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2004

July 24 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 1132 – Battle of Nocera between Ranulf II of Alife and Roger II of Sicily.
  • 1148 – Louis VII of France lays siege to Damascus during the Second Crusade.
  • 1304 – Wars of Scottish Independence: Fall of Stirling Castle: King Edward I of England takes the stronghold using the War Wolf.
  • 1411 – Battle of Harlaw, one of the bloodiest battles in Scotland, takes place.
  • 1412 – Behnam Hadloyo becomes Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Mardin.
  • 1487 – Citizens of Leeuwarden, Netherlands, strike against a ban on foreign beer.
  • 1534 – French explorer Jacques Cartier plants a cross on the Gaspé Peninsula and takes possession of the territory in the name of Francis I of France.
  • 1567 – Mary, Queen of Scots, is forced to abdicate and replaced by her 1-year-old son James VI.
  • 1701 – Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac founds the trading post at Fort Pontchartrain, which later becomes the city of Detroit.
  • 1783 – The Kingdom of Georgia and the Russian Empire sign the Treaty of Georgievsk.
  • 1814 – War of 1812: General Phineas Riall advances toward the Niagara River to halt Jacob Brown’s American invaders.
  • 1823 – Afro-Chileans are emancipated.
  • 1823 – In Maracaibo, Venezuela, the naval Battle of Lake Maracaibo takes place, where Admiral José Prudencio Padilla defeats the Spanish Navy, thus culminating the independence for the Gran Colombia.
  • 1847 – After 17 months of travel, Brigham Young leads 148 Mormon pioneers into Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City.
  • 1847 – Richard March Hoe, American inventor, patented the rotary-type printing press.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Kernstown: Confederate General Jubal Early defeats Union troops led by General George Crook in an effort to keep them out of the Shenandoah Valley.
  • 1866 – Reconstruction: Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War.
  • 1901 – O. Henry is released from prison in Columbus, Ohio, after serving three years for embezzlement from a bank.
  • 1910 – The Ottoman Empire captures the city of Shkodër, putting down the Albanian Revolt of 1910.
  • 1911 – Hiram Bingham III re-discovers Machu Picchu, “the Lost City of the Incas”.
  • 1915 – The passenger ship SS Eastland capsizes while tied to a dock in the Chicago River. A total of 844 passengers and crew are killed in the largest loss of life disaster from a single shipwreck on the Great Lakes.
  • 1922 – The draft of the British Mandate of Palestine was formally confirmed by the Council of the League of Nations; it came into effect on 26 September 1923.
  • 1923 – The Treaty of Lausanne, settling the boundaries of modern Turkey, is signed in Switzerland by Greece, Bulgaria and other countries that fought in World War I.
  • 1924 – Themistoklis Sofoulis becomes Prime Minister of Greece.
  • 1927 – The Menin Gate war memorial is unveiled at Ypres.
  • 1929 – The Kellogg–Briand Pact, renouncing war as an instrument of foreign policy, goes into effect (it is first signed in Paris on August 27, 1928, by most leading world powers).
  • 1935 – The Dust Bowl heat wave reaches its peak, sending temperatures to 109 °F (43 °C) in Chicago and 104 °F (40 °C) in Milwaukee.
  • 1937 – Alabama drops rape charges against the “Scottsboro Boys”.
  • 1943 – World War II: Operation Gomorrah begins: British and Canadian aeroplanes bomb Hamburg by night, and American planes bomb the city by day. By the end of the operation in November, 9,000 tons of explosives will have killed more than 30,000 people and destroyed 280,000 buildings.
  • 1950 – Cape Canaveral Air Force Station begins operations with the launch of a Bumper rocket.
  • 1959 – At the opening of the American National Exhibition in Moscow, U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev have a “Kitchen Debate”.
  • 1963 – The ship Bluenose II was launched in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. The schooner is a major Canadian symbol.
  • 1966 – Michael Pelkey makes the first BASE jump from El Capitan along with Brian Schubert. Both came out with broken bones. BASE jumping has now been banned from El Cap.
  • 1967 – During an official state visit to Canada, French President Charles de Gaulle declares to a crowd of over 100,000 in Montreal: Vive le Québec libre! (“Long live free Quebec!”); the statement angered the Canadian government and many Anglophone Canadians.
  • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11 splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean.
  • 1974 – Watergate scandal: The United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that President Richard Nixon did not have the authority to withhold subpoenaed White House tapes and they order him to surrender the tapes to the Watergate special prosecutor.
  • 1977 – End of a four-day-long Libyan–Egyptian War.
  • 1980 – The Quietly Confident Quartet of Australia wins the men’s 4 x 100 metre medley relay at the Moscow Olympics, the only time the United States has not won the event at Olympic level.
  • 1982 – Heavy rain causes a mudslide that destroys a bridge at Nagasaki, Japan, killing 299.
  • 1983 – The Black July anti-Tamil riots begin in Sri Lanka, killing between 400 and 3,000. Black July is generally regarded as the beginning of the Sri Lankan Civil War.
  • 1983 – George Brett batting for the Kansas City Royals against the New York Yankees, has a game-winning home run nullified in the “Pine Tar Incident”.
  • 1987 – US supertanker SS Bridgeton collides with mines laid by IRGC causing a 43-square-meter dent in the body of the oil tanker.
  • 1987 – Hulda Crooks, at 91 years of age, climbed Mt. Fuji. Crooks became the oldest person to climb Japan’s highest peak.
  • 1998 – Russell Eugene Weston Jr. bursts into the United States Capitol and opens fire killing two police officers. He is later ruled to be incompetent to stand trial.
  • 2001 – Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the last Tsar of Bulgaria when he was a child, is sworn in as Prime Minister of Bulgaria, becoming the first monarch in history to regain political power through democratic election to a different office.
  • 2001 – The Bandaranaike Airport attack is carried out by 14 Tamil Tiger commandos. Eleven civilian and military aircraft are destroyed and 15 are damaged. All 14 commandos are shot dead, while seven soldiers from the Sri Lanka Air Force are killed. In addition, three civilians and an engineer die. This incident slowed the Sri Lankan economy.
  • 2013 – A high-speed train derails in Spain rounding a curve with an 80 km/h (50 mph) speed limit at 190 km/h (120 mph), killing 78 passengers.
  • 2014 – Air Algérie Flight 5017 loses contact with air traffic controllers 50 minutes after takeoff. It was travelling between Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and Algiers. The wreckage is later found in Mali. All 116 people onboard are killed.

Births on July 24

  • 1242 – Christina von Stommeln, German Roman Catholic mystic, ecstatic, and stigmatic (d. 1312)
  • 1468 – Catherine of Saxony, Archduchess of Austria (d. 1524)
  • 1529 – Charles II, Margrave of Baden-Durlach (d. 1577)
  • 1561 – Maria of the Palatinate-Simmern (d. 1589)
  • 1574 – Thomas Platter the Younger, Swiss physician and author (d. 1628)
  • 1660 – Charles Talbot, 1st Duke of Shrewsbury, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (d. 1718)
  • 1689 – Prince William, Duke of Gloucester, son of Queen Anne of Great Britain and Prince George of Denmark (d. 1700)
  • 1725 – John Newton, English sailor and priest (d. 1807)
  • 1757 – Vladimir Borovikovsky, Ukrainian-Russian painter (d. 1825)
  • 1783 – Simón Bolívar, Venezuelan commander and politician, 2nd President of Venezuela (d. 1830)
  • 1786 – Joseph Nicollet, French mathematician and explorer (d. 1843)
  • 1794 – Johan Georg Forchhammer, Danish mineralogist and geologist (d. 1865)
  • 1802 – Alexandre Dumas, French novelist and playwright (d. 1870)
  • 1803 – Adolphe Adam, French composer and critic (d. 1856)
  • 1803 – Alexander J. Davis, American architect (d. 1892)
  • 1821 – William Poole, American boxer and gangster (d. 1855)
  • 1826 – Jan Gotlib Bloch, Polish theorist and activist (d. 1902)
  • 1851 – Friedrich Schottky, Polish-German mathematician and theorist (d. 1935)
  • 1856 – Émile Picard, French mathematician and academic (d. 1941)
  • 1857 – Henrik Pontoppidan, Danish journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1943)
  • 1857 – Juan Vicente Gómez, Venezuelan general and politician, 27th President of Venezuela (d. 1935)
  • 1860 – Princess Charlotte of Prussia (d. 1919)
  • 1860 – Alphonse Mucha, Czech painter and illustrator (d. 1939)
  • 1864 – Frank Wedekind, German actor and playwright (d. 1918)
  • 1867 – Vicente Acosta, Salvadoran journalist and poet (d. 1908)
  • 1867 – E. F. Benson, English archaeologist and author (d. 1940)
  • 1867 – Fred Tate, English cricketer and coach (d. 1943)
  • 1874 – Oswald Chambers, Scottish minister and author (d. 1917)
  • 1877 – Calogero Vizzini, Italian mob boss (d. 1954)
  • 1878 – Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany, Irish author, poet, and playwright (d. 1957)
  • 1880 – Ernest Bloch, Swiss-American composer and educator (d. 1959)
  • 1884 – Maria Caserini, Italian actress (d. 1969)
  • 1886 – Jun’ichirō Tanizaki, Japanese author (d. 1965)
  • 1888 – Arthur Richardson, Australian cricketer and coach (d. 1973)
  • 1889 – Agnes Meyer Driscoll, American cryptanalyst (d. 1971)
  • 1895 – Robert Graves, English poet, novelist, critic (d. 1985)
  • 1897 – Amelia Earhart, American pilot and author (d. 1937)
  • 1899 – Chief Dan George, Canadian actor (d. 1981)
  • 1900 – Zelda Fitzgerald, American author and poet (d. 1948)
  • 1904 – Leo Arnaud, French-American trombonist, composer, and conductor (d. 1991)
  • 1904 – Richard B. Morris, American historian and academic (d. 1989)
  • 1904 – Delmer Daves, American screenwriter, director and producer (d. 1977)
  • 1909 – John William Finn, American lieutenant, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2010)
  • 1910 – Harry Horner, American director and production designer (d. 1994)
  • 1912 – Essie Summers, New Zealand author (d. 1998)
  • 1913 – Britton Chance, American biologist and sailor (d. 2010)
  • 1914 – Frances Oldham Kelsey, Canadian pharmacologist and physician (d. 2015)
  • 1914 – Ed Mirvish, American-Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 2007)
  • 1914 – Alan Waddell, Australian walker (d. 2008)
  • 1915 – Enrique Fernando, Filipino lawyer and jurist, 13th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines (d. 2004)
  • 1916 – John D. MacDonald, American colonel and author (d. 1986)
  • 1917 – Robert Farnon, Canadian trumpet player, composer, and conductor (d. 2005)
  • 1917 – Jack Moroney, Australian cricketer (d. 1999)
  • 1918 – Ruggiero Ricci, American violinist and educator (d. 2012)
  • 1919 – Robert Marsden Hope, Australian lawyer and judge (d. 1999)
  • 1919 – Kenneth S. Kleinknecht, NASA manager (d. 2007)
  • 1919 – John Winkin, American baseball player, coach, and journalist (d. 2014)
  • 1920 – Bella Abzug, American lawyer and politician (d. 1998)
  • 1920 – Constance Dowling, American model and actress (d. 1969)
  • 1921 – Giuseppe Di Stefano, Italian tenor and actor (d. 2008)
  • 1921 – Billy Taylor, American pianist and composer (d. 2010)
  • 1922 – Madeleine Ferron, Canadian radio host and author (d. 2010)
  • 1924 – Wilfred Josephs, English composer (d. 1997)
  • 1924 – Aris Poulianos, Greek anthropologist and archaeologist
  • 1927 – Alex Katz, American painter and sculptor
  • 1927 – Zara Mints, Russian-Estonian philologist and academic (d. 1990)
  • 1930 – Alfred Balk, American journalist and author (d. 2010)
  • 1930 – Keshubhai Patel, Indian politician, 10th Chief Minister of Gujarat
  • 1931 – Ermanno Olmi, Italian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer (d. 2018)
  • 1931 – Éric Tabarly, French commander (d. 1998)
  • 1932 – Gustav Andreas Tammann, German astronomer and academic (d. 2019)
  • 1933 – Doug Sanders, American golfer (d. 2020)
  • 1934 – P. S. Soosaithasan, Sri Lankan accountant and politician (d. 2017)
  • 1935 – Aaron Elkins, American author and academic
  • 1935 – Pat Oliphant, Australian cartoonist
  • 1935 – Mel Ramos, American painter, illustrator, and academic (d. 2018)
  • 1935 – Les Reed, English pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2019)
  • 1935 – Derek Varnals, South African cricketer
  • 1936 – Ruth Buzzi, American actress and comedian
  • 1936 – Mark Goddard, American actor
  • 1937 – Manoj Kumar, Indian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1937 – Quinlan Terry, English architect, designed the Brentwood Cathedral
  • 1938 – Alexis Jacquemin, Belgian economist and academic (d. 2004)
  • 1938 – Eugene J. Martin, American painter (d. 2005)
  • 1938 – John Sparling, New Zealand cricketer
  • 1939 – Walt Bellamy, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1939 – David Simon, Baron Simon of Highbury, English businessman and politician
  • 1940 – Dan Hedaya, American actor
  • 1941 – John Bond, English banker and businessman
  • 1942 – Heinz, German-English singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2000)
  • 1942 – David Miner, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1942 – Chris Sarandon, American actor
  • 1944 – Jim Armstrong, Northern Irish guitarist
  • 1945 – Frank Close, English physicist and academic
  • 1945 – Azim Premji, Indian businessman and philanthropist
  • 1945 – Hugh Ross, Canadian-American astrophysicist and astronomer
  • 1945 – Anthony Watts, English geologist, geophysicist, and academic
  • 1946 – Gallagher, American comedian and actor
  • 1946 – Friedhelm Haebermann, German footballer and manager
  • 1946 – Hervé Vilard, French singer-songwriter
  • 1947 – Zaheer Abbas, Pakistani cricketer and manager
  • 1947 – Geoff McQueen, English screenwriter and producer (d. 1994)
  • 1947 – Peter Serkin, American pianist and educator
  • 1949 – Michael Richards, American actor and comedian
  • 1950 – Jadranka Stojaković, Yugoslav singer-songwriter (d. 2016)
  • 1951 – Lynda Carter, American actress
  • 1951 – Chris Smith, Baron Smith of Finsbury, English politician, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
  • 1952 – Ian Cairns, Australian surfer
  • 1952 – Gus Van Sant, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1953 – Julian Brazier, English captain and politician
  • 1953 – Jon Faddis, American trumpet player, composer, and conductor
  • 1953 – Tadashi Kawamata, Japanese contemporary artist
  • 1953 – Claire McCaskill, American lawyer and politician
  • 1953 – James Newcome, English bishop
  • 1954 – Erdoğan Arıca, Turkish footballer and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1954 – Jorge Jesus, Portuguese footballer and manager
  • 1955 – Brad Watson, American author and academic
  • 1956 – Charlie Crist, American lawyer and politician, 44th Governor of Florida
  • 1957 – Pam Tillis, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
  • 1958 – Jim Leighton, Scottish footballer and coach
  • 1960 – Catherine Destivelle, French rock climber and mountaineer
  • 1961 – Kerry Dixon, English footballer and manager
  • 1962 – Johnny O’Connell, American race car driver and sportscaster
  • 1963 – Louis Armary, French rugby player
  • 1963 – Karl Malone, American basketball player and coach
  • 1964 – Barry Bonds, American baseball player
  • 1964 – Pedro Passos Coelho, Portuguese economist and politician, 118th Prime Minister of Portugal
  • 1964 – Urmas Kaljend, Estonian footballer
  • 1964 – John Rosengren, American journalist and author
  • 1965 – Andrew Gaze, Australian basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1965 – Kadeem Hardison, American actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1965 – Doug Liman, American director and producer
  • 1966 – Mo-Do, Italian singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1966 – Aminatou Haidar, Sahrawi human rights activist
  • 1966 – Martin Keown, English footballer and coach
  • 1968 – Kristin Chenoweth, American actress and singer
  • 1968 – Colleen Doran, American author and illustrator
  • 1968 – Malcolm Ingram, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1968 – Laura Leighton, American actress
  • 1969 – Rick Fox, Bahamian basketball player
  • 1969 – Jennifer Lopez, American actress, singer, and dancer
  • 1971 – Dino Baggio, Italian footballer
  • 1971 – Patty Jenkins, American film director and screenwriter
  • 1972 – Kaiō Hiroyuki, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1973 – Russell Bawden, Australian rugby league player
  • 1973 – Ana Cristina Oliveira, Portuguese model and actress
  • 1973 – Amanda Stretton, English race car driver and journalist
  • 1974 – Andy Gomarsall, English rugby player
  • 1975 – Tracey Crouch, English politician, Minister for Sport and the Olympics
  • 1975 – Jamie Langenbrunner, American ice hockey player
  • 1975 – Torrie Wilson, American model, fitness competitor, actress and professional wrestler
  • 1975 – Eric Szmanda, American actor
  • 1976 – Rafer Alston, American basketball player
  • 1976 – Tiago Monteiro, Portuguese race car driver and manager
  • 1978 – Andy Irons, American surfer (d. 2010)
  • 1979 – Rose Byrne, Australian actress
  • 1979 – Jerrod Niemann, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1979 – Valerio Scassellati, Italian race car driver
  • 1979 – Anne-Gaëlle Sidot, French tennis player
  • 1979 – Mark Andrew Smith, American author
  • 1979 – Ryan Speier, American baseball player
  • 1980 – Joel Stroetzel, American guitarist
  • 1981 – Doug Bollinger, Australian cricketer
  • 1981 – Summer Glau, American actress
  • 1981 – Mark Robinson, English footballer
  • 1982 – Trevor Matthews, Canadian actor and producer, founded Brookstreet Pictures
  • 1982 – Thiago Medeiros, Brazilian race car driver
  • 1982 – Mewelde Moore, American football player
  • 1982 – Elisabeth Moss, American actress
  • 1982 – Anna Paquin, Canadian-New Zealand actress
  • 1982 – Michael Poppmeier, South African-German rugby player
  • 1983 – Daniele De Rossi, Italian footballer
  • 1983 – Asami Mizukawa, Japanese actress
  • 1984 – Patrick Harvey, Australian actor
  • 1984 – Tyler Kyte, Canadian singer and drummer
  • 1985 – Patrice Bergeron, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1985 – Aries Merritt, American hurdler
  • 1985 – Lukáš Rosol, Czech tennis player
  • 1985 – Eric Wright, American football player
  • 1986 – Natalie Tran, Australian actress, online producer
  • 1987 – Filipe Francisco dos Santos, Brazilian footballer
  • 1987 – Nathan Gerbe, American ice hockey player
  • 1987 – Zack Sabre Jr., English wrestler
  • 1988 – Han Seung-yeon, South Korean singer and dancer
  • 1988 – Nichkhun, Thai-American singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1988 – Ricky Petterd, Australian footballer
  • 1989 – Maurkice Pouncey, American football player
  • 1989 – Kim Tae-hwan, South Korean footballer
  • 1990 – Daveigh Chase, American actress
  • 1990 – Travis Mahoney, Australian swimmer
  • 1991 – Manuel Fischnaller, Italian footballer
  • 1991 – Emily Bett Rickards, Canadian actress
  • 1992 – Mikaël Kingsbury, Canadian skier
  • 1992 – Mitch Grassi, American singer and songwriter
  • 1994 – Alejandra Álvarez, Ecuadorian tennis player
  • 1994 – Phillip Lindsay, American football player
  • 1995 – Valentine Holmes, Australian rugby league player
  • 1995 – Kyle Kuzma, American basketball player
  • 1995 – Meisei Chikara, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1997 – Emre Mor, Turkish football player
  • 2002 – Nicole Pircio, Brazilian rhythmic gymnast

