment repel a number of Chinese assaults against a key position known as The Hook during the Battle of the Samichon River, just hours before the Armistice Agreement is signed, ending the Korean War.
  • 1956 – Following the World Bank’s refusal to fund building the Aswan Dam, Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal, sparking international condemnation.
  • 1957 – Carlos Castillo Armas, dictator of Guatemala, is assassinated.
  • 1958 – Explorer program: Explorer 4 is launched.
  • 1963 – Syncom 2, the world’s first geosynchronous satellite, is launched from Cape Canaveral on a Delta B booster.
  • 1963 – An earthquake in Skopje, Yugoslavia (present-day North Macedonia) leaves 1,100 dead.
  • 1963 – The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development votes to admit Japan.
  • 1968 – Vietnam War: South Vietnamese opposition leader Trương Đình Dzu is sentenced to five years hard labor for advocating the formation of a coalition government as a way to move toward an end to the war.
  • 1971 – Apollo program: Launch of Apollo 15 on the first Apollo “J-Mission”, and first use of a Lunar Roving Vehicle.
  • 1974 – Greek Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis forms the country’s first civil government after seven years of military rule.
  • 1977 – The National Assembly of Quebec imposes the use of French as the official language of the provincial government.
  • 1979 (1358 SH) – Holding the first Friday Prayer in Iran led by Ayatollah Mahmoud Taleghani
  • 1986 (1365 SH) – Aerial bombardment of citizens of Arak by Ba’athist Iraq regime at 9:13 a.m. (local time):
  • 1988 (1367 SH) – Mersad Operation part of Iran-Iraq war
  • 1989 – A federal grand jury indicts Cornell University student Robert T. Morris, Jr. for releasing the Morris worm, thus becoming the first person to be prosecuted under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
  • 1990 – The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 is signed into law by President George H.W. Bush.
  • 1993 – Asiana Airlines Flight 733 crashes into a ridge on Mt. Ungeo on its third attempt to land at Mokpo Airport, South Korea. Sixty-eight of the 116 people onboard are killed.
  • 1999 – Celebrated as Kargil Vijay Diwas. Kargil conflict officially comes to an end. The Indian Army announces the complete eviction of Pakistani intruders.
  • 2005 – Space Shuttle program: STS-114 Mission: Launch of Discovery, NASA’s first scheduled flight mission after the Columbia Disaster in 2003.
  • 2005 – Mumbai, India receives 99.5cm of rain (39.17 inches) within 24 hours, resulting in floods killing over 5,000 people.
  • 2008 – Fifty-six people are killed and over 200 people are injured, in the Ahmedabad bombings in India.
  • 2009 – The militant Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram attacks a police station in Bauchi, leading to reprisals by the Nigeria Police Force and four days of violence across multiple cities.
  • 2016 – The Sagamihara stabbings occur in Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. Nineteen people are killed.
  • 2016 – Hillary Clinton becomes the first female nominee for President of the United States by a major political party at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.
  • 2016 – Solar Impulse 2 becomes the first solar-powered aircraft to circumnavigate the Earth.

Births on July 26

  • 1030 – Stanislaus of Szczepanów, Polish bishop and saint (d. 1079)
  • 1400 – Isabel le Despenser, Countess of Worcester, English noble (d. 1439)
  • 1502 – Christian Egenolff, German printer (d. 1555)
  • 1612 – Murad IV, Ottoman sultan (d. 1640)
  • 1678 – Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1711)
  • 1711 – Lorenz Christoph Mizler, German physician, mathematician, and historian (d. 1778)
  • 1739 – George Clinton, American general and politician, 4th Vice President of the United States (d. 1812)
  • 1782 – John Field, Irish pianist and composer (d. 1837)
  • 1791 – Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart, Austrian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1844)
  • 1796 – George Catlin, American painter, author, and traveler (d. 1872)
  • 1802 – Mariano Arista, Mexican general and politician, 42nd President of Mexico (d. 1855)
  • 1819 – Justin Holland, American guitarist and educator (d. 1887)
  • 1829 – Auguste Beernaert, Belgian politician, 14th Prime Minister of Belgium, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1912)
  • 1841 – Carl Robert Jakobson, Estonian journalist and politician (d. 1882)
  • 1842 – Alfred Marshall, English economist and academic (d. 1924)
  • 1844 – Stefan Drzewiecki, Ukrainian-Polish engineer and journalist (d. 1938)
  • 1854 – Philippe Gaucher, French dermatologist and academic (d. 1918)
  • 1855 – Ferdinand Tönnies, German sociologist and philosopher (d. 1936)
  • 1856 – George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright and critic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1950)
  • 1858 – Tom Garrett, Australian cricketer and lawyer (d. 1943)
  • 1863 – Jāzeps Vītols, Latvian composer (d. 1948)
  • 1865 – Philipp Scheidemann, German journalist and politician, 10th Chancellor of Germany (d. 1939)
  • 1865 – Rajanikanta Sen, Indian poet and composer (d. 1910)
  • 1874 – Serge Koussevitzky, Russian-American bassist, composer, and conductor (d. 1951)
  • 1875 – Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist and psychotherapist (d. 1961)
  • 1875 – Antonio Machado, Spanish poet and academic (d. 1939)
  • 1877 – Jesse Lauriston Livermore, American investor and security analyst, “Great Bear of Wall Street” (d. 1940)
  • 1878 – Ernst Hoppenberg, German swimmer and water polo player (d. 1937)
  • 1879 – Shunroku Hata, Japanese field marshal and politician, 48th Japanese Minister of War (d. 1962)
  • 1880 – Volodymyr Vynnychenko, Ukrainian playwright and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Ukrainian People’s Republic (d. 1951)
  • 1882 – Albert Dunstan, Australian politician, 33rd Premier of Victoria (d. 1950)
  • 1885 – Roy Castleton, Major League Baseball player (d.1967)
  • 1885 – André Maurois, French soldier and author (d. 1967)
  • 1886 – Lars Hanson, Swedish actor (d. 1965)
  • 1888 – Reginald Hands, South African cricketer and rugby player (d. 1918)
  • 1890 – Daniel J. Callaghan, American admiral, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1942)
  • 1892 – Sad Sam Jones, American baseball player and manager (d. 1966)
  • 1893 – George Grosz, German painter and illustrator (d. 1959)
  • 1894 – Aldous Huxley, English novelist and philosopher (d. 1963)
  • 1895 – Gracie Allen, American actress and comedian (d. 1964)
  • 1896 – Tim Birkin, English soldier and race car driver (d. 1933)
  • 1897 – Harold D. Cooley, American lawyer and politician (d. 1974)
  • 1897 – Paul Gallico, American journalist and author (d. 1976)
  • 1900 – Sarah Kafrit, Israeli politician and teacher (d. 1983)
  • 1903 – Estes Kefauver, American lawyer and politician (d. 1963)
  • 1904 – Edwin Albert Link, American industrialist and entrepreneur, invented the flight simulator (d. 1981)
  • 1906 – Irena Iłłakowicz, German-Polish lieutenant (d. 1943)
  • 1908 – Lucien Wercollier, Luxembourger sculptor (d. 2002)
  • 1909 – Peter Thorneycroft, Baron Thorneycroft, English lawyer and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (d. 1994)
  • 1909 – Vivian Vance, American actress and singer (d. 1979)
  • 1913 – Kan Yuet-keung, Hong Kong banker, lawyer, and politician (d. 2012)
  • 1914 – C. Farris Bryant, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 34th Governor of Florida (d. 2002)
  • 1914 – Erskine Hawkins, American trumpet player and bandleader (d. 1993)
  • 1914 – Ellis Kinder, American baseball player (d. 1968)
  • 1916 – Dean Brooks, American physician and actor (d. 2013)
  • 1916 – Jaime Luiz Coelho, Brazilian archbishop (d. 2013)
  • 1918 – Marjorie Lord, American actress (d. 2015)
  • 1919 – Virginia Gilmore, American actress (d. 1986)
  • 1919 – James Lovelock, English biologist and chemist
  • 1920 – Bob Waterfield, American football player and coach (d. 1983)
  • 1921 – Tom Saffell, American baseball player and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1921 – Jean Shepherd, American radio host, actor, and screenwriter (d. 1999)
  • 1922 – Blake Edwards, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2010)
  • 1922 – Jim Foglesong, American record producer (d. 2013)
  • 1922 – Jason Robards, American actor (d. 2000)
  • 1923 – Jan Berenstain, American author and illustrator (d. 2012)
  • 1923 – Hoyt Wilhelm, American baseball player and coach (d. 2002)
  • 1925 – Jerzy Einhorn, Polish-Swedish physician and politician (d. 2000)
  • 1925 – Joseph Engelberger, American physicist and engineer (d. 2015)
  • 1925 – Gene Gutowski, Polish-American producer (d. 2016)
  • 1925 – Ana María Matute, Spanish author and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1926 – James Best, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1926 (1305 SH) – Sadeq Khalkhali, Shia cleric and a religious ruler in the Islamic Republic of Iran (d. 2003)
  • 1926 – Dorothy E. Smith, Canadian sociologist
  • 1927 – Gulabrai Ramchand, Indian cricketer (d. 2003)
  • 1928 – Don Beauman, English race car driver (d. 1955)
  • 1928 – Francesco Cossiga, Italian academic and politician, 8th President of Italy (d. 2010)
  • 1928 – Elliott Erwitt, French-American photographer and director
  • 1928 – Ibn-e-Safi, Indian-Pakistani author and poet (d. 1980)
  • 1928 – Joe Jackson, American talent manager, father of Michael Jackson (d. 2018)
  • 1928 – Stanley Kubrick, American director, producer, screenwriter, and cinematographer (d. 1999)
  • 1928 – Peter Lougheed, Canadian lawyer and politician, 10th Premier of Alberta (d. 2012)
  • 1928 – Sally Oppenheim-Barnes, Baroness Oppenheim-Barnes, Irish-born English politician
  • 1928 – Bernice Rubens, Welsh author (d. 2004)
  • 1929 – Marc Lalonde, Canadian lawyer and politician, 34th Canadian Minister of Justice
  • 1929 – Alexis Weissenberg, Bulgarian-French pianist and educator (d. 2012)
  • 1930 – Plínio de Arruda Sampaio, Brazilian lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – Barbara Jefford, English actress
  • 1931 – Telê Santana, Brazilian footballer and manager (d. 2006)
  • 1934 – Tommy McDonald, American football player (d. 2018)
  • 1936 – Tsutomu Koyama, Japanese volleyball player and coach (d. 2012)
  • 1936 – Lawrie McMenemy, English footballer and manager
  • 1938 – Bobby Hebb, American singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
  • 1938 – Keith Peters, Welsh physician and academic
  • 1939 – Jun Henmi, Japanese author and poet (d. 2011)
  • 1939 – John Howard, Australian lawyer and politician, 25th Prime Minister of Australia
  • 1939 – Bob Lilly, American football player and photographer
  • 1939 – Richard Marlow, English organist and conductor (d. 2013)
  • 1940 – Dobie Gray, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2011)
  • 1940 – Brian Mawhinney, Baron Mawhinney, Northern Irish-British academic and politician, Secretary of State for Transport
  • 1940 – Bobby Rousseau, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1941 – Jean Baubérot, French historian and sociologist
  • 1941 – Darlene Love, American singer and actress
  • 1941 – Brenton Wood, American R&B singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1942 – Vladimír Mečiar, Slovak politician, 1st Prime Minister of Slovakia
  • 1942 (1321 SH) – Bahman Mofid, Iranian actor
  • 1942 – Teddy Pilette, Belgian race car driver
  • 1943 – Peter Hyams, American director, screenwriter, and cinematographer
  • 1943 – Mick Jagger, English singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
  • 1944 (1323 SH) – Dariush Arjmand, Iranian actor
  • 1945 – Betty Davis, American singer-songwriter
  • 1945 – Helen Mirren, English actress
  • 1946 – Emilio de Villota, Spanish race car driver
  • 1948 – Luboš Andršt, Czech guitarist and songwriter
  • 1948 – Herbert Wiesinger, German figure skater
  • 1949 – Thaksin Shinawatra, Thai businessman and politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Thailand
  • 1949 – Roger Taylor, English singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer
  • 1950 – Nelinho, Brazilian footballer and manager
  • 1950 – Nicholas Evans, English journalist, screenwriter, and producer
  • 1950 – Susan George, English actress and producer
  • 1950 – Anne Rafferty, English lawyer and judge
  • 1950 – Rich Vogler, American race car driver (d. 1990)
  • 1951 – Rick Martin, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2011)
  • 1952 – Glynis Breakwell, English psychologist and academic
  • 1953 – Felix Magath, German footballer and manager
  • 1953 – Robert Phillips, American guitarist
  • 1953 – Henk Bleker, Dutch politician
  • 1953 – Earl Tatum, American professional basketball player
  • 1954 – Vitas Gerulaitis, American tennis player and coach (d. 1994)
  • 1955 – Aleksandrs Starkovs, Latvian footballer and coach
  • 1955 – Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistani businessman and politician, 11th President of Pakistan
  • 1956 – Peter Fincham, English screenwriter and producer
  • 1956 – Dorothy Hamill, American figure skater
  • 1956 – Tommy Rich, American wrestler
  • 1956 – Tim Tremlett, English cricketer and coach
  • 1957 – Norman Baker, Scottish politician
  • 1957 – Nana Visitor, American actress
  • 1958 – Monti Davis, American basketball player (d. 2013)
  • 1958 – Angela Hewitt, Canadian-English pianist
  • 1959 – Rick Bragg, American author and journalist
  • 1959 – Kevin Spacey, American actor and director
  • 1960 (1339 SH) – Mohsen Vezvaei, Iranian commander killed in Iran-Iraq war
  • 1961 – Gary Cherone, American singer-songwriter
  • 1961 – Andy Connell, English keyboard player and songwriter
  • 1961 – Felix Dexter, Caribbean-English comedian and actor (d. 2013)
  • 1963 – Jeff Stoughton, Canadian curler
  • 1964 – Sandra Bullock, American actress and producer
  • 1964 – Ralf Metzenmacher, German painter and designer
  • 1964 – Anne Provoost, Belgian author
  • 1965 – Jeremy Piven, American actor and producer
  • 1965 – Jim Lindberg, American singer and guitarist
  • 1966 – Angelo di Livio, Italian footballer
  • 1967 – Martin Baker, English organist and conductor
  • 1967 – Tim Schafer, American video game designer, founded Double Fine Productions
  • 1967 – Jason Statham, English actor
  • 1968 – Frédéric Diefenthal, French actor and director
  • 1968 – Jim Naismith, Scottish biologist and academic
  • 1968 – Olivia Williams, English actress
  • 1969 – Greg Colbrunn, American baseball player and coach
  • 1969 – Tanni Grey-Thompson, Welsh baroness and wheelchair racer
  • 1971 – Khaled Mahmud, Bangladeshi cricketer and coach
  • 1971 – Chris Harrison, America television personality
  • 1972 – Nathan Buckley, Australian footballer and coach
  • 1973 – Kate Beckinsale, English actress
  • 1973 – Mariano Raffo, Argentinian director and producer
  • 1974 – Iron & Wine, American singer-songwriter
  • 1974 – Kees Meeuws, New Zealand rugby player and coach
  • 1974 – Dean Sturridge, English footballer and sportscaster
  • 1975 – Ingo Schultz, German sprinter
  • 1975 – Joe Smith, American basketball player
  • 1975 – Elizabeth Truss, English accountant and politician, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
  • 1976 – Elena Kustarova, Russian ice dancer and coach
  • 1976 – Darius Labanauskas, Lithuanian darts player
  • 1977 – Joaquín Benoit, Dominican baseball player
  • 1977 – Martin Laursen, Danish footballer and manager
  • 1977 – Tanja Szewczenko, German figure skater
  • 1979 – Friedrich Michau, German rugby player
  • 1979 – Derek Paravicini, English pianist
  • 1979 – Peter Sarno, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1979 – Erik Westrum, American ice hockey player
  • 1979 – Juliet Rylance, English actress
  • 1980 – Jacinda Ardern, 40th Prime Minister of New Zealand
  • 1980 – Dave Baksh, Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1980 – Robert Gallery, American football player
  • 1981 – Abe Forsythe, Australian actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1981 (1360 SH) Mehdi Seyed-Salehi, Iranian soccer player
  • 1981 – Maicon Sisenando, Brazilian footballer
  • 1982 – Gilad Hochman, Israeli composer
  • 1982 – Christopher Kane, Scottish fashion designer
  • 1983 – Kelly Clark, American snowboarder
  • 1983 – Stephen Makinwa, Nigerian footballer
  • 1983 – Roderick Strong, American wrestler
  • 1983 – Naomi van As, Dutch field hockey player
  • 1983 – Ken Wallace, Australian kayaker
  • 1983 – Delonte West, American basketball player
  • 1984 – Kyriakos Ioannou, Cypriot high jumper
  • 1984 – Benjamin Kayser, French rugby player
  • 1984 – Sabri Sarıoğlu, Turkish footballer
  • 1985 – Marcus Benard, American football player
  • 1985 – Gaël Clichy, French footballer
  • 1985 – Audrey De Montigny, Canadian singer-songwriter
  • 1985 – Mat Gamel, American baseball player
  • 1986 – Leonardo Ulloa, Argentinian footballer
  • 1986 – John White, English footballer
  • 1987 – Panagiotis Kone, Greek footballer
  • 1987 – Jordie Benn, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1987 – Fredy Montero, Colombian footballer
  • 1988 – Yurie Omi, Japanese female announcer
  • 1988 – Sayaka Akimoto, Filipino–Japanese actress and singer
  • 1991 – Tyson Barrie, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1992 – Marika Koroibete, Fijian rugby player
  • 1993 – Raymond Faitala-Mariner, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1994 – Ella Leivo, Finnish tennis player
  • 1996 – Olivia Breen, British sprinter

Deaths on July 26

  • 342 – Cheng of Jin, emperor of the Jin Dynasty (b. 321)
  • 432 – Celestine I, pope of the Catholic Church
  • 811 – Nikephoros I, Byzantine emperor
  • 899 – Li Hanzhi, Chinese warlord (b. 842)
  • 943 – Motoyoshi, Japanese nobleman and poet (b. 890)
  • 990 – Fujiwara no Kaneie, Japanese statesman (b. 929)
  • 1380 – Kōmyō, emperor of Japan (b. 1322)
  • 1450 – Cecily Neville, duchess of Warwick (b. 1424)
  • 1471 – Paul II, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1417)
  • 1533 – Atahualpa, Inca emperor abducted and murdered by Francisco Pizarro (b. ca. 1500)
  • 1592 – Armand de Gontant, French marshal (b. 1524)
  • 1605 – Miguel de Benavides, Spanish archbishop and sinologist (b. 1552)
  • 1611 – Horio Yoshiharu, Japanese daimyō (b. 1542)
  • 1630 – Charles Emmanual I, duke of Savoy (b. 1562)
  • 1659 – Mary Frith, English female criminal (b. 1584)
  • 1680 – John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester, English poet and courtier (b. 1647)
  • 1684 – Elena Cornaro Piscopia, Italian mathematician and philosopher (b. 1646)
  • 1693 – Ulrika Eleonora of Denmark, queen of Sweden (b. 1656)
  • 1712 – Thomas Osborne, 1st Duke of Leeds, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1631)
  • 1723 – Robert Bertie, 1st Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, English politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (b. 1660)
  • 1801 – Maximilian Francis, archduke of Austria (b. 1756)
  • 1863 – Sam Houston, American general and politician, 7th Governor of Texas (b. 1793)
  • 1867 – Otto, king of Greece (b. 1815)
  • 1899 – Ulises Heureaux, 22nd, 26th, and 27th President of the Dominican Republic (b. 1845)
  • 1915 – James Murray, Scottish lexicographer and philologist (b. 1837)
  • 1919 – Edward Poynter, English painter and illustrator (b. 1836)
  • 1921 – Howard Vernon, Australian actor (b. 1848)
  • 1925 – Antonio Ascari, Italian race car driver (b. 1888)
  • 1925 – Gottlob Frege, German mathematician and philosopher (b. 1848)
  • 1925 – William Jennings Bryan, American lawyer and politician, 41st United States Secretary of State (b. 1860)
  • 1926 – Robert Todd Lincoln, American lawyer and politician, 35th United States Secretary of War, son of Abraham Lincoln (b. 1843)
  • 1930 – Pavlos Karolidis, Greek historian and academic (b. 1849)
  • 1932 – Fred Duesenberg, German-American businessman, co-founded the Duesenberg Company (b. 1876)
  • 1934 – Winsor McCay, American cartoonist, animator, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1871)
  • 1941 – Henri Lebesgue, French mathematician and academic (b. 1875)
  • 1942 – Roberto Arlt, Argentinian author and playwright (b. 1900)
  • 1951 – James Mitchell, Australian politician, 13th Premier of Western Australia (b. 1866)
  • 1952 – Eva Perón, Argentinian politician, 25th First Lady of Argentina (b. 1919)
  • 1953 – Nikolaos Plastiras, Greek general and politician, 135th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1883)
  • 1957 – Carlos Castillo Armas, Authoritarian ruler of Guatemala (1954-1957)
  • 1960 – Cedric Gibbons, British art director and production designer (b. 1893)
  • 1964 – Francis Curzon, 5th Earl Howe, English race car driver and politician (b. 1884)
  • 1968 – Cemal Tollu, Turkish lieutenant and painter (b. 1899)
  • 1970 – Robert Taschereau, Canadian lawyer and jurist, 11th Chief Justice of Canada (b. 1896)
  • 1971 – Diane Arbus, American photographer and academic (b. 1923)
  • 1980 (1359 SH) – Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the second shah (king) of Pahlavi dynasty
  • 1984 – George Gallup, American mathematician and statistician, founded the Gallup Company (b. 1901)
  • 1984 – Ed Gein, American serial killer (b. 1906)
  • 1986 – W. Averell Harriman, American politician and diplomat, 11th United States Secretary of Commerce (b. 1891)
  • 1988 – Fazlur Rahman Malik, Pakistani philosopher, scholar, and academic (b. 1919)
  • 1992 – Mary Wells, American singer-songwriter (b. 1943)
  • 1993 – Matthew Ridgway, American general (b. 1895)
  • 1994 – James Luther Adams, American theologian and academic (b. 1901)
  • 1995 – Laurindo Almeida, Brazilian-American guitarist and composer (b. 1917)
  • 1995 – Raymond Mailloux, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1918)
  • 1995 – George W. Romney, American businessman and politician, 43rd Governor of Michigan (b. 1907)
  • 1996 – Max Winter, American businessman and sports executive (b. 1903)
  • 1999 – Walter Jackson Bate, American author and critic (b. 1918)
  • 1999 – Phaedon Gizikis, Greek general and politician, President of Greece (b. 1917)
  • 2000 – John Tukey, American mathematician and academic (b. 1915)
  • 2001 – Rex T. Barber, American colonel and pilot (b. 1917)
  • 2001 – Peter von Zahn, German journalist and author (b. 1913)
  • 2004 – William A. Mitchell, American chemist, created Pop Rocks and Cool Whip (b. 1911)
  • 2005 – Alexander Golitzen, Russian-born American production designer and art director (b. 1908)
  • 2005 – Jack Hirshleifer, American economist and academic (b. 1925)
  • 2005 – Gilles Marotte, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1945)
  • 2007 – Lars Forssell, Swedish author, poet, and playwright (b. 1928)
  • 2007 – Skip Prosser, American basketball player and coach (b. 1950)
  • 2009 – Merce Cunningham, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1919)
  • 2010 – Sivakant Tiwari, Indian-Singaporean politician (b. 1945)
  • 2011 – Joe Arroyo, Colombian singer-songwriter and composer (b. 1955)
  • 2011 – Richard Harris, American-Canadian football player and coach (b. 1948)
  • 2011 – Sakyo Komatsu, Japanese author and screenwriter (b. 1931)
  • 2011 – Margaret Olley, Australian painter and philanthropist (b. 1923)
  • 2012 – Don Bagley, American bassist and composer (b. 1927)
  • 2012 – Karl Benjamin, American painter and educator (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – Miriam Ben-Porat, Russian-Israeli lawyer and jurist (b. 1918)
  • 2012 – Lupe Ontiveros, American actress (b. 1942)
  • 2012 – James D. Watkins, American admiral and politician, 6th United States Secretary of Energy (b. 1927)
  • 2013 – Luther F. Cole, American lawyer and politician (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Harley Flanders, American mathematician and academic (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Sung Jae-gi, South Korean philosopher and activist (b. 1967)
  • 2013 – George P. Mitchell, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1919)
  • 2014 – Oleh Babayev, Ukrainian businessman and politician (b. 1965)
  • 2014 – Charles R. Larson, American admiral (b. 1936)
  • 2014 – Richard MacCormac, English architect, founded MJP Architects (b. 1938)
  • 2014 – Sergei O. Prokofieff, Russian anthropologist and author (b. 1954)
  • 2014 – Roland Verhavert, Belgian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1927)
  • 2015 – Bijoy Krishna Handique, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Mines (b. 1934)
  • 2015 – Flora MacDonald, Canadian banker and politician, 10th Canadian Minister of Communications (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Leo Reise, Jr., Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1922)
  • 2015 – Ann Rule, American police officer and author (b. 1931)
  • 2017 – June Foray, American voice actress (b. 1917)
  • 2017 – Patti Deutsch, American voice artist and comedic actress (b. 1943)
  • 2017 – Ronald Phillips, American criminal (b. 1973)
  • 2018 – Adem Demaci, Kosovo Albanian politician and writer (b. 1936)
  • 2018 – John Kline, American basketball player (b. 1931)

Holidays and observances on July 26

  • Christian feast day:
    • Andrew of Phú Yên
    • Anne (Western Christianity)
    • Bartolomea Capitanio
    • Blessed Maria Pierina
    • Joachim (Western Christianity)
    • Paraskevi of Rome (Eastern Orthodox Church)
    • Venera
    • July 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of National Significance (Barbados)
  • Day of the National Rebellion (Cuba)
  • Esperanto Day
  • Independence Day (Liberia), celebrates the independence of Liberia from the American Colonization Society in 1847.
  • Independence Day (Maldives), celebrates the independence of Maldives from the United Kingdom in 1965.
  • Kargil Victory Day or Kargil Vijay Diwas (India)

July 26 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

June 22 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On this day the Summer solstice may occur in the Northern Hemisphere, and the Winter solstice may occur in the Southern Hemisphere.

June 22 in History

  • 217 BC – Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom.
  • 168 BC – Battle of Pydna: Romans under Lucius Aemilius Paullus defeat Macedonian King Perseus who surrenders after the battle, ending the Third Macedonian War.
  • 813 – Battle of Versinikia: The Bulgars led by Krum defeat the Byzantine army near Edirne. Emperor Michael I is forced to abdicate in favor of Leo V the Armenian.
  • 910 – The Hungarians defeat the East Frankish army near the Rednitz River, killing its leader Gebhard, Duke of Lotharingia (Lorraine).
  • 1527 – Fatahillah expels Portuguese forces from Sunda Kelapa, now regarded as the foundation of Jakarta.
  • 1593 – Battle of Sisak: Allied Christian troops defeat the Ottomans.
  • 1633 – The Holy Office in Rome forces Galileo Galilei to recant his view that the Sun, not the Earth, is the center of the Universe in the form he presented it in, after heated controversy.
  • 1774 – The British pass the Quebec Act, setting out rules of governance for the colony of Quebec in British North America.
  • 1783 – A poisonous cloud caused by the eruption of the Laki volcano in Iceland reaches Le Havre in France.
  • 1807 – In the ChesapeakeLeopard Affair, the British warship HMS Leopard attacks and boards the American frigate USS Chesapeake.
  • 1813 – War of 1812: After learning of American plans for a surprise attack on Beaver Dams in Ontario, Laura Secord sets out on a 30 kilometer journey on foot to warn Lieutenant James FitzGibbon.
  • 1839 – Cherokee leaders Major Ridge, John Ridge, and Elias Boudinot are assassinated for signing the Treaty of New Echota, which had resulted in the Trail of Tears.
  • 1870 – The United States Department of Justice is created by the U.S. Congress.
  • 1893 – The Royal Navy battleship HMS Camperdown accidentally rams the British Mediterranean Fleet flagship HMS Victoria which sinks taking 358 crew with her, including the fleet’s commander, Vice-Admiral Sir George Tryon.
  • 1897 – British colonial officers Charles Walter Rand and Lt. Charles Egerton Ayerst are assassinated in Pune, Maharashtra, India by the Chapekar brothers and Mahadeo Vinayak Ranade, who are later caught and hanged.
  • 1898 – Spanish–American War: In a chaotic operation, 6,000 men of the U.S. Fifth Army Corps begins landing at Daiquirí, Cuba, about 16 miles (26 km) east of Santiago de Cuba. Lt. Gen. Arsenio Linares y Pombo of the Spanish Army outnumbers them two-to-one, but does not oppose the landings.
  • 1907 – The London Underground’s Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway opens.
  • 1911 – George V and Mary of Teck are crowned King and Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
  • 1911 – Mexican Revolution: Government forces bring an end to the Magonista rebellion of 1911 in the Second Battle of Tijuana.
  • 1918 – The Hammond Circus Train Wreck kills 86 and injures 127 near Hammond, Indiana.
  • 1940 – World War II: France is forced to sign the Second Compiègne armistice with Germany, in the same railroad car in which the Germans signed the Armistice in 1918.
  • 1941 – World War II: Nazi Germany invades the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa.
  • 1942 – World War II: Erwin Rommel is promoted to Field Marshal after the Axis capture of Tobruk.
  • 1942 – The Pledge of Allegiance is formally adopted by US Congress.
  • 1944 – World War II: Opening day of the Soviet Union’s Operation Bagration against the Army Group Centre.
  • 1944 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs into law the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Okinawa comes to an end.
  • 1948 – The ship HMT Empire Windrush brought the first group of 802 West Indian immigrants to Tilbury, marking the start of modern immigration to the United Kingdom.
  • 1948 – King George VI formally gives up the title “Emperor of India”, half a year after Britain actually gave up its rule of India.
  • 1965 – The Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea is signed.
  • 1969 – The Cuyahoga River catches fire in Cleveland, Ohio, drawing national attention to water pollution, and spurring the passing of the Clean Water Act and the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency.
  • 1978 – Charon, the first of Pluto’s satellites to be discovered, was first seen at the United States Naval Observatory by James W. Christy.
  • 1984 – Virgin Atlantic Airways launches with its first flight from London Gatwick Airport.
  • 1986 – The famous Hand of God goal, scored by Diego Maradona in the quarter-finals of the 1986 FIFA World Cup match between Argentina and England, ignites controversy. This was later followed by the Goal of the Century. Argentina wins 2–1 and later goes on to win the World Cup.
  • 1990 – Cold War: Checkpoint Charlie is dismantled in Berlin.
  • 2000 – Wuhan Airlines Flight 343 is struck by lightning and crashes into Wuhan’s Hanyang District, killing 49 people.
  • 2002 – An earthquake measuring 6.5 Mw strikes a region of northwestern Iran killing at least 261 people and injuring 1,300 others and eventually causing widespread public anger due to the slow official response.
  • 2009 – A Washington D.C Metro train traveling southbound near Fort Totten station collides into another train waiting to enter the station. Nine people are killed in the collision (eight passengers and the train operator) and at least 80 others are injured.
  • 2012 – Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo is removed from office by impeachment and succeeded by Federico Franco.
  • 2012 – A Turkish Air Force McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II fighter plane is shot down by the Syrian Armed Forces, killing both of the plane’s pilots and worsening already-strained relations between Turkey and Syria.
  • 2015 – The Afghan National Assembly building is attacked by gunmen after a suicide bombing. All six of the gunmen are killed and 18 people are injured.

Births on June 22

  • 662 – Rui Zong, emperor of the Tang Dynasty (d. 716)
  • 916 – Sayf al-Dawla, founder of the Emirate of Aleppo (d. 967)
  • 1000 – Robert I, duke of Normandy (d. 1035)
  • 1373 – Elizabeth Bonifacia, heiress of Poland (d. 1399)
  • 1427 – Lucrezia Tornabuoni, Italian writer and wife of Piero di Cosimo de’ Medici (d. 1482)
  • 1450 – Eleanor of Naples, duchess of Ferrara (d. 1493)
  • 1477 – Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset, English nobleman (d. 1530)
  • 1593 – Sir John Gell, 1st Baronet, English politician and militarian (d. 1671)
  • 1680 – Ebenezer Erskine, Scottish minister and theologian (d. 1754)
  • 1684 – Francesco Manfredini, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1762)
  • 1704 – John Taylor, English author and scholar (d. 1766)
  • 1713 – John Sackville, English cricketer and politician (d. 1765)
  • 1738 – Jacques Delille, French poet and translator (d. 1813)
  • 1757 – George Vancouver, English lieutenant and explorer (d. 1798)
  • 1763 – Étienne Méhul, French pianist and composer (d. 1817)
  • 1767 – Wilhelm von Humboldt, German philosopher, academic, and politician, Interior Minister of Prussia (d. 1835)
  • 1792 – James Beaumont Neilson, Scottish engineer and businessman (d. 1865)
  • 1805 – Giuseppe Mazzini, Italian journalist and politician (d. 1872)
  • 1820 – James Hutchison Stirling, Scottish physician and philosopher (d. 1909)
  • 1834 – William Chester Minor, American surgeon and linguist (d. 1920)
  • 1837 – Paul Morphy, American chess player (d. 1884)
  • 1837 – Ernst Ziller, German-Greek architect, designed the Presidential Mansion (d. 1923)
  • 1844 – Oscar von Gebhardt, German theologian and academic (d. 1906)
  • 1845 – Tom Dula, American soldier (d. 1868)
  • 1845 – Richard Seddon, English-New Zealand politician, 15th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1906)
  • 1855 – Samuel Morris, Australian cricketer (d. 1931)
  • 1856 – Henry Rider Haggard, English novelist (d. 1925)
  • 1861 – Maximilian von Spee, Danish-German admiral (d. 1914)
  • 1864 – Hermann Minkowski, German mathematician and academic (d. 1909)
  • 1871 – William McDougall, English psychologist and polymath (d. 1938)
  • 1873 – Filippo Silvestri, Italian entomologist and academic (d. 1949)
  • 1874 – Walter Friedrich Otto, German philologist and scholar (d. 1958)
  • 1876 – Pascual Díaz y Barreto, Mexican archbishop (d. 1936)
  • 1879 – Thibaudeau Rinfret, Canadian lawyer and jurist, 9th Chief Justice of Canada (d. 1962)
  • 1880 – Johannes Drost, Dutch swimmer (d. 1954)
  • 1884 – James Rector, American sprinter and lawyer (d. 1949)
  • 1885 – Milan Vidmar, Slovenian engineer and chess player (d. 1962)
  • 1887 – Julian Huxley, English biologist and academic (d. 1975)
  • 1888 – Harold Hitz Burton, American lawyer and politician, 45th Mayor of Cleveland (d. 1964)
  • 1890 – Aleksander Warma, Estonian commander and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Estonia in exile (d. 1970)
  • 1891 – Franz Alexander, Hungarian psychoanalyst and physician (d. 1964)
  • 1892 – Robert Ritter von Greim, German general and pilot (d. 1945)
  • 1894 – Bernard Ashmole, English archaeologist and art historian (d. 1988)
  • 1896 – Leonard W. Murray, Canadian admiral (d. 1971)
  • 1897 – Edmund A. Chester, American journalist and broadcaster (d. 1973)
  • 1897 – Norbert Elias, German-Dutch sociologist and philosopher (d. 1990)
  • 1898 – Erich Maria Remarque, German-Swiss soldier and author (d. 1970)
  • 1899 – Richard Gurley Drew, American engineer, invented Masking tape (d. 1980)
  • 1899 – Michał Kalecki, Polish economist and academic (d. 1970)
  • 1900 – Oskar Fischinger, German-American abstract artist, filmmaker, and painter (d. 1967)
  • 1901 – Elias Katz, Finnish runner and coach (d. 1947)
  • 1902 – Marguerite De La Motte, American actress (d. 1950)
  • 1903 – John Dillinger, American criminal (d. 1934)
  • 1903 – Carl Hubbell, American baseball player (d. 1988)
  • 1906 – William Kneale, English logician and philosopher (d. 1990)
  • 1906 – Anne Morrow Lindbergh, American pilot and author (d. 2001)
  • 1906 – Billy Wilder, Austrian-born American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2002)
  • 1907 – Eriks Ādamsons, Latvian writer, poet, and novelist (d. 1946)
  • 1909 – Katherine Dunham, American dancer and choreographer (d. 2006)
  • 1909 – Infanta Beatriz of Spain, Spanish aristocratic (d. 2002)
  • 1909 – Mike Todd, American producer and manager (d. 1958)
  • 1910 – John Hunt, Baron Hunt, Indian-English lieutenant and mountaineer (d. 1998)
  • 1910 – Anne Ziegler, English singer (d. 2003)
  • 1910 – Konrad Zuse, German computer scientist and engineer, invented the Z3 computer (d. 1995)
  • 1911 – Vernon Kirby, South African tennis player (d. 1994)
  • 1912 – Princess Caroline Mathilde of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (d. 1983)
  • 1912 – Raymonde Allain, French model and actress (d. 2008)
  • 1913 – Sándor Weöres, Hungarian poet and author (d. 1989)
  • 1914 – Mei Zhi, Chinese author and essayist (d. 2004)
  • 1915 – Dolf van der Linden, Dutch conductor and composer (d. 1999)
  • 1915 – Cornelius Warmerdam, American pole vaulter and coach (d. 2001)
  • 1915 – Randolph Hokanson, American pianist (d. 2018)
  • 1915 – Thomas Quinn Curtiss, American writer, and film and theatre critic (d. 2000)
  • 1916 – Johnny Jacobs, American television announcer (d. 1982)
  • 1916 – Richard Eastham, American actor (d. 2005)
  • 1916 – Emil Fackenheim, Jewish philosopher and Reform rabbi (d. 2003)
  • 1918 – Cicely Saunders, English Anglican nurse, social worker, physician and writer (d. 2005)
  • 1919 – Gower Champion, American dancer and choreographer (d. 1980)
  • 1919 – Henri Tajfel, Polish social psychologist (d. 1982)
  • 1919 – Clifton McNeely, American basketball player and coach (d. 2003)
  • 1920 – James H. Pomerene, American computer scientist and engineer (d. 2008)
  • 1920 – Jovito Salonga, Filipino lawyer and politician, 14th President of the Senate of the Philippines (d. 2016)
  • 1921 – Joseph Papp, American director and producer (d. 1991)
  • 1921 – Barbara Vucanovich, American lawyer and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Radovan Ivšić, Croatian writer (d. 2009)
  • 1921 – Barbara Perry, American actress (d. 2019)
  • 1922 – Bill Blass, American fashion designer, founded Bill Blass Group (d. 2002)
  • 1922 – Clair Cameron Patterson, American scientist (d. 1995)
  • 1923 – José Giovanni, French-Swiss director and screenwriter (d. 2004)
  • 1924 – Christopher Booth, English clinician and historian (d. 2012)
  • 1924 – Larkin Kerwin, Canadian physicist and academic (d. 2004)
  • 1926 – George Englund, American film editor, director, producer and actor (d. 2017)
  • 1926 – Rachid Solh, Lebanese politician, 48th Prime Minister of Lebanon (d. 2014)
  • 1926 – Doreen Mantle, South African-English actress
  • 1927 – Anthony Low, Indian-English historian and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1928 – Ralph Waite, American actor and director (d. 2014)
  • 1929 – Bruce Kent, English activist and laicised Roman Catholic priest
  • 1930 – Yuri Artyukhin, Russian colonel, engineer, and astronaut (d. 1998)
  • 1930 – Walter Bonatti, Italian journalist and mountaineer (d. 2011)
  • 1931 – Ruby Garrard Woodson, American educator and cultural historian (d. 2008)
  • 1932 – Soraya Esfandiary-Bakhtiari, Princess of Iran (d. 2001)
  • 1932 – Yevgeny Kychanov, Russian orientalist, historian, and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1932 – Amrish Puri, Indian actor (d. 2005)
  • 1932 – June Salter, Australian actress (d. 2001)
  • 1932 – Prunella Scales, English actress
  • 1932 – John Wakeham, Baron Wakeham, English businessman and politician, Leader of the House of Lords
  • 1933 – Dianne Feinstein, American politician
  • 1934 – James Bjorken, American physicist, author, and academic
  • 1936 – Kris Kristofferson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
  • 1936 – Ferran Olivella, Spanish footballer
  • 1936 – Hermeto Pascoal, Brazilian accordion player and composer
  • 1937 – Chris Blackwell, English record producer, co-founded Island Records
  • 1937 – Bernie McGann, Australian saxophonist and composer (d. 2013)
  • 1939 – Don Matthews, American-Canadian football player and coach (d. 2017)
  • 1939 – Ed Paschke, Polish-American painter and academic (d. 2004)
  • 1940 – Joan Busfield, English sociologist, psychologist, and academic
  • 1940 – Hubert Chesshyre, English historian and author
  • 1940 – Abbas Kiarostami, Iranian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
  • 1940 – Esther Rantzen, English journalist
  • 1941 – Ed Bradley, American journalist (d. 2006)
  • 1941 – Terttu Savola, Finnish journalist and politician
  • 1943 – Brit Hume, American journalist and author
  • 1943 – Klaus Maria Brandauer, Austrian actor and director
  • 1944 – Peter Asher, English singer, guitarist, and producer
  • 1944 – Helmut Dietl, German director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1945 – Rainer Brüderle, German economist and politician, German Minister of Economics and Technology
  • 1946 – Linda Bond, Canadian 19th General of The Salvation Army
  • 1946 – Sheila Hollins, Baroness Hollins, English psychiatrist and academic
  • 1946 – Eliades Ochoa, Cuban singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1946 – Józef Oleksy, Polish economist and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Poland (d. 2015)
  • 1946 – Stephen Waley-Cohen, English journalist and businessman
  • 1947 – Octavia E. Butler, American author (d. 2006)
  • 1947 – Howard Kaylan, American pop-rock singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1947 – Pete Maravich, American basketball player (d. 1988)
  • 1947 – Jerry Rawlings, Ghanaian lieutenant and politician, President of Ghana
  • 1948 – James Charteris, 13th Earl of Wemyss, Scottish businessman
  • 1948 – Todd Rundgren, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1949 – Larry Junstrom, American bass player
  • 1949 – Brian Leveson, English lawyer and judge
  • 1949 – Alan Osmond, American singer and producer
  • 1949 – Meryl Streep, American actress and singer
  • 1949 – Luís Filipe Vieira, Portuguese businessman
  • 1949 – Lindsay Wagner, American actress
  • 1949 – Elizabeth Warren, American academic and politician
  • 1950 – Sharon Maughan, English actress
  • 1950 – Adrian Năstase, Romanian lawyer and politician, 59th Prime Minister of Romania
  • 1950 – Greg Oliphant, Australian rugby league player
  • 1950 – Zenonas Petrauskas, Lithuanian lawyer and politician (d. 2009)
  • 1950 – Tom Alter, Indian actor (d. 2017)
  • 1951 – Brian Cookson, British cyclist and sports administrator
  • 1951 – Craig Gruber, American bass player (d. 2015)
  • 1951 – Humphrey Ocean, English painter and academic
  • 1952 – Graham Greene, Canadian actor
  • 1952 – Santokh Singh, Malaysian football player
  • 1953 – Wim Eijk, Dutch cardinal
  • 1953 – Mauro Francaviglia, Italian mathematician and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1953 – Cyndi Lauper, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
  • 1953 – Bruce McAvaney, Australian journalist and sportscaster
  • 1954 – Freddie Prinze, American comedian and actor (d. 1977)
  • 1955 – Green Gartside, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1955 – Christine Orengo, British academic and educator
  • 1956 – Darryl Brohman, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
  • 1956 – Alfons De Wolf, Belgian cyclist
  • 1956 – Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Pakistani agriculturist and politician, 25th Pakistani Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1956 – Tim Russ, American actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1956 – Markus Schatte, German footballer, manager, and coach
  • 1956 – Derek Forbes, Scottish bass player and guitarist
  • 1957 – Danny Baker, English journalist and screenwriter
  • 1957 – Garry Gary Beers, Australian bass player, songwriter, and producer
  • 1957 – Kevin Bond, English footballer and manager
  • 1957 – Michael Stratton, English geneticist and academic
  • 1958 – Rocío Banquells, Mexican pop singer and actress
  • 1958 – Bruce Campbell, American actor, director, producer and writer
  • 1959 – Michael Kinane, Irish jockey
  • 1959 – Nicola Sirkis, French singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1959 – Daniel Xuereb, French footballer
  • 1960 – Erin Brockovich, American lawyer and environmentalist
  • 1960 – Margrit Klinger, German runner
  • 1960 – Tracy Pollan, American actress
  • 1961 – Jimmy Somerville, Scottish singer-songwriter
  • 1962 – Stephen Chow, Hong Kong actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1962 – Bobby Gillespie, Scottish musician and singer-songwriter
  • 1962 – Clyde Drexler, American basketball player and coach
  • 1962 – Gerald Hillringhaus, German footballer
  • 1963 – Hokutoumi Nobuyoshi, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 61st Yokozuna
  • 1963 – John Tenta, Canadian-American wrestler (d. 2006)
  • 1964 – Cadillac Anderson, American basketball player
  • 1964 – Amy Brenneman, American actress
  • 1964 – Dan Brown, American author and academic
  • 1964 – Miroslav Kadlec, Czech footballer
  • 1965 – Uwe Boll, German director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1965 – Ľubomír Moravčík, Czech footballer and manager
  • 1966 – Michael Park, English racing driver (d. 2005)
  • 1966 – Emmanuelle Seigner, French actress
  • 1966 – Dean Woods, Australian cyclist
  • 1968 – Darrell Armstrong, American basketball player and coach
  • 1968 – Miri Yu, Zainichi, Korean novelist
  • 1971 – Gary Connolly, English rugby player
  • 1971 – Mary Lynn Rajskub, American actress and comedian
  • 1971 – Kurt Warner, American football player and sportscaster
  • 1972 – Damien Oliver, Australian jockey
  • 1973 – Carson Daly, American radio and television host
  • 1974 – Jo Cox, British MP (d. 2016)
  • 1974 – Vijay, Indian film actor in Tamil cinema
  • 1975 – Urmas Reinsalu, Estonian academic and politician, 28th Estonian Minister of Defence
  • 1978 – Champ Bailey, American football player
  • 1978 – Dan Wheldon, English racing driver (d. 2011)
  • 1979 – Joey Cheek, American speed skater
  • 1979 – Thomas Voeckler, French cyclist
  • 1980 – Ilya Bryzgalov, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1980 – Stephanie Jacobsen, Hong Kong-Australian actress
  • 1981 – Sione Lauaki, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1981 – Aquivaldo Mosquera, Colombian footballer
  • 1982 – Andoni Iraola, Spanish footballer
  • 1982 – Ian Kinsler, American baseball player
  • 1982 – Soraia Chaves, Portuguese actress and model
  • 1983 – Allar Raja, Estonian rower
  • 1984 – Dustin Johnson, American golfer
  • 1984 – Rubén Iván Martínez, Spanish footballer
  • 1984 – Jerome Taylor, Jamaican cricketer
  • 1984 – Janko Tipsarević, Serbian tennis player
  • 1985 – Thomas Leuluai, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1987 – Danny Green, American basketball player
  • 1987 – Nikita Rukavytsya, Ukrainian-Australian footballer
  • 1988 – Omri Casspi, Israeli basketball player
  • 1989 – Cédric Mongongu, Congolese footballer
  • 1989 – Jung Yong-hwa, South Korean singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1990 – Sebastian Jung, German footballer
  • 1991 – Hugo Mallo, Spanish footballer
  • 1992 – Ura Kazuki, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1992 – Harry Reid, British actor
  • 1993 – Loris Karius, German footballer
  • 1994 – Sebastien Haller, French footballer
  • 1994 – Carlos Vinícius Santos de Jesus, Brazilian footballer
  • 1996 – Mikel Merino, Spanish footballer
  • 1999 – Sam Retford, Australian-English actor