Deaths on July 24

  • 759 – Oswulf, king of Northumbria
  • 811 – Gao Ying, Chinese politician (b. 740)
  • 946 – Muhammad ibn Tughj al-Ikhshid, Egyptian ruler (b. 882)
  • 1115 – Matilda of Tuscany (b. 1046)
  • 1129 – Emperor Shirakawa of Japan (b. 1053)
  • 1198 – Berthold of Hanover, Bishop of Livonia
  • 1345 – Jacob van Artevelde, Flemish statesman (b. 1290)
  • 1568 – Carlos, Prince of Asturias (b. 1545)
  • 1594 – John Boste, English martyr and saint (b. 1544)
  • 1601 – Joris Hoefnagel, Flemish painter (b. 1542)
  • 1612 – John Salusbury, Welsh politician and poet (b. 1567)
  • 1739 – Benedetto Marcello, Italian composer and educator (b. 1686)
  • 1768 – Nathaniel Lardner, English theologian and author (b. 1684)
  • 1862 – Martin Van Buren, American lawyer and politician, 8th President of the United States (b. 1782)
  • 1891 – Hermann Raster, German-American journalist and politician (b. 1827)
  • 1908 – Vicente Acosta, Salvadoran journalist and poet (b. 1867)
  • 1910 – Arkhip Kuindzhi, Ukrainian-Russian painter (b. 1841)
  • 1927 – Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, Japanese author (b. 1892)
  • 1957 – Sacha Guitry, French actor and director (b. 1885)
  • 1962 – Wilfrid Noyce, English mountaineer and author (b. 1917)
  • 1965 – Constance Bennett, American actress and producer (b. 1904)
  • 1966 – Tony Lema, American golfer (b. 1934)
  • 1969 – Witold Gombrowicz, Polish author and playwright (b. 1904)
  • 1970 – Peter de Noronha, Indian businessman, philanthropist, and civil servant (b. 1897)
  • 1974 – James Chadwick, English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1891)
  • 1980 – Peter Sellers, English actor and comedian (b. 1925)
  • 1985 – Ezechiele Ramin, Italian missionary and martyr (b. 1953)
  • 1986 – Fritz Albert Lipmann, German-American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1899)
  • 1986 – Qudrat Ullah Shahab, Pakistani civil servant and author (b. 1917)
  • 1991 – Isaac Bashevis Singer, Polish-American novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
  • 1992 – Arletty, French actress and singer (b. 1898)
  • 1992 – Sam Berger, Canadian lawyer and businessman (b. 1900)
  • 1994 – Helen Cordero, Cochiti Pueblo (Native American) Pueblo potter (b. 1915)
  • 1995 – George Rodger, English photographer and journalist (b. 1908)
  • 1996 – Alphonso Theodore Roberts, Vincentian cricketer and activist (b. 1937)
  • 1997 – William J. Brennan Jr., American colonel and jurist (b. 1906)
  • 1997 – Saw Maung, Burmese general and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Burma (b. 1928)
  • 2000 – Ahmad Shamloo, Iranian poet and journalist (b. 1925)
  • 2001 – Georges Dor, Canadian author, playwright, and composer (b. 1931)
  • 2005 – Richard Doll, English physiologist and epidemiologist (b. 1912)
  • 2007 – Albert Ellis, American psychologist and author (b. 1913)
  • 2007 – Nicola Zaccaria, Greek opera singer (b. 1923)
  • 2008 – Norman Dello Joio, American pianist and composer (b. 1913)
  • 2011 – Frank Dietrich, German politician (b. 1966)
  • 2011 – Dan Peek, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1950)
  • 2011 – Harald Johnsen, Norwegian bassist and composer (b. 1970)
  • 2011 – David Servan-Schreiber, French physician, neuroscientist, and author (b. 1961)
  • 2011 – Skip Thomas, American football player (b. 1950)
  • 2012 – Chad Everett, American actor and director (b. 1937)
  • 2012 – Sherman Hemsley, American actor and singer (b. 1938)
  • 2012 – Larry Hoppen, American singer and guitarist (b. 1951)
  • 2012 – Robert Ledley, American physiologist and physicist, invented the CT scanner (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Themo Lobos, Chilean author and illustrator (b. 1928)
  • 2012 – John Atta Mills, Ghanaian lawyer and politician, a President of Ghana (b. 1944)
  • 2012 – Gregorio Peces-Barba, Spanish jurist and politician (b. 1938)
  • 2013 – Garry Davis, American pilot and activist, created the World Passport (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Fred Dretske, American philosopher and academic (b. 1932)
  • 2013 – Virginia E. Johnson, American psychologist and sexologist (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Pius Langa, South African lawyer and jurist, 19th Chief Justice of South Africa (b. 1939)
  • 2014 – Ik-Hwan Bae, Korean-American violinist and educator (b. 1956)
  • 2014 – Dale Schlueter, American basketball player (b. 1945)
  • 2014 – Hans-Hermann Sprado, German journalist and author (b. 1956)
  • 2015 – Peg Lynch, American actress and screenwriter (b. 1916)
  • 2015 – Ingrid Sischy, South African-American journalist and critic (b. 1952)
  • 2016 – Marni Nixon, American actress and singer (b. 1930)
  • 2017 – Harshida Raval, Indian Gujarati playback singer

Holidays and observances on July 24

  • Carnival of Awussu (Tunisia)
  • Children’s Day (Vanuatu)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Charbel (Maronite Church/Catholic Church)
    • Christina the Astonishing
    • Christina of Bolsena
    • Declán of Ardmore
    • John Boste
    • Kinga (or Cunegunda) of Poland
    • Martyrs of Daimiel
    • Menefrida of Cornwall
    • Sigolena of Albi
    • July 24 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Pioneer Day (Utah)
  • Police Day (Poland)
  • Simón Bolívar Day (Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, and Bolivia)
    • Navy Day (Venezuela)

July 24 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 23 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 811 – Byzantine emperor Nikephoros I plunders the Bulgarian capital of Pliska and captures Khan Krum’s treasury.
  • 1319 – A Knights Hospitaller fleet scores a crushing victory over an Aydinid fleet off Chios.
  • 1632 – Three hundred colonists bound for New France depart from Dieppe, France.
  • 1677 – Scanian War: Denmark–Norway captures the harbor town of Marstrand from Sweden.
  • 1793 – Kingdom of Prussia re-conquers Mainz from France.
  • 1813 – Sir Thomas Maitland is appointed as the first Governor of Malta, transforming the island from a British protectorate to a de facto colony.
  • 1821 – While the Mora Rebellion continues, Greeks capture Monemvasia Castle. Turkish troops and citizens are transferred to Asia Minor’s coasts.
  • 1829 – In the United States, William Austin Burt patents the typographer, a precursor to the typewriter.
  • 1840 – The Province of Canada is created by the Act of Union.
  • 1862 – American Civil War: Henry Halleck takes command of the Union Army.
  • 1874 – Aires de Ornelas e Vasconcelos is appointed the Archbishop of the Portuguese colonial enclave of Goa, India.
  • 1881 – The Boundary Treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina is signed in Buenos Aires.
  • 1885 – President Ulysses S. Grant dies of throat cancer.
  • 1903 – The Ford Motor Company sells its first car.
  • 1908 – The Second Constitution accepted by the Ottomans.
  • 1914 – Austria-Hungary issues a series of demands in an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia demanding Serbia to allow the Austrians to determine who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Serbia accepts all but one of those demands and Austria declares war on July 28.
  • 1919 – Prince Regent Aleksander Karađorđević signs the decree establishing the University of Ljubljana
  • 1921 – The Communist Party of China (CPC) is established at the founding National Congress.
  • 1926 – Fox Film buys the patents of the Movietone sound system for recording sound onto film.
  • 1927 – The first station of the Indian Broadcasting Company goes on the air in Bombay.
  • 1936 – In Catalonia, Spain, the Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia is founded through the merger of Socialist and Communist parties.
  • 1940 – The United States’ Under Secretary of State Sumner Welles issues a declaration on the U.S. non-recognition policy of the Soviet annexation and incorporation of three Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
  • 1942 – World War II: The German offensives Operation Edelweiss and Operation Braunschweig begin.
  • 1942 – Bulgarian poet and Communist leader Nikola Vaptsarov is executed by firing squad.
  • 1943 – The Rayleigh bath chair murder occurred in Rayleigh, Essex, England.
  • 1943 – World War II: The British destroyers HMS Eclipse and HMS Laforey sink the Italian submarine Ascianghi in the Mediterranean after she torpedoes the cruiser HMS Newfoundland.
  • 1945 – The post-war legal processes against Philippe Pétain begin.
  • 1952 – General Muhammad Naguib leads the Free Officers Movement (formed by Gamal Abdel Nasser, the real power behind the coup) in overthrowing King Farouk of Egypt.
  • 1961 – The Sandinista National Liberation Front is founded in Nicaragua.
  • 1962 – Telstar relays the first publicly transmitted, live trans-Atlantic television program, featuring Walter Cronkite.
  • 1962 – The International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos is signed.
  • 1962 – Jackie Robinson becomes the first African American to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
  • 1967 – Detroit Riots: In Detroit, one of the worst riots in United States history begins on 12th Street in the predominantly African American inner city. It ultimately kills 43 people, injures 342 and burns about 1,400 buildings.
  • 1968 – Glenville shootout: In Cleveland, Ohio, a violent shootout between a Black Militant organization and the Cleveland Police Department occurs. During the shootout, a riot begins and lasts for five days.
  • 1968 – The only successful hijacking of an El Al aircraft takes place when a Boeing 707 carrying ten crew and 38 passengers is taken over by three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The aircraft was en route from Rome, to Lod, Israel.
  • 1970 – Qaboos bin Said al Said becomes Sultan of Oman after overthrowing his father, Said bin Taimur initiating massive reforms, modernization programs and end to a decade long civil war.
  • 1972 – The United States launches Landsat 1, the first Earth-resources satellite.
  • 1974 – The Greek military junta collapses, and former Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis is invited to lead the new government, beginning Greece’s metapolitefsi era.
  • 1980 – Phạm Tuân becomes the first Vietnamese citizen and the first Asian in space when he flies aboard the Soyuz 37 mission as an Intercosmos Research Cosmonaut.
  • 1982 – Outside Santa Clarita, California, actor Vic Morrow and two children are killed when a helicopter crashes onto them while shooting a scene from Twilight Zone: The Movie.
  • 1983 – Thirteen Sri Lanka Army soldiers are killed after a deadly ambush by the militant Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
  • 1983 – Gimli Glider: Air Canada Flight 143 runs out of fuel and makes a deadstick landing at Gimli, Manitoba.
  • 1988 – General Ne Win, effective ruler of Burma since 1962, resigns after pro-democracy protests.
  • 1992 – A Vatican commission, led by Joseph Ratzinger, establishes that limiting certain rights of homosexual people and non-married couples is not equivalent to discrimination on grounds of race or gender.
  • 1992 – Abkhazia declares independence from Georgia.
  • 1995 – Comet Hale–Bopp is discovered; it becomes visible to the naked eye on Earth nearly a year later.
  • 1997 – Digital Equipment Corporation files antitrust charges against chipmaker Intel.
  • 1999 – ANA Flight 61 is hijacked in Tokyo, Japan by Yuji Nishizawa.
  • 1999 – Space Shuttle Columbia launches on STS-93, with Eileen Collins becoming the first female space shuttle commander. The shuttle also carried and deployed the Chandra X-ray Observatory.
  • 2005 – Three bombs explode in the Naama Bay area of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, killing 88 people.
  • 2014 – TransAsia Airways Flight 222 crashes in Xixi village near Huxi, Penghu, during approach to Phengu Airport. 48 of the 58 people on board are killed and five more people on the ground are injured.
  • 2015 – NASA announces discovery of Kepler-452b by Kepler.
  • 2016 – Kabul twin bombing occurred in the vicinity of Deh Mazang when protesters, mostly from the Shiite Hazara minority, were marching against route changing of the TUTAP power project. At least 80 people were killed and 260 were injured.
  • 2018 – A wildfire in East Attica, Greece caused the death of 102 people. It was the deadliest wildfire in history of Greece and the second-deadliest in the world, in the 21st century, after the 2009 bushfires in Australia that killed 180.

Births on July 23

  • 1301 – Otto, Duke of Austria (d. 1339)
  • 1339 – Louis I, Duke of Anjou (d. 1384)
  • 1370 – Pier Paolo Vergerio the Elder, humanist (d. 1444 or 1445)
  • 1401 – Francesco I Sforza, Italian husband of Bianca Maria Visconti (d. 1466)
  • 1441 – Danjong of Joseon, King of Joseon (d. 1457)
  • 1503 – Anne of Bohemia and Hungary (d. 1547)
  • 1614 – Bonaventura Peeters the Elder, Flemish painter (d. 1652)
  • 1635 – Adam Dollard des Ormeaux, New France garrison commander (d. 1660)
  • 1649 – Pope Clement XI (d. 1721)
  • 1705 – Francis Blomefield, English historian and author (d. 1752)
  • 1713 – Luís António Verney, Portuguese philosopher and pedagogue (d. 1792)
  • 1773 – Thomas Brisbane, Scottish general and politician, 6th Governor of New South Wales (d. 1860)
  • 1775 – Étienne-Louis Malus, French physicist and mathematician (d. 1812)
  • 1777 – Philipp Otto Runge, German painter and illustrator (d. 1810)
  • 1796 – Franz Berwald, Swedish surgeon and composer (d. 1868)
  • 1802 – Manuel María Lombardini, Mexican general and president (1853) (d. 1853)
  • 1823 – Alexandre-Antonin Taché, Canadian archbishop and missionary (d. 1894)
  • 1838 – Édouard Colonne, French violinist and conductor (d. 1910)
  • 1851 – Peder Severin Krøyer, Norwegian-Danish painter (d. 1909)
  • 1856 – Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Indian lawyer and journalist (d. 1920)
  • 1864 – Apolinario Mabini, Filipino lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Philippines (d. 1903)
  • 1865 – Henry Norris, English businessman and politician (d. 1934)
  • 1866 – Francesco Cilea, Italian composer and academic (d. 1950)
  • 1878 – James Thomas Milton Anderson, Canadian lawyer and politician, 5th Premier of Saskatchewan (d. 1946)
  • 1882 – Kâzım Karabekir, Turkish general and politician, 5th Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (b. 1948)
  • 1883 – Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, French-English field marshal and politician, Lord Lieutenant of the County of London (d. 1963)
  • 1884 – Emil Jannings, Swiss-German actor (d. 1950)
  • 1885 – Izaak Killam, Canadian financier and philanthropist (d. 1955)
  • 1885 – Georges V. Matchabelli, Georgian-American businessman, created Prince Matchabelli perfume (d. 1935)
  • 1886 – Salvador de Madariaga, Spanish historian and diplomat (d. 1978)
  • 1886 – Walter H. Schottky, Swiss-German physicist and engineer (d. 1976)
  • 1888 – Raymond Chandler, American crime novelist and screenwriter (d. 1959)
  • 1891 – Louis T. Wright, American surgeon and civil rights activist (d. 1952)
  • 1892 – Haile Selassie, Ethiopian emperor (d. 1975)
  • 1894 – Arthur Treacher, English-American actor and television personality (d. 1975)
  • 1895 – Aileen Pringle, American actress (d. 1989)
  • 1898 – Daniel Cosío Villegas, Mexican historian, economist (d. 1976)
  • 1898 – Bengt Djurberg, Swedish actor and singer (d. 1941)
  • 1898 – Red Dutton, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1987)
  • 1898 – Herman Kruusenberg, Estonian wrestler (d. 1970)
  • 1898 – Jacob Marschak, Ukrainian-American economist, journalist, and author (d. 1977)
  • 1899 – Gustav Heinemann, German lawyer and politician, 3rd President of West Germany (d. 1976)
  • 1900 – Julia Davis Adams, American author and journalist (d. 1993)
  • 1900 – John Babcock, Canadian-American sergeant (d. 2010)
  • 1900 – Inger Margrethe Boberg, Danish folklore researcher and writer (d. 1957)
  • 1901 – Hank Worden, American actor and singer (d. 1992)
  • 1901 – Isabel Luberza Oppenheimer, Puerto Rican brothel owner and madam in barrio Maragüez, Ponce, Puerto Rico (d. 1974)
  • 1905 – Leopold Engleitner, Austrian author and educator (d. 2013)
  • 1906 – Vladimir Prelog, Croatian-Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
  • 1906 – Chandra Shekhar Azad, Indian activist (d. 1931)
  • 1912 – M. H. Abrams, American author, critic, and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1912 – Michael Wilding, English actor (d. 1979)
  • 1913 – Michael Foot, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Employment (d. 2010)
  • 1914 – Nassos Daphnis, Greek-American painter (d.2010)
  • 1914 – Virgil Finlay, American illustrator (d. 1971)
  • 1914 – Elly Annie Schneider, German-American actress (d. 2004)
  • 1916 – Laurel Martyn, Australian ballerina and choreographer (d. 2013)
  • 1918 – Abraham Bueno de Mesquita, Dutch comedian and actor (d. 2005)
  • 1918 – Ruth Duccini, American actress (d. 2014)
  • 1918 – Pee Wee Reese, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 1999)
  • 1921 – Calvert DeForest, American actor (d. 2007)
  • 1922 – Damiano Damiani, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1922 – Jenny Pike, Canadian WWII servicewoman and photographer (d. 2004)
  • 1923 – Luis Aloma, Cuban-American baseball player (d. 1997)
  • 1923 – Morris Halle, Latvian-American linguist and academic (d. 2018)
  • 1923 – Amalia Mendoza, Mexican singer and actress (d. 2001)
  • 1924 – Gavin Lambert, English-American screenwriter and author (d. 2005)
  • 1924 – Gazanfer Bilge, Turkish wrestler (d. 2008)
  • 1925 – Tajuddin Ahmad, Bangladeshi politician, 1st Prime Minister of Bangladesh (d. 1975)
  • 1925 – Quett Masire, Botswana politician, the former Vice-President of Botswana (d. 2017)
  • 1925 – Alain Decaux, French historian and author (d. 2016)
  • 1925 – Gloria DeHaven, American actress and singer (d. 2016)
  • 1926 – Ludvík Vaculík, Czech journalist and author (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Gérard Brach, French director and screenwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1928 – Leon Fleisher, American pianist and conductor
  • 1928 – Vera Rubin, American astronomer and academic (d. 2016)
  • 1928 – Hubert Selby, Jr., American author and screenwriter (d. 2004)
  • 1929 – Danny Barcelona, American drummer (d. 2007)
  • 1929 – Lateef Jakande, Nigerian journalist and politician, 5th Governor of Lagos State
  • 1931 – Te Atairangikaahu, Māori queen (d. 2006)
  • 1931 – Claude Fournier, Canadian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer
  • 1931 – Guy Fournier, Canadian author and screenwriter
  • 1933 – Raimund Abraham, Austrian architect, designed the Austrian Cultural Forum (d. 2010)
  • 1933 – Bert Convy, American actor, singer, and game show host (d. 1991)
  • 1933 – Benedict Groeschel, American priest, psychologist, and talk show host (d. 2014)
  • 1933 – Richard Rogers, Italian-English architect, designed the Millennium Dome and Lloyd’s building
  • 1935 – Jim Hall, American race car driver
  • 1936 – Don Drysdale, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 1993)
  • 1936 – Anthony Kennedy, American lawyer and jurist
  • 1937 – Dave Webster, American football player and engineer
  • 1938 – Juliet Anderson, American porn actress and producer (d. 2010)
  • 1938 – Ronny Cox, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
  • 1938 – Charles Harrelson, American murderer (d. 2007)
  • 1938 – Bert Newton, Australian actor and television host
  • 1940 – Danielle Collobert, French author, poet, and journalist (d. 1978)
  • 1940 – Don Imus, American radio host (d. 2019)
  • 1940 – Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, Italian economist and politician, Italian Minister of Finance (d. 2010)
  • 1941 – Christopher Andrew, English historian and academic
  • 1941 – Richie Evans, American race car driver (d. 1985)
  • 1941 – Sergio Mattarella, Italian lawyer, judge, and politician, 12th President of Italy
  • 1942 – Sallyanne Atkinson, Australian journalist and politician, Lord Mayor of Brisbane
  • 1942 – Madeline Bell, American singer-songwriter
  • 1942 – Richard E. Dauch, American businessman, co-founded American Axle (d. 2013)
  • 1942 – Dimitris Liantinis, Greek philosopher and author (d. 1998)
  • 1943 – Randall Forsberg, American scientist (d. 2007)
  • 1943 – Tony Joe White, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2018)
  • 1944 – Dino Danelli, American drummer
  • 1944 – Maria João Pires, Portuguese pianist
  • 1945 – Edward Gregson, English composer and educator
  • 1945 – Jon Sammels, English footballer
  • 1946 – Andy Mackay, English oboe player and composer
  • 1946 – René Ricard, American poet, painter, and critic (d. 2014)
  • 1947 – Gardner Dozois, American journalist and author (d. 2018)
  • 1947 – David Essex, English singer-songwriter, and actor
  • 1947 – Torsten Palm, Swedish race car driver
  • 1947 – Robin Simon, English historian, critic, and academic
  • 1948 – Ross Cranston, Australian-English lawyer, judge, and politician, Solicitor General for England and Wales
  • 1948 – John Cushnahan, Northern Irish educator and politician
  • 1948 – John Hall, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and politician
  • 1948 – Stanisław Targosz, Polish general (d. 2013)
  • 1949 – Clive Rice, South African cricketer and coach (d. 2015)
  • 1950 – Alex Kozinski, Romanian-born American lawyer and judge
  • 1950 – Ian Thomas, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1950 – Blair Thornton, Canadian guitarist and songwriter
  • 1950 – Alan Turner, Australian cricketer
  • 1952 – Paul Hibbert, Australian cricketer and coach (d. 2008)
  • 1952 – Bill Nyrop, American ice hockey player and coach (d. 1995)
  • 1952 – John Rutsey, Canadian drummer (d. 2008)
  • 1952 – Janis Siegel, American jazz singer (The Manhattan Transfer)
  • 1953 – Graham Gooch, English cricketer and coach
  • 1953 – Najib Razak, Malaysian politician, 6th Prime Minister of Malaysia
  • 1957 – Jo Brand, English comedian, actress, and screenwriter
  • 1957 – Nikos Galis, American basketball player
  • 1957 – Theo van Gogh, Dutch actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
  • 1957 – Quentin Willson, English TV presenter, Top Gear.
  • 1958 – Ken Green, American golfer
  • 1958 – Tomy Winata, Indonesian businessman and philanthropist, founded the Artha Graha Peduli Foundation
  • 1959 – Nancy Savoca, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Gary Ella, Australian rugby player
  • 1960 – Susan Graham, American soprano and educator
  • 1960 – Al Perez, American wrestler
  • 1961 – André Ducharme, Canadian comedian and author
  • 1961 – Michael Durant, American pilot and author
  • 1961 – Martin Gore, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1961 – Woody Harrelson, American actor and activist
  • 1961 – Milind Gunaji, Indian actor, model, television show host, and author
  • 1962 – Eriq La Salle, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1962 – Mark Laurie, Australian rugby league player
  • 1962 – Alain Lefèvre, Canadian pianist and composer
  • 1963 – Slobodan Zivojinovic, Serbian tennis player
  • 1964 – Uwe Barth, German politician
  • 1964 – Nick Menza, German drummer and songwriter (d. 2016)
  • 1965 – Rob Dickinson, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1965 – Slash, English-American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
  • 1967 – Philip Seymour Hoffman, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1968 – Elden Campbell, American basketball player
  • 1968 – Gary Payton, American basketball player and actor
  • 1968 – Stephanie Seymour, American model and actress
  • 1969 – Andrew Cassels, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1970 – Charisma Carpenter, American actress
  • 1970 – Thea Dorn, German author and playwright
  • 1970 – Sam Watters, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1971 – Dalvin DeGrate, American rapper and producer
  • 1971 – Alison Krauss, American singer-songwriter and fiddler
  • 1971 – Joel Stein, American journalist
  • 1972 – Suat Kılıç, Turkish journalist, lawyer, and politician, Turkish Minister of Youth and Sports
  • 1972 – Floyd Reifer, Barbadian cricketer and coach
  • 1972 – Marlon Wayans, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1973 – Nomar Garciaparra, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1973 – Fran Healy, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1973 – Himesh Reshammiya, Indian singer-songwriter, producer, actor, and director
  • 1973 – Andrea Scanavacca, Italian rugby player and manager
  • 1974 – Terry Glenn, American football player and coach (d. 2017)
  • 1974 – Maurice Greene, American sprinter
  • 1974 – Rik Verbrugghe, Belgian cyclist
  • 1975 – Dan Rogerson, English politician
  • 1976 – Judit Polgár, Hungarian chess player
  • 1977 – Scott Clemmensen, American ice hockey player and coach
  • 1977 – Gail Emms, English badminton player
  • 1977 – Néicer Reasco, Ecuadorian footballer
  • 1977 – Shawn Thornton, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1978 – Stuart Elliott, Northern Irish footballer
  • 1978 – Stefanie Sun, Singaporean singer-songwriter and pianist
  • 1978 – Lauren Groff, American novelist and short story writer
  • 1979 – Perro Aguayo Jr., Mexican wrestler and promoter (d. 2015)
  • 1979 – Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Greek footballer
  • 1979 – Richard Sims, Zimbabwean cricketer
  • 1979 – Ricardo Sperafico, Brazilian race car driver
  • 1979 – Cathleen Tschirch, German sprinter
  • 1980 – Sandeep Parikh, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1980 – Michelle Williams, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
  • 1981 – Steve Jocz, Canadian singer-songwriter, drummer, and director
  • 1981 – Dmitriy Karpov, Kazakhstani decathlete
  • 1981 – Aleksandr Kulik, Estonian footballer
  • 1981 – Jarkko Nieminen, Finnish tennis player
  • 1982 – Ömer Aysan Barış, Turkish footballer
  • 1982 – Joe Mather, American baseball player
  • 1982 – Gökhan Ünal, Turkish footballer
  • 1982 – Gerald Wallace, American basketball player
  • 1982 – Paul Wesley, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1983 – Bec Hewitt, Australian actress
  • 1983 – Aaron Peirsol, American swimmer
  • 1983 – David Strettle, English rugby player
  • 1984 – Walter Gargano, Uruguayan footballer
  • 1984 – Matthew Murphy, English singer and guitarist
  • 1984 – Brandon Roy, American basketball player
  • 1984 – Celeste Thorson, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1985 – Luis Ángel Landín, Mexican footballer
  • 1986 – Aya Uchida, Japanese voice actress and singer
  • 1986 – Nelson Philippe, French race car driver
  • 1986 – Yelena Sokolova, Russian long jumper
  • 1987 – Alessio Cerci, Italian footballer
  • 1987 – Felipe Dylon, Brazilian singer
  • 1987 – Serdar Kurtuluş, Turkish footballer
  • 1989 – Daniel Radcliffe, English actor
  • 1989 – Donald Young, American tennis player
  • 1990 – Kevin Reynolds, Canadian figure skater
  • 1991 – Lauren Mitchell, Australian gymnast
  • 1991 – Jarrod Wallace, Australian rugby league footballer
  • 1992 – Danny Ings, English footballer
  • 1996 – Alexandra Andresen, Norwegian heiress and equestrian