Deaths on June 22

  • 431 – Paulinus of Nola, Christian bishop and poet (b. 354)
  • 910 – Gebhard, Frankish nobleman
  • 910 – Gerhard I, Frankish nobleman
  • 947 – Qian Hongzuo, king of Wuyue (b. 928)
  • 1017 – Leo Passianos, Byzantine general
  • 1101 – Roger I of Sicily, Norman nobleman (b. 1031)
  • 1276 – Innocent V, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1225)
  • 1343 – Aimone, Count of Savoy (b. 1291)
  • 1429 – Jamshīd al-Kāshī, Persian astronomer and mathematician (b. 1380)
  • 1521 – Leonardo Loredan, Italian politician, 76th Doge of Venice (b. 1436)
  • 1535 – John Fisher, English bishop and saint (b. 1469)
  • 1632 – James Whitelocke, English judge and politician, Chief Justice of Chester (b. 1570)
  • 1634 – Johann von Aldringen, Austrian field marshal (b. 1588)
  • 1664 – Katherine Philips, Anglo-Welsh poet (b. 1631)
  • 1699 – Josiah Child, English merchant, economist, and politician (b. 1630)
  • 1714 – Matthew Henry, Welsh minister and author (b. 1662)
  • 1766 – Carlo Zimech, Maltese priest and painter (b. 1696)
  • 1868 – Heber C. Kimball, American religious leader (b. 1801)
  • 1872 – Rudecindo Alvarado, Argentinian general (b. 1792)
  • 1874 – Howard Staunton, English chess player (b. 1810)
  • 1892 – Pierre Ossian Bonnet, French mathematician and academic (b. 1819)
  • 1894 – Alexandre-Antonin Taché, Canadian archbishop and missionary (b. 1823)
  • 1905 – Francis Lubbock, American colonel and politician, 9th Governor of Texas (b. 1815)
  • 1913 – Ștefan Octavian Iosif, Romanian poet and translator (b. 1875)
  • 1925 – Felix Klein, German mathematician and academic (b. 1849)
  • 1928 – A. B. Frost, American illustrator and painter (b. 1851)
  • 1931 – Armand Fallières, French politician, 9th President of France (b. 1841)
  • 1933 – Tim Birkin, English racing driver and lieutenant (b. 1896)
  • 1935 – Szymon Askenazy, Polish historian and diplomat (b. 1866)
  • 1936 – Moritz Schlick, German-Austrian physicist and philosopher (b. 1882)
  • 1938 – C. J. Dennis, Australian poet and author (b. 1876)
  • 1940 – Monty Noble, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (b. 1873)
  • 1942 – August Froehlich, German priest and activist (b. 1891)
  • 1945 – Isamu Chō, Japanese general (b. 1895)
  • 1945 – Mitsuru Ushijima, Japanese general (b. 1887)
  • 1956 – Walter de la Mare, English poet, short story writer and novelist (b. 1873)
  • 1959 – Hermann Brill, German educator and politician, 8th Minister-President of Thuringia (b. 1895)
  • 1964 – Havank, Dutch journalist and author (b. 1904)
  • 1965 – David O. Selznick, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1902)
  • 1966 – Thaddeus Shideler, American hurdler (b. 1883)
  • 1969 – Judy Garland, American actress and singer (b. 1922)
  • 1970 – Đặng Thùy Trâm, Vietnamese surgeon and author (b. 1942)
  • 1974 – Darius Milhaud, French composer and educator (b. 1892)
  • 1977 – Jacqueline Audry, French director and screenwriter (b. 1908)
  • 1977 – Peter Laughner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Rocket From the Tombs and Pere Ubu) (b. 1952)
  • 1979 – Louis Chiron, Monégasque race car driver (b. 1899)
  • 1984 – Joseph Losey, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1909)
  • 1987 – Fred Astaire, American actor and dancer (b. 1899)
  • 1988 – Dennis Day, American singer and actor (b. 1916)
  • 1990 – Ilya Frank, Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1908)
  • 1993 – Pat Nixon, American educator, 37th First Lady of the United States (b. 1912)
  • 1995 – Leonid Derbenyov, Russian poet and songwriter (b. 1931)
  • 1995 – Al Hansen, American sculptor and author (b. 1927)
  • 1997 – Ted Gärdestad, Swedish singer-songwriter (b. 1956)
  • 1997 – Gérard Pelletier, Canadian journalist and politician (b. 1919)
  • 2003 – Vasil Bykaŭ, Belarusian war novelist (b. 1924)
  • 2004 – Bob Bemer, American computer scientist and engineer (b. 1920)
  • 2004 – Mattie Stepanek, American poet and author (b. 1990)
  • 2007 – Erik Parlevliet, Dutch field hockey player (b. 1964)
  • 2008 – Natalia Bekhtereva, Russian neuroscientist and psychologist (b. 1924)
  • 2008 – George Carlin, American comedian, actor, and author (b. 1937)
  • 2008 – Dody Goodman, American actress and dancer (b. 1914)
  • 2011 – Coşkun Özarı, Turkish footballer and coach (b. 1931)
  • 2012 – Juan Luis Galiardo, Spanish actor and producer (b. 1922)
  • 2013 – Henning Larsen, Danish architect, designed the Copenhagen Opera House (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Allan Simonsen, Danish race car driver (b. 1978)
  • 2014 – Fouad Ajami, Lebanese-American author and academic (b. 1945)
  • 2014 – Rama Narayanan, Indian director and producer (b. 1949)
  • 2015 – James Horner, American composer and conductor (b. 1953)
  • 2017 – Mao Kobayashi, Japanese newscaster and actress (b. 1982)
  • 2017 – Quett Masire, Botswanan politician (b. 1926)
  • 2018 – Vinnie Paul, American musician (b. 1964)

Holidays and observances on June 22

  • Christian feast day:
    • Aaron of Aleth
    • Alban, first recorded Martyr in Britain (commemoration, Anglicanism)
    • Blessed Pope Innocent V
    • Eusebius of Samosata (Orthodox Church)
    • John Fisher (Catholic Church)
    • Nicetas of Remesiana
    • Paulinus of Nola
    • Thomas More (Catholic Church)
    • June 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Anti-Fascist Struggle Day (Croatia)
  • Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Great Patriotic War (Belarus)
  • Father’s Day (Guernsey, Isle of Man, and Jersey)
  • Teachers’ Day (El Salvador)

June 22 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

June 21 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

This day usually marks the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, which is the day of the year with the most hours of daylight in the Northern Hemisphere and the fewest hours of daylight in the Southern Hemisphere.

June 21 in History

  • 533 – A Byzantine expeditionary fleet under Belisarius sails from Constantinople to attack the Vandals in Africa, via Greece and Sicily (approximate date).
  • 1307 – Külüg Khan is enthroned as Khagan of the Mongols and Wuzong of the Yuan.
  • 1529 – French forces are driven out of northern Italy by Spain at the Battle of Landriano during the War of the League of Cognac.
  • 1582 – Sengoku period: Oda Nobunaga, the most powerful of the Japanese daimyōs, is forced to commit suicide by his own general Akechi Mitsuhide.
  • 1621 – Execution of 27 Czech noblemen on the Old Town Square in Prague as a consequence of the Battle of White Mountain.
  • 1734 – In Montreal in New France, a slave known by the French name of Marie-Joseph Angélique is put to death, having been convicted of setting the fire that destroyed much of the city.
  • 1749 – Halifax, Nova Scotia, is founded.
  • 1768 – James Otis Jr. offends the King and Parliament in a speech to the Massachusetts General Court.
  • 1788 – New Hampshire becomes the ninth state to ratify the Constitution of the United States.
  • 1791 – King Louis XVI of France and his immediate family begin the Flight to Varennes during the French Revolution.
  • 1798 – Irish Rebellion of 1798: The British Army defeats Irish rebels at the Battle of Vinegar Hill.
  • 1813 – Peninsular War: Wellington defeats Joseph Bonaparte at the Battle of Vitoria.
  • 1824 – Greek War of Independence: Egyptian forces capture Psara in the Aegean Sea.
  • 1826 – Maniots defeat Egyptians under Ibrahim Pasha in the Battle of Vergas.
  • 1848 – In the Wallachian Revolution, Ion Heliade Rădulescu and Christian Tell issue the Proclamation of Islaz and create a new republican government.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Jerusalem Plank Road begins.
  • 1898 – The United States captures Guam from Spain. The few warning shots fired by the U.S. naval vessels are misinterpreted as salutes by the Spanish garrison, which was unaware that the two nations were at war.
  • 1900 – Boxer Rebellion. China formally declares war on the United States, Britain, Germany, France and Japan, as an edict issued from the Empress Dowager Cixi.
  • 1915 – The U.S. Supreme Court hands down its decision in Guinn v. United States 238 US 347 1915, striking down Oklahoma grandfather clause legislation which had the effect of denying the right to vote to blacks.
  • 1919 – The Royal Canadian Mounted Police fire a volley into a crowd of unemployed war veterans, killing two, during the Winnipeg general strike.
  • 1919 – Admiral Ludwig von Reuter scuttles the German fleet at Scapa Flow, Orkney. The nine sailors killed are the last casualties of World War I.
  • 1929 – An agreement brokered by U.S. Ambassador Dwight Whitney Morrow ends the Cristero War in Mexico.
  • 1930 – One-year conscription comes into force in France.
  • 1940 – World War II: Italy begins an unsuccessful invasion of France.
  • 1942 – World War II: Tobruk falls to Italian and German forces.
  • 1942 – World War II: A Japanese submarine surfaces near the Columbia River in Oregon, firing 17 shells at Fort Stevens in one of only a handful of attacks by Japan against the United States mainland.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Okinawa ends when the organized resistance of Imperial Japanese Army forces collapses in the Mabuni area on the southern tip of the main island.
  • 1952 – The Philippine School of Commerce, through a republic act, is converted to Philippine College of Commerce, later to be the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.
  • 1957 – Ellen Fairclough is sworn in as Canada’s first female Cabinet Minister.
  • 1963 – Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini is elected as Pope Paul VI.
  • 1964 – Three civil rights workers, Andrew Goodman, James Chaney and Michael Schwerner, are murdered in Neshoba County, Mississippi, United States, by members of the Ku Klux Klan.
  • 1970 – Penn Central declares Section 77 bankruptcy in what was the largest U.S. corporate bankruptcy to date.
  • 1973 – In its decision in Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15, the Supreme Court of the United States establishes the Miller test for determining whether something is obscene and not protected speech under the U.S. constitution.
  • 1978 – The original production of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, Evita, based on the life of Eva Perón, opens at the Prince Edward Theatre, London.
  • 1982 – John Hinckley is found not guilty by reason of insanity for the attempted assassination of U.S. President Ronald Reagan.
  • 1989 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397, that American flag-burning is a form of political protest protected by the First Amendment.
  • 2000 – Section 28 (of the Local Government Act 1988), outlawing the ‘promotion’ of homosexuality in the United Kingdom, is repealed in Scotland with a 99 to 17 vote.
  • 2001 – A federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, indicts 13 Saudis and a Lebanese in the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 American servicemen.
  • 2004 – SpaceShipOne becomes the first privately funded spaceplane to achieve spaceflight.
  • 2005 – Edgar Ray Killen, who had previously been unsuccessfully tried for the murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Mickey Schwerner, is convicted of manslaughter 41 years afterwards (the case had been reopened in 2004).
  • 2006 – Pluto’s newly discovered moons are officially named Nix and Hydra.
  • 2009 – Greenland assumes self-rule.
  • 2012 – A boat carrying more than 200 migrants capsizes in the Indian Ocean between the Indonesian island of Java and Christmas Island, killing 17 people and leaving 70 others missing.

Births on June 21

  • 598 – Pope Martin I (d. 656)
  • 906 – Abu Ja’far Ahmad ibn Muhammad, Saffarid emir (d. 963)
  • 1002 – Pope Leo IX (d. 1054)
  • 1226 – Bolesław V the Chaste of Poland (d. 1279)
  • 1521 – John II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Haderslev (d. 1580)
  • 1528 – Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress (d. 1603)
  • 1535 – Leonhard Rauwolf, German physician and botanist (d. 1596)
  • 1630 – Samuel Oppenheimer, German Jewish banker and diplomat (d. 1703)
  • 1636 – Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d’Auvergne, Duke of Bouillon, French noble (d. 1721)
  • 1639 – Increase Mather, American minister and author (d. 1723)
  • 1676 – Anthony Collins, English philosopher and author (d. 1729)
  • 1706 – John Dollond, English optician and astronomer (d. 1761)
  • 1710 – James Short, Scottish-English mathematician and optician (d. 1768)
  • 1712 – Luc Urbain de Bouëxic, comte de Guichen, French admiral (d. 1790)
  • 1730 – Motoori Norinaga, Japanese poet and scholar (d. 1801)
  • 1732 – Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, German pianist and composer (d. 1791)
  • 1736 – Enoch Poor, American general (d. 1780)
  • 1741 – Prince Benedetto, Duke of Chablais (d. 1808)
  • 1750 – Pierre-Nicolas Beauvallet, French sculptor and illustrator (d. 1818)
  • 1759 – Alexander J. Dallas, American lawyer and politician, 6th United States Secretary of the Treasury (d. 1817)
  • 1763 – Pierre Paul Royer-Collard, French philosopher and academic (d. 1845)
  • 1764 – Sidney Smith, English admiral and politician (d. 1840)
  • 1774 – Daniel D. Tompkins, American lawyer and politician, 6th Vice President of the United States (d. 1825)
  • 1781 – Siméon Denis Poisson, French mathematician and physicist (d. 1840)
  • 1786 – Charles Edward Horn, English singer-songwriter (d. 1849)
  • 1792 – Ferdinand Christian Baur, German theologian and scholar (d. 1860)
  • 1797 – Wilhelm Küchelbecker, Russian poet and author (d. 1846)
  • 1802 – Karl Zittel, German theologian (d. 1871)
  • 1805 – Karl Friedrich Curschmann, German composer and singer (d. 1841)
  • 1805 – Charles Thomas Jackson, American physician and geologist (d. 1880)
  • 1811 – Carlo Matteucci, Italian physicist and neurophysiologist (d. 1868)
  • 1814 – Anton Nuhn, German anatomist and academic (d. 1889)
  • 1823 – Jean Chacornac, French astronomer (d. 1873)
  • 1825 – Thomas Edward Cliffe Leslie, Irish economist and jurist (d. 1882)
  • 1825 – William Stubbs, English bishop and historian (d. 1901)
  • 1828 – Ferdinand André Fouqué, French geologist and academic (d. 1904)
  • 1828 – Nikolaus Nilles, German Catholic writer and teacher (d. 1907)
  • 1834 – Frans de Cort, Flemish poet and author (d. 1878)
  • 1836 – Luigi Tripepi, Italian theologian (d. 1906)
  • 1839 – Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, Brazilian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1908)
  • 1845 – Samuel Griffith, Welsh-Australian politician, 9th Premier of Queensland (d. 1920)
  • 1845 – Arthur Cowper Ranyard, English astrophysicist and astronomer (d. 1894)
  • 1846 – Marion Adams-Acton, Scottish-English author and playwright (d. 1928)
  • 1846 – Enrico Coleman, Italian painter (d. 1911)
  • 1850 – Daniel Carter Beard, American author and illustrator, co-founded the Boy Scouts of America (d. 1941)
  • 1858 – Giuseppe De Sanctis, Italian painter (d. 1924)
  • 1858 – Medardo Rosso, Italian sculptor and educator (d. 1928)
  • 1859 – Henry Ossawa Tanner, American-French painter and illustrator (d. 1937)
  • 1862 – Damrong Rajanubhab, Thai historian and author (d. 1943)
  • 1863 – Max Wolf, German astronomer and academic (d. 1932)
  • 1864 – Heinrich Wölfflin, Swiss historian and critic (d. 1945)
  • 1867 – Oscar Florianus Bluemner, German-American painter and illustrator (d. 1938)
  • 1867 – William Brede Kristensen, Norwegian historian of religion (d. 1953)
  • 1868 – Edwin Stephen Goodrich, English zoologist and anatomist (d. 1946)
  • 1870 – Clara Immerwahr, Jewish-German chemist and academic (d. 1915)
  • 1870 – Anthony Michell, English-Australian engineer (d. 1959)
  • 1870 – Julio Ruelas, Mexican painter (d. 1907)
  • 1876 – Swami Kalyan Dev, philosopher  (d. 2004)
  • 1876 – Willem Hendrik Keesom, Dutch physicist and academic (d. 1956)
  • 1880 – Arnold Gesell, American psychologist and pediatrician (d. 1961)
  • 1880 – Josiah Stamp, 1st Baron Stamp, English economist and civil servant (d. 1941)
  • 1881 – (O.S.) Natalia Goncharova, Russian painter, costume designer, and illustrator (d. 1962)
  • 1882 – Lluís Companys, Spanish lawyer and politician, 123rd President of Catalonia (d. 1940)
  • 1882 – Adrianus de Jong, Dutch fencer and soldier (d. 1966)
  • 1882 – Rockwell Kent, American painter and illustrator (d. 1971)
  • 1883 – Feodor Gladkov, Russian author and educator (d. 1958)
  • 1884 – Claude Auchinleck, English field marshal (d. 1981)
  • 1887 – Norman L. Bowen, Canadian geologist and petrologist (d. 1956)
  • 1889 – Ralph Craig, American sprinter and sailor (d. 1972)
  • 1891 – Pier Luigi Nervi, Italian architect and engineer, co-designed the Pirelli Tower and Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption (d. 1979)
  • 1891 – Hermann Scherchen, German-Swiss viola player and conductor (d. 1966)
  • 1892 – Reinhold Niebuhr, American theologian and academic (d. 1971)
  • 1893 – Alois Hába, Czech composer and educator (d. 1973)
  • 1894 – Milward Kennedy, English journalist and civil servant (d. 1968)
  • 1896 – Charles Momsen, American admiral, invented the Momsen lung (d. 1967)
  • 1898 – Donald C. Peattie, American botanist and author (d. 1964)
  • 1899 – Pavel Haas, Czech composer (d. 1944)
  • 1903 – Hermann Engelhard, German runner and coach (d. 1984)
  • 1903 – Al Hirschfeld, American caricaturist, painter and illustrator (d. 2003)
  • 1905 – Jacques Goddet, French journalist (d. 2000)
  • 1905 – Jean-Paul Sartre, French philosopher and author (d. 1980)
  • 1908 – William Frankena, American philosopher and academic (d. 1994)
  • 1910 – Aleksandr Tvardovsky, Russian poet and author (d. 1971)
  • 1911 – Irving Fein, American producer and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1912 – Kazimierz Leski, Polish pilot and engineer (d. 2000)
  • 1912 – Mary McCarthy, American novelist and critic (d. 1989)
  • 1912 – Vishnu Prabhakar, Indian author and playwright (d. 2009)
  • 1913 – Madihe Pannaseeha Thero, Sri Lankan monk and scholar (d. 2003)
  • 1913 – Luis Taruc, Filipino political activist (d. 2005)
  • 1914 – William Vickrey, Canadian-American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1996)
  • 1915 – Wilhelm Gliese, German soldier and astronomer (d. 1993)
  • 1916 – Joseph Cyril Bamford, English businessman, founded J. C. Bamford (d. 2001)
  • 1916 – Tchan Fou-li, Chinese photographer (d. 2018)
  • 1916 – Herbert Friedman, American physicist and astronomer (d. 2000)
  • 1916 – Buddy O’Connor, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1977)
  • 1918 – Robert A. Boyd, Canadian engineer (d. 2006)
  • 1918 – James Joll, English historian, author, and academic (d. 1994)
  • 1918 – Eddie Lopat, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1992)
  • 1918 – Dee Molenaar, American mountaineer (d. 2020)
  • 1918 – Robert Roosa, American economist and banker (d. 1993)
  • 1918 – Tibor Szele, Hungarian mathematician and academic (d. 1955)
  • 1918 – Josephine Webb, American engineer
  • 1919 – Antonia Mesina, Italian martyr and saint (d. 1935)
  • 1919 – Gérard Pelletier, Canadian journalist and politician (d. 1997)
  • 1919 – Vladimir Simagin, Russian chess player and coach (d. 1968)
  • 1919 – Paolo Soleri, Italian-American architect, designed the Cosanti (d. 2013)
  • 1920 – Hans Gerschwiler, Swiss figure skater (d. 2017)
  • 1921 – Judy Holliday, American actress and singer (d. 1965)
  • 1921 – Jane Russell, American actress and singer (d. 2011)
  • 1921 – William Edwin Self, American actor, producer, and production manager (d. 2010)
  • 1922 – Joseph Ki-Zerbo, Burkinabé historian, politician and writer (d. 2006)
  • 1923 – Jacques Hébert, Canadian journalist and politician (d. 2007)
  • 1924 – Pontus Hultén, Swedish art collector and historian (d. 2006)
  • 1924 – Ezzatolah Entezami, Iranian actor (d. 2018)
  • 1924 – Wally Fawkes, British-Canadian jazz clarinetist and a satirical cartoonist
  • 1924 – Jean Laplanche, French psychoanalyst and academic (d. 2012)
  • 1925 – Larisa Avdeyeva, Russian mezzo-soprano (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Stanley Moss, American poet, publisher, and art dealer
  • 1925 – Giovanni Spadolini, Italian journalist and politician, 45th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1994)
  • 1925 – Maureen Stapleton, American actress (d. 2006)
  • 1926 – Fred Cone, American football player
  • 1926 – Conrad Hall, French-American cinematographer (d. 2003)
  • 1927 – Carl Stokes, American lawyer, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Seychelles (d. 1996)
  • 1928 – Wolfgang Haken, German-American mathematician and academic
  • 1928 – Fiorella Mari, Brazilian-Italian actress
  • 1928 – Margit Bara, Hungarian actress (d. 2016)
  • 1929 – Alexandre Lagoya, Egyptian-Greek guitarist and composer (d. 1999)
  • 1930 – Gerald Kaufman, English journalist and politician, Shadow Foreign Secretary (d. 2017)
  • 1930 – Mike McCormack, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1931 – Zlatko Grgić, Croatian-Canadian animator, director, and screenwriter (d. 1988)
  • 1931 – Margaret Heckler, American journalist, lawyer, and politician, 15th United States Secretary of Health and Human Services
  • 1931 – David Kushnir, Israeli Olympic long-jumper
  • 1932 – Bernard Ingham, English journalist and civil servant
  • 1932 – Lalo Schifrin, Argentinian pianist, composer, and conductor
  • 1932 – O.C. Smith, American R&B/jazz singer (d. 2001)
  • 1933 – Bernie Kopell, American actor and comedian
  • 1935 – Françoise Sagan, French author and playwright (d. 2004)
  • 1937 – John Edrich, English cricketer and coach
  • 1938 – Don Black, English songwriter
  • 1938 – John W. Dower, American historian and author
  • 1938 – Michael M. Richter, German mathematician and computer scientist
  • 1940 – Mariette Hartley, American actress and television personality
  • 1940 – Michael Ruse, Canadian philosopher and academic
  • 1941 – Aloysius Paul D’Souza, Indian bishop
  • 1941 – Joe Flaherty, American-Canadian actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1941 – Lyman Ward, Canadian actor
  • 1942 – Clive Brooke, Baron Brooke of Alverthorpe, English businessman and politician
  • 1942 – Marjorie Margolies, American journalist and politician
  • 1942 – Henry S. Taylor, American author and poet
  • 1942 – Togo D. West, Jr., American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 3rd United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
  • 1943 – Eumir Deodato, Brazilian pianist, composer, and producer
  • 1943 – Diane Marleau, Canadian accountant and politician, Canadian Minister of Health (d. 2013)
  • 1943 – Brian Sternberg, American pole vaulter (d. 2013)
  • 1944 – Ray Davies, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1944 – Tony Scott, English-American director and producer (d. 2012)
  • 1945 – Robert Dewar, English-American computer scientist and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1945 – Adam Zagajewski, Polish author and poet
  • 1946 – Per Eklund, Swedish race car driver
  • 1946 – Kate Hoey, Northern Irish-British academic and politician, Minister for Sport and the Olympics
  • 1946 – Brenda Holloway, American singer-songwriter
  • 1946 – Trond Kirkvaag, Norwegian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1946 – Malcolm Rifkind, Scottish lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Scotland
  • 1946 – Maurice Saatchi, Baron Saatchi, Iraqi-British businessman, founded M&C Saatchi and Saatchi & Saatchi
  • 1947 – Meredith Baxter, American actress
  • 1947 – Shirin Ebadi, Iranian lawyer, judge, and activist, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1947 – Michael Gross, American actor
  • 1947 – Joey Molland, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1947 – Wade Phillips, American football coach
  • 1947 – Fernando Savater, Spanish philosopher and author
  • 1948 – Jovan Aćimović, Serbian footballer and manager
  • 1948 – Ian McEwan, British novelist and screenwriter
  • 1948 – Andrzej Sapkowski, Polish author and translator
  • 1948 – Philippe Sarde, French composer and conductor
  • 1949 – John Agard, Guyanese-English author, poet, and playwright
  • 1949 – Derek Emslie, Lord Kingarth, Scottish lawyer and judge
  • 1950 – Anne Carson, Canadian poet and academic
  • 1950 – Joey Kramer, American rock drummer and songwriter (Aerosmith)
  • 1950 – Enn Reitel, Scottish actor and screenwriter
  • 1950 – Trygve Thue, Norwegian guitarist and record producer
  • 1950 – John Paul Young, Scottish-Australian singer-songwriter
  • 1951 – Jim Douglas, American academic and politician, 80th Governor of Vermont
  • 1951 – Terence Etherton, English lawyer and judge
  • 1951 – Alan Hudson, English footballer
  • 1951 – Nils Lofgren, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1951 – Lenore Manderson, Australian anthropologist and academic
  • 1951 – Mona-Lisa Pursiainen, Finnish sprinter (d. 2000)
  • 1952 – Judith Bingham, English singer-songwriter
  • 1952 – Jeremy Coney, New Zealand cricketer and sportscaster
  • 1952 – Patrick Dunleavy, English political scientist and academic
  • 1952 – Kōichi Mashimo, Japanese director and screenwriter
  • 1953 – Benazir Bhutto, Pakistani financier and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Pakistan (d. 2007)
  • 1954 – Már Guðmundsson, Icelandic economist, former Governor of Central Bank of Iceland
  • 1954 – Mark Kimmitt, American general and politician, 16th Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs
  • 1954 – Robert Menasse, Austrian author and academic
  • 1955 – Tim Bray, Canadian software developer and businessman
  • 1955 – Michel Platini, French footballer and manager
  • 1956 – Rick Sutcliffe, American baseball player and broadcaster
  • 1957 – Berkeley Breathed, American author and illustrator
  • 1957 – Luis Antonio Tagle, Filipino cardinal
  • 1958 – Víctor Montoya, Bolivian journalist and author
  • 1958 – Gennady Padalka, Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut
  • 1959 – John Baron, English captain and politician
  • 1959 – Tom Chambers, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1959 – Marcella Detroit, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1959 – Kathy Mattea, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1960 – Kate Brown, American politician, 38th Governor of Oregon
  • 1960 – Karl Erjavec, Slovenian politician
  • 1961 – Manu Chao, French singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1961 – Sascha Konietzko, German keyboard player and producer
  • 1961 – Joko Widodo, Indonesian businessman and politician, 7th President of Indonesia
  • 1961 – Kip Winger, American rock singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1961 – Iztok Mlakar, Slovenian actor and singer-songwriter
  • 1962 – Shōhei Takada, Japanese shogi player and theoretician
  • 1962 – Viktor Tsoi, Russian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1990)
  • 1963 – Dario Marianelli, Italian pianist and composer
  • 1963 – Mike Sherrard, American football player
  • 1964 – David Morrissey, English actor and director
  • 1964 – Dimitris Papaioannou, Greek director and choreographer
  • 1964 – Dean Saunders, Welsh footballer and manager
  • 1964 – Doug Savant, American actor
  • 1965 – David Beerling, English biologist and academic
  • 1965 – Yang Liwei, Chinese general, pilot, and astronaut
  • 1965 – Ewen McKenzie, Australian rugby player and coach
  • 1965 – Lana Wachowski, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1966 – Gretchen Carlson, American model and television journalist, Miss America 1989
  • 1967 – Jim Breuer, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1967 – Derrick Coleman, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1967 – Pierre Omidyar, French-American businessman, founded eBay
  • 1967 – Carrie Preston, American actress, director, and producer
  • 1967 – Yingluck Shinawatra, Thai businesswoman and politician, 28th Prime Minister of Thailand
  • 1968 – Sonique, English singer-songwriter and DJ
  • 1970 – Eric Reed, American pianist and composer
  • 1971 – Tyronne Drakeford, American football player
  • 1972 – Nobuharu Asahara, Japanese sprinter and long jumper
  • 1972 – Neil Doak, Northern Irish cricketer and rugby player
  • 1972 – Irene van Dyk, South African-New Zealand netball player
  • 1973 – Juliette Lewis, American actress and singer-songwriter
  • 1973 – John Mitchell, English guitarist, vocalist and songwriter
  • 1974 – Rob Kelly, American football player
  • 1974 – Craig Lowndes, Australian race car driver
  • 1974 – Flavio Roma, Italian footballer
  • 1975 – Brian Simmons, American football player
  • 1976 – Shelley Craft, Australian television host
  • 1976 – Mike Einziger, American guitarist and songwriter
  • 1976 – Nigel Lappin, Australian footballer and coach
  • 1977 – Michael Gomez, Irish boxer
  • 1977 – Al Wilson, American football player
  • 1978 – Thomas Blondeau, Flemish writer (d. 2013)
  • 1978 – Matt Kuchar, American golfer
  • 1978 – Cristiano Lupatelli, Italian footballer
  • 1978 – Gervase Markham, British software engineer (d. 2018)
  • 1978 – Dejan Ognjanović, Montenegrin footballer
  • 1978 – Rim’K, French rapper
  • 1979 – Kostas Katsouranis, Greek footballer
  • 1979 – Chris Pratt, American actor
  • 1980 – Michael Crocker, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
  • 1980 – Łukasz Cyborowski, Polish chess player
  • 1980 – Richard Jefferson, American basketball player
  • 1980 – Sendy Rleal, Dominican baseball player
  • 1981 – Yann Danis, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1981 – Garrett Jones, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Brandon Flowers, American singer-songwriter
  • 1981 – Brad Walker, American pole vaulter
  • 1982 – Lee Dae-ho, South Korean baseball player
  • 1982 – Prince William, Duke of Cambridge
  • 1982 – Jussie Smollett, American actor and singer
  • 1983 – Edward Snowden, American activist and academic
  • 1985 – Lana Del Rey, American singer-songwriter
  • 1985 – Sentayehu Ejigu, Ethiopian runner
  • 1985 – Byron Schammer, Australian footballer
  • 1986 – Kathleen O’Kelly-Kennedy, Australian wheelchair basketball player
  • 1986 – Hideaki Wakui, Japanese baseball player
  • 1987 – Pablo Barrera, Mexican footballer
  • 1987 – Sebastian Prödl, Austrian footballer
  • 1987 – Dale Thomas, Australian footballer
  • 1988 – Allyssa DeHaan, American basketball and volleyball player
  • 1988 – Paolo Tornaghi, Italian footballer
  • 1988 – Thaddeus Young, American basketball player
  • 1989 – Abubaker Kaki, Sudanese runner
  • 1990 – Ričardas Berankis, Lithuanian tennis player
  • 1990 – Lunar C, English rapper
  • 1990 – François Moubandje, Swiss footballer
  • 1990 – Håvard Nordtveit, Norwegian footballer
  • 1991 – Gaël Kakuta, French footballer
  • 1992 – MAX, American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer and model
  • 1994 – Başak Eraydın, Turkish tennis player
  • 1996 – Tyrone May, Australian rugby league player
  • 1997 – Rebecca Black, American singer-songwriter
  • 1997 – Derrius Guice, American football player
  • 2011 – Lil Bub, American celebrity cat

Deaths on June 21

  • 532 – Emperor Jiemin of Northern Wei, former Northern Wei emperor
  • 866 – Rodulf, Frankish archbishop
  • 868 – Ali al-Hadi, the tenth Imam of Shia Islam (b. 829)
  • 870 – Al-Muhtadi, Muslim caliph
  • 947 – Zhang Li, official of the Liao Dynasty
  • 1040 – Fulk III, Count of Anjou (b. 972)
  • 1171 – Walter de Luci, French-English monk (b. 1103)
  • 1208 – Philip of Swabia (b. 1177)
  • 1305 – Wenceslaus II of Bohemia (b. 1271)
  • 1359 – Erik Magnusson, king of Sweden (b. 1339)
  • 1377 – Edward III of England (b. 1312)
  • 1421 – Jean Le Maingre, French general (b. 1366)
  • 1527 – Niccolò Machiavelli, Italian historian and author (b. 1469)
  • 1529 – John Skelton, English poet and educator (b. 1460)
  • 1547 – Sebastiano del Piombo, Italian painter and educator (b. 1485)
  • 1558 – Piero Strozzi, Italian general (b. 1510)
  • 1582 – Oda Nobunaga, Japanese warlord (b. 1534)
  • 1585 – Henry Percy, 8th Earl of Northumberland (b. 1532)
  • 1591 – Aloysius Gonzaga, Italian saint (b. 1568)
  • 1596 – Jean Liebault, French agronomist and physician (b. 1535)
  • 1621 – Louis III, Cardinal of Guise (b. 1575)
  • 1621 – Kryštof Harant, Czech soldier and composer (b. 1564)
  • 1622 – Salomon Schweigger, German theologian (b. 1551)
  • 1631 – John Smith, English admiral and explorer (b. 1580)
  • 1652 – Inigo Jones, English architect, designed the Queen’s House and Wilton House (b. 1573)
  • 1661 – Andrea Sacchi, Italian painter (b. 1599)
  • 1737 – Matthieu Marais, French author, critic, and jurist (b. 1664)
  • 1738 – Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1674)
  • 1796 – Richard Gridley, American soldier and engineer (b. 1710)
  • 1824 – Étienne Aignan, French playwright and translator (b. 1773)
  • 1865 – Frances Adeline Seward, American wife of William H. Seward (b. 1824)
  • 1874 – Anders Jonas Ångström, Swedish physicist and astronomer (b. 1814)
  • 1876 – Antonio López de Santa Anna, Mexican general and politician 8th President of Mexico (b. 1794)
  • 1880 – Theophilus H. Holmes, American general (b. 1804)
  • 1893 – Leland Stanford, American businessman and politician, 8th Governor of California (b. 1824)
  • 1908 – Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Russian composer and educator (b. 1844)
  • 1914 – Bertha von Suttner, Austrian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1843)
  • 1929 – Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse, English sociologist, journalist, and academic (b. 1864)
  • 1934 – Thorne Smith, American author (b. 1892)
  • 1940 – Smedley Butler, American general, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1881)
  • 1940 – Édouard Vuillard, French painter (b. 1868)
  • 1951 – Charles Dillon Perrine, American astronomer (b. 1867)
  • 1951 – Gustave Sandras, French gymnast (b. 1872)
  • 1952 – Wop May, Canadian captain and pilot (b. 1896)
  • 1954 – Gideon Sundback, Swedish-American engineer, developed the zipper (b. 1880)
  • 1957 – Claude Farrère, French captain and author (b. 1876)
  • 1957 – Johannes Stark, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1874)
  • 1964 – James Chaney, American civil rights activist (b. 1943)
  • 1964 – Andrew Goodman, American civil rights activist (b. 1943)
  • 1964 – Michael Schwerner, American civil rights activist (b. 1939)
  • 1967 – Theodore Sizer, American professor of the history of art (b. 1892)
  • 1969 – Maureen Connolly, American tennis player (b. 1934)
  • 1970 – Sukarno, Indonesian engineer and politician, 1st President of Indonesia (b. 1901)
  • 1970 – Piers Courage, English race car driver (b. 1942)
  • 1976 – Margaret Herrick, American librarian (b. 1902)
  • 1980 – Bert Kaempfert, German conductor and composer (b. 1923)
  • 1981 – Don Figlozzi, American illustrator and animator (b. 1909)
  • 1985 – Hector Boyardee, Italian-American chef and businessman, founded Chef Boyardee (b. 1897)
  • 1985 – Tage Erlander, Swedish lieutenant and politician, 25th Prime Minister of Sweden (b. 1901)
  • 1986 – Assi Rahbani, Lebanese singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1923)
  • 1987 – Madman Muntz, American engineer and businessman, founded the Muntz Car Company (b. 1914)
  • 1988 – Bobby Dodd, American football coach (b. 1908)
  • 1990 – Cedric Belfrage, English journalist and author, co-founded the National Guardian (b. 1904)
  • 1990 – June Christy, American singer (b. 1925)
  • 1992 – Ben Alexander, Australian rugby league player (b. 1971)
  • 1992 – Arthur Gorrie, Australian hobby shop proprietor (b. 1922)
  • 1992 – Rudra Mohammad Shahidullah, Bangladeshi poet, author, and playwright (b. 1956)
  • 1992 – Li Xiannian, Chinese captain and politician, 3rd President of the People’s Republic of China (b. 1909)
  • 1994 – William Wilson Morgan, American astronomer and astrophysicist (b. 1906)
  • 1997 – Shintaro Katsu, Japanese actor, singer, director, and producer (b. 1931)
  • 1997 – Fidel Velázquez Sánchez, Mexican trade union leader (b. 1900)
  • 1998 – Harry Cranbrook Allen, English historian (b. 1917)
  • 1998 – Anastasio Ballestrero, Italian cardinal (b. 1913)
  • 1998 – Al Campanis, American baseball player and manager (b. 1916)
  • 1999 – Kami, Japanese drummer (b. 1973)
  • 2000 – Alan Hovhaness, Armenian-American pianist and composer (b. 1911)
  • 2001 – John Lee Hooker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1917)
  • 2001 – Soad Hosny, Egyptian actress and singer (b. 1942)
  • 2001 – Carroll O’Connor, American actor and producer (b. 1924)
  • 2002 – Timothy Findley, Canadian author and playwright (b. 1930)
  • 2003 – Roger Neilson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1934)
  • 2003 – Leon Uris, American soldier and author (b. 1924)
  • 2004 – Leonel Brizola, Brazilian engineer and politician, Governor of Rio de Janeiro (b. 1922)
  • 2004 – Ruth Leach Amonette, American businesswoman (b. 1916)
  • 2005 – Jaime Sin, Filipino cardinal (b. 1928)
  • 2006 – Jared C. Monti, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1975)
  • 2007 – Bob Evans, American businessman, founded Bob Evans Restaurants (b. 1918)
  • 2008 – Scott Kalitta, American race car driver (b. 1962)
  • 2010 – Russell Ash, English author (b. 1946)
  • 2010 – Irwin Barker, Canadian actor and screenwriter (b. 1956)
  • 2010 – İlhan Selçuk, Turkish lawyer, journalist, and author (b. 1925)
  • 2011 – Robert Kroetsch, Canadian author and poet (b. 1927)
  • 2012 – Richard Adler, American composer and producer (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Abid Hussain, Indian economist and diplomat, Indian Ambassador to the United States (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Sunil Janah, Indian photographer and journalist (b. 1918)
  • 2012 – Anna Schwartz, American economist and author (b. 1915)
  • 2013 – James P. Gordon, American physicist and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Elliott Reid, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1920)
  • 2014 – Yozo Ishikawa, Japanese politician, Japanese Minister of Defense (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Walter Kieber, Austrian-Liechtenstein politician, 7th Prime Minister of Liechtenstein (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – Wong Ho Leng, Malaysian lawyer and politician (b. 1959)
  • 2015 – Darryl Hamilton, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1964)
  • 2015 – Veijo Meri, Finnish author and poet (b. 1928)
  • 2015 – Remo Remotti, Italian actor, playwright, and poet (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Alexander Schalck-Golodkowski, German soldier and politician (b. 1932)
  • 2015 – Gunther Schuller, American horn player, composer, and conductor (b. 1925)
  • 2016 – Pierre Lalonde, Canadian television host and singer (b. 1941)
  • 2018 – Charles Krauthammer, American columnist and conservative political commentator (b.1950)

Holidays and observances on June 21

  • Christian feast day:
    • Alban of Mainz
    • Aloysius Gonzaga
    • Engelmund of Velsen
    • Martin of Tongres
    • Onesimos Nesib (Lutheran)
    • June 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of the Martyrs (Togo)
  • Father’s Day (Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Uganda, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates)
  • Go Skateboarding Day
  • International Yoga Day (international)
  • National Aboriginal Day (Canada)
  • Solstice-related observances (see also June 20):
    • Day of Private Reflection
    • International Surfing Day
    • National Day (Greenland)
    • We Tripantu, a winter solstice festival in the southern hemisphere. (Mapuche, southern Chile)
    • Willkakuti, an Andean-Amazonic New Year (Aymara)
    • Fête de la Musique
  • World Humanist Day (Humanism)
  • World Hydrography Day (international)

June 21 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

June 20 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

In the Northern Hemisphere, the Summer solstice sometimes occurs on this date, while the Winter solstice occurs in the Southern Hemisphere.

  • 451 – Battle of Chalons: Flavius Aetius’ battles Attila the Hun. After the battle, which was inconclusive, Attila retreats, causing the Romans to interpret it as a victory.
  • 1180 – First Battle of Uji, starting the Genpei War in Japan.
  • 1620 – The Battle of Höchst takes place during the Thirty Years’ War.
  • 1631 – The Sack of Baltimore: The Irish village of Baltimore is attacked by Algerian pirates.
  • 1652 – Tarhoncu Ahmed Pasha is appointed Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire.
  • 1685 – Monmouth Rebellion: James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth declares himself King of England at Bridgwater.
  • 1756 – A British garrison is imprisoned in the Black Hole of Calcutta.
  • 1782 – The U.S. Congress adopts the Great Seal of the United States.
  • 1787 – Oliver Ellsworth moves at the Federal Convention to call the government the ‘United States’.
  • 1789 – Deputies of the French Third Estate take the Tennis Court Oath.
  • 1819 – The U.S. vessel SS Savannah arrives at Liverpool, United Kingdom. It is the first steam-propelled vessel to cross the Atlantic, although most of the journey is made under sail.
  • 1837 – Queen Victoria succeeds to the British throne.
  • 1840 – Samuel Morse receives the patent for the telegraph.
  • 1862 – Barbu Catargiu, the Prime Minister of Romania, is assassinated.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: West Virginia is admitted as the 35th U.S. state.
  • 1877 – Alexander Graham Bell installs the world’s first commercial telephone service in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
  • 1893 – Lizzie Borden is acquitted of the murders of her father and stepmother.
  • 1895 – The Kiel Canal, crossing the base of the Jutland peninsula and the busiest artificial waterway in the world, is officially opened.
  • 1900 – Boxer Rebellion: The Imperial Chinese Army begins a 55-day siege of the Legation Quarter in Beijing, China.
  • 1900 – Baron Eduard Toll, leader of the Russian Polar Expedition of 1900, departs Saint Petersburg in Russia on the explorer ship Zarya, never to return.
  • 1921 – Workers of Buckingham and Carnatic Mills in the city of Chennai, India, begin a four-month strike.
  • 1942 – The Holocaust: Kazimierz Piechowski and three others, dressed as members of the SS-Totenkopfverbände, steal an SS staff car and escape from the Auschwitz concentration camp.
  • 1943 – The Detroit race riot breaks out and continues for three more days.
  • 1943 – World War II: The Royal Air Force launches Operation Bellicose, the first shuttle bombing raid of the war. Lancaster bombers damage the V-2 rocket production facilities at the Zeppelin Works while en route to an air base in Algeria.
  • 1944 – World War II: The Battle of the Philippine Sea concludes with a decisive U.S. naval victory. The lopsided naval air battle is also known as the “Great Marianas Turkey Shoot”.
  • 1944 – Continuation War: The Soviet Union demands an unconditional surrender from Finland during the beginning of partially successful Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive. The Finnish government refuses.
  • 1944 – The experimental MW 18014 V-2 rocket reaches an altitude of 176 km, becoming the first man-made object to reach outer space.
  • 1945 – The United States Secretary of State approves the transfer of Wernher von Braun and his team of Nazi rocket scientists to the U.S. under Operation Paperclip.
  • 1948 – The Deutsche Mark is introduced in Western Allied-occupied Germany. The Soviet Military Administration in Germany responded by imposing the Berlin Blockade four days later.
  • 1956 – A Venezuelan Super-Constellation crashes in the Atlantic Ocean off Asbury Park, New Jersey, killing 74 people.
  • 1959 – A rare June hurricane strikes Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence killing 35.
  • 1960 – The Mali Federation gains independence from France (it later splits into Mali and Senegal).
  • 1963 – Following the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Soviet Union and the United States sign an agreement to establish the so-called “red telephone” link between Washington and Moscow.
  • 1972 – Watergate scandal: An 18½-minute gap appears in the tape recording of the conversations between U.S. President Richard Nixon and his advisers regarding the recent arrests of his operatives while breaking into the Watergate complex.
  • 1973 – Snipers fire upon left-wing Peronists in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in what is known as the Ezeiza massacre. At least 13 are killed and more than 300 are injured.
  • 1973 – Aeroméxico Flight 229 crashes on approach to Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport, killing all 27 people on board.
  • 1975 – The film Jaws is released in the United States, becoming the highest-grossing film of that time and starting the trend of films known as “summer blockbusters”.
  • 1979 – ABC News correspondent Bill Stewart is shot dead by a Nicaraguan soldier under the regime of Anastasio Somoza Debayle. The murder is caught on tape and sparks an international outcry against the regime.
  • 1982 – The Argentine Corbeta Uruguay base on Southern Thule surrenders to Royal Marine commandos in the final action of the Falklands War.
  • 1990 – Asteroid Eureka is discovered.
  • 1990 – The 7.4 Mw  Manjil–Rudbar earthquake affects northern Iran with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme), killing 35,000–50,000, and injuring 60,000–105,000.
  • 1991 – German Bundestag votes to move seat of government from the former West German capital of Bonn to the present capital Berlin.
  • 1994 – The 1994 Imam Reza shrine bomb explosion in Iran leaves at least 25 dead and 70 to 300 injured.
  • 2003 – The Wikimedia Foundation is founded in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Births on June 20