Deaths on July 23

  • 955 – He Ning, Chinese chancellor (b. 898)
  • 997 – Nuh II, Samanid emir (b. 963)
  • 1100 – Warner of Grez, French nobleman, relative of Godfrey of Bouillon
  • 1227 – Qiu Chuji, Chinese religious leader, founded the Dragon Gate Taoism (b. 1148)
  • 1298 – Thoros III, Armenian king (b. c. 1271)
  • 1373 – Bridget of Sweden, Swedish mystic and saint, founded the Bridgettine Order (b. 1303)
  • 1403 – Thomas Percy, 1st Earl of Worcester, English rebel (b. 1343)
  • 1531 – Louis de Brézé, French husband of Diane de Poitiers
  • 1536 – Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1519)
  • 1562 – Götz von Berlichingen, German knight and poet (b. 1480)
  • 1584 – John Day, English printer (b. 1522)
  • 1596 – Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (b. 1526)
  • 1645 – Michael I, Russian tsar (b. 1596)
  • 1692 – Gilles Ménage, French lawyer, philologist, and scholar (b. 1613)
  • 1727 – Simon Harcourt, 1st Viscount Harcourt, English politician, Lord Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1661)
  • 1757 – Domenico Scarlatti, Italian harpsichord player and composer (b. 1685)
  • 1773 – George Edwards, English biologist and ornithologist (b. 1693)
  • 1781 – John Joachim Zubly, Swiss-American pastor and politician (b. 1724)
  • 1793 – Roger Sherman, American lawyer and politician (b. 1721)
  • 1833 – Anselmo de la Cruz, Chilean politician, Chilean Minister of Finance (b. 1777)
  • 1853 – Andries Pretorius, South African general (b. 1798)
  • 1875 – Isaac Singer, American businessman, founded the Singer Corporation (b. 1811)
  • 1878 – Carl von Rokitansky, Bohemian physician, pathologist, and politician (b. 1804)
  • 1885 – Ulysses S. Grant, American general and politician, 18th President of the United States (b. 1822)
  • 1904 – John Douglas, English-Australian politician, 7th Premier of Queensland (b. 1828)
  • 1909 – Frederick Holder, Australian politician, 19th Premier of South Australia (b. 1850)
  • 1916 – William Ramsay, Scottish-English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1852)
  • 1919 – Spyridon Lambros, Greek historian and politician, 100th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1851)
  • 1920 – Conrad Kohrs, German-American rancher and politician (b. 1835)
  • 1924 – Frank Frost Abbott, American author and scholar (b. 1850)
  • 1926 – Viktor Vasnetsov, Russian painter (b. 1848)
  • 1927 – Reginald Dyer, British brigadier general (b. 1864)
  • 1930 – Glenn Curtiss, American pilot and engineer (b. 1878)
  • 1932 – Tenby Davies, Welsh runner (b. 1884)
  • 1936 – Anna Abrikosova, Russian linguist (b. 1882)
  • 1941 – George Lyman Kittredge, American scholar and educator (b. 1860)
  • 1941 – José Quiñones Gonzales, Peruvian soldier and pilot (b. 1914)
  • 1942 – Adam Czerniaków, Polish engineer and politician (b. 1880)
  • 1942 – Andy Ducat, English cricketer and footballer (b. 1886)
  • 1948 – D. W. Griffith, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1875)
  • 1950 – Shigenori Tōgō, Japanese politician and diplomat, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1882)
  • 1951 – Robert J. Flaherty, American director and producer (b. 1884)
  • 1951 – Philippe Pétain, French general and politician, 119th Prime Minister of France (b. 1856)
  • 1954 – Herman Groman, American runner (b. 1882)
  • 1955 – Cordell Hull, American captain, lawyer, and politician, 47th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1871)
  • 1957 – Bob Shiring, American football player and coach (b. 1870)
  • 1966 – Montgomery Clift, American actor (b. 1920)
  • 1968 – Henry Hallett Dale, English pharmacologist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1875)
  • 1971 – Van Heflin, American actor (b. 1910)
  • 1972 – Esther Applin, American geologist and paleontologist (b. 1895)
  • 1973 – Eddie Rickenbacker, American pilot and race car driver, founded Rickenbacker Motors (b. 1890)
  • 1979 – Joseph Kessel, French journalist and author (b. 1898)
  • 1980 – Sarto Fournier, Canadian lawyer and politician, 38th Mayor of Montreal (b. 1908)
  • 1980 – Keith Godchaux, American keyboard player and songwriter (b. 1948)
  • 1980 – Mollie Steimer, Russian activist (b. 1897)
  • 1982 – Vic Morrow, American actor (b. 1929)
  • 1983 – Georges Auric, French composer (b. 1899)
  • 1985 – Johnny Wardle, English cricketer and manager (b. 1923)
  • 1989 – Donald Barthelme, American short story writer and novelist (b. 1931)
  • 1990 – Kenjiro Takayanagi, Japanese engineer (b. 1899)
  • 1996 – Jean Muir, American actress (b. 1911)
  • 1997 – Chūhei Nambu, Japanese jumper and journalist (b. 1904)
  • 1999 – Hassan II of Morocco (b. 1929)
  • 2001 – Eudora Welty, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1909)
  • 2002 – Leo McKern, Australian-English actor (b. 1920)
  • 2002 – William Luther Pierce, American activist and author (b. 1933)
  • 2002 – Chaim Potok, American novelist and rabbi (b. 1929)
  • 2002 – Clark Gesner, American author and composer (b. 1938)
  • 2003 – James E. Davis, American police officer and politician (b. 1962)
  • 2004 – Mehmood Ali, Indian actor, director, and producer (b. 1932)
  • 2004 – Carlos Paredes, Portuguese guitarist and composer (b. 1925)
  • 2004 – Piero Piccioni, Italian pianist, conductor, and composer (b. 1921)
  • 2005 – Ted Greene, American guitarist and journalist (b. 1946)
  • 2006 – Jean-Paul Desbiens, Canadian journalist and academic (b. 1927)
  • 2007 – Ron Miller, American songwriter and producer (b. 1933)
  • 2007 – Mohammed Zahir Shah, Afghan king (b. 1914)
  • 2008 – Kurt Furgler, Swiss lawyer and politician, 70th President of the Swiss Confederation (b. 1924)
  • 2009 – E. Lynn Harris, American author and screenwriter (b. 1955)
  • 2010 – Daniel Schorr, American journalist and author (b. 1916)
  • 2011 – Amy Winehouse, English singer-songwriter (b. 1983)
  • 2012 – Margaret Mahy, New Zealand author (b. 1936)
  • 2012 – Sally Ride, American physicist and astronaut (b. 1951)
  • 2012 – Lakshmi Sahgal, Indian soldier and politician (b. 1914)
  • 2012 – Esther Tusquets, Spanish publisher and author (b. 1936)
  • 2012 – José Luis Uribarri, Spanish television host and director (b. 1936)
  • 2013 – Dominguinhos, Brazilian singer-songwriter and accordion player (b. 1941)
  • 2013 – Pauline Clarke, English author (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Arthur J. Collingsworth, American diplomat (b. 1944)
  • 2013 – Emile Griffith, American boxer and trainer (b. 1938)
  • 2013 – Kim Jong-hak, South Korean director and producer (b. 1951)
  • 2013 – Djalma Santos, Brazilian footballer (b. 1929)
  • 2014 – Dora Bryan, English actress and restaurateur (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Norman Leyden, American composer and conductor (b. 1917)
  • 2014 – Ariano Suassuna, Brazilian author and playwright (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Jordan Tabor, English footballer (b. 1990)
  • 2015 – Shigeko Kubota, Japanese-American sculptor and director (b. 1937)
  • 2015 – Don Oberdorfer, American journalist, author, and academic (b. 1931)
  • 2015 – William Wakefield Baum, American cardinal (b. 1926)
  • 2017 – John Kundla, American basketball coach (b. 1916)

Holidays and observances on July 23

  • Birthday of Haile Selassie (Rastafari)
  • Children’s Day (Indonesia)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Bridget of Sweden
    • Heiromartyr Phocas (Eastern Orthodox)
    • John Cassian (Western Christianity)
    • Liborius of Le Mans
    • Margarita María
    • Mercè Prat i Prat
    • Rasyphus and Ravennus
    • July 23 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • National Remembrance Day (Papua New Guinea)
  • Renaissance Day (Oman)
  • Revolution Day (Egypt)

July 23 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 22- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 838 – Battle of Anzen: The Byzantine emperor Theophilos suffers a heavy defeat by the Abbasids.
  • 1099 – First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon is elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of Jerusalem.
  • 1209 – Massacre at Béziers: The first major military action of the Albigensian Crusade.
  • 1298 – Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Falkirk: King Edward I of England and his longbowmen defeat William Wallace and his Scottish schiltrons outside the town of Falkirk.
  • 1342 – St. Mary Magdalene’s flood is the worst such event on record for central Europe.
  • 1443 – Battle of St. Jakob an der Sihl in the Old Zürich War.
  • 1456 – Ottoman wars in Europe: Siege of Belgrade: John Hunyadi, Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary, defeats Mehmet II of the Ottoman Empire.
  • 1484 – Battle of Lochmaben Fair: A 500-man raiding party led by Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany and James Douglas, 9th Earl of Douglas are defeated by Scots forces loyal to Albany’s brother James III of Scotland; Douglas is captured.
  • 1499 – Battle of Dornach: The Swiss decisively defeat the army of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor.
  • 1587 – Roanoke Colony: A second group of English settlers arrives on Roanoke Island off North Carolina to re-establish the deserted colony.
  • 1598 – William Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice, is entered on the Stationers’ Register. By decree of Queen Elizabeth, the Stationers’ Register licensed printed works, giving the Crown tight control over all published material.
  • 1686 – Albany, New York is formally chartered as a municipality by Governor Thomas Dongan.
  • 1706 – The Acts of Union 1707 are agreed upon by commissioners from the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, which, when passed by each countries’ Parliaments, led to the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain.
  • 1793 – Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Pacific Ocean becoming the first recorded human to complete a transcontinental crossing of North America.
  • 1796 – Surveyors of the Connecticut Land Company name an area in Ohio “Cleveland” after Gen. Moses Cleaveland, the superintendent of the surveying party.
  • 1797 – Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife: Battle between Spanish and British naval forces during the French Revolutionary Wars. During the Battle, Rear-Admiral Nelson is wounded in the arm and the arm had to be partially amputated.
  • 1802 – Emperor Gia Long conquers Hanoi and unified Viet Nam, which had experienced centuries of feudal warfare.
  • 1805 – Napoleonic Wars: War of the Third Coalition: Battle of Cape Finisterre: An inconclusive naval action is fought between a combined French and Spanish fleet under Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve of Spain and a British fleet under Admiral Robert Calder.
  • 1812 – Napoleonic Wars: Peninsular War: Battle of Salamanca: British forces led by Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) defeat French troops near Salamanca, Spain.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Atlanta: Outside Atlanta, Confederate General John Bell Hood leads an unsuccessful attack on Union troops under General William T. Sherman on Bald Hill.
  • 1893 – Katharine Lee Bates writes “America the Beautiful” after admiring the view from the top of Pikes Peak near Colorado Springs, Colorado.
  • 1894 – The first ever motor race is held in France between the cities of Paris and Rouen. The fastest finisher was the Comte Jules-Albert de Dion, but the ‘official’ victory was awarded to Albert Lemaître driving his 3 hp petrol engined Peugeot.
  • 1916 – Preparedness Day Bombing: In San Francisco, a bomb explodes on Market Street during a parade, killing ten and injuring 40.
  • 1921 – Rif War: The Spanish Army suffers its worst military defeat in modern times to the Berbers of the Rif region of Spanish Morocco.
  • 1933 – Aviator Wiley Post returns to Floyd Bennett Field in New York City, completing the first solo flight around the world in seven days, 18 hours and 49 minutes.
  • 1937 – New Deal: The United States Senate votes down President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s proposal to add more justices to the Supreme Court of the United States.
  • 1942 – The United States government begins compulsory civilian gasoline rationing due to the wartime demands.
  • 1942 – The Holocaust in Poland: The systematic deportation of Jews from the Warsaw ghetto begins.
  • 1943 – World War II: Allied forces capture Palermo during the Allied invasion of Sicily.
  • 1943 – World War II: Axis occupation forces violently disperse a massive protest in Athens, killing 22.
  • 1944 – The Polish Committee of National Liberation publishes its manifesto, starting the period of Communist rule in Poland.
  • 1946 – King David Hotel bombing: A Zionist underground organisation, the Irgun, bombs the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, site of the civil administration and military headquarters for Mandatory Palestine, resulting in 91 deaths.
  • 1962 – Mariner program: Mariner 1 spacecraft flies erratically several minutes after launch and has to be destroyed.
  • 1963 – Crown Colony of Sarawak gains self-governance.
  • 1976 – Japan completes its last reparation to the Philippines for war crimes committed during imperial Japan’s conquest of the country in the Second World War.
  • 1977 – Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping is restored to power.
  • 1983 – Martial law in Poland is officially revoked.
  • 1990 – Greg LeMond, an American road racing cyclist, wins his third Tour de France after leading the majority of the race. It was LeMond’s second consecutive Tour de France victory.
  • 1992 – Near Medellín, Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar escapes from his luxury prison fearing extradition to the United States.
  • 1993 – Great Flood of 1993: Levees near Kaskaskia, Illinois rupture, forcing the entire town to evacuate by barges operated by the Army Corps of Engineers.
  • 1997 – The second Blue Water Bridge opens between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario.
  • 2003 – Members of 101st Airborne of the United States, aided by Special Forces, attack a compound in Iraq, killing Saddam Hussein’s sons Uday and Qusay, along with Mustapha Hussein, Qusay’s 14-year-old son, and a bodyguard.
  • 2005 – Jean Charles de Menezes is killed by police as the hunt begins for the London Bombers responsible for the 7 July 2005 London bombings and the 21 July 2005 London bombings.
  • 2011 – 2011 Norway attacks: first a bomb blast which targeted government buildings in central Oslo, followed by a massacre at a youth camp on the island of Utøya.
  • 2013 – 2013 Dingxi earthquakes, a series of earthquakes in Dingxi, China, kills at least 89 people and injures more than 500 others.

Births on July 22

  • 1210 – Joan of England, Queen of Scotland (d. 1238)
  • 1437 – John Scrope, 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton, English Baron (d. 1498)
  • 1476 – Zhu Youyuan, Ming Dynasty politician (d. 1519)
  • 1478 – Philip I of Castile (d. 1506)
  • 1531 – Leonhard Thurneysser, scholar and elector of Brandenburg (d. 1595)
  • 1535 – Katarina Stenbock, queen of Gustav I of Sweden (d. 1621)
  • 1552 – Anthony Browne, Sheriff of Surrey and Kent (d. 1592)
  • 1552 – Mary Wriothesley, Countess of Southampton, Lady of English peer and others (d. 1607)
  • 1559 – Lawrence of Brindisi, Italian priest and saint (d. 1619)
  • 1615 – Marguerite of Lorraine, princess of Lorraine, duchess of Orléans (d. 1672)
  • 1618 – Johan Nieuhof, Dutch traveler (d. 1672)
  • 1621 – Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, English politician, Lord Chancellor of the United Kingdom (d. 1683)
  • 1630 – Madame de Brinvilliers, French aristocrat (d. 1676)
  • 1647 – Margaret Mary Alacoque, French nun, mystic and saint (d. 1690)
  • 1651 – Ferdinand Tobias Richter, Austrian organist and composer (d. 1711)
  • 1711 – Georg Wilhelm Richmann, German-Russian physicist and academic (d. 1753)
  • 1713 – Jacques-Germain Soufflot, French architect, designed the Panthéon (d. 1780)
  • 1733 – Mikhail Shcherbatov, Russian philosopher and historian (d. 1790)
  • 1755 – Gaspard de Prony, French mathematician and engineer (d. 1839)
  • 1784 – Friedrich Bessel, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1846)
  • 1839 – Jakob Hurt, Estonian theologist and linguist (d. 1907)
  • 1844 – William Archibald Spooner, English priest and scholar (d. 1930)
  • 1848 – Adolphus Frederick V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (d. 1914)
  • 1849 – Emma Lazarus, American poet and educator (d. 1887)
  • 1856 – Octave Hamelin, French philosopher (d. 1907)
  • 1862 – Cosmo Duff-Gordon, Scottish fencer (d. 1931)
  • 1863 – Alec Hearne, English cricketer (d. 1952)
  • 1878 – Janusz Korczak, Polish pediatrician and author (d. 1942)
  • 1881 – Augusta Fox Bronner, American psychologist, specialist in juvenile psychology (d. 1966)
  • 1882 – Edward Hopper, American painter and etcher (d. 1967)
  • 1884 – Odell Shepard, American poet and politician, 66th Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut (d. 1967)
  • 1886 – Hella Wuolijoki, Estonian-Finnish author (d. 1954)
  • 1887 – Gustav Ludwig Hertz, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1975)
  • 1888 – Kirk Bryan, American geologist and academic (d. 1950)
  • 1888 – Selman Waksman, Jewish-American biochemist and microbiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1973)
  • 1889 – James Whale, English director (d. 1957)
  • 1890 – Rose Kennedy, American philanthropist (d. 1995)
  • 1892 – Jack MacBryan, English cricketer and field hockey player (d. 1983)
  • 1893 – Jesse Haines, American baseball player and coach (d. 1978)
  • 1893 – Karl Menninger, American psychiatrist and author (d. 1990)
  • 1895 – León de Greiff, Colombian poet, journalist, and diplomat (d. 1976)
  • 1898 – Stephen Vincent Benét, American poet, short story writer, and novelist (d. 1943)
  • 1899 – Sobhuza II of Swaziland (d. 1982)
  • 1908 – Amy Vanderbilt, American author (d. 1974)
  • 1909 – Licia Albanese, Italian-American soprano and actress (d. 2014)
  • 1909 – Dorino Serafini, Italian racing driver (d. 2000)
  • 1910 – Ruthie Tompson, American animator and artist
  • 1913 – Gorni Kramer, Italian bassist, songwriter, and bandleader (d. 1995)
  • 1915 – Shaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah, Indian-Pakistani politician and diplomat (d. 2000)
  • 1916 – Gino Bianco, Brazilian racing driver (d. 1984)
  • 1916 – Marcel Cerdan, French boxer (d. 1949)
  • 1921 – William Roth, American lawyer and politician (d. 2003)
  • 1923 – Bob Dole, American soldier, lawyer, and politician
  • 1923 – César Fernández Ardavín, Spanish director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
  • 1924 – Margaret Whiting, American singer (d. 2011)
  • 1925 – Jack Matthews, American author, playwright, and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Joseph Sargent, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1926 – Bryan Forbes, English actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1926 – Wolfgang Iser, German scholar, literary theorist (d. 2007)
  • 1927 – Johan Ferner, Norwegian sailor (d. 2015)
  • 1928 – Orson Bean, American actor (d. 2020)
  • 1928 – Jimmy Hill, English footballer, manager, and sportscaster (d. 2015)
  • 1929 – John Barber, English racing driver (d. 2015)
  • 1929 – Leonid Stolovich, Russian-Estonian philosopher and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1929 – Neil Welliver, American painter (d. 2005)
  • 1929 – Baselios Thomas I, Indian bishop
  • 1931 – Leo Labine, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2005)
  • 1932 – Oscar de la Renta, Dominican-American fashion designer (d. 2014)
  • 1932 – Tom Robbins, American novelist
  • 1934 – Junior Cook, American saxophonist (d. 1992)
  • 1934 – Louise Fletcher, American actress
  • 1934 – Leon Rotman, Romanian canoeist
  • 1935 – Tom Cartwright, English-Welsh cricketer and coach (d. 2007)
  • 1936 – Don Patterson, American organist (d. 1988)
  • 1936 – Harold Rhodes, English cricketer
  • 1936 – Geraldine Claudette Darden, American mathematician
  • 1937 – Chuck Jackson, American R&B singer and songwriter
  • 1937 – Yasuhiro Kojima, Japanese-American wrestler and manager (d. 1999)
  • 1937 – John Price, English cricketer
  • 1937 – Vasant Ranjane, Indian cricketer (d. 2011)
  • 1938 – Terence Stamp, English actor
  • 1940 – Judith Walzer Leavitt, American historian and academic
  • 1940 – Alex Trebek, Canadian-American game show host and producer
  • 1941 – Estelle Bennett, American singer (d. 2009)
  • 1941 – Vaughn Bodē, American illustrator (d. 1975)
  • 1941 – George Clinton, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1941 – David M. Kennedy, American historian and author
  • 1942 – Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun, English-Australian politician (d. 2012)
  • 1942 – Peter Habeler, Austrian mountaineer and skier
  • 1942 – Les Johns, Australian rugby league player and coach
  • 1943 – Masaru Emoto, Japanese author and activist (d. 2014)
  • 1943 – Kay Bailey Hutchison, American lawyer and politician
  • 1943 – Bobby Sherman, American singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1944 – Rick Davies, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1944 – Sparky Lyle, American baseball player and manager
  • 1944 – Anand Satyanand, New Zealand lawyer, judge, and politician, 19th Governor-General of New Zealand
  • 1945 – Philip Cohen, English biochemist and academic
  • 1946 – Danny Glover, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1946 – Paul Schrader, American director and screenwriter
  • 1946 – Rolando Joven Tria Tirona, Filipino archbishop
  • 1946 – Johnson Toribiong, Palauan lawyer and politician, 7th President of Palau
  • 1947 – Albert Brooks, American actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter
  • 1947 – Gilles Duceppe, Canadian politician
  • 1947 – Don Henley, American singer-songwriter and drummer
  • 1949 – Alan Menken, American pianist and composer
  • 1949 – Lasse Virén, Finnish runner and police officer
  • 1950 – S. E. Hinton, American author
  • 1951 – Richard Bennett, American guitarist and producer
  • 1951 – J. V. Cain, American football player (d. 1979)
  • 1951 – Patriarch Daniel of Romania
  • 1953 – Brian Howe, English singer-songwriter
  • 1954 – Al Di Meola, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
  • 1954 – Steve LaTourette, American lawyer and politician (d. 2016)
  • 1954 – Lonette McKee, American actress and singer
  • 1954 – Ingrid Daubechies, Belgian physicist and mathematician
  • 1955 – Richard J. Corman, American businessman, founded the R.J. Corman Railroad Group (d. 2013)
  • 1955 – Willem Dafoe, American actor
  • 1956 – Mick Pointer, English neo-progressive rock drummer (Marillion; Arena)
  • 1956 – Scott Sanderson, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1957 – Dave Stieb, American baseball player
  • 1958 – Tatsunori Hara, Japanese baseball player and coach
  • 1958 – David Von Erich, American wrestler (d. 1984)
  • 1960 – Jon Oliva, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1961 – Calvin Fish, English racing driver and sportscaster
  • 1961 – Keith Sweat, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1962 – Alvin Robertson, American basketball player
  • 1962 – Martine St. Clair, Canadian singer and actress
  • 1963 – Emilio Butragueño, Spanish footballer
  • 1963 – Emily Saliers, American singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1964 – Will Calhoun, American rock drummer (Living Colour)
  • 1964 – Bonnie Langford, English actress and dancer
  • 1964 – John Leguizamo, Colombian-American actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1964 – David Spade, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1965 – Derrick Dalley, Canadian educator and politician
  • 1965 – Shawn Michaels, American wrestler, trainer, and actor
  • 1965 – Richard B. Poore, New Zealand humanitarian
  • 1965 – Doug Riesenberg, American football player and coach
  • 1966 – Tim Brown, American football player and manager
  • 1967 – Lauren Booth, English journalist and activist
  • 1967 – Rhys Ifans, Welsh actor
  • 1969 – Despina Vandi, German-Greek singer and actress
  • 1970 – Jason Becker, American guitarist and songwriter
  • 1970 – Steve Carter, Australian rugby league player
  • 1970 – Sergei Zubov, Russian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1972 – Franco Battaini, Italian Motor Cycle racer
  • 1972 – Colin Ferguson, Canadian actor, director, and producer
  • 1972 – Seth Fisher, American illustrator (d. 2006)
  • 1972 – Keyshawn Johnson, American football player and sportscaster
  • 1973 – Brian Chippendale, American singer and drummer
  • 1973 – Mike Sweeney, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1973 – Ece Temelkuran, Turkish journalist and author
  • 1973 – Rufus Wainwright, American-Canadian singer-songwriter
  • 1974 – Franka Potente, German actress
  • 1977 – Ezio Galon, Italian rugby player
  • 1977 – Ingo Hertzsch, German footballer
  • 1977 – Gustavo Nery, Brazilian footballer
  • 1978 – Runako Morton, Nevisian cricketer (d. 2012)
  • 1978 – Dennis Rommedahl, Danish footballer
  • 1979 – Lucas Luhr, German racing driver
  • 1979 – Yadel Martí, Cuban baseball player
  • 1980 – Dirk Kuyt, Dutch footballer
  • 1980 – Kate Ryan, Belgian singer-songwriter
  • 1980 – Tablo, South Korean-Canadian rapper
  • 1982 – Nuwan Kulasekara, Sri Lankan cricketer
  • 1983 – Aldo de Nigris, Mexican footballer
  • 1983 – Dries Devenyns, Belgian cyclist
  • 1983 – Steven Jackson, American football player
  • 1983 – Andreas Ulvo, Norwegian pianist
  • 1984 – Stewart Downing, English footballer
  • 1985 – Jessica Abbott, Australian swimmer
  • 1985 – Takudzwa Ngwenya, Zimbabwean-American rugby player
  • 1985 – Akira Tozawa, Japanese wrestler
  • 1986 – Stevie Johnson, American football player
  • 1987 – Denis Gargaud Chanut, French slalom canoeist
  • 1987 – Charlotte Kalla, Swedish skier
  • 1988 – William Buick, Norwegian-British flat jockey
  • 1988 – Paul Coutts, Scottish footballer
  • 1988 – Thomas Kraft, German footballer
  • 1988 – Sercan Temizyürek, Turkish footballer
  • 1989 – Keegan Allen, American actor, photographer and musician
  • 1991 – Matty James, English footballer
  • 1992 – Anja Aguilar, Filipino actress and singer
  • 1992 – Selena Gomez, American singer and actress
  • 1992 – Carolin Schnarre, German Paralympic equestrian
  • 1993 – Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Kyrgyzstani-American terrorist
  • 1994 – Jaz Sinclair, American film and television actress
  • 1995 – Ezekiel Elliott, American football player
  • 1995 – Armaan Malik, Indian playback singer, composer and songwriter
  • 1996 – Skyler Gisondo, American actor
  • 2002 – Prince Felix of Denmark
  • 2013 – Prince George of Cambridge