  • 1005 – Ali az-Zahir, Fatimid caliph of Egypt (d. 1036)
  • 1389 – John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, English statesman (d. 1435)
  • 1469 – Gian Galeazzo Sforza, duke of Milan (d. 1494)
  • 1566 – Sigismund III Vasa, Polish and Swedish king (d. 1632)
  • 1583 – Jacob De la Gardie, Swedish soldier and politician, Lord High Constable of Sweden (d. 1652)
  • 1634 – Charles Emmanuel II, duke of Savoy (d. 1675)
  • 1642 – George Hickes, English minister and scholar (d. 1715)
  • 1647 – John George III, Elector of Saxony (d. 1691)
  • 1717 – Jacques Saly, French sculptor and painter (d. 1776)
  • 1723 – Adam Ferguson, Scottish philosopher and historian (d. 1816)
  • 1737 – Tokugawa Ieharu, Japanese shōgun (d. 1786)
  • 1754 – Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt, princess of Baden (d. 1832)
  • 1756 – Joseph Martin Kraus, German-Swedish composer and educator (d. 1792)
  • 1761 – Jacob Hübner, German entomologist and author (d. 1826)
  • 1763 – Wolfe Tone, Irish rebel leader (d. 1798)
  • 1770 – Moses Waddel, American minister and academic (d. 1840)
  • 1771 – Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, Scottish philanthropist, and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Kirkcudbright (d. 1820)
  • 1771 – Hermann von Boyen, Prussian general and politician, Prussian Minister of War (d. 1848)
  • 1777 – Jean-Jacques Lartigue, Canadian bishop (d. 1840)
  • 1778 – Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac, French politician, 7th Prime Minister of France (d. 1832)
  • 1786 – Marceline Desbordes-Valmore, French poet and author (d. 1859)
  • 1796 – Luigi Amat di San Filippo e Sorso, Italian cardinal (d. 1878)
  • 1808 – Samson Raphael Hirsch, German rabbi and scholar (d. 1888)
  • 1809 – Isaak August Dorner, German theologian and academic (d. 1884)
  • 1813 – Joseph Autran, French poet and author (d. 1877)
  • 1819 – Jacques Offenbach, German-French cellist and composer (d. 1880)
  • 1847 – Gina Krog, Norwegian suffragist and women’s rights activist (d. 1916)
  • 1855 – Richard Lodge, English historian and academic (d. 1936)
  • 1858 – Charles W. Chesnutt, American novelist and short story writer (d. 1932)
  • 1860 – Alexander Winton, Scottish-American race car driver and engineer (d. 1932)
  • 1860 – Jack Worrall, Australian cricketer, footballer, and coach (d. 1937)
  • 1861 – Frederick Gowland Hopkins, English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1947)
  • 1865 – George Redmayne Murray, English biologist and physician (d. 1939)
  • 1866 – James Burns, English cricketer (d. 1957)
  • 1869 – Laxmanrao Kirloskar, Indian businessman, founded the Kirloskar Group (d. 1956)
  • 1870 – Georges Dufrénoy, French painter and academic (d. 1943)
  • 1872 – George Carpenter, American 5th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1948)
  • 1875 – Reginald Punnett, English geneticist, statistician, and academic (d. 1967)
  • 1882 – Daniel Sawyer, American golfer (d. 1937)
  • 1884 – Mary R. Calvert, American astronomer and author (d. 1974)
  • 1884 – Johannes Heinrich Schultz, German psychiatrist and psychotherapist (d. 1970)
  • 1885 – Andrzej Gawroński, Polish linguist and academic (d. 1927)
  • 1887 – Kurt Schwitters, German painter and illustrator (d. 1948)
  • 1889 – John S. Paraskevopoulos, Greek-South African astronomer and academic (d. 1951)
  • 1891 – Giannina Arangi-Lombardi, Italian soprano (d. 1951)
  • 1891 – John A. Costello, Irish lawyer and politician, 3rd Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 1976)
  • 1893 – Wilhelm Zaisser, German soldier and politician (d. 1958)
  • 1894 – Lloyd Hall, American chemist and academic (d. 1971)
  • 1896 – Wilfrid Pelletier, Canadian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1982)
  • 1897 – Elisabeth Hauptmann, German author and playwright (d. 1973)
  • 1899 – Jean Moulin, French soldier and engineer (d. 1943)
  • 1903 – Sam Rabin, English wrestler, sculptor, and singer (d. 1991)
  • 1905 – Lillian Hellman, American playwright and screenwriter (d. 1984)
  • 1906 – Bob King, American high jumper and obstetrician (d. 1965)
  • 1907 – Jimmy Driftwood, American singer-songwriter and banjo player (d. 1998)
  • 1908 – Billy Werber, American baseball player (d. 2009)
  • 1908 – Gus Schilling, American actor (d. 1957)
  • 1909 – Errol Flynn, Australian-American actor (d. 1959)
  • 1910 – Josephine Johnson, American author and poet (d. 1990)
  • 1911 – Gail Patrick, American actress (d. 1980)
  • 1912 – Anthony Buckeridge, English author (d. 2004)
  • 1912 – Jack Torrance, American shot putter and football player (d. 1969)
  • 1914 – Gordon Juckes, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1994)
  • 1914 – Muazzez İlmiye Çığ, Turkish archaeologist and academic
  • 1915 – Dick Reynolds, Australian footballer and coach (d. 2002)
  • 1915 – Terence Young, Chinese-English director and screenwriter (d. 1994)
  • 1916 – Jean-Jacques Bertrand, Canadian lawyer and politician, 21st Premier of Quebec (d. 1973)
  • 1916 – T. Texas Tyler, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1972)
  • 1917 – Helena Rasiowa, Austrian-Polish mathematician and academic (d. 1994)
  • 1918 – George Lynch, American race car driver (d. 1997)
  • 1918 – Zoltán Sztáray, Hungarian-American author (d. 2011)
  • 1920 – Geoffrey Baker, English Field Marshal and Chief of the General Staff of the British Army (d. 1980)
  • 1920 – Danny Cedrone, American guitarist and bandleader (d. 1954)
  • 1920 – Thomas Jefferson, American trumpet player (d. 1986)
  • 1921 – Byron Farwell, American historian and author (d. 1999)
  • 1921 – Pancho Segura, Ecuadorian tennis player (d. 2017)
  • 1923 – Peter Gay, German-American historian, author, and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1923 – Jerzy Nowak, Polish actor and educator (d. 2013)
  • 1924 – Chet Atkins, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2001)
  • 1924 – Fritz Koenig, German sculptor and academic, designed The Sphere (d. 2017)
  • 1925 – Doris Hart, American tennis player and educator (d. 2015)
  • 1925 – Audie Murphy, American lieutenant and actor, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1971)
  • 1926 – Rehavam Ze’evi, Israeli general and politician, 9th Israeli Minister of Tourism (d. 2001)
  • 1927 – Simin Behbahani, Iranian poet and activist (d. 2014)
  • 1928 – Eric Dolphy, American saxophonist, flute player, and composer (d. 1964)
  • 1928 – Martin Landau, American actor and producer (d. 2017)
  • 1928 – Jean-Marie Le Pen, French intelligence officer and politician
  • 1928 – Asrat Woldeyes, Ethiopian surgeon and educator (d. 1999)
  • 1929 – Edgar Bronfman, Sr., Canadian-American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2013)
  • 1929 – Anne Weale, English journalist and author (d. 2007)
  • 1929 – Edith Windsor, American lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights activist (d. 2017)
  • 1930 – Magdalena Abakanowicz, Polish sculptor and academic (d. 2017)
  • 1930 – John Waine, English bishop
  • 1931 – Olympia Dukakis, American actress
  • 1931 – James Tolkan, American actor and director
  • 1932 – Robert Rozhdestvensky, Russian poet and author (d. 1994)
  • 1933 – Danny Aiello, American actor (d. 2019)
  • 1933 – Claire Tomalin, English journalist and author
  • 1934 – Wendy Craig, English actress
  • 1935 – Jim Barker, American politician (d. 2005)
  • 1935 – Len Dawson, American football player and sportscaster
  • 1935 – Armando Picchi, Italian footballer and coach (d. 1971)
  • 1936 – Billy Guy, American singer (d. 2002)
  • 1936 – Enn Vetemaa, Estonian author and screenwriter (d. 2017)
  • 1937 – Stafford Dean, English actor and singer
  • 1937 – Jerry Keller, American singer-songwriter
  • 1938 – Joan Kirner, Australian educator and politician, 42nd Premier of Victoria (d. 2015)
  • 1938 – Mickie Most, English music producer (d. 2003)
  • 1939 – Ramakant Desai, Indian cricketer (d. 1998)
  • 1939 – Budge Rogers, English rugby player and manager
  • 1940 – Eugen Drewermann, German priest and theologian
  • 1940 – John Mahoney, English actor (d. 2018)
  • 1941 – Stephen Frears, English actor, director, and producer
  • 1941 – Ulf Merbold, German physicist and astronaut
  • 1942 – Neil Trudinger, Australian mathematician and theorist
  • 1942 – Brian Wilson, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1945 – Anne Murray, Canadian singer and guitarist
  • 1946 – Xanana Gusmão, Timorese soldier and politician, 1st President of East Timor
  • 1946 – David Kazhdan, Russian-Israeli mathematician and academic
  • 1946 – Bob Vila, American television host
  • 1946 – André Watts, American pianist and educator
  • 1947 – Dolores “LaLa” Brooks, American pop singer (The Crystals)
  • 1948 – Cirilo Flores, American bishop (d. 2014)
  • 1948 – Ludwig Scotty, Nauruan politician, 10th President of Nauru
  • 1949 – Alan Longmuir, Scottish bass player and songwriter (d. 2018)
  • 1949 – Lionel Richie, American singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, and actor
  • 1949 – Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 8th president of Sri Lanka
  • 1950 – Nouri al-Maliki, Iraqi politician, 76th Prime Minister of Iraq
  • 1951 – Tress MacNeille, American actress and voice artist
  • 1951 – Sheila McLean, Scottish scholar and academic
  • 1951 – Paul Muldoon, Irish poet and academic
  • 1952 – John Goodman, American actor
  • 1952 – Vikram Seth, Indian author and poet
  • 1953 – Robert Crais, American author and screenwriter
  • 1953 – Raúl Ramírez, Mexican tennis player
  • 1953 – Willy Rampf, German engineer
  • 1954 – Allan Lamb, South African-English cricketer and sportscaster
  • 1954 – Ilan Ramon, Israeli colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2003)
  • 1955 – E. Lynn Harris, American author (d. 2009)
  • 1956 – Peter Reid, English footballer and manager
  • 1956 – Sohn Suk-hee, South Korean newscaster
  • 1958 – Kelly Johnson, English hard rock guitarist and songwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1960 – Philip M. Parker, American economist and author
  • 1960 – John Taylor, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and actor
  • 1963 – Kirk Baptiste, American sprinter
  • 1963 – Mark Ovenden, British author and broadcaster
  • 1964 – Pierfrancesco Chili, Italian motorcycle racer
  • 1964 – Silke Möller, German runner
  • 1966 – Boaz Yakin, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1967 – Nicole Kidman, American-Australian actress
  • 1967 – Dan Tyminski, American singer-songwriter
  • 1968 – Robert Rodriguez, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1969 – Paulo Bento, Portuguese footballer and manager
  • 1969 – Misha Verbitsky, Russian mathematician and academic
  • 1969 – MaliVai Washington, American tennis player and sportscaster
  • 1970 – Andrea Nahles, German politician, German Minister of Labour and Social Affairs
  • 1970 – Athol Williams, South African poet and social philosopher
  • 1971 – Rodney Rogers, American basketball player and coach
  • 1971 – Jeordie White, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and bass player
  • 1972 – Alexis Alexoudis, Greek footballer
  • 1973 – Chino Moreno, American singer-songwriter
  • 1975 – Joan Balcells, Spanish tennis player
  • 1975 – Daniel Zítka, Czech footballer
  • 1976 – Juliano Belletti, Brazilian footballer
  • 1976 – Carlos Lee, Panamanian baseball player
  • 1977 – Gordan Giriček, Croatian basketball player
  • 1977 – Amos Lee, American singer-songwriter
  • 1978 – Frank Lampard, English footballer
  • 1978 – Jan-Paul Saeijs, Dutch footballer
  • 1979 – Charles Howell III, American golfer
  • 1980 – Franco Semioli, Italian footballer
  • 1980 – Tika Sumpter, American actress
  • 1980 – Fabian Wegmann, German cyclist
  • 1981 – Brede Hangeland, Norwegian footballer
  • 1982 – Aleksei Berezutski, Russian footballer
  • 1982 – Vasili Berezutski, Russian footballer
  • 1982 – Example, English singer/rapper
  • 1983 – Josh Childress, American basketball player
  • 1983 – Darren Sproles, American football player
  • 1984 – Hassan Adams, American basketball player
  • 1985 – Saki Aibu, Japanese actress
  • 1985 – Aurélien Chedjou, Cameroonian footballer
  • 1985 – Matt Flynn, American football player
  • 1986 – Dreama Walker, American actress
  • 1987 – A-fu, Taiwanese singer and songwriter
  • 1987 – Carsten Ball, Australian tennis player
  • 1987 – Asmir Begović, Bosnian footballer
  • 1987 – Joseph Ebuya, Kenyan runner
  • 1987 – Kierra Sheard, American gospel singer
  • 1989 – Christopher Mintz-Plasse, American actor
  • 1989 – Javier Pastore, Argentinian footballer
  • 1989 – Terrelle Pryor, American football player
  • 1990 – DeQuan Jones, American basketball player
  • 1991 – Kalidou Koulibaly, Senegalese footballer
  • 1991 – Rick ten Voorde, Dutch footballer
  • 1993 – Sead Kolašinac, Bosnian footballer
  • 1994 – Leonard Williams, American football player
  • 1995 – Caroline Weir, Scottish footballer
  • 1996 – Sam Bennett, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1997 – Bálint Kopasz, Hungarian sprint canoeist

Deaths on June 20

  • 465 – Emperor Wencheng of Northern Wei (b. 440)
  • 656 – Uthman ibn Affan, Rashidun caliph (b. 577)
  • 840 – Louis the Pious, Carolingian emperor (b. 778)
  • 930 – Hucbald, Frankish monk and music theorist
  • 981 – Adalbert, archbishop of Magdeburg
  • 1176 – Mikhail of Vladimir, Russian prince
  • 1351 – Margareta Ebner, German nun and mystic (b. 1291)
  • 1405 – Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, fourth son of King Robert II of Scotland (b. 1343)
  • 1597 – Willem Barentsz, Dutch cartographer and explorer (b. 1550)
  • 1605 – Feodor II of Russia (b. 1589)
  • 1668 – Heinrich Roth, German missionary and scholar (b. 1620)
  • 1776 – Benjamin Huntsman, English businessman (b. 1704)
  • 1787 – Carl Friedrich Abel, German viol player and composer (b. 1723)
  • 1800 – Abraham Gotthelf Kästner, German mathematician and academic (b. 1719)
  • 1810 – Axel von Fersen the Younger, Swedish general and politician (b. 1755)
  • 1815 – Guillaume Philibert Duhesme, French general (b. 1766)
  • 1820 – Manuel Belgrano, Argentinian general, economist, and politician (b. 1770)
  • 1837 – William IV of the United Kingdom (b. 1765)
  • 1840 – Pierre Claude François Daunou, French historian and politician (b. 1761)
  • 1847 – Juan Larrea, Argentinian captain and politician (b. 1782)
  • 1869 – Hijikata Toshizō, Japanese commander (b. 1835)
  • 1870 – Jules de Goncourt, French historian and author (b. 1830)
  • 1872 – Élie Frédéric Forey, French general (b. 1804)
  • 1875 – Joseph Meek, American police officer and politician (b. 1810)
  • 1888 – Johannes Zukertort, Polish-English chess player (b. 1842)
  • 1906 – John Clayton Adams, English painter (b. 1840)
  • 1909 – Friedrich Martens, Estonian-Russian historian, lawyer, and diplomat (b. 1845)
  • 1925 – Josef Breuer, Austrian physician and psychologist (b. 1842)
  • 1929 – Emmanouil Benakis, Greek merchant and politician, 35th Mayor of Athens (b. 1843)
  • 1945 – Bruno Frank, German author, poet, and playwright (b. 1878)
  • 1947 – Bugsy Siegel, American mobster (b. 1906)
  • 1952 – Luigi Fagioli, Italian race car driver (b. 1898)
  • 1958 – Kurt Alder, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
  • 1963 – Raphaël Salem, Greek-French mathematician and academic (b. 1898)
  • 1965 – Bernard Baruch, American financier and politician (b. 1870)
  • 1966 – Georges Lemaître, Belgian priest, physicist, and astronomer (b. 1894)
  • 1974 – Horace Lindrum, Australian snooker player (b. 1912)
  • 1975 – Suzanne Comhaire-Sylvain, Hatian anthropologist (b. 1898)
  • 1978 – Mark Robson, Canadian-American director and producer (b. 1913)
  • 1984 – Estelle Winwood, English actress (b. 1883)
  • 1995 – Emil Cioran, Romanian-French philosopher and educator (b. 1911)
  • 1997 – Cahit Külebi, Turkish poet and author (b. 1917)
  • 1999 – Clifton Fadiman, American game show host, author, and critic (b. 1902)
  • 2001 – Gina Cigna, French-Italian soprano (b. 1900)
  • 2002 – Erwin Chargaff, Austrian-American biochemist and academic (b. 1905)
  • 2002 – Tinus Osendarp, Dutch runner (b. 1916)
  • 2004 – Jim Bacon, Australian politician, 41st Premier of Tasmania (b. 1950)
  • 2005 – Larry Collins, American journalist, historian, and author (b. 1929)
  • 2005 – Jack Kilby, American physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1923)
  • 2010 – Roberto Rosato, Italian footballer (b. 1943)
  • 2010 – Harry B. Whittington, English palaeontologist and academic (b. 1916)
  • 2011 – Ryan Dunn, American television personality (b. 1977)
  • 2012 – Judy Agnew, Second Lady of the United States. (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – LeRoy Neiman, American painter (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Heinrich IV, Prince Reuss of Köstritz (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Andrew Sarris, American critic (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Ingvar Rydell, Swedish footballer (b. 1922)
  • 2015 – Angelo Niculescu, Romanian footballer and manager (b. 1921)
  • 2015 – Miriam Schapiro, Canadian-American painter and sculptor (b. 1923)
  • 2017 – Prodigy, American music artist (b. 1974)

Holidays and observances on June 20

  • Christian feast day:
    • Adalbert of Magdeburg
    • Florentina
    • John of Matera
    • Blessed Margareta Ebner
    • Methodius of Olympus
    • Pope Silverius
    • June 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of the National Flag (Argentina)
  • The earliest date for the summer solstice in the Northern hemisphere and the winter solstice in the Southern hemisphere, and its related observance:
    • Earliest day on which Day of the Finnish Flag can fall, while June 26 is the latest; celebrated on Saturday of Midsummer’s Day (Finland)
    • International Surfing Day (on or near Summer solstice)
    • Litha / Midsummer celebrations in the northern hemisphere, Yule in the southern hemisphere.
  • Gas Sector Day (Azerbaijan)
  • Martyrs’ Day (Eritrea)
  • West Virginia Day (West Virginia)
  • World Refugee Day (International)

June 20 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

June 14 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 1158 – Munich is founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the river Isar.
  • 1216 – First Barons’ War: Prince Louis of France captures the city of Winchester and soon conquers over half of the Kingdom of England.
  • 1276 – While taking exile in Fuzhou, away from the advancing Mongol invaders, the remnants of the Song dynasty court hold the coronation ceremony for Emperor Duanzong.
  • 1285 – Second Mongol invasion of Vietnam: Forces led by Prince Trần Quang Khải of the Trần dynasty destroy most of the invading Mongol naval fleet in a battle at Chuong Duong.
  • 1287 – Kublai Khan defeats the force of Nayan and other traditionalist Borjigin princes in East Mongolia and Manchuria.
  • 1381 – Richard II of England meets leaders of Peasants’ Revolt at Mile End. The Tower of London is stormed by rebels who enter without resistance.
  • 1404 – Welsh rebel leader Owain Glyndŵr, having declared himself Prince of Wales, allies himself with the French against King Henry IV of England.
  • 1618 – Joris Veseler prints the first Dutch newspaper Courante uyt Italien, Duytslandt, &c. in Amsterdam (approximate date).
  • 1645 – English Civil War: Battle of Naseby: Twelve thousand Royalist forces are beaten by 15,000 Parliamentarian soldiers.
  • 1667 – The Raid on the Medway by the Dutch fleet in the Second Anglo-Dutch War ends. It had lasted for five days and resulted in the worst ever defeat of the Royal Navy.
  • 1690 – King William III of England (William of Orange) lands in Ireland to confront the former King James II.
  • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: the Continental Army is established by the Continental Congress, marking the birth of the United States Army.
  • 1777 – The Second Continental Congress passes the Flag Act of 1777 adopting the Stars and Stripes as the Flag of the United States.
  • 1789 – Mutiny on the Bounty: HMS Bounty mutiny survivors including Captain William Bligh and 18 others reach Timor after a nearly 7,400 km (4,600 mi) journey in an open boat.
  • 1800 – The French Army of First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte defeats the Austrians at the Battle of Marengo in Northern Italy and re-conquers Italy.
  • 1807 – Emperor Napoleon’s French Grande Armée defeats the Russian Army at the Battle of Friedland in Poland (modern Russian Kaliningrad Oblast) ending the War of the Fourth Coalition.
  • 1821 – Badi VII, king of Sennar, surrenders his throne and realm to Ismail Pasha, general of the Ottoman Empire, bringing the 300 year old Sudanese kingdom to an end.
  • 1822 – Charles Babbage proposes a difference engine in a paper to the Royal Astronomical Society.
  • 1830 – Beginning of the French colonization of Algeria: Thirty-four thousand French soldiers begin their invasion of Algiers, landing 27 kilometers west at Sidi Fredj.
  • 1839 – Henley Royal Regatta: the village of Henley-on-Thames, on the River Thames in Oxfordshire, stages its first regatta.
  • 1846 – Bear Flag Revolt begins: Anglo settlers in Sonoma, California, start a rebellion against Mexico and proclaim the California Republic.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Winchester: A Union garrison is defeated by the Army of Northern Virginia in the Shenandoah Valley town of Winchester, Virginia.
  • 1863 – Second Assault on the Confederate works at the Siege of Port Hudson during the American Civil War.
  • 1872 – Trade unions are legalized in Canada.
  • 1881 – The White Rajahs territories become the British protectorate of Sarawak.
  • 1900 – Hawaii becomes a United States territory.
  • 1900 – The second German Naval Law calls for the Imperial German Navy to be doubled in size.
  • 1907 – The National Association for Women’s Suffrage succeeds in getting Norwegian women the right to vote in parliamentary elections.
  • 1919 – John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown depart from St. John’s, Newfoundland on the first nonstop transatlantic flight.
  • 1926 – Brazil leaves the League of Nations.
  • 1937 – Pennsylvania becomes the first (and only) state of the United States to celebrate Flag Day officially as a state holiday.
  • 1937 – U.S. House of Representatives passes the Marihuana Tax Act.
  • 1940 – World War II: The German occupation of Paris begins.
  • 1940 – The Soviet Union presents an ultimatum to Lithuania resulting in Lithuanian loss of independence.
  • 1940 – Seven hundred twenty-eight Polish political prisoners from Tarnów become the first inmates of the Auschwitz concentration camp.
  • 1941 – June deportation: the first major wave of Soviet mass deportations and murder of Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians, begins.
  • 1944 – World War II: After several failed attempts, the British Army abandons Operation Perch, its plan to capture the German-occupied town of Caen.
  • 1945 – World War II: Filipino troops of the Philippine Commonwealth Army liberate the captured in Ilocos Sur and start the Battle of Bessang Pass in Northern Luzon.
  • 1949 – Albert II, a rhesus monkey, rides a V-2 rocket to an altitude of 134 km (83 mi), thereby becoming the first monkey in space.
  • 1951 – UNIVAC I is dedicated by the U.S. Census Bureau.
  • 1954 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a bill into law that places the words “under God” into the United States Pledge of Allegiance.
  • 1955 – Chile becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
  • 1959 – Disneyland Monorail System, the first daily operating monorail system in the Western Hemisphere, opens to the public in Anaheim, California.
  • 1959 – Dominican exiles depart from Cuba and land in the Dominican Republic to overthrow the totalitarian government of Rafael Trujillo. All but four are killed or executed.
  • 1962 – The European Space Research Organisation is established in Paris – later becoming the European Space Agency.
  • 1966 – The Vatican announces the abolition of the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (“index of prohibited books”), which was originally instituted in 1557.
  • 1967 – Mariner program: Mariner 5 is launched towards Venus.
  • 1982 – Falklands War: Argentine forces in the capital Stanley conditionally surrender to British forces.
  • 1986 – The Mindbender derails and kills three riders at the Fantasyland (known today as Galaxyland) indoor amusement park in Edmonton, Alberta.
  • 1994 – The 1994 Vancouver Stanley Cup riot occurs after the New York Rangers win the Stanley Cup from Vancouver, causing an estimated C$1.1 million, leading to 200 arrests and injuries.
  • 2002 – Near-Earth asteroid 2002 MN misses the Earth by 75,000 miles (121,000 km), about one-third of the distance between the Earth and the Moon.
  • 2014 – A Ukraine military Ilyushin Il-76 airlifter is shot down, killing all 49 people on board.
  • 2017 – London: A fire in a high-rise apartment building in North Kensington leaves 72 people dead and another 74 injured.
  • 2017 – In Alexandria, Virginia, Republican member of Congress and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana is shot while practicing for charity baseball.