Deaths on July 22

  • 698 – Wu Chengsi, nephew of Chinese sovereign Wu Zetian
  • 1258 – Meinhard I, Count of Gorizia-Tyrol (b. c. 1200)
  • 1274 – Henry I of Navarre, Count of Champagne and Brie and King of Navarre
  • 1298 – Sir John de Graham, Scottish soldier at the Battle of Falkirk
  • 1362 – Louis, Count of Gravina (b. 1324)
  • 1376 – Simon Langham, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1310)
  • 1387 – Frans Ackerman, Flemish politician (b. 1330)
  • 1461 – Charles VII of France (b. 1403)
  • 1525 – Richard Wingfield, English courtier and diplomat, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (b. 1426)
  • 1540 – John Zápolya, Hungarian king (b. 1487)
  • 1550 – Jorge de Lencastre, Duke of Coimbra (b. 1481)
  • 1581 – Richard Cox, English bishop (b. 1500)
  • 1619 – Lawrence of Brindisi, Italian priest and saint (b. 1559)
  • 1645 – Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares, Spanish statesman (b. 1587)
  • 1676 – Pope Clement X (b. 1590)
  • 1726 – Hugh Drysdale, English-American politician, Colonial Governor of Virginia
  • 1734 – Peter King, 1st Baron King, English lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of England (b. 1669)
  • 1789 – Joseph Foullon de Doué, French politician, Controller-General of Finances (b. 1715)
  • 1802 – Marie François Xavier Bichat, French anatomist and physiologist (b. 1771)
  • 1824 – Thomas Macnamara Russell, English admiral
  • 1826 – Giuseppe Piazzi, Italian mathematician and astronomer (b. 1746)
  • 1832 – Napoleon II, French emperor (b. 1811)
  • 1833 – Joseph Forlenze, Italian ophthalmologist and surgeon (b. 1757)
  • 1864 – James B. McPherson, American general (b. 1828)
  • 1869 – John A. Roebling, German-American engineer, designed the Brooklyn Bridge (b. 1806)
  • 1902 – Mieczysław Halka-Ledóchowski, Polish cardinal (b. 1822)
  • 1903 – Cassius Marcellus Clay, American publisher, lawyer, and politician, United States Ambassador to Russia (b. 1810)
  • 1904 – Wilson Barrett, English actor and playwright (b. 1846)
  • 1906 – William Snodgrass, Canadian minister and academic (b. 1827)
  • 1908 – Randal Cremer, English politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1828)
  • 1915 – Sandford Fleming, Scottish-Canadian engineer and inventor, developed Standard time (b. 1827)
  • 1916 – James Whitcomb Riley, American poet and author (b. 1849)
  • 1918 – Indra Lal Roy, Indian lieutenant and first Indian fighter aircraft pilot (b. 1898)
  • 1920 – William Kissam Vanderbilt, American businessman and horse breeder (b. 1849)
  • 1922 – Jōkichi Takamine, Japanese-American chemist and academic (b. 1854)
  • 1932 – J. Meade Falkner, English author and poet (b. 1858)
  • 1932 – Reginald Fessenden, Canadian inventor and academic (b. 1866)
  • 1932 – Errico Malatesta, Italian activist and author (b. 1853)
  • 1932 – Flo Ziegfeld, American actor and producer (b. 1867)
  • 1934 – John Dillinger, American gangster (b. 1903)
  • 1937 – Ted McDonald, Australian cricketer and footballer (b. 1891)
  • 1940 – George Fuller, Australian politician, 22nd Premier of New South Wales (b. 1861)
  • 1940 – Albert Young, American boxer and promoter (b. 1877)
  • 1948 – Rūdolfs Jurciņš, Latvian basketball player (b. 1909)
  • 1950 – William Lyon Mackenzie King, Canadian economist and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1874)
  • 1958 – Mikhail Zoshchenko, Ukrainian-Russian soldier and author (b. 1895)
  • 1967 – Carl Sandburg, American poet and historian (b. 1878)
  • 1968 – Giovannino Guareschi, Italian journalist and cartoonist (b. 1908)
  • 1969 – Judy Garland, american actress, singer, dancer, and vaudevillian (b. 1922)
  • 1970 – George Johnston, Australian journalist and author (b. 1912)
  • 1974 – Wayne Morse, American lawyer and politician (b. 1900)
  • 1979 – J. V. Cain, American football player (b. 1951)
  • 1979 – Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer and manager (b. 1929)
  • 1986 – Floyd Gottfredson, American author and illustrator (b. 1905)
  • 1986 – Ede Staal, Dutch singer-songwriter (b. 1941)
  • 1987 – Fahrettin Kerim Gökay, Turkish physician and politician, Turkish Minister of Health (b. 1900)
  • 1990 – Manuel Puig, Argentinian author, playwright, and screenwriter (b. 1932)
  • 1990 – Eduard Streltsov, Soviet footballer (b. 1937)
  • 1992 – David Wojnarowicz, American painter, photographer, and activist (b. 1954)
  • 1995 – Harold Larwood, English-Australian cricketer (b. 1904)
  • 1996 – Rob Collins, English keyboard player (b. 1956)
  • 1998 – Fritz Buchloh, German footballer and coach (b. 1909)
  • 2000 – Eric Christmas, English-born Canadian actor (b. 1916)
  • 2000 – Carmen Martín Gaite, Spanish author, poet, and playwright (b. 1925)
  • 2000 – Raymond Lemieux, Canadian chemist and academic (b. 1920)
  • 2000 – Claude Sautet, French director and screenwriter (b. 1924)
  • 2001 – Indro Montanelli, Italian journalist and historian (b. 1909)
  • 2004 – Sacha Distel, French singer and guitarist (b. 1933)
  • 2004 – Illinois Jacquet, American saxophonist and composer (b. 1922)
  • 2005 – Eugene Record, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1940)
  • 2006 – Dika Newlin, American composer, singer-songwriter, and pianist (d. 1923)
  • 2006 – José Antonio Delgado, Venezuelan mountaineer (b. 1965)
  • 2007 – Mike Coolbaugh, American baseball player and coach (b. 1972)
  • 2007 – Jarrod Cunningham, New Zealand rugby player (b. 1968)
  • 2007 – László Kovács, Hungarian-American director and cinematographer (b. 1933)
  • 2007 – Rollie Stiles, American baseball player (b. 1906)
  • 2008 – Estelle Getty, American actress (b. 1923)
  • 2009 – Richard M. Givan, American lawyer and judge (b. 1921)
  • 2009 – Peter Krieg, German director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1947)
  • 2010 – Kenny Guinn, American banker and politician, 27th Governor of Nevada (b. 1936)
  • 2011 – Linda Christian, Mexican-American actress (b. 1923)
  • 2011 – Cees de Wolf, Dutch footballer (b. 1945)
  • 2012 – Ding Guangen, Chinese engineer and politician (b. 1929)
  • 2012 – George Armitage Miller, American psychologist and academic (b. 1920)
  • 2012 – Frank Pierson, American director and screenwriter (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Natalie de Blois, American architect, co-designed the Lever House (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Dennis Farina, American policeman and actor (b. 1944)
  • 2013 – Lawrie Reilly, Scottish footballer (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Rosalie E. Wahl, American lawyer and judge (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Johann Breyer, German SS officer (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Louis Lentin, Irish director and producer (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – Nitzan Shirazi, Israeli footballer and manager (b. 1971)
  • 2018 – Frank Havens, American canoeist (b. 1924)

Holidays and observances on July 22

  • Birthday of the Late King Sobhuza (Swaziland)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Abd-al-Masih
    • Joseph of Tiberias (or of Palestine)
    • Markella
    • Mary Magdalene
    • Nohra (Maronite Church)
    • July 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which Parents’ Day can fall, while 28 July is the latest; celebrated on the fourth Sunday in July. (United States)
  • National Press Day (Azerbaijan)
  • Pi Approximation Day, see also March 14
  • Ratcatcher’s Day
  • Revolution Day (The Gambia)
  • Sarawak Self-government Day (Sarawak, Malaysia)

July 22- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 21- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 356 BC – The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is destroyed by arson.
  • 230 – Pope Pontian succeeds Urban I as the eighteenth pope.
  • 285 – Diocletian appoints Maximian as Caesar and co-ruler.
  • 365 – The 365 Crete earthquake affects the Greek island of Crete with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), causing a destructive tsunami that affects the coasts of Libya and Egypt, especially Alexandria. Many thousands were killed.
  • 905 – King Berengar I of Italy and a hired Hungarian army defeats the Frankish forces at Verona. King Louis III is captured and blinded for breaking his oath (see 902).
  • 1242 – Battle of Taillebourg: Louis IX of France puts an end to the revolt of his vassals Henry III of England and Hugh X of Lusignan.
  • 1403 – Battle of Shrewsbury: King Henry IV of England defeats rebels to the north of the county town of Shropshire, England.
  • 1545 – The first landing of French troops on the coast of the Isle of Wight during the French invasion of the Isle of Wight.
  • 1568 – Eighty Years’ War: Battle of Jemmingen: Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alva defeats Louis of Nassau.
  • 1645 – Qing dynasty regent Dorgon issues an edict ordering all Han Chinese men to shave their forehead and braid the rest of their hair into a queue identical to those of the Manchus.
  • 1656 – The Raid on Málaga takes place during the Anglo-Spanish War.
  • 1718 – The Treaty of Passarowitz between the Ottoman Empire, Austria and the Republic of Venice is signed.
  • 1774 – Russo-Turkish War (1768–74): Russia and the Ottoman Empire sign the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca ending the war.
  • 1798 – French campaign in Egypt and Syria: Napoleon’s forces defeat an Ottoman-Mamluk army near Cairo in the Battle of the Pyramids.
  • 1831 – Inauguration of Leopold I of Belgium, first king of the Belgians.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: First Battle of Bull Run: At Manassas Junction, Virginia, the first major battle of the war begins and ends in a victory for the Confederate army.
  • 1865 – In the market square of Springfield, Missouri, Wild Bill Hickok shoots and kills Davis Tutt in what is regarded as the first western showdown.
  • 1873 – At Adair, Iowa, Jesse James and the James–Younger Gang pull off the first successful train robbery in the American Old West.
  • 1877 – After rioting by Baltimore and Ohio Railroad workers and the deaths of nine rail workers at the hands of the Maryland militia, workers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, stage a sympathy strike that is met with an assault by the state militia.
  • 1904 – Louis Rigolly, a Frenchman, becomes the first man to break the 100 mph (161 km/h) barrier on land. He drove a 15-liter Gobron-Brillié in Ostend, Belgium.
  • 1907 – The passenger steamer SS Columbia sinks after colliding with the steam schooner San Pedro off Shelter Cove, California, killing 88 people.
  • 1919 – The dirigible Wingfoot Air Express crashes into the Illinois Trust and Savings Building in Chicago, killing 12 people.
  • 1925 – Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, high school biology teacher John T. Scopes is found guilty of teaching evolution in class and fined $100.
  • 1925 – Malcolm Campbell becomes the first man to exceed 150 mph (241 km/h) on land. At Pendine Sands in Wales, he drives Sunbeam 350HP built by Sunbeam at a two-way average speed of 150.33 mph (242 km/h).
  • 1944 – World War II: Battle of Guam: American troops land on Guam, starting a battle that will end on August 10.
  • 1944 – World War II: Claus von Stauffenberg and fellow conspirators are tortured and executed in Berlin, Germany, for the July 20 plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.
  • 1949 – The United States Senate ratifies the North Atlantic Treaty.
  • 1952 – The 7.3 Mw  Kern County earthquake strikes Southern California with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), killing 12 and injuring hundreds.
  • 1954 – First Indochina War: The Geneva Conference partitions Vietnam into North Vietnam and South Vietnam.
  • 1959 – NS Savannah, the first nuclear-powered cargo-passenger ship, is launched as a showcase for Dwight D. Eisenhower’s “Atoms for Peace” initiative.
  • 1959 – Elijah Jerry “Pumpsie” Green becomes the first African-American to play for the Boston Red Sox, the last team to integrate. He came in as a pinch runner for Vic Wertz and stayed in as shortstop in a 2–1 loss to the Chicago White Sox.
  • 1960 – Sirimavo Bandaranaike is elected Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, becoming the world’s first female head of government
  • 1961 – Mercury program: Mercury-Redstone 4 Mission: Gus Grissom piloting Liberty Bell 7 becomes the second American to go into space (in a suborbital mission).
  • 1969 – Apollo program: At 02:56 UTC, astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the Moon.
  • 1970 – After 11 years of construction, the Aswan High Dam in Egypt is completed.
  • 1972 – The Troubles: Bloody Friday: The Provisional IRA detonate 22 bombs in central Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom in the space of 80 minutes, killing nine and injuring 130.
  • 1973 – In Lillehammer, Norway, Mossad agents kill a waiter whom they mistakenly thought was involved in the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre.
  • 1976 – Christopher Ewart-Biggs, the British ambassador to the Republic of Ireland, is assassinated by the Provisional IRA.
  • 1977 – The start of the four-day-long Libyan–Egyptian War.
  • 1979 – Jay Silverheels, a Mohawk actor, becomes the first Native American to have a star commemorated in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  • 1983 – The world’s lowest temperature in an inhabited location is recorded at Vostok Station, Antarctica at −89.2 °C (−128.6 °F).
  • 1990 – Taiwan’s military police forces mainland Chinese illegal immigrants into sealed holds of a fishing boat Min Ping Yu No. 5540 for repatriation to Fujian, causing 25 people to die from suffocation.
  • 1995 – Third Taiwan Strait Crisis: The People’s Liberation Army begins firing missiles into the waters north of Taiwan.
  • 2001 – At the conclusion of a fireworks display on Okura Beach in Akashi, Hyōgo, Japan, 11 people are killed and more than 120 are injured when a pedestrian footbridge connecting the beach to JR Asagiri Station becomes overcrowded and people leaving the event fall down in a domino effect.
  • 2005 – July 2005 London bombings occur.
  • 2008 – Ram Baran Yadav is declared the first president of Nepal.
  • 2011 – NASA’s Space Shuttle program ends with the landing of Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-135 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
  • 2012 – Erden Eruç completes the first solo human-powered circumnavigation of the world.

Births on July 21

  • 541 – Emperor Wen of Sui, emperor of the Sui Dynasty (d. 604)
  • 1030 – Kyansittha, King of Burma (d. 1112)
  • 1414 – Pope Sixtus IV (d. 1484)
  • 1462 – Queen Jeonghyeon, Korean royal consort (d. 1530)
  • 1476 – Alfonso I d’Este, Duke of Ferrara (d. 1534)
  • 1476 – Anna Sforza, Italian noble (d. 1497)
  • 1515 – Philip Neri, Italian Roman Catholic saint (d. 1595)
  • 1535 – García Hurtado de Mendoza, 5th Marquis of Cañete, Royal Governor of Chile (d. 1609)
  • 1616 – Anna de’ Medici, Archduchess of Austria (d. 1676)
  • 1620 – Jean Picard, French astronomer (d. 1682)
  • 1648 – John Graham, 1st Viscount Dundee, Scottish general (d. 1689)
  • 1654 – Pedro Calungsod, Filipino catechist and sacristan; later canonized (d. 1672)
  • 1664 – Matthew Prior, English poet and diplomat, British Ambassador to France (d. 1721)
  • 1693 – Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1768)
  • 1710 – Paul Möhring, German physician, botanist, and zoologist (d. 1792)
  • 1783 – Charles Tristan, marquis de Montholon, French general (d. 1853)
  • 1808 – Simion Bărnuțiu, Romanian historian, academic, and politician (d. 1864)
  • 1810 – Henri Victor Regnault, French chemist and physicist (d. 1878)
  • 1811 – Robert Mackenzie, Scottish-Australian politician, 3rd Premier of Queensland (d. 1873)
  • 1816 – Paul Reuter, German-English journalist, founded Reuters (d. 1899)
  • 1858 – Maria Christina of Austria (d. 1929)
  • 1858 – Lovis Corinth, German painter (d. 1925)
  • 1858 – Alfred Henry O’Keeffe, New Zealand painter and educator (d. 1941)
  • 1863 – C. Aubrey Smith, English-American cricketer and actor (d. 1948)
  • 1866 – Carlos Schwabe, Swiss Symbolist painter and printmaker (d. 1926)
  • 1870 – Emil Orlík, Czech painter, etcher, and lithographer (d. 1932)
  • 1875 – Charles Gondouin, French rugby player and tug of war competitor (d. 1947)
  • 1880 – Milan Rastislav Štefánik, Slovak astronomer, general, and politician (d. 1919)
  • 1882 – David Burliuk, Ukrainian author and illustrator (d. 1967)
  • 1885 – Jacques Feyder, Belgian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1948)
  • 1891 – Julius Saaristo, Finnish javelin thrower and soldier (d. 1969)
  • 1893 – Hans Fallada, German author (d. 1947)
  • 1896 – Sophie Bledsoe Aberle, Native American anthropologist, physician and nutritionist (d. 1996)
  • 1898 – Sara Carter, American singer-songwriter (d. 1979)
  • 1899 – Hart Crane, American poet (d. 1932)
  • 1899 – Ernest Hemingway, American novelist, short story writer, and journalist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1961)
  • 1900 – Isadora Bennett, American theatre manager and modern dance publicity agent (d. 1980)
  • 1903 – Russell Lee, American photographer and journalist (d. 1986)
  • 1903 – Roy Neuberger, American businessman and financier, co-founded Neuberger Berman (d. 2010)
  • 1908 – Jug McSpaden, American golfer and architect (d. 1996)
  • 1911 – Marshall McLuhan, Canadian author and theorist (d. 1980)
  • 1911 – Umashankar Joshi, Indian author, poet, and scholar (d. 1988)
  • 1914 – Aleksander Kreek, Estonian shot putter and discus thrower (d. 1977)
  • 1917 – Alan B. Gold, Canadian lawyer and jurist (d. 2005)
  • 1920 – Constant Nieuwenhuys, Dutch painter, sculptor, and illustrator (d. 2005)
  • 1920 – Isaac Stern, Polish violinist and conductor (d. 2001)
  • 1920 – Jean Daniel, Algerian-French-Jewish journalist and author (d. 2020)
  • 1921 – James Cooke Brown, American sociologist and author (d. 2000)
  • 1921 – John Horsley, English actor (d. 2014)
  • 1921 – Vusamazulu Credo Mutwa, Zulu sangoma (d. 2020)
  • 1922 – Kay Starr, American singer (d. 2016)
  • 1922 – Mollie Sugden, English actress (d. 2009)
  • 1923 – Rudolph A. Marcus, Canadian-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1923 – Queenie Watts, English actress and singer (d. 1980)
  • 1924 – Rahimuddin Khan, Pakistani general and politician, 7th Governor of Balochistan
  • 1924 – Don Knotts, American actor and screenwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1926 – Paul Burke, American actor (d. 2009)
  • 1925 – Johnny Peirson, Canadian hockey player
  • 1926 – Norman Jewison, Canadian actor, director, and producer
  • 1926 – Bill Pertwee, English actor (d. 2013)
  • 1926 – Karel Reisz, Czech-English director and producer (d. 2002)
  • 1928 – Sky Low Low, Canadian wrestler (d. 1998)
  • 1929 – Bob Orton, American wrestler (d. 2006)
  • 1930 – Anand Bakshi, Indian poet and songwriter (d. 2002)
  • 1930 – Helen Merrill, American singer
  • 1931 – Sonny Clark, American pianist and composer (d. 1963)
  • 1931 – Plas Johnson, American saxophonist
  • 1931 – Leon Schidlowsky, Chilean-Israeli painter and composer
  • 1932 – Kaye Stevens, American singer and actress (d. 2011)
  • 1933 – John Gardner, American novelist, essayist, and critic (d. 1982)
  • 1934 – Chandu Borde, Indian cricketer and manager
  • 1934 – Jonathan Miller, English actor, director, and author (d. 2019)
  • 1935 – Norbert Blüm, German businessman and politician
  • 1935 – Moe Drabowsky, Polish-American baseball player and coach (d. 2006)
  • 1937 – Eduard Streltsov, Soviet footballer (d. 1990)
  • 1938 – Les Aspin, American captain and politician, 18th United States Secretary of Defense (d. 1995)
  • 1938 – Anton Kuerti, Austrian-Canadian pianist, composer, and conductor
  • 1938 – Janet Reno, American lawyer and politician, 79th United States Attorney General (d. 2016)
  • 1939 – Jamey Aebersold, American saxophonist and educator
  • 1939 – Kim Fowley, American singer-songwriter, producer, and manager (d. 2015)
  • 1939 – John Negroponte, English-American diplomat, 23rd United States Ambassador to the United Nations
  • 1943 – Fritz Glatz, Austrian race car driver (d. 2002)
  • 1943 – Edward Herrmann, American actor (d. 2014)
  • 1943 – Henry McCullough, Northern Irish guitarist, singer and songwriter (d. 2016)
  • 1944 – John Atta Mills, Ghanaian lawyer and politician, 3rd President of Ghana (d. 2012)
  • 1944 – Buchi Emecheta, Nigerian author and academic (d. 2017)
  • 1944 – Paul Wellstone, American academic and politician (d. 2002)
  • 1945 – Wendy Cope, English poet, critic, and educator
  • 1945 – Geoff Dymock, Australian cricketer
  • 1945 – Barry Richards, South African cricketer
  • 1946 – Ken Starr, American lawyer and judge, 39th Solicitor General of the United States
  • 1946 – Timothy Harris, American author, screenwriter and producer
  • 1947 – Chetan Chauhan, Indian cricketer and politician
  • 1948 – Art Hindle, Canadian actor and director
  • 1948 – Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam), English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1948 – Garry Trudeau, American cartoonist
  • 1949 – Christina Hart, American playwright and actress
  • 1949 – Hirini Melbourne, New Zealand singer-songwriter and poet (d. 2003)
  • 1950 – Ubaldo Fillol, Argentinian footballer and coach
  • 1950 – Susan Kramer, Baroness Kramer, English politician, Minister of State for Transport
  • 1951 – Richard Gozney, English politician and diplomat, 30th Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man, 139th Governor of Bermuda
  • 1951 – Robin Williams, American actor, singer, and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1952 – John Barrasso, American physician and politician
  • 1952 – Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah, Malaysian economist
  • 1953 – Eric Bazilian, American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, and producer (The Hooters)
  • 1953 – Jeff Fatt, Australian keyboard player and actor
  • 1953 – Bernie Fraser, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1953 – Brian Talbot, English footballer and manager
  • 1955 – Howie Epstein, American bass player, songwriter, and producer (d. 2003)
  • 1955 – Dannel Malloy, American lawyer and politician, 88th Governor of Connecticut
  • 1955 – Henry Priestman, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
  • 1955 – Taco, Indonesian-born Dutch singer and entertainer
  • 1955 – Béla Tarr, Hungarian director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1956 – Michael Connelly, American author
  • 1957 – Stefan Löfven, Swedish trade union leader and politician, 33rd Prime Minister of Sweden
  • 1957 – Jon Lovitz, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1958 – Dave Henderson, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2015)
  • 1959 – Gene Miles, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
  • 1959 – Reha Muhtar, Turkish journalist
  • 1959 – Paul Vautin, Australian rugby league player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1960 – Amar Singh Chamkila, Indian singer-songwriter (d. 1988)
  • 1960 – Veselin Matić, Serbian basketball player and coach
  • 1960 – Fritz Walter, German footballer
  • 1961 – Morris Iemma, Australian politician, 40th Premier of New South Wales
  • 1961 – Jim Martin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1962 – Victor Adebowale, Baron Adebowale, English businessman
  • 1963 – Kevin Poole, English footballer and manager
  • 1963 – Giant Silva, Brazilian basketball player, mixed martial artist, and wrestler
  • 1964 – Steve Collins, Irish boxer and actor
  • 1964 – Ross Kemp, English actor and producer
  • 1964 – Jens Weißflog, German ski jumper and journalist
  • 1965 – Guðni Bergsson, Icelandic footballer and lawyer
  • 1965 – Mike Bordick, American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1966 – Arija Bareikis, American actress
  • 1966 – Sarah Waters, Welsh author and academic
  • 1968 – Brandi Chastain, American soccer player and sportscaster
  • 1968 – Aditya Srivastava, Indian actor
  • 1968 – Lyle Odelein, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1969 – Godfrey, American comedian and actor
  • 1969 – Klaus Graf, German race car driver
  • 1969 – Emerson Hart, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1969 – Isabell Werth, German equestrian
  • 1970 – Michael Fitzpatrick, American singer-songwriter
  • 1971 – Emmanuel Bangué, French long jumper
  • 1971 – Charlotte Gainsbourg, English-French actress and singer
  • 1971 – Nitzan Shirazi, Israeli footballer and manager (d. 2014)
  • 1972 – Korey Cooper, American singer and guitarist
  • 1972 – Catherine Ndereba, Kenyan marathon runner
  • 1974 – Geoff Jenkins, American baseball player and coach
  • 1974 – René Reinumägi, Estonian actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1975 – Christopher Barzak, American author and educator
  • 1975 – Cara Dillon, Irish singer-songwriter
  • 1975 – Ravindra Pushpakumara, Sri Lankan cricketer
  • 1975 – Mike Sellers, American football player
  • 1976 – Jaime Murray, English actress
  • 1977 – Paul Casey, English golfer
  • 1978 – Justin Bartha, American actor
  • 1978 – Anderson da Silva Gibin, Brazilian footballer
  • 1978 – Josh Hartnett, American actor
  • 1978 – Julian Huppert, English academic and politician
  • 1978 – Damian Marley, Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1978 – Gary Teale, Scottish footballer
  • 1979 – David Carr, American football player
  • 1979 – Tamika Catchings, American basketball player
  • 1979 – Luis Ernesto Michel, Mexican footballer
  • 1979 – Andriy Voronin, Ukrainian footballer
  • 1980 – Justin Griffith, American football player
  • 1980 – Sandra Laoura, French skier
  • 1980 – CC Sabathia, American baseball player
  • 1980 – Yvonne Sampson, Australian journalist and sportscaster
  • 1981 – Paloma Faith, English singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1981 – Anabelle Langlois, Canadian figure skater
  • 1981 – Joaquín, Spanish footballer
  • 1981 – Romeo Santos, American singer-songwriter
  • 1981 – Stefan Schumacher, German cyclist
  • 1982 – Jason Cram, Australian swimmer
  • 1982 – Mao Kobayashi, Japanese newscaster and actress (d. 2017)
  • 1984 – Jurrick Juliana, Dutch footballer
  • 1984 – Liam Ridgewell, English footballer
  • 1985 – Mati Lember, Estonian footballer
  • 1985 – Von Wafer, American basketball player
  • 1986 – Anthony Annan, Ghanaian footballer
  • 1986 – Rebecca Ferguson, American-English singer-songwriter
  • 1986 – Jason Thompson, American basketball player
  • 1987 – Bilel Mohsni, French footballer
  • 1987 – Jesús Zavala, Mexican footballer
  • 1988 – KB, American rapper
  • 1988 – DeAndre Jordan, American basketball player
  • 1988 – Chris Mitchell, Scottish footballer (d. 2016)
  • 1989 – Marco Fabián, Mexican footballer
  • 1989 – Juno Temple, English actress
  • 1990 – Chris Martin, English footballer
  • 1990 – Jason Roy, English cricketer
  • 1990 – Erislandy Savón, Cuban amateur heavyweight boxer
  • 1990 – Franck Elemba, Congolese athlete
  • 1991 – Sara Sampaio, Portuguese model
  • 1992 – Rachael Flatt, American figure skater
  • 1996 – Mikael Ingebrigtsen, Norwegian footballer
  • 1998 – Thomas Preining, Austrian racing driver

Deaths on July 21

  • 658 – K’an II, Mayan ruler (b. 588)
  • 710 – Li Guo’er, princess of the Tang dynasty
  • 710 – Wei, empress of the Tang Dynasty
  • 710 – Shangguan Wan’er, Chinese poet (b. 664)
  • 987 – Geoffrey I, Count of Anjou
  • 1259 – Gojong of Goryeo
  • 1403 – Henry Percy, English soldier (b. 1364)
  • 1403 – Sir Walter Blount, English soldier, standard-bearer of Henry IV
  • 1403 – Edmund Stafford, 5th Earl of Stafford, English soldier
  • 1425 – Manuel II Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1350)
  • 1552 – Antonio de Mendoza, Spanish politician, 1st Viceroy of New Spain (b. 1495)
  • 1688 – James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1610)
  • 1793 – Antoine Bruni d’Entrecasteaux, French admiral, explorer, and politician (b. 1739)
  • 1796 – Robert Burns, Scottish poet and songwriter (b. 1759)
  • 1798 – François Sébastien Charles Joseph de Croix, Count of Clerfayt, Austrian field marshal (b. 1733)
  • 1798 – Anthony Perry, Irish rebel leader (b. ca. 1760)
  • 1868 – William Bland, Australian surgeon and politician (b. 1789)
  • 1878 – Sam Bass, American outlaw (b. 1851)
  • 1880 – Hiram Walden, American general and politician (b. 1800)
  • 1889 – Nelson Dewey, American lawyer and politician, 1st Governor of Wisconsin (b. 1813)
  • 1899 – Robert G. Ingersoll, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (b. 1833)
  • 1920 – Fiammetta Wilson, English astronomer and educator (b. 1864)
  • 1932 – Bill Gleason, American baseball player (b. 1858)
  • 1934 – Hubert Lyautey, French general and politician, French Minister of Defence (b. 1854)
  • 1938 – Owen Wister, American lawyer and author (b. 1860)
  • 1941 – Bohdan Lepky, Ukrainian poet and scholar (b. 1872)
  • 1943 – Charley Paddock, American runner and actor (b. 1900)
  • 1943 – Louis Vauxcelles, French Jewish art critic (b. 1870)
  • 1944 – Claus von Stauffenberg, German soldier (b. 1907)
  • 1946 – Gualberto Villarroel, Bolivian soldier and politician, 45th President of Bolivia (b. 1908)
  • 1948 – Arshile Gorky, Armenian-American painter and illustrator (b. 1904)
  • 1952 – Pedro Lascuráin, Mexican politician, president for 45 minutes on February 13, 1913. (b. 1856)
  • 1966 – Philipp Frank, Austrian-American physicist, mathematician, and philosopher, Vienna Circle member (b. 1884)
  • 1967 – Jimmie Foxx, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1907)
  • 1967 – Albert Lutuli, South African academic and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1898)
  • 1967 – Basil Rathbone, South African-American actor and singer (b. 1892)
  • 1968 – Ruth St. Denis, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1878)
  • 1970 – Mikhail Mikhaylovich Gerasimov, Russian anthropologist and sculptor (b. 1907)
  • 1970 – Bob Kalsu, American football player and lieutenant (b. 1945)
  • 1972 – Ralph Craig, American sprinter and sailor (b. 1889)
  • 1972 – Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, Bhutanese king (b. 1928)
  • 1977 – Lee Miller, American model and photographer (b. 1907)
  • 1982 – Dave Garroway, American journalist and actor (b. 1913)
  • 1991 – Paul Warwick, English race car driver (b. 1969)
  • 1994 – Marijac, French author and illustrator (b. 1908)
  • 1997 – Olaf Kopvillem, Estonian-Canadian conductor and composer (b. 1926)
  • 1998 – Alan Shepard, American admiral, pilot, and astronaut (b. 1923)
  • 1998 – Robert Young, American actor and singer (b. 1907)
  • 2000 – Marc Reisner, American environmentalist and author (b. 1948)
  • 2002 – Esphyr Slobodkina, Russian-American author and illustrator (b. 1908)
  • 2003 – John Davies, English-New Zealand runner and coach (b. 1938)
  • 2004 – Jerry Goldsmith, American composer and conductor (b. 1929)
  • 2004 – Edward B. Lewis, American geneticist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
  • 2005 – Long John Baldry, English-Canadian singer and actor (b. 1941)
  • 2005 – Lord Alfred Hayes, English-American wrestler and manager (b. 1928)
  • 2006 – Mako Iwamatsu, Japanese-American actor and singer (b. 1933)
  • 2006 – Ta Mok, Cambodian soldier and monk (b. 1926)
  • 2007 – Dubravko Škiljan, Croatian linguist and academic (b. 1949)
  • 2008 – Donald Stokes, English businessman (b. 1914)
  • 2010 – Luis Corvalán, Chilean educator and politician (b. 1916)
  • 2010 – Ralph Houk, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1919)
  • 2010 – John E. Irving, Canadian businessman (b. 1932)
  • 2012 – Alexander Cockburn, Scottish-American journalist and author (b. 1941)
  • 2012 – Marie Kruckel, American baseball player (b. 1924)
  • 2012 – Ali Podrimja, Albanian poet and author (b. 1942)
  • 2012 – James D. Ramage, American admiral and pilot (b. 1916)
  • 2012 – Angharad Rees, English-born Welsh actress (b. 1944)
  • 2012 – Don Wilson, English cricketer and coach (b. 1937)
  • 2013 – Andrea Antonelli, Italian motorcycle racer (b. 1988)
  • 2013 – Lourembam Brojeshori Devi, Indian martial artist (b. 1981)
  • 2013 – Det de Beus, Dutch field hockey player (b. 1958)
  • 2013 – Luis Fernando Rizo-Salom, Colombian-French composer and educator (b. 1971)
  • 2013 – Fred Taylor, American football player and coach (b. 1920)
  • 2014 – Louise Abeita, Isleta Pueblo (Native American) writer, poet, and educator (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Dan Borislow, American businessman, invented the magicJack (b. 1961)
  • 2014 – Lettice Curtis, English engineer and pilot (b. 1915)
  • 2014 – Hans-Peter Kaul, German lawyer and judge (b. 1943)
  • 2014 – Rilwanu Lukman, Nigerian engineer and politician (b. 1938)
  • 2014 – Kevin Skinner, New Zealand rugby player and boxer (b. 1927)
  • 2015 – Robert Broberg, Swedish singer-songwriter (b. 1940)
  • 2015 – E. L. Doctorow, American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (b. 1931)
  • 2015 – Nicholas Gonzalez, American physician (b. 1947)
  • 2015 – Czesław Marchaj, Polish-English sailor and academic (b. 1918)
  • 2015 – Dick Nanninga, Dutch footballer (b. 1949)
  • 2016 – Dennis Green, American football player and coach (b. 1949)
  • 2017 – John Heard, American film and television actor (b. 1946)
  • 2018 – Alene Duerk, U.S. Navy first female admiral (b. 1920)