Births on June 14

  • 1444 – Nilakantha Somayaji, Indian astronomer and mathematician (d. 1544)
  • 1463 – Henry IV, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (d. 1514)
  • 1479 – Giglio Gregorio Giraldi, Italian poet and scholar (d. 1552)
  • 1529 – Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria (d. 1595)
  • 1627 – Johann Abraham Ihle, German astronomer (d. 1699)
  • 1691 – Jan Francisci, Slovak organist and composer (d. 1758)
  • 1726 – Thomas Pennant, Welsh ornithologist and historian (d. 1798)
  • 1730 – Antonio Sacchini, Italian composer and educator (d. 1786)
  • 1736 – Charles-Augustin de Coulomb, French physicist and engineer (d. 1806)
  • 1763 – Simon Mayr, German composer and educator (d. 1845)
  • 1780 – Henry Salt, English historian and diplomat, British Consul-General in Egypt (d. 1827)
  • 1796 – Nikolai Brashman, Czech-Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1866)
  • 1798 – František Palacký, Czech historian and politician (d. 1876)
  • 1801 – Heber C. Kimball, American religious leader (d. 1868)
  • 1811 – Harriet Beecher Stowe, American author and activist (d. 1896)
  • 1812 – Fernando Wood, American merchant and politician, 73rd Mayor of New York City (d. 1881)
  • 1819 – Henry Gardner, American merchant and politician, 23rd Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1892)
  • 1820 – John Bartlett, American author and publisher (d. 1905)
  • 1829 – Bernard Petitjean, French Roman Catholic missionary to Japan (d. 1884)
  • 1838 – Yamagata Aritomo, Japanese Field Marshal and politician, 3rd and 9th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1922)
  • 1840 – William F. Nast, American businessman (d. 1893)
  • 1848 – Bernard Bosanquet, English philosopher and theorist (d. 1923)
  • 1848 – Max Erdmannsdörfer, German conductor and composer (d. 1905)
  • 1855 – Robert M. La Follette, American lawyer and politician, 20th Governor of Wisconsin (d. 1925)
  • 1856 – Andrey Markov, Russian mathematician and theorist (d. 1922)
  • 1862 – John Ulric Nef, Swiss-American chemist and academic (d. 1915)
  • 1864 – Alois Alzheimer, German psychiatrist and neuropathologist (d. 1915)
  • 1868 – Karl Landsteiner, Austrian biologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1943)
  • 1868 – Anna B. Eckstein, German peace activist (d. 1947)
  • 1870 – Sophia of Prussia (d. 1932)
  • 1871 – Hermanus Brockmann, Dutch rower (d. 1936)
  • 1871 – Jacob Ellehammer, Danish mechanic and engineer (d. 1946)
  • 1872 – János Szlepecz, Slovene priest and author (d. 1936)
  • 1877 – Jane Bathori, French soprano (d. 1970)
  • 1877 – Ida MacLean, British biochemist, the first woman admitted to the London Chemical Society (d. 1944)
  • 1878 – Léon Thiébaut, French fencer (d. 1943)
  • 1879 – Arthur Duffey, American sprinter and coach (d. 1955)
  • 1884 – John McCormack, Irish tenor and actor (d. 1945)
  • 1884 – Georg Zacharias, German swimmer (d. 1953)
  • 1890 – May Allison, American actress (d. 1989)
  • 1894 – Marie-Adélaïde, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg (d. 1924)
  • 1894 – José Carlos Mariátegui (d. 1930)
  • 1894 – W. W. E. Ross, Canadian geophysicist and poet (d. 1966)
  • 1895 – Jack Adams, Canadian-American ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 1968)
  • 1900 – Ruth Nanda Anshen, American writer, editor, and philosopher (d. 2003)
  • 1900 – June Walker, American stage and film actress (d. 1966)
  • 1903 – Alonzo Church, American mathematician and logician (d. 1995)
  • 1903 – Rose Rand, Austrian-American logician and philosopher from the Vienna Circle (d. 1980)
  • 1904 – Margaret Bourke-White, American photographer and journalist (d. 1971)
  • 1905 – Steve Broidy, American businessman (d. 1991)
  • 1905 – Arthur Davis, American animator and director (d. 2000)
  • 1907 – Nicolas Bentley, English author and illustrator (d. 1978)
  • 1907 – René Char, French poet and author (d. 1988)
  • 1909 – Burl Ives, American actor and singer (d. 1995)
  • 1910 – Rudolf Kempe, German pianist and conductor (d. 1976)
  • 1913 – Joe Morris, English-Canadian lieutenant and trade union leader (d. 1996)
  • 1916 – Dorothy McGuire, American actress (d. 2001)
  • 1917 – Lise Nørgaard, Danish journalist, author, and screenwriter
  • 1917 – Gilbert Prouteau, French poet and director (d. 2012)
  • 1917 – Atle Selberg, Norwegian-American mathematician and academic (d. 2007)
  • 1918 – Fred Baur, American chemist and founder of Pringles (d. 2008)
  • 1919 – Gene Barry, American actor (d. 2009)
  • 1919 – Sam Wanamaker, American actor and director (d. 1993)
  • 1921 – Martha Greenhouse, American actress (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – Judith Kerr, German-English author and illustrator (d. 2019)
  • 1923 – Green Wix Unthank, American soldier, lawyer, and judge (d. 2013)
  • 1924 – James Black, Scottish pharmacologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
  • 1925 – Pierre Salinger, American journalist and politician, 11th White House Press Secretary (d. 2004)
  • 1926 – Don Newcombe, American baseball player (d. 2019)
  • 1928 – Ernesto “Che” Guevara, Argentinian-Cuban physician, author, guerrilla leader and politician (d. 1967)
  • 1929 – Cy Coleman, American pianist and composer (d. 2004)
  • 1929 – Alan Davidson, Australian cricketer
  • 1929 – Johnny Wilson, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2011)
  • 1931 – Marla Gibbs, American actress and comedian
  • 1931 – Ross Higgins, Australian actor (d. 2016)
  • 1931 – Junior Walker, American saxophonist (d. 1995)
  • 1933 – Jerzy Kosiński, Polish-American novelist and screenwriter (d. 1991)
  • 1933 – Vladislav Rastorotsky, Russian gymnast and coach
  • 1936 – Renaldo Benson, American singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
  • 1936 – Irmelin Sandman Lilius, Finnish author, poet, and translator
  • 1938 – Julie Felix, American-English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2020)
  • 1939 – Steny Hoyer, American lawyer and politician
  • 1939 – Peter Mayle, English author and screenwriter (d. 2018)
  • 1939 – Colin Thubron, English journalist and author
  • 1942 – Jonathan Raban, English author and academic
  • 1942 – Roberto García-Calvo Montiel, Spanish judge (d. 2008)
  • 1943 – Barry Burman, English painter and academic (d. 2001)
  • 1943 – Jennifer Gretton, Baroness Gretton, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire
  • 1943 – John Miles, English racing driver and journalist
  • 1943 – Harold Wheeler, American composer, conductor, and producer
  • 1944 – Laurie Colwin, American novelist and short story writer (d. 1992)
  • 1945 – Rod Argent, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1945 – Carlos Reichenbach, Brazilian director and producer (d. 2012)
  • 1945 – Richard Stebbins, American sprinter and educator
  • 1946 – Robert Louis-Dreyfus, French-Swiss businessman (d. 2009)
  • 1946 – Tõnu Sepp, Estonian instrument maker and educator
  • 1946 – Donald Trump, American businessman, television personality and 45th President of the United States
  • 1947 – Roger Liddle, Baron Liddle, English politician
  • 1947 – Barry Melton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1947 – Paul Rudolph, Canadian singer, guitarist, and cyclist
  • 1948 – Laurence Yep, American author and playwright
  • 1949 – Jim Lea, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
  • 1949 – Roger Powell, English-Australian scientist and academic
  • 1949 – Antony Sher, South African-British actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1949 – Harry Turtledove, American historian and author
  • 1949 – Alan White, English drummer and songwriter
  • 1950 – Rowan Williams, Welsh archbishop and theologian
  • 1951 – Paul Boateng, English lawyer and politician, British High Commissioner to South Africa
  • 1951 – Danny Edwards, American golfer
  • 1952 – Robert Lepikson, Estonian racing driver and politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior (d. 2006)
  • 1952 – Pat Summitt, American basketball player and coach (d. 2016)
  • 1952 – Leon Wieseltier, American philosopher, journalist, and critic
  • 1953 – Janet Mackey, New Zealand lawyer and politician
  • 1954 – Will Patton, American actor
  • 1955 – Michael D. Duvall, American businessman and politician
  • 1955 – Paul O’Grady, English television host, producer, and drag performer
  • 1955 – Kirron Kher, Indian theatre, film & television actress, TV talk show host, politician and Member of Parliament
  • 1956 – Fred Funk, American golfer and coach
  • 1956 – King Diamond (Kim Bendix Petersen), heavy metal musician
  • 1957 – Suzanne Nora Johnson, American lawyer and businesswoman
  • 1957 – Mona Simpson, American novelist
  • 1958 – Pamela Geller, American activist and blogger
  • 1959 – Marcus Miller, American bass player, composer, and producer
  • 1960 – Tonie Campbell, American hurdler
  • 1960 – Mike Laga, American baseball player
  • 1961 – Boy George, English singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1961 – Dušan Kojić, Serbian singer-songwriter and bass player
  • 1961 – Sam Perkins, American basketball player
  • 1963 – Grant Kenny, Australian iron man and canoeist
  • 1964 – Peter Gilliver, English lexicographer and academic
  • 1967 – Dedrick Dodge, American football player and coach
  • 1968 – Campbell Brown, American journalist
  • 1968 – Faizon Love, Cuban-American actor and screenwriter
  • 1969 – Éric Desjardins, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1969 – Steffi Graf, German tennis player
  • 1970 – Heather McDonald, American comedian, actress, and author
  • 1971 – Bruce Bowen, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1971 – Ramon Vega, Swiss footballer
  • 1972 – Rick Brunson, American basketball player and coach
  • 1972 – Matthias Ettrich, German computer scientist and engineer, founded KDE
  • 1972 – Dominic Brown, English guitarist and songwriter
  • 1972 – Claude Henderson, South African cricketer
  • 1972 – Danny McFarlane, Jamaican hurdler and sprinter
  • 1973 – Sami Kapanen, Finnish-American ice hockey player and manager
  • 1976 – Alan Carr, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
  • 1976 – Massimo Oddo, Italian footballer and manager
  • 1977 – Boeta Dippenaar, South African cricketer
  • 1977 – Chris McAlister, American football player
  • 1977 – Joe Worsley, English rugby player and coach
  • 1978 – Steve Bégin, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1978 – Diablo Cody, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1978 – Annia Hatch, Cuban-American gymnast and coach
  • 1978 – Nikola Vujčić, Croatian former professional basketball player
  • 1979 – Shannon Hegarty, Australian rugby league player
  • 1981 – Elano, Brazilian footballer and manager
  • 1982 – Jamie Green, English racing driver
  • 1982 – Nicole Irving, Australian swimmer
  • 1982 – Lang Lang, Chinese pianist
  • 1983 – Trevor Barry, Bahamian high jumper
  • 1983 – Louis Garrel, French actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1984 – Lorenzo Booker, American football player
  • 1984 – Mark Cosgrove, Australian cricketer
  • 1984 – Siobhán Donaghy, English singer-songwriter
  • 1984 – Yury Prilukov, Russian swimmer
  • 1985 – Oleg Medvedev. Russian luger
  • 1985 – Andy Soucek, Spanish racing driver
  • 1986 – Matt Read, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1987 – Andrew Cogliano, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1987 – Mohamed Diamé, Senegalese footballer
  • 1988 – Adrián Aldrete, Mexican footballer
  • 1988 – Kevin McHale, American actor, singer, dancer and radio personality
  • 1989 – Lucy Hale, American actress and singer-songwriter
  • 1989 – Brad Takairangi, Australian-Cook Islands rugby league player
  • 1990 – Patrice Cormier, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1990 – Stephen McLaughlin, Irish footballer
  • 1991 – Kostas Manolas, Greek footballer
  • 1991 – Jesy Nelson, English singer
  • 1992 – Devante Smith-Pelly, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1993 – Gunna, American rapper
  • 1993 – Ryan McCartan, American actor and singer
  • 1999 – Tzuyu, Taiwanese singer

Deaths on June 14

  • 809 – Ōtomo no Otomaro, Japanese general (b. 731)
  • 847 – Methodius I, patriarch of Constantinople
  • 957 – Guadamir, bishop of Vic (Spain)
  • 976 – Aron, Bulgarian nobleman
  • 1161 – Emperor Qinzong of the Song dynasty (b. 1100)
  • 1205 – Walter III, Count of Brienne
  • 1349 – Günther von Schwarzburg, German king (b. 1304)
  • 1381 – Simon Sudbury, English archbishop (b. 1316)
  • 1497 – Giovanni Borgia, 2nd Duke of Gandía, Italian son of Pope Alexander VI (b. 1474)
  • 1516 – John III of Navarre (b. 1469)
  • 1544 – Antoine, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1489)
  • 1548 – Carpentras, French composer (b. 1470)
  • 1583 – Shibata Katsuie, Japanese samurai (b. 1522)
  • 1594 – Jacob Kroger, German goldsmith, hanged in Edinburgh for stealing the jewels of Anne of Denmark.
  • 1594 – Orlande de Lassus, Flemish composer and educator (b. 1532)
  • 1662 – Henry Vane the Younger, English-American politician, Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (b. 1613)
  • 1674 – Marin le Roy de Gomberville, French author and poet (b. 1600)
  • 1679 – Guillaume Courtois, French painter and illustrator (b. 1628)
  • 1746 – Colin Maclaurin, Scottish mathematician (b. 1698)
  • 1794 – Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, English courtier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1718)
  • 1800 – Louis Desaix, French general (b. 1768)
  • 1800 – Jean-Baptiste Kléber, French general (b. 1753)
  • 1801 – Benedict Arnold, American general during the American Revolution later turned British spy (b. 1741)
  • 1825 – Pierre Charles L’Enfant, French-American architect and engineer, designed Washington, D.C. (b. 1754)
  • 1837 – Giacomo Leopardi, Italian poet and philosopher (b. 1798)
  • 1864 – Leonidas Polk, American general and bishop (b. 1806)
  • 1887 – Mary Carpenter, English educational and social reformer (b. 1807)
  • 1883 – Edward FitzGerald, English poet and author (b. 1809)
  • 1886 – Alexander Ostrovsky, Russian director and playwright (b. 1823)
  • 1907 – William Le Baron Jenney, American architect and engineer, designed the Home Insurance Building (b. 1832)
  • 1907 – Bartolomé Masó, Cuban soldier and politician (b. 1830)
  • 1908 – Frederick Stanley, 16th Earl of Derby, English captain and politician, 6th Governor General of Canada (b. 1841)
  • 1914 – Adlai Stevenson I, American lawyer and politician, 23rd Vice President of the United States (b. 1835)
  • 1916 – João Simões Lopes Neto, Brazilian author (b. 1865)
  • 1920 – Max Weber, German sociologist and economist (b. 1864)
  • 1923 – Isabelle Bogelot, French philanthropist (b. 1838)
  • 1926 – Mary Cassatt, American-French painter (b. 1843)
  • 1927 – Ottavio Bottecchia, Italian cyclist (b. 1894)
  • 1927 – Jerome K. Jerome, English author (b. 1859)
  • 1928 – Emmeline Pankhurst, English activist and academic (b. 1857)
  • 1932 – Dorimène Roy Desjardins, Canadian businesswoman, co-founded Desjardins Group (b. 1858)
  • 1933 – Justinien de Clary, French target shooter (b. 1860)
  • 1936 – G. K. Chesterton, English essayist, poet, playwright, and novelist (b. 1874)
  • 1936 – Hans Poelzig, German architect, painter, and designer, designed the IG Farben Building (b. 1869)
  • 1946 – John Logie Baird, Scottish-English physicist and engineer (b. 1888)
  • 1946 – Jorge Ubico, 21st President of Guatemala (b. 1878)
  • 1953 – Tom Cole, Welsh-American racing driver (b. 1922)
  • 1968 – Salvatore Quasimodo, Italian novelist and poet, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1901)
  • 1972 – Dündar Taşer, Turkish soldier and politician (b. 1925)
  • 1977 – Robert Middleton, American actor (b. 1911)
  • 1977 – Alan Reed, American actor, original voice of Fred Flintstone (b.1907)
  • 1979 – Ahmad Zahir, Afghan singer-songwriter (b. 1946)
  • 1980 – Charles Miller, American saxophonist and flute player (b. 1939)
  • 1986 – Jorge Luis Borges, Argentine short-story writer, essayist, poet and translator (b. 1899)
  • 1986 – Alan Jay Lerner, American composer and songwriter (b. 1918)
  • 1987 – Stanisław Bareja, Polish actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1929)
  • 1990 – Erna Berger, German soprano and actress (b. 1900)
  • 1991 – Peggy Ashcroft, English actress (b. 1907)
  • 1994 – Lionel Grigson, English pianist, composer, and educator (b. 1942)
  • 1994 – Henry Mancini, American composer and conductor (b. 1924)
  • 1994 – Marcel Mouloudji, French singer and actor (b. 1922)
  • 1995 – Els Aarne, Ukrainian-Estonian pianist, composer, and educator (b. 1917)
  • 1995 – Rory Gallagher, Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1949)
  • 1995 – Roger Zelazny, American author and poet (b. 1937)
  • 1996 – Noemí Gerstein, Argentinian sculptor and illustrator (b. 1908)
  • 1997 – Richard Jaeckel, American actor (b. 1926)
  • 1999 – Bernie Faloney, American-Canadian football player and sportscaster (b. 1932)
  • 2000 – Attilio Bertolucci, Italian poet and author (b. 1911)
  • 2002 – June Jordan, American author and activist (b. 1936)
  • 2003 – Dale Whittington, American race car driver (b. 1959)
  • 2004 – Ulrich Inderbinen, Swiss mountaineer and guide (b. 1900)
  • 2005 – Carlo Maria Giulini, Italian conductor and director (b. 1914)
  • 2005 – Mimi Parent, Canadian-Swiss painter (b. 1924)
  • 2006 – Monty Berman, English director, producer, and cinematographer (b. 1905)
  • 2006 – Jean Roba, Belgian author and illustrator (b. 1930)
  • 2007 – Ruth Graham, Chinese-American author, poet, and painter (b. 1920)
  • 2007 – Robin Olds, American general and pilot (b. 1922)
  • 2007 – Kurt Waldheim, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Austrian politician, 9th President of Austria (b. 1918)
  • 2009 – Bob Bogle, American musician (The Ventures) (b. 1934)
  • 2009 – William McIntyre, Canadian soldier, lawyer, and judge (b. 1918)
  • 2012 – Peter Archer, Baron Archer of Sandwell, English lawyer and politician, Solicitor General for England and Wales (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Bob Chappuis, American football player and soldier (b. 1923)
  • 2012 – Margie Hyams, American pianist and vibraphone player (b. 1920)
  • 2012 – Karl-Heinz Kämmerling, German pianist and academic (b. 1930)
  • 2012 – Carlos Reichenbach, Brazilian director and producer (b. 1945)
  • 2012 – Gitta Sereny, Austrian-English historian, journalist, and author (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Elroy Schwartz, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Alberto Cañas Escalante, Costa Rican journalist and politician (b. 1920)
  • 2014 – Isabelle Collin Dufresne, French actress (b. 1935)
  • 2014 – Robert Lebeck, German photographer and journalist (b. 1929)
  • 2014 – James E. Rogers, American lawyer, businessman, and academic (b. 1938)
  • 2015 – Richard Cotton, Australian geneticist and academic (b. 1940)
  • 2015 – Anne Nicol Gaylor, American activist, co-founded the Freedom From Religion Foundation (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Qiao Shi, Chinese politician (b. 1924)
  • 2016 – Ann Morgan Guilbert, American actress and singer (b. 1928)
  • 2016 – Gilles Lamontagne, Canadian politician, Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (b. 1919)
  • 2020 – Sushant Singh Rajput, Indian film actor (b. 1986)

Holidays and observances on June 14

  • Christian feast day:
    • Burchard of Meissen
    • Caomhán of Inisheer
    • Elisha (Roman Catholic and Lutheran)
    • Fortunatus of Naples (Roman Catholic)
    • Blessed Francisca de Paula de Jesus (Nhá Chica)
    • Joseph the Hymnographer (Roman Catholic: Orthodox April 3)
    • Methodios I of Constantinople
    • Quintian of Rodez (Rodez)
    • Richard Baxter (Church of England)
    • Valerius and Rufinus
    • June 14 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Commemoration of the Soviet Deportation related observances:
    • Baltic Freedom Day (United States)
    • Mourning and Commemoration Day or Leinapäev (Estonia)
    • Mourning and Hope Day (Lithuania)
  • Day of Memory for Repressed People (Armenia)
  • Flag Day (United States)
  • Freedom Day (Malawi)
  • Liberation Day (Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands)
  • World Blood Donor Day

June 14 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

May 31- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome.
  • 1223 – Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River: Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat Kievan Rus’ and Cumans.
  • 1293 – Mongol invasion of Java was a punitive expedition against King Kertanegara of Singhasari, who had refused to pay tribute to the Yuan and maimed one of its ministers. However, it ended with failure for the Mongols. Regarded as establish City of Surabaya
  • 1578 – King Henry III lays the first stone of the Pont Neuf (New Bridge), the oldest bridge of Paris, France.
  • 1669 – Citing poor eyesight as a reason, Samuel Pepys records the last event in his diary.
  • 1775 – American Revolution: The Mecklenburg Resolves are adopted in the Province of North Carolina.
  • 1790 – Manuel Quimper explores the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
  • 1790 – The United States enacts its first copyright statute, the Copyright Act of 1790.
  • 1795 – French Revolution: The Revolutionary Tribunal is suppressed.
  • 1805 – French and Spanish forces begin the assault against British forces occupying Diamond Rock.
  • 1813 – In Australia, William Lawson, Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth reach Mount Blaxland, effectively marking the end of a route across the Blue Mountains.
  • 1859 – The clock tower at the Houses of Parliament, which houses Big Ben, starts keeping time.
  • 1862 – American Civil War: Peninsula Campaign: Confederate forces under Joseph E. Johnston and G.W. Smith engage Union forces under George B. McClellan outside Richmond, Virginia.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Overland Campaign: Battle of Cold Harbor: The Army of Northern Virginia engages the Army of the Potomac.
  • 1879 – Gilmore’s Garden in New York City is renamed Madison Square Garden by William Henry Vanderbilt and is opened to the public at 26th Street and Madison Avenue.
  • 1884 – The arrival at Plymouth of Tāwhiao, King of Maoris, to claim the protection of Queen Victoria.
  • 1889 – Johnstown Flood: Over 2,200 people die after a dam fails and sends a 60-foot (18-meter) wall of water over the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
  • 1902 – Second Boer War: The Treaty of Vereeniging ends the war and ensures British control of South Africa.
  • 1909 – The National Negro Committee, forerunner to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), convenes for the first time.
  • 1910 – The South Africa Act comes into force, establishing the Union of South Africa.
  • 1911 – The RMS Titanic is launched in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
  • 1911 – The President of Mexico Porfirio Díaz flees the country during the Mexican Revolution.
  • 1916 – World War I: Battle of Jutland: The British Grand Fleet engages the High Seas Fleet in the largest naval battle of the war, which proves indecisive.
  • 1921 – The Tulsa race massacre kills at least 39, but other estimates of black fatalities vary from 55 to about 300.
  • 1935 – A 7.7 Mw  earthquake destroys Quetta in modern-day Pakistan killing 40,000.
  • 1941 – Anglo-Iraqi War: The United Kingdom completes the re-occupation of Iraq and returns ‘Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II.
  • 1942 – World War II: Imperial Japanese Navy midget submarines begin a series of attacks on Sydney, Australia.
  • 1947 – Ferenc Nagy, the democratically elected Prime Minister of Hungary, resigns from office after blackmail from the Hungarian Communist Party accusing him of being part of a plot against the state. This grants the Communists effective control of the Hungarian government.
  • 1961 – The South African Constitution of 1961 becomes effective, thus creating the Republic of South Africa, which remains outside the Commonwealth of Nations until 1 June 1994, when South Africa is returned to Commonwealth membership.
  • 1961 – In Moscow City Court, the Rokotov–Faibishenko show trial begins, despite the Khrushchev Thaw to reverse Stalinist elements in Soviet society.
  • 1962 – The West Indies Federation dissolves.
  • 1970 – The 7.9 Mw  Ancash earthquake shakes Peru with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) and a landslide buries the town of Yungay, Peru. Between 66,794–70,000 were killed and 50,000 were injured.
  • 1971 – In accordance with the Uniform Monday Holiday Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1968, observation of Memorial Day occurs on the last Monday in May for the first time, rather than on the traditional Memorial Day of May 30.
  • 1973 – The United States Senate votes to cut off funding for the bombing of Khmer Rouge targets within Cambodia, hastening the end of the Cambodian Civil War.
  • 1977 – The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System is completed.
  • 1985 – United States–Canada tornado outbreak: Forty-one tornadoes hit Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario, leaving 76 dead.
  • 1991 – Bicesse Accords in Angola lay out a transition to multi-party democracy under the supervision of the United Nations’ UNAVEM II mission.
  • 2005 – Vanity Fair reveals that Mark Felt was “Deep Throat”.
  • 2008 – Usain Bolt breaks the world record in the 100m sprint, with a wind-legal (+1.7 m/s) 9.72 seconds
  • 2010 – Israeli Shayetet 13 commandos boarded the Gaza Freedom Flotilla while still in international waters trying to break the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip; nine Turkish citizens on the flotilla were killed in the ensuing violent affray.
  • 2013 – The asteroid 1998 QE2 and its moon make their closest approach to Earth for the next two centuries.
  • 2013 – A record breaking 2.6 mile wide tornado strikes El Reno, Oklahoma, United States, causing eight fatalities and over 150 injuries.
  • 2017 – A car bomb explodes in a crowded intersection in Kabul near the German embassy during rush hour, killing over 90 and injuring 463.
  • 2017 – U.S. President Donald Trump tweets the word “covfefe” and quickly becomes a worldwide viral phenomenon.
  • 2019 – A shooting occurs inside a municipal building at Virginia Beach, Virginia, leaving 13 people dead, including the shooter, and four others injured.

Births on May 31

  • 1443 (or 1441) – Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby (d. 1509)
  • 1462 – Philipp II, Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg (d. 1504)
  • 1469 – Manuel I of Portugal (d. 1521)
  • 1535 – Alessandro Allori, Italian painter (d. 1607)
  • 1556 – Jerzy Radziwiłł, Catholic cardinal (d. 1600)
  • 1577 – Nur Jahan, Empress consort of the Mughal Empire (d. 1645)
  • 1613 – John George II, Elector of Saxony (d. 1680)
  • 1640 – Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki, King of Poland (d. 1673)
  • 1641 – Patriarch Dositheos II of Jerusalem (d. 1707)
  • 1725 – Ahilyabai Holkar, Queen of the Malwa Kingdom under the Maratha Empire (d. 1795)
  • 1732 – Count Hieronymus von Colloredo, Austrian archbishop (d. 1812)
  • 1753 – Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud, French lawyer and politician (d. 1793)
  • 1754 – Andrea Appiani, Italian painter and educator (d. 1817)
  • 1773 – Ludwig Tieck, German poet, author, and critic (d. 1853)
  • 1801 – Johann Georg Baiter, Swiss philologist and scholar (d. 1887)
  • 1815 – Adye Douglas, English-Australian cricketer and politician, 15th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1906)
  • 1818 – John Albion Andrew, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1867)
  • 1819 – Walt Whitman, American poet, essayist, and journalist (d. 1892)
  • 1827 – Kusumoto Ine, first Japanese female doctor of Western medicine (d. 1903)
  • 1835 – Hijikata Toshizō, Japanese commander (d. 1869)
  • 1838 – Henry Sidgwick, English economist and philosopher (d. 1900)
  • 1842 – John Cox Bray, Australian politician, 15th Premier of South Australia (d. 1894)
  • 1847 – William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, Canadian-Irish businessman and politician, Lord Mayor of Belfast (d. 1924)
  • 1852 – Francisco Moreno, Argentinian explorer and academic (d. 1919)
  • 1852 – Julius Richard Petri, German microbiologist, invented the Petri dish (d. 1921)
  • 1857 – Pope Pius XI (d. 1939)
  • 1858 – Graham Wallas, English socialist, social psychologist, and educationalist (d. 1932)
  • 1860 – Walter Sickert, English painter (d. 1942)
  • 1863 – Francis Younghusband, Indian-English captain and explorer (d. 1942)
  • 1866 – John Ringling, American entrepreneur; one of the founders of the Ringling Brothers Circus (d. 1936)
  • 1875 – Rosa May Billinghurst, British suffragette and women’s rights activist (d.1953)
  • 1879 – Frances Alda, New Zealand-Australian soprano (d. 1952)
  • 1882 – Sándor Festetics, Hungarian politician, Hungarian Minister of War (d. 1956)
  • 1883 – Lauri Kristian Relander, Finnish politician, 2nd President of Finland (d. 1942)
  • 1885 – Robert Richards, Australian politician, 32nd Premier of South Australia (d. 1967)
  • 1887 – Saint-John Perse, French poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1975)
  • 1892 – Michel Kikoine, Belarusian-French painter (d. 1968)
  • 1892 – Erich Neumann, German lieutenant and politician (d. 1951)
  • 1892 – Konstantin Paustovsky, Russian poet and author (d. 1968)
  • 1892 – Gregor Strasser, German lieutenant and politician (d. 1934)
  • 1894 – Fred Allen, American comedian, radio host, game show panelist, and author (d. 1956)
  • 1898 – Norman Vincent Peale, American minister and author (d. 1993)
  • 1900 – Lucile Godbold, American Olympic athlete (d. 1981)
  • 1901 – Alfredo Antonini, Italian-American conductor and composer (d. 1983)
  • 1908 – Don Ameche, American actor (d. 1993)
  • 1909 – Art Coulter, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2000)
  • 1911 – Maurice Allais, French economist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
  • 1912 – Chien-Shiung Wu, Chinese-American experimental physicist (d. 1997)
  • 1914 – Akira Ifukube, Japanese composer and educator (d. 2006)
  • 1916 – Bert Haanstra, Dutch director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1997)
  • 1918 – Robert Osterloh, American actor (d. 2001)
  • 1918 – Lloyd Quarterman, African American chemist (d. 1982)
  • 1919 – Robie Macauley, American editor, novelist and critic (d. 1995)
  • 1921 – Edna Doré, English actress (d. 2014)
  • 1921 – Andrew Grima, Anglo-Italian jewellery designer (d. 2007)
  • 1921 – Howard Reig, American radio and television announcer (d. 2008)
  • 1921 – Alida Valli, Austrian-Italian actress and singer (d. 2006)
  • 1922 – Denholm Elliott, English-Spanish actor (d. 1992)
  • 1923 – Ellsworth Kelly, American painter and sculptor (d. 2015)
  • 1923 – Rainier III, Prince of Monaco (d. 2005)
  • 1925 – Julian Beck, American actor and director (d. 1986)
  • 1927 – James Eberle, English admiral (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – Michael Sandberg, Baron Sandberg, English lieutenant and banker (d. 2017)
  • 1928 – Pankaj Roy, Indian cricketer (d. 2001)
  • 1929 – Menahem Golan, Israeli director and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – Clint Eastwood, American actor, director, musician, and producer
  • 1931 – John Robert Schrieffer, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2019)
  • 1931 – Shirley Verrett, American soprano and actress (d. 2010)
  • 1932 – Ed Lincoln, Brazilian pianist, bassist, and composer (d. 2012)
  • 1932 – Jay Miner, American computer scientist and engineer (d. 1994)
  • 1933 – Henry B. Eyring, American religious leader, educator, and author
  • 1934 – Jim Hutton, American actor (d. 1979)
  • 1935 – Jim Bolger, New Zealand businessman and politician, 35th Prime Minister of New Zealand
  • 1938 – Johnny Paycheck, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2003)
  • 1938 – John Prescott, British sailor and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
  • 1938 – Peter Yarrow, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1939 – Terry Waite, English humanitarian and author
  • 1940 – Anatoliy Bondarchuk, Ukrainian hammer thrower and coach
  • 1940 – Augie Meyers, American musician and singer-songwriter
  • 1940 – Gilbert Shelton, American illustrator
  • 1941 – June Clark, Welsh nurse and educator
  • 1941 – Louis Ignarro, American pharmacologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1941 – William Nordhaus, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1943 – Sharon Gless, American actress
  • 1943 – Joe Namath, American football player, sportscaster, and actor
  • 1945 – Rainer Werner Fassbinder, German actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1982)
  • 1945 – Laurent Gbagbo, Ivorian academic and politician, 4th President of Côte d’Ivoire
  • 1945 – Bernard Goldberg, American journalist and author
  • 1946 – Ted Baehr, American publisher and critic
  • 1946 – Steve Bucknor, Jamaican cricketer and umpire
  • 1946 – Krista Kilvet, Estonian journalist, politician, and diplomat (d. 2009)
  • 1946 – Debbie Moore, English model and businesswoman
  • 1947 – Junior Campbell, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1947 – Gabriele Hinzmann, German discus thrower
  • 1948 – Svetlana Alexievich, Belarusian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1948 – John Bonham, English musician, songwriter and drummer (d. 1980)
  • 1948 – Martin Hannett, English bass player, guitarist, and record producer (d. 1991)
  • 1948 – Duncan Hunter, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician
  • 1949 – Tom Berenger, American actor, film producer and television writer
  • 1950 – Jean Chalopin, French director, producer, and screenwriter, founded DIC Entertainment
  • 1950 – Gregory Harrison, American actor
  • 1950 – Edgar Savisaar, Estonian politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior
  • 1951 – Karl-Hans Riehm, German hammer thrower
  • 1952 – Karl Bartos, German singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1953 – Pirkka-Pekka Petelius, Finnish actor and screenwriter
  • 1954 – Thomas Mavros, Greek footballer
  • 1954 – Vicki Sue Robinson, American actress and singer (d. 2000)
  • 1955 – Tommy Emmanuel, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1955 – Susie Essman, American actress, comedian, and screenwriter
  • 1956 – Fritz Hilpert, German drummer and composer
  • 1956 – John Young, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1957 – Jim Craig, American ice hockey player
  • 1959 – Andrea de Cesaris, Italian racing driver (d. 2014)
  • 1959 – Phil Wilson, English politician
  • 1960 – Greg Adams, Canadian ice hockey player and businessman
  • 1960 – Chris Elliott, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Peter Winterbottom, English rugby player
  • 1961 – Ray Cote, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1961 – Justin Madden, Australian footballer and politician
  • 1961 – Lea Thompson, American actress, director, and producer
  • 1962 – Corey Hart, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1963 – David Leigh, holder of the Sir Samuel Hall Chair of Chemistry at the University of Manchester
  • 1963 – Viktor Orbán, Hungarian politician, 38th Prime Minister of Hungary
  • 1963 – Wesley Willis, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player (d. 2003)
  • 1964 – Leonard Asper, Canadian lawyer and businessman
  • 1964 – Stéphane Caristan, French hurdler and coach
  • 1964 – Yukio Edano, Japanese politician, Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs
  • 1964 – Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels, American rapper and producer
  • 1965 – Brooke Shields, American model, actress, and producer
  • 1966 – Roshan Mahanama, Sri Lankan cricketer and referee
  • 1967 – Phil Keoghan, New Zealand television host and producer
  • 1967 – Kenny Lofton, American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1971 – Arun Luthra, Indo-Anglo-American saxophonist, konnakol artist, composer, and arranger
  • 1972 – Christian McBride, American bassist and record producer
  • 1972 – Archie Panjabi, Indo-British actress
  • 1972 – Frode Estil, Norwegian skier
  • 1972 – Antti Niemi, Finnish international footballer, goalkeeper and coach
  • 1972 – Dave Roberts, American baseball player and coach
  • 1974 – Hiroiki Ariyoshi, Japanese comedian and singer
  • 1974 – Chad Campbell, American golfer
  • 1975 – Mac Suzuki, Japanese baseball player
  • 1976 – Colin Farrell, Irish actor
  • 1976 – Matt Harpring, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1977 – Theodoros Baev, Bulgarian-Greek volleyball player
  • 1977 – Domenico Fioravanti, Italian swimmer
  • 1977 – Eric Christian Olsen, American actor
  • 1977 – Moses Sichone, Zambian footballer
  • 1977 – Petr Tenkrát, Czech ice hockey player
  • 1979 – Jean-François Gillet, Belgian footballer
  • 1981 – Mikael Antonsson, Swedish footballer
  • 1981 – Daniele Bonera, Italian footballer
  • 1981 – Jake Peavy, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Marlies Schild, Austrian skier
  • 1984 – Andrew Bailey, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Milorad Čavić, Serbian swimmer
  • 1984 – Nate Robinson, American basketball player
  • 1985 – Jordy Nelson, American football player
  • 1986 – Robert Gesink, Dutch cyclist
  • 1989 – Marco Reus, German footballer
  • 1990 – Erik Karlsson, Swedish ice hockey player
  • 1992 – Michaël Bournival, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1992 – Laura Ikauniece, Latvian heptathlete
  • 1996 – Normani Korde, American singer
  • 1998 – Santino Ferrucci, American race car driver

Deaths on May 31

  • 455 – Petronius Maximus, Roman emperor (b. 396)
  • 930 – Liu Hua, princess of Southern Han (b. 896)
  • 960 – Fujiwara no Morosuke, Japanese statesman (b. 909)
  • 1076 – Waltheof, Earl of Northumbria, English politician (b. 1050)
  • 1089 – Sigwin von Are, archbishop of Cologne
  • 1162 – Géza II, king of Hungary (b. 1130)
  • 1321 – Birger, king of Sweden (b. 1280)
  • 1326 – Maurice de Berkeley, 2nd Baron Berkeley (b. 1271)
  • 1329 – Albertino Mussato, Italian statesman and writer (b. 1261)
  • 1349 – Thomas Wake, English politician (b. 1297)
  • 1370 – Vitalis of Assisi, Italian hermit and monk (b. 1295)
  • 1408 – Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Japanese shōgun (b. 1358)
  • 1410 – Martin of Aragon, Spanish king (b. 1356)
  • 1504 – Engelbert II of Nassau (b. 1451)
  • 1558 – Philip Hoby, English general and diplomat (b. 1505)
  • 1567 – Guido de Bres, Belgian pastor and theologian (b. 1522)
  • 1594 – Tintoretto, Italian painter and educator (b. 1518)
  • 1601 – Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg, Archbishop-Elector of Cologne (b. 1547)
  • 1640 – Zeynab Begum, Safavid princess (date of birth unknown)
  • 1665 – Pieter Jansz. Saenredam, Dutch painter (b. 1597)
  • 1680 – Joachim Neander, German theologian and educator (b. 1650)
  • 1740 – Frederick William I of Prussia (b. 1688)
  • 1747 – Andrey Osterman, German-Russian politician, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1686)
  • 1809 – Joseph Haydn, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1732)
  • 1809 – Jean Lannes, French general (b. 1769)
  • 1831 – Samuel Bentham, English architect and engineer (b. 1757)
  • 1832 – Évariste Galois, French mathematician and theorist (b. 1811)
  • 1837 – Joseph Grimaldi, English actor, comedian and dancer, (b. 1779)
  • 1846 – Philip Marheineke, German pastor and philosopher (b. 1780)
  • 1847 – Thomas Chalmers, Scottish minister and economist (b. 1780)
  • 1848 – Eugénie de Guérin, French author (b. 1805)
  • 1899 – Stefanos Koumanoudis, Greek archaeologist, teacher and writer (b. 1818)
  • 1908 – Louis-Honoré Fréchette, Canadian author, poet, and politician (b. 1839)
  • 1909 – Thomas Price, Welsh-Australian politician, 24th Premier of South Australia (b. 1852)
  • 1910 – Elizabeth Blackwell, English-American physician and educator (b. 1821)
  • 1931 – Felix-Raymond-Marie Rouleau, Canadian cardinal (b. 1866)
  • 1931 – Willy Stöwer, German author and illustrator (b. 1864)
  • 1945 – Odilo Globocnik, Italian-Austrian SS officer (b. 1904)
  • 1954 – Antonis Benakis, Greek art collector and philanthropist, founded the Benaki Museum (b. 1873)
  • 1957 – Stefanos Sarafis, Greek general and politician (b. 1890)
  • 1957 – Leopold Staff, Polish poet and academic (b. 1878)
  • 1960 – Willem Elsschot, Flemish author and poet (b. 1882)
  • 1960 – Walther Funk, German economist, journalist, and politician, German Minister of Economics (b. 1890)
  • 1962 – Henry F. Ashurst, American lawyer and politician (b. 1874)
  • 1967 – Billy Strayhorn, American pianist and composer (b. 1915)
  • 1970 – Terry Sawchuk, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1929)
  • 1976 – Jacques Monod, French biologist and geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
  • 1977 – William Castle, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1914)
  • 1978 – József Bozsik, Hungarian footballer and manager (b. 1925)
  • 1981 – Barbara Ward, Baroness Jackson of Lodsworth, English economist and journalist (b. 1914)
  • 1982 – Carlo Mauri, Italian mountaineer and explorer (b. 1930)
  • 1983 – Jack Dempsey, American boxer and lieutenant (b. 1895)
  • 1985 – Gaston Rébuffat, French mountaineer and author (b. 1921)
  • 1986 – Jane Frank, American painter and sculptor (b. 1918)
  • 1986 – James Rainwater, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917)
  • 1987 – John Abraham, Indian director and screenwriter (b. 1937)
  • 1989 – Owen Lattimore, American author and academic (b. 1900)
  • 1989 – C. L. R. James, Trinidadian journalist and historian (b. 1901)
  • 1993 – Honey Tree Evil Eye, or, Spud Mackenzie, a Bull Terrier, dies of kidney failure.
  • 1994 – Uzay Heparı, Turkish actor, producer, and composer (b. 1969)
  • 1994 – Herva Nelli, Italian-American soprano (b. 1909)
  • 1995 – Stanley Elkin, American novelist, short story writer, and essayist (b. 1930)
  • 1996 – Timothy Leary, American psychologist and author (b. 1920)
  • 1998 – Charles Van Acker, Belgian-American race car driver (b. 1912)
  • 2000 – Petar Mladenov, Bulgarian diplomat, 1st President of Bulgaria (b. 1936)
  • 2000 – Tito Puente, American jazz musician (b. 1923)
  • 2000 – A. Jeyaratnam Wilson, Sri Lankan historian, author, and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2001 – Arlene Francis, American actress, talk show host, game show panelist, and television personality (b. 1907)
  • 2002 – Subhash Gupte, Indian cricketer (b. 1929)
  • 2004 – Aiyathurai Nadesan, Sri Lankan journalist (b. 1954)
  • 2004 – Robert Quine, American guitarist (b. 1941)
  • 2004 – Étienne Roda-Gil, French screenwriter and composer (b. 1941)
  • 2006 – Miguel Ortiz Berrocal, Spanish sculptor (b. 1933)
  • 2006 – Raymond Davis, Jr., American physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1914)
  • 2009 – Danny La Rue, Irish-British drag queen performer and singer (b. 1927)
  • 2009 – George Tiller, American physician (b. 1941)
  • 2010 – Louise Bourgeois, French-American sculptor and painter (b. 1911)
  • 2010 – Brian Duffy, English photographer and producer (b. 1933)
  • 2010 – William A. Fraker, American director, producer, and cinematographer (b. 1923)
  • 2010 – Rubén Juárez, Argentinian singer-songwriter and bandoneón player (b. 1947)
  • 2010 – Merata Mita, New Zealand director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1942)
  • 2011 – Pauline Betz, American tennis player (b. 1919)
  • 2011 – Jonas Bevacqua, American fashion designer, co-founded the Lifted Research Group (b. 1977)
  • 2011 – Derek Hodge, Virgin Islander lawyer and politician, Lieutenant Governor of the United States Virgin Islands (b. 1941)
  • 2011 – Hans Keilson, German-Dutch psychoanalyst and author (b. 1909)
  • 2011 – John Martin, English admiral and politician, Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey (b. 1918)
  • 2011 – Andy Robustelli, American football player and manager (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – Christopher Challis, English cinematographer (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Randall B. Kester, American lawyer and judge (b. 1916)
  • 2012 – Paul Pietsch, German racing driver and publisher (b. 1911)
  • 2012 – Orlando Woolridge, American basketball player and coach (b. 1959)
  • 2013 – Gerald E. Brown, American physicist and academic (b. 1926)
  • 2013 – Frederic Lindsay, Scottish author and educator (b. 1933)
  • 2013 – Miguel Méndez, American author and poet (b. 1930)
  • 2013 – Tim Samaras, American engineer and storm chaser (b. 1957)
  • 2013 – Jairo Mora Sandoval, Costa Rican environmentalist (b. 1987)
  • 2013 – Jean Stapleton, American actress (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Marilyn Beck, American journalist (b. 1928)
  • 2014 – Marinho Chagas, Brazilian footballer and coach (b. 1952)
  • 2014 – Hoss Ellington, American race car driver (b. 1935)
  • 2014 – Martha Hyer, American actress (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Lewis Katz, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1942)
  • 2014 – Mary Soames, Baroness Soames, English author (b. 1922)
  • 2015 – Gladys Taylor, Canadian author and publisher (b. 1917)
  • 2016 – Mohamed Abdelaziz, President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (1976–2016) (b. 1947)
  • 2016 – Jan Crouch, American televangelist, co-founder of the Trinity Broadcasting Network (b. 1938)
  • 2016 – Carla Lane, English television writer (b. 1928)
  • 2016 – Rupert Neudeck, German journalist and humanitarian (b. 1939)

Holidays and observances on May 31

  • Anniversary of Royal Brunei Malay Regiment (Brunei)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Camilla Battista da Varano
    • Hermias
    • Petronella
    • Visitation of Mary (Western Christianity)
    • May 31 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • The beginning of Gawai Dayak (Dayaks in Sarawak, Malaysia and West Kalimantan, Indonesia)
  • World No Tobacco Day (International)

May 31- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day, Uncategorized

May 30 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • AD 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus and his Roman legions breach the Second Wall of Jerusalem. Jewish defenders retreat to the First Wall. The Romans build a circumvallation, cutting down all trees within fifteen kilometers.
  • 1381 – Beginning of the Peasants’ Revolt in England.
  • 1416 – The Council of Constance, called by Emperor Sigismund, a supporter of Antipope John XXIII, burns Jerome of Prague following a trial for heresy.
  • 1431 – Hundred Years’ War: In Rouen, France, the 19-year-old Joan of Arc is burned at the stake by an English-dominated tribunal. The Roman Catholic Church remembers this day as the celebration of Saint Joan of Arc.
  • 1434 – Hussite Wars: Battle of Lipany: Effectively ending the war, Utraquist forces led by Diviš Bořek of Miletínek defeat and almost annihilate Taborite forces led by Prokop the Great.
  • 1510 – During the reign of the Zhengde Emperor, Ming dynasty rebel leader Zhu Zhifan is defeated by commander Qiu Yue, ending the Prince of Anhua rebellion.
  • 1536 – King Henry VIII of England marries Jane Seymour, a lady-in-waiting to his first two wives.
  • 1539 – In Florida, Hernando de Soto lands at Tampa Bay with 600 soldiers with the goal of finding gold.
  • 1574 – Henry III becomes King of France.
  • 1588 – The last ship of the Spanish Armada sets sail from Lisbon heading for the English Channel.
  • 1631 – Publication of Gazette de France, the first French newspaper.
  • 1635 – Thirty Years’ War: The Peace of Prague is signed.
  • 1642 – From this date all honors granted by Charles I of England are retroactively annulled by Parliament.
  • 1806 – Future U.S. President Andrew Jackson kills Charles Dickinson in a duel.
  • 1814 – The First Treaty of Paris is signed, returning the French frontiers to their 1792 extent, and restoring the House of Bourbon to power.
  • 1815 – The East Indiaman Arniston is wrecked during a storm at Waenhuiskrans, near Cape Agulhas, in present-day South Africa, with the loss of 372 lives.
  • 1834 – Minister of Justice Joaquim António de Aguiar issues a law seizing “all convents, monasteries, colleges, hospices and any other houses” from the Catholic religious orders in Portugal, earning him the nickname of “The Friar-Killer”.
  • 1842 – John Francis attempts to murder Queen Victoria as she drives down Constitution Hill in London with Prince Albert.
  • 1845 – The Fatel Razack coming from India, lands in the Gulf of Paria in Trinidad and Tobago carrying the first Indians to the country.
  • 1854 – The Kansas–Nebraska Act becomes law establishing the US territories of Kansas and Nebraska.
  • 1868 – Decoration Day (the predecessor of the modern “Memorial Day”) is observed in the United States for the first time after a proclamation by John A. Logan, head of the Grand Army of the Republic (a veterans group).
  • 1876 – Ottoman sultan Abdülaziz is deposed and succeeded by his nephew Murad V.
  • 1883 – In New York City, a stampede on the recently opened Brooklyn Bridge killed twelve people.
  • 1899 – Pearl Hart, a female outlaw of the Old West, robs a stage coach 30 miles southeast of Globe, Arizona.
  • 1911 – At the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the first Indianapolis 500 ends with Ray Harroun in his Marmon Wasp becoming the first winner of the 500-mile auto race.
  • 1913 – The Treaty of London is signed, ending the First Balkan War; Albania becomes an independent nation.
  • 1914 – The new, and then the largest, Cunard ocean liner RMS Aquitania, 45,647 tons, sets sails on her maiden voyage from Liverpool, England, to New York City.
  • 1922 – The Lincoln Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C..
  • 1925 – May Thirtieth Movement: Shanghai Municipal Police Force shoot and kill 13 protesting workers.
  • 1937 – Memorial Day massacre: Chicago police shoot and kill ten labor demonstrators.
  • 1941 – World War II: Manolis Glezos and Apostolos Santas climb the Athenian Acropolis and tear down the German flag.
  • 1942 – World War II: One thousand British bombers launch a 90-minute attack on Cologne, Germany.
  • 1943 – The Holocaust: Josef Mengele becomes chief medical officer of the Zigeunerfamilienlager (Romani family camp) at Auschwitz concentration camp.
  • 1948 – A dike along the flooding Columbia River breaks, obliterating Vanport, Oregon within minutes. Fifteen people die and tens of thousands are left homeless.
  • 1958 – Memorial Day: The remains of two unidentified American servicemen, killed in action during World War II and the Korean War respectively, are buried at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery.
  • 1959 – The Auckland Harbour Bridge, crossing the Waitematā Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand, is officially opened by Governor-General Charles Lyttelton, 10th Viscount Cobham.
  • 1961 – The long-time Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo is assassinated in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
  • 1963 – A protest against pro-Catholic discrimination during the Buddhist crisis is held outside South Vietnam’s National Assembly, the first open demonstration during the eight-year rule of Ngo Dinh Diem.
  • 1966 – Former Congolese Prime Minister, Évariste Kimba, and several other politicians are publicly executed in Kinshasa on the orders of President Joseph Mobutu.
  • 1967 – The Nigerian Eastern Region declares independence as the Republic of Biafra, sparking a civil war.
  • 1968 – Charles de Gaulle reappears publicly after his flight to Baden-Baden, Germany, and dissolves the French National Assembly by a radio appeal. Immediately after, less than one million of his supporters march on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. This is the turning point of May 1968 events in France.
  • 1971 – Mariner program: Mariner 9 is launched to map 70% of the surface, and to study temporal changes in the atmosphere and surface, of Mars.
  • 1972 – The Angry Brigade goes on trial over a series of 25 bombings throughout the United Kingdom.
  • 1972 – In Ben Gurion Airport (at the time: Lod Airport), Israel, members of the Japanese Red Army carry out the Lod Airport massacre, killing 24 people and injuring 78 others.
  • 1974 – The Airbus A300 passenger aircraft first enters service.
  • 1979 – Downeast Flight 46 crashes on approach to Knox County Regional Airport in Rockland, Maine, killing 17.
  • 1975 – European Space Agency is established.
  • 1982 – Cold War: Spain joins NATO.
  • 1989 – Tiananmen Square protests of 1989: The 10-metre high “Goddess of Democracy” statue is unveiled in Tiananmen Square by student demonstrators.
  • 1990 – Croatian Parliament is constituted after the first free, multi-party elections, today celebrated as the National Day of Croatia.
  • 1998 – The 6.5 Mw  Afghanistan earthquake shook the Takhar Province of northern Afghanistan with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong), killing around 4,000–4,500.
  • 1998 – Nuclear Testing: Pakistan conducts an underground test in the Kharan Desert. It is reported to be a plutonium device with yield of 20kt TNT equivalent.
  • 2003 – Depayin massacre: At least 70 people associated with the National League for Democracy are killed by government-sponsored mob in Burma. Aung San Suu Kyi flees the scene, but is arrested soon afterwards.
  • 2008 – Convention on Cluster Munitions is adopted.
  • 2008 – TACA Flight 390 overshoots the runway at Toncontín International Airport, killing five people.
  • 2012 – Former Liberian president Charles Taylor is sentenced to 50 years in prison for his role in atrocities committed during the Sierra Leone Civil War.
  • 2013 – Nigeria passes a law banning same-sex marriage.
  • 2020 – The Crew Dragon Demo-2 launches from the Kennedy Space Center, becoming the first crewed rocket to launch from the United States since 2011.

Births on May 30

  • 1010 – Ren Zong, Chinese emperor (d. 1063)
  • 1201 – Theobald IV, count of Champagne (d. 1253)
  • 1423 – Georg von Peuerbach, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1461)
  • 1464 – Barbara of Brandenburg, Bohemian queen (d. 1515)
  • 1580 – Fadrique de Toledo, 1st Marquis of Villanueva de Valdueza (d. 1634)
  • 1599 – Samuel Bochart, French Protestant biblical scholar (d. 1667)
  • 1623 – John Egerton, 2nd Earl of Bridgewater, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire (d. 1686)
  • 1686 – Antonina Houbraken, Dutch illustrator (d. 1736)
  • 1718 – Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, English politician, Secretary of State for the Colonies (d. 1793)
  • 1719 – Roger Newdigate, English politician (d. 1806)
  • 1757 – Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1844)
  • 1768 – Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty, French general (d. 1815)
  • 1797 – Georg Amadeus Carl Friedrich Naumann, German mineralogist and geologist (d. 1873)
  • 1800 – Henri-Marie-Gaston Boisnormand de Bonnechose, French cardinal (d. 1883)
  • 1814 – Mikhail Bakunin, Russian philosopher and theorist (d. 1876)
  • 1814 – Eugène Charles Catalan, Belgian-French mathematician and academic (d. 1894)
  • 1819 – William McMurdo, English general (d. 1894)
  • 1820 – Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Chauveau, Canadian lawyer and politician, 1st Premier of Quebec (d. 1890)
  • 1835 – Alfred Austin, English author, poet, and playwright (d. 1913)
  • 1844 – Félix Arnaudin, French poet and photographer (d. 1921)
  • 1845 – Amadeo I, Spanish king (d. 1890)
  • 1846 – Peter Carl Fabergé, Russian goldsmith and jeweler (d. 1920)
  • 1862 – Mirza Alakbar Sabir, Azerbaijani philosopher and poet (d. 1911)
  • 1869 – Grace Andrews, American mathematician (d. 1951)
  • 1874 – Ernest Duchesne, French physician (d. 1912)
  • 1875 – Giovanni Gentile, Italian philosopher and academic (d. 1944)
  • 1879 – Colin Blythe, English cricketer and soldier (d. 1917)
  • 1879 – Konstantin Ramul, Estonian psychologist and academic (d. 1975)
  • 1881 – Georg von Küchler, German field marshal (d. 1968)
  • 1882 – Wyndham Halswelle, English runner and soldier (d. 1915)
  • 1883 – Sandy Pearce, Australian rugby league player (d. 1930)
  • 1884 – Siegmund Glücksmann, German soldier and politician (d. 1942)
  • 1885 – Villem Grünthal-Ridala, Estonian poet and linguist (d. 1942)
  • 1886 – Laurent Barré, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 1964)
  • 1886 – Randolph Bourne, American theorist and author (d. 1918)
  • 1887 – Alexander Archipenko, Ukrainian-American sculptor and illustrator (d. 1964)
  • 1887 – Emil Reesen, Danish pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1964)
  • 1890 – Roger Salengro, French soldier and politician, French Minister of the Interior (d. 1936)
  • 1892 – Fernando Amorsolo, Filipino painter (d. 1972)
  • 1894 – Hubertus van Mook, Dutch politician, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1965)
  • 1895 – Maurice Tate, English cricketer (d. 1956)
  • 1896 – Howard Hawks, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1977)
  • 1897 – Frank Wise, Australian politician, 16th Premier of Western Australia (d. 1986)
  • 1898 – John Gilroy, English artist and illustrator (d. 1985)
  • 1899 – Irving Thalberg, American screenwriter and producer (d. 1936)
  • 1901 – Alfred Karindi, Estonian pianist and composer (d. 1969)
  • 1901 – Cornelia Otis Skinner, American actress and author (d. 1979)
  • 1902 – Stepin Fetchit, American actor and dancer (d. 1985)
  • 1903 – Countee Cullen, American poet and author (d. 1946)
  • 1906 – Bruno Gröning, German mystic and author (d. 1959)
  • 1907 – Germaine Tillion, French anthropologist and academic (d. 2008)
  • 1908 – Hannes Alfvén, Swedish physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1995)
  • 1908 – Mel Blanc, American voice actor (d. 1989)
  • 1909 – Jacques Canetti, French music executive and talent agent (d. 1997)
  • 1909 – Freddie Frith, English motorcycle road racer (d. 1988)
  • 1909 – Benny Goodman, American clarinet player, songwriter, and bandleader (d. 1986)
  • 1910 – Harry Bernstein, English-American journalist and author (d. 2011)
  • 1912 – Julius Axelrod, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2004)
  • 1912 – Erich Bagge, German physicist and academic (d. 1996)
  • 1912 – Hugh Griffith, Welsh actor (d. 1980)
  • 1912 – Millicent Selsam, American author and academic (d. 1996)
  • 1912 – Joseph Stein, American playwright and author (d. 2010)
  • 1914 – Akinoumi Setsuo, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 37th Yokozuna (d. 1979)
  • 1915 – Len Carney, English footballer and soldier (d. 1996)
  • 1916 – Justin Catayée, French soldier and politician (d. 1962)
  • 1916 – Mort Meskin, American illustrator (d. 1995)
  • 1918 – Pita Amor, Mexican poet and author (d. 2000)
  • 1918 – Bob Evans, American businessman, founded Bob Evans Restaurants (d. 2007)
  • 1919 – René Barrientos, Bolivian general and politician, 55th President of Bolivia (d. 1969)
  • 1920 – Franklin J. Schaffner, Japanese-American director and producer (d. 1989)
  • 1922 – Hal Clement, American author and educator (d. 2003)
  • 1924 – Anthony Dryden Marshall, American CIA officer and diplomat (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – John Henry Marks, English physician and author
  • 1926 – Johnny Gimble, American country/western swing musician (Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys) (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Joan Birman, American mathematician
  • 1927 – Clint Walker, American actor and singer (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – Billy Wilson, Australian rugby league player and coach (d. 1993)
  • 1928 – Pro Hart, Australian painter (d. 2006)
  • 1928 – Agnès Varda, Belgian-French director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2019)
  • 1929 – Georges Gilson, French archbishop
  • 1930 – Mark Birley, English businessman, founded Annabel’s (d. 2007)
  • 1930 – Robert Ryman, American painter (d. 2019)
  • 1931 – Larry Silverstein, American real estate magnate
  • 1932 – Ray Cooney, English actor and playwright
  • 1932 – Pauline Oliveros, American accordion player and composer (d. 2016)
  • 1932 – Ivor Richard, Baron Richard, Welsh politician and diplomat, British Ambassador to the United Nations (d. 2018)
  • 1934 – Alexei Leonov, Russian general, pilot, and cosmonaut (d. 2019)
  • 1934 – Alketas Panagoulias, Greek footballer and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1935 – Ruta Lee, Canadian-American actress and dancer
  • 1935 – Guy Tardif, Canadian academic and politician (d. 2005)
  • 1936 – Keir Dullea, American actor
  • 1937 – Christopher Haskins, Anglo-Irish businessman, life peer, and British politician
  • 1937 – Rick Mather, American-English architect (d. 2013)
  • 1938 – Billie Letts, American author and educator (d. 2014)
  • 1939 – Michael J. Pollard, American actor (d. 2019)
  • 1939 – Dieter Quester, Austrian race car driver
  • 1939 – Tim Waterstone, Scottish businessman, founded Waterstones
  • 1940 – Jagmohan Dalmiya, Indian cricket administrator (d. 2015)
  • 1940 – Gilles Villemure, Canadian-American ice hockey player
  • 1942 – John Gladwin, English bishop
  • 1942 – Carole Stone, English journalist and author
  • 1943 – Anders Michanek, Swedish motorcycle racer
  • 1943 – Gale Sayers, American football player and philanthropist
  • 1944 – Lenny Davidson, English guitarist and songwriter (The Dave Clark Five)
  • 1944 – Meredith MacRae, American actress (d. 2000)
  • 1944 – Stav Prodromou, Greek-American engineer and businessman
  • 1945 – Gladys Horton, American singer (d. 2011)
  • 1946 – Allan Chapman, English historian and author
  • 1946 – Dragan Džajić, Serbian and Yugoslav footballer
  • 1947 – Jocelyne Bourassa, Canadian golfer
  • 1948 – Johan De Muynck, Belgian former professional road racing cyclist
  • 1948 – Michael Piller, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2005)
  • 1948 – David Thorpe, Australian rules footballer
  • 1949 – P.J. Carlesimo, American basketball player and coach
  • 1949 – Paul Coleridge, English lawyer and judge
  • 1949 – Bob Willis, English cricketer and sportscaster (d. 2019)
  • 1950 – Bertrand Delanoë, French politician, 14th Mayor of Paris
  • 1950 – Paresh Rawal, Indian actor, producer, and politician
  • 1950 – Joshua Rozenberg, English lawyer, journalist, and author
  • 1951 – Zdravko Čolić, Bosnian Serb singer-songwriter
  • 1951 – Fernando Lugo, Paraguayan bishop and politician, President of Paraguay
  • 1951 – Stephen Tobolowsky, American actor, singer, and director
  • 1952 – Daniel Grodnik, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1952 – Kerry Fraser, Canadian ice hockey player, referee, and sportscaster
  • 1953 – Jim Hunter, Canadian skier
  • 1953 – Colm Meaney, Irish actor
  • 1955 – Topper Headon, English drummer and songwriter (The Clash)
  • 1955 – Jacqueline McGlade, English-Canadian biologist, ecologist, and academic
  • 1955 – Caroline Swift, English lawyer and judge
  • 1955 – Colm Tóibín, Irish novelist, poet, playwright, and critic
  • 1956 – Tim Lucas, American author, screenwriter, and critic
  • 1957 – Michael Clayton, Australian golfer
  • 1958 – Eugene Belliveau, Canadian football player
  • 1958 – Marie Fredriksson, Swedish singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2019)
  • 1958 – Steve Israel, American lawyer and politician
  • 1958 – Michael López-Alegría, Spanish-American captain, pilot, and astronaut
  • 1958 – Ted McGinley, American actor
  • 1959 – Phil Brown, English footballer, coach, and manager
  • 1959 – Randy Ferbey, Canadian curler
  • 1959 – Frank Vanhecke, Belgian politician
  • 1961 – Harry Enfield, English actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1961 – Bob Yari, Iranian-American director and producer
  • 1962 – Kevin Eastman, American author and illustrator, co-created the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
  • 1962 – Richard Fuller, English lawyer and politician
  • 1962 – Tim Loughton, English businessman and politician
  • 1962 – Tonya Pinkins, American actress and singer
  • 1963 – Michel Langevin, Canadian drummer and songwriter
  • 1963 – Élise Lucet, French journalist
  • 1963 – Helen Sharman, English chemist and astronaut
  • 1964 – Wynonna Judd, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
  • 1964 – Andrea Montermini, Italian race car driver
  • 1964 – Tom Morello, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
  • 1965 – Troy Coker, Australian rugby player
  • 1965 – Billy Donovan, American basketball player and coach
  • 1965 – Iginio Straffi, Italian animator and producer, founded Rainbow S.r.l.
  • 1966 – Thomas Häßler, German footballer and manager
  • 1966 – Stephen Malkmus, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1967 – Tim Burgess, English singer-songwriter
  • 1967 – Rechelle Hawkes, Australian hockey player
  • 1967 – Sven Pipien, German-American bass player
  • 1968 – Jason Kenney, Canadian lawyer and politician, 40th Canadian Minister of National Defence
  • 1968 – Zacarias Moussaoui, French citizen, sentenced to life in prison related to September 11 attacks
  • 1969 – Naomi Kawase, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1969 – Ryuhei Kitamura, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1971 – Paul Grayson, English rugby player and coach
  • 1971 – Duncan Jones, English director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1971 – Idina Menzel, American singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1971 – Jiří Šlégr, Czech ice hockey player and politician
  • 1971 – Adrian Vowles, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
  • 1972 – Manny Ramirez, Dominican-American baseball player and coach
  • 1974 – Big L, American rapper (d. 1999)
  • 1974 – Kostas Chalkias, Greek footballer
  • 1974 – CeeLo Green, American singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, and actor
  • 1974 – David Wilkie, American ice hockey player and coach
  • 1975 – Evan Eschmeyer, American basketball player
  • 1975 – Brian Fair, American singer-songwriter
  • 1975 – Andy Farrell, English rugby player and coach
  • 1975 – Marissa Mayer, American computer scientist and businesswoman
  • 1976 – Radoslav Nesterović, Slovenian-Greek basketball player
  • 1976 – Magnus Norman, Swedish tennis player and coach
  • 1976 – Margaret Okayo, Kenyan runner
  • 1977 – Rachael Stirling, English actress
  • 1977 – Federico Vilar, Argentinian-Italian footballer
  • 1979 – Mike Bishai, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1979 – Clint Bowyer, American race car driver
  • 1979 – Francis Lessard, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1980 – Steven Gerrard, English international footballer, midfielder and manager
  • 1980 – Ilona Korstin, Russian basketball player
  • 1980 – Ryōgo Narita, Japanese author
  • 1981 – Devendra Banhart, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1981 – Gianmaria Bruni, Italian race car driver
  • 1981 – Ahmad Elrich, Australian footballer
  • 1981 – Remy Ma, American rapper
  • 1981 – Lars Møller Madsen, Danish handball player
  • 1981 – Hisanori Takada, Japanese footballer
  • 1982 – Eddie Griffin, American basketball player (d. 2007)
  • 1982 – James Simpson-Daniel, English rugby player
  • 1984 – Sham Kwok Fai, Hong Kong footballer
  • 1984 – Matt Maguire, Australian footballer
  • 1984 – Alexander Sulzer, German ice hockey player
  • 1985 – Igor Kurnosov, Russian chess player (d. 2013)
  • 1985 – Igor Lewczuk, Polish footballer
  • 1985 – Aaron Volpatti, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Nikolay Bodurov, Bulgarian international footballer, centre-back
  • 1989 – Ailee, Korean-American singer and songwriter
  • 1989 – Lesia Tsurenko, Ukrainian tennis player
  • 1990 – Andrei Loktionov, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1991 – Jonathan Fox, English swimmer
  • 1992 – Harrison Barnes, American basketball player
  • 1992 – Danielle Harold, English actress
  • 1994 – Scott Laughton, Canadian ice hockey player

Deaths on May 30

  • 531 – Xiao Tong, prince of the Liang Dynasty (b. 501)
  • 727 – Hubertus, bishop Liège
  • 947 – Ma Xifan, king of Chu (b. 899)
  • 1035 – Baldwin IV, count of Flanders (b. 980)
  • 1159 – Władysław II the Exile, High Duke of Poland and Duke of Silesia (b. 1105)
  • 1252 – Ferdinand III, king of Castile and León (b. 1199)
  • 1347 – John Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy de Knayth, English peer (b. 1290)
  • 1376 – Joan of Ponthieu, Dame of Epernon, French noblewoman
  • 1416 – Jerome of Prague, Czech martyr and theologian (b. 1379)
  • 1431 – Joan of Arc, French martyr and saint (b. 1412)
  • 1434 – Prokop the Great, Czech general (b. 1380)
  • 1469 – Lope de Barrientos, Castilian bishop (b. 1389)
  • 1472 – Jacquetta of Luxembourg, daughter of Pierre de Luxembourg (b. 1416)
  • 1574 – Charles IX of France (b. 1550)
  • 1593 – Christopher Marlowe, English poet and playwright (b. 1564)
  • 1606 – Guru Arjan Dev, fifth of the Sikh gurus (executed) (b. 1563)
  • 1640 – Peter Paul Rubens, German-Belgian painter (b. 1577)
  • 1696 – Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Tewkesbury, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1638)
  • 1670 – John Davenport, English minister, co-founded the New Haven Colony (b. 1597)
  • 1712 – Andrea Lanzani, Italian painter (b. 1645)
  • 1718 – Arnold van Keppel, 1st Earl of Albemarle, Dutch-English general (b. 1670)
  • 1744 – Alexander Pope, English poet, essayist, and translator (b. 1688)
  • 1770 – François Boucher, French painter and set designer (b. 1703)
  • 1778 – Voltaire, French philosopher and author (b. 1694)
  • 1778 – José de la Borda, French/Spanish mining magnate in colonial Mexico (b. ca. 1700)
  • 1829 – Philibert Jean-Baptiste Curial, French general (b. 1774)
  • 1832 – James Mackintosh, Scottish historian, jurist, and politician (b. 1765)
  • 1855 – Mary Reibey, Australian businesswoman, (b. 1777)
  • 1892 – Mary Hannah Gray Clarke, American author, correspondent, and poet (b. 1835)
  • 1865 – John Catron, American lawyer and judge (b. 1786)
  • 1901 – Victor D’Hondt, Belgian mathematician, lawyer, and jurist (b. 1841)
  • 1911 – Milton Bradley, American businessman, founded the Milton Bradley Company (b. 1836)
  • 1912 – Wilbur Wright, American pilot and businessman, co-founded the Wright Company (b. 1867)
  • 1918 – Georgi Plekhanov, Russian philosopher and theorist (b. 1856)
  • 1925 – Arthur Moeller van den Bruck, German historian and author (b. 1876)
  • 1926 – Vladimir Steklov, Russian mathematician and physicist (b. 1864)
  • 1934 – Tōgō Heihachirō, Japanese admiral (b. 1848)
  • 1939 – Floyd Roberts, American race car driver (b. 1904)
  • 1941 – Prajadhipok, Thai king (b. 1893)
  • 1946 – Louis Slotin, Canadian physicist and chemist (b. 1910)
  • 1947 – Georg von Trapp, Austrian captain (b. 1880)
  • 1948 – József Klekl, Slovene-Hungarian priest and politician (b. 1874)
  • 1949 – Emmanuel Célestin Suhard, French cardinal (b. 1874)
  • 1951 – Hermann Broch, Austrian-American author (b. 1886)
  • 1953 – Dooley Wilson, American actor and singer (b. 1886)
  • 1955 – Bill Vukovich, American race car driver (b. 1918)
  • 1957 – Piero Carini, Italian race car driver (b. 1921)
  • 1960 – Boris Pasternak, Russian poet, novelist, and literary translator, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1890)
  • 1961 – Rafael Trujillo, Dominican soldier and politician, 36th President of the Dominican Republic (b. 1891)
  • 1964 – Isaac Babalola Akinyele, Nigerian king (b. 1882)
  • 1964 – Eddie Sachs, American race car driver (b. 1927)
  • 1964 – Leó Szilárd, Hungarian-American physicist and engineer (b. 1898)
  • 1965 – Louis Hjelmslev, Danish linguist and academic (b. 1899)
  • 1967 – Claude Rains, English-American actor (b. 1889)
  • 1967 – Georg Wilhelm Pabst, Austrian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1885)
  • 1971 – Marcel Dupré, French organist and composer (b. 1886)
  • 1975 – Steve Prefontaine, American runner (b. 1951)
  • 1975 – Tatsuo Shimabuku, Japanese martial artist, founded Isshin-ryū (b. 1908)
  • 1975 – Michel Simon, Swiss-born French actor (b. 1895)
  • 1976 – Max Carey, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1890)
  • 1976 – Mitsuo Fuchida, Japanese captain (b. 1902)
  • 1978 – Jean Deslauriers, Canadian violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1909)
  • 1980 – Carl Radle, American bass player and producer (b. 1942)
  • 1981 – Don Ashby, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1955)
  • 1981 – Ziaur Rahman, Bangladeshi general and politician, 7th President of Bangladesh (b. 1936)
  • 1982 – Albert Norden, German journalist and politician (b. 1904)
  • 1986 – Perry Ellis, American fashion designer, founded his own eponymous fashion brand (b. 1940)
  • 1993 – Sun Ra, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1914)
  • 1994 – Ezra Taft Benson, American religious leader, 13th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1899)
  • 1994 – Marcel Bich, Italian-French businessman, co-founded Société Bic (b. 1914)
  • 1994 – Agostino Di Bartolomei, Italian footballer (b. 1955)
  • 1995 – Ted Drake, English footballer and manager (b. 1912)
  • 1995 – Lofty England, English-Austrian engineer (b. 1911)
  • 1995 – Bobby Stokes, English footballer (b. 1951)
  • 1996 – Léon-Étienne Duval, French cardinal (b. 1903)
  • 1996 – Alo Mattiisen, Estonian composer (b. 1961)
  • 1999 – Kalju Lepik, Estonian poet and author (b. 1920)
  • 2000 – Tex Beneke, American saxophonist and bandleader (b. 1914)
  • 2001 – Denis Whitaker, Canadian general and historian (b. 1915)
  • 2005 – Gérald Leblanc, Acadian poet (b. 1945)
  • 2005 – Tomasz Pacyński, Polish journalist and author (b. 1958)
  • 2005 – Alma Ziegler, American baseball player and stenographer (b. 1918)
  • 2006 – Shohei Imamura, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 2006 – David Lloyd, New Zealand biologist and academic (b. 1938)
  • 2006 – Robert Sterling, American actor (b. 1917)
  • 2007 – Jean-Claude Brialy, Algerian-French actor and director (b. 1933)
  • 2007 – Birgit Dalland, Norwegian politician (b. 1907)
  • 2007 – Gunturu Seshendra Sarma, Indian poet and critic (b. 1927)
  • 2009 – Torsten Andersson, Swedish painter and illustrator (b. 1926)
  • 2009 – Susanna Haapoja, Finnish politician (b. 1966)
  • 2009 – Ephraim Katzir, Israeli biophysicist and politician, 4th President of Israel (b. 1916)
  • 2010 – Yuri Chesnokov, Russian volleyball player and coach (b. 1933)
  • 2010 – Dufferin Roblin, Canadian commander and politician, 14th Premier of Manitoba (b. 1917)
  • 2011 – Isikia Savua, Fijian police officer and diplomat (b. 1952)
  • 2011 – Saleem Shahzad, Pakistani journalist (b. 1970)
  • 2011 – Marek Siemek, Polish philosopher and historian (b. 1942)
  • 2011 – Clarice Taylor, American actress (b. 1917)
  • 2011 – Rosalyn Sussman Yalow, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – John Fox, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1957)
  • 2012 – Andrew Huxley, English physiologist and biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Gerhard Pohl, German economist and politician (b. 1937)
  • 2012 – Jack Twyman, American basketball player and sportscaster (b. 1934)
  • 2013 – Jayalath Jayawardena, Sri Lankan physician and politician (b. 1953)
  • 2013 – Larry Jones, American football player and coach (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – Hienadz Buraukin, Belarusian poet, journalist, and diplomat (b. 1936)
  • 2014 – Henning Carlsen, Danish director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Joan Lorring, British actress (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Leonidas Vasilikopoulos, Greek admiral (b. 1932)
  • 2015 – Beau Biden, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 44th Attorney General of Delaware (b. 1969)
  • 2015 – Joël Champetier, Canadian author and screenwriter (b. 1957)
  • 2015 – L. Tom Perry, American religious leader and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1922)
  • 2016 – Tom Lysiak, Polish-Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1953)
  • 2016 – Rick MacLeish, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1950)
  • 2019 – Jason Marcano, Trinidadian footballer (b. 1983)

Holidays and observances on May 30

  • Anguilla Day, commemorates the beginning of the Anguillian Revolution in 1967. (Anguilla)
  • Canary Islands Day (Spain)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Earliest day on which Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary can fall, while July 3 is the latest; celebrated 20 days after Pentecost. (Catholic Church)
    • Ferdinand III of Castile
    • Isaac of Dalmatia
    • Joan of Arc
    • Joseph Marello
    • May 30 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Indian Arrival Day (Trinidad and Tobago)
  • Lod Massacre Remembrance Day (Puerto Rico)
  • Mother’s Day (Nicaragua)
  • Statehood Day (Croatia)

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