Holidays and observances on July 21

  • Christian feast day:
    • Albert John Luthuli (Episcopal Church)
    • Arbogast
    • Barhadbesciabas
    • Carlos of Brazil (Brazilian Catholic Apostolic Church)
    • Daniel (Catholic Church)
    • Lawrence of Brindisi
    • Praxedes
    • Victor of Marseilles
    • July 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Liberation Day in 1944 (Guam)
  • Belgian National Day (Belgium)
  • Racial Harmony Day (Singapore)
  • Summer Kazanskaya (Russia)

July 21- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

  • AD 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus, son of emperor Vespasian, storms the Fortress of Antonia north of the Temple Mount. The Roman army is drawn into street fights with the Zealots.
  • 792 – Kardam of Bulgaria defeats Byzantine Emperor Constantine VI at the Battle of Marcellae.
  • 911 – Rollo lays siege to Chartres.
  • 1189 – Richard I of England officially invested as Duke of Normandy.
  • 1225 – Treaty of San Germano is signed at San Germano between Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II and Pope Gregory IX. A Dominican named Guala is responsible for the negotiations.
  • 1398 – The Battle of Kellistown was fought on this day between the forces of the English led by Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March against the O’Byrnes and O’Tooles under the command of Art Óg mac Murchadha Caomhánach, the most powerful Chieftain in Leinster.
  • 1402 – Ottoman-Timurid Wars: Battle of Ankara: Timur, ruler of Timurid Empire, defeats forces of the Ottoman Empire sultan Bayezid I.
  • 1592 – During the first Japanese invasion of Korea, Japanese forces led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi captured Pyongyang, although they were ultimately unable to hold it.
  • 1715 – Seventh Ottoman–Venetian War: The Ottoman Empire captures Nauplia, the capital of the Republic of Venice’s “Kingdom of the Morea”, thereby opening the way to the swift Ottoman reconquest of the Morea.
  • 1738 – Canadian explorer Pierre Gaultier de Varennes et de La Vérendrye reaches the western shore of Lake Michigan.
  • 1799 – Tekle Giyorgis I begins his first of six reigns as Emperor of Ethiopia.
  • 1807 – Nicéphore Niépce is awarded a patent by Napoleon for the Pyréolophore, the world’s first internal combustion engine, after it successfully powered a boat upstream on the river Saône in France.
  • 1810 – Citizens of Bogotá, New Granada declare independence from Spain.
  • 1831 – Seneca and Shawnee people agree to relinquish their land in western Ohio for 60,000 acres west of the Mississippi River.
  • 1848 – The first Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York, a two-day event, concludes.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Peachtree Creek: Near Atlanta, Georgia, Confederate forces led by General John Bell Hood unsuccessfully attack Union troops under General William T. Sherman.
  • 1866 – Austro-Prussian War: Battle of Lissa: The Austrian Navy, led by Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, defeats the Italian Navy near the island of Vis in the Adriatic Sea.
  • 1871 – British Columbia joins the confederation of Canada.
  • 1885 – The Football Association legalizes professionalism in association football under pressure from the British Football Association.
  • 1903 – The Ford Motor Company ships its first automobile.
  • 1917 – World War I: The Corfu Declaration, which leads to the creation of the post-war Kingdom of Yugoslavia, is signed by the Yugoslav Committee and Kingdom of Serbia.
  • 1920 – The Greek Army takes control of Silivri after Greece is awarded the city by the Paris Peace Conference; by 1923 Greece effectively lost control to the Turks.
  • 1922 – The League of Nations awards mandates of Togoland to France and Tanganyika to the United Kingdom.
  • 1932 – In the Preußenschlag (“Prussian coup”), German President Paul von Hindenburg dissolves the government of Prussia
  • 1934 – Labor unrest in the U.S.: Police in Minneapolis fire upon striking truck drivers, during the Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934, killing two and wounding sixty-seven.
  • 1934 – West Coast waterfront strike: In Seattle, police fire tear gas on and club 2,000 striking longshoremen. The governor of Oregon calls out the National Guard to break a strike on the Portland docks.
  • 1935 – Switzerland: A Royal Dutch Airlines plane en route from Milan to Frankfurt crashes into a Swiss mountain, killing thirteen.
  • 1936 – The Montreux Convention is signed in Switzerland, authorizing Turkey to fortify the Dardanelles and Bosphorus but guaranteeing free passage to ships of all nations in peacetime.
  • 1938 – The United States Department of Justice files suit in New York City against the motion picture industry charging violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act in regards to the studio system. The case would eventually result in a break-up of the industry in 1948.
  • 1940 – Denmark leaves the League of Nations.
  • 1940 – California opens its first freeway, the Arroyo Seco Parkway.
  • 1941 – Soviet leader Joseph Stalin consolidates the Commissariats of Home Affairs and National Security to form the NKVD and names Lavrentiy Beria its chief.
  • 1944 – World War II: Adolf Hitler survives an assassination attempt led by German Army Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg.
  • 1949 – Israel and Syria sign a truce to end their nineteen-month war.
  • 1950 – Cold War: In Philadelphia, Harry Gold pleads guilty to spying for the Soviet Union by passing secrets from atomic scientist Klaus Fuchs.
  • 1951 – King Abdullah I of Jordan is assassinated by a Palestinian while attending Friday prayers in Jerusalem.
  • 1954 – Germany: Otto John, head of West Germany’s secret service, defects to East Germany.
  • 1960 – Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) elects Sirimavo Bandaranaike Prime Minister, the world’s first elected female head of government.
  • 1960 – The Polaris missile is successfully launched from a submarine, the USS George Washington, for the first time.
  • 1961 – French military forces break the Tunisian siege of Bizerte.
  • 1964 – Vietnam War: Viet Cong forces attack the capital of Định Tường Province, Cái Bè, killing 11 South Vietnamese military personnel and 40 civilians (30 of whom are children).
  • 1968 – The first International Special Olympics Summer Games are held at Soldier Field in Chicago, with about 1,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities.
  • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11’s crew successfully makes the first manned landing on the Moon in the Sea of Tranquility. Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the Moon six and a half hours later.
  • 1969 – A cease fire is announced between Honduras and El Salvador, six days after the beginning of the “Football War”.
  • 1974 – Turkish invasion of Cyprus: Forces from Turkey invade Cyprus after a coup d’état, organised by the dictator of Greece, against president Makarios.
  • 1976 – The American Viking 1 lander successfully lands on Mars.
  • 1977 – The Central Intelligence Agency releases documents under the Freedom of Information Act revealing it had engaged in mind-control experiments.
  • 1977 – The Johnstown flood of 1977 kills 84 people and causes millions of dollars in damages.
  • 1982 – Hyde Park and Regent’s Park bombings: The Provisional IRA detonates two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent’s Park in central London, killing eight soldiers, wounding forty-seven people, and leading to the deaths of seven horses.
  • 1985 – The government of Aruba passes legislation to secede from the Netherlands Antilles.
  • 1989 – Burma’s ruling junta puts opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest.
  • 1992 – Václav Havel resigns as president of Czechoslovakia.
  • 1997 – The fully restored USS Constitution (a.k.a. Old Ironsides) celebrates its 200th birthday by setting sail for the first time in 116 years.
  • 1999 – The Chinese Communist Party begins a persecution campaign against Falun Gong, arresting thousands nationwide.
  • 2005 – The Civil Marriage Act legalizes same-sex marriage in Canada.
  • 2012 – James Holmes opened fire at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 and injuring 70 others.
  • 2013 – Seventeen government soldiers are killed in an attack by FARC revolutionaries in the Colombian department of Arauca.
  • 2015 – A huge explosion in the mostly Kurdish border town of Suruç, Turkey, targeting the Socialist Youth Associations Federation, kills at least 31 people and injures over 100.
  • 2015 – The United States and Cuba resume full diplomatic relations after five decades.
  • 2017 – O. J. Simpson is granted parole to be released from prison after serving nine years of a 33-year sentence after being convicted of armed robbery in Las Vegas.

Births on July 20

  • 356 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (d. 323 BC)
  • 647 – Yazid I, Arabian caliph (d. 683)
  • 682 – Taichō, Japanese monk and scholar (d. 767)
  • 1304 – Petrarch, Italian poet and scholar (d. 1374)
  • 1313 – John Tiptoft, 2nd Baron Tibetot (d. 1367)
  • 1346 – Margaret, Countess of Pembroke, daughter of King Edward III of England (d. 1361)
  • 1470 – John Bourchier, 1st Earl of Bath, English noble (d. 1539)
  • 1519 – Pope Innocent IX (d. 1591)
  • 1537 – Arnaud d’Ossat, French cardinal (d. 1604)
  • 1583 – Alban Roe, English Benedictine martyr (d. 1642)
  • 1591 – Anne Hutchinson, English Puritan preacher (d. 1643)
  • 1592 – Johan Björnsson Printz, governor of New Sweden (d. 1663)
  • 1601 – Robert Wallop, English politician (d. 1667)
  • 1620 – Nikolaes Heinsius the Elder, Dutch poet and scholar (d. 1681)
  • 1649 – William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland (d. 1709)
  • 1754 – Antoine Destutt de Tracy, French philosopher and academic (d. 1836)
  • 1757 – Garsevan Chavchavadze, Georgian politician and diplomat (d. 1811)
  • 1762 – Jakob Haibel, Austrian tenor and composer (d. 1826)
  • 1774 – Auguste de Marmont, French general (d. 1852)
  • 1789 – Mahmud II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1839)
  • 1804 – Richard Owen, English biologist, anatomist, and paleontologist (d. 1892)
  • 1822 – Gregor Mendel, Austro-German monk, geneticist and botanist (d. 1884)
  • 1838 – Augustin Daly, American playwright and manager (d. 1899)
  • 1838 – William Paine Lord, American lawyer and politician, 9th Governor of Oregon (d. 1911)
  • 1838 – Sir George Trevelyan, 2nd Baronet, English civil servant and politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (d. 1928)
  • 1847 – Max Liebermann, German painter and academic (d. 1935)
  • 1849 – Robert Anderson Van Wyck, American lawyer and politician, 91st Mayor of New York City (d. 1918)
  • 1852 – Theo Heemskerk, Dutch lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 1932)
  • 1854 – Philomène Belliveau, Canadian artist (d. 1940)
  • 1864 – Erik Axel Karlfeldt, Swedish poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1931)
  • 1864 – Ruggero Oddi, Italian physiologist and anatomist (d. 1913)
  • 1868 – Miron Cristea, Romanian cleric and politician, 38th Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1939)
  • 1873 – Alberto Santos-Dumont, Brazilian pilot (d. 1932)
  • 1876 – Otto Blumenthal, German mathematician and academic (d. 1944)
  • 1877 – Tom Crean, Irish sailor and explorer (d. 1938)
  • 1882 – Olga Hahn-Neurath, Austrian mathematician and philosopher (d. 1937)
  • 1889 – John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, Scottish broadcaster, co-founded BBC (d. 1971)
  • 1890 – Verna Felton, American actress (d. 1966)
  • 1890 – Julie Vinter Hansen, Danish-Swiss astronomer and academic (d. 1960)
  • 1890 – Giorgio Morandi, Italian painter (d. 1964)
  • 1893 – George Llewelyn Davies, English soldier (d. 1915)
  • 1895 – László Moholy-Nagy, Hungarian painter, photographer, and sculptor (d. 1946)
  • 1897 – Tadeusz Reichstein, Polish-Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1996)
  • 1900 – Maurice Leyland, English cricketer and coach (d. 1967)
  • 1901 – Vehbi Koç, Turkish businessman and philanthropist, founded Koç Holding (d. 1996)
  • 1901 – Eugenio Lopez Sr., Filipino businessman and founder of the Lopez Group of Companies (d. 1975)
  • 1901 – Heinie Manush, American baseball player and manager (d. 1971)
  • 1902 – Leonidas Berry, American gastroenterologist (d. 1995)
  • 1905 – Joseph Levis, American foil fencer (d. 2005)
  • 1909 – Eric Rowan, South African cricketer (d. 1993)
  • 1910 – Vilém Tauský, Czech-English conductor and composer (d. 2004)
  • 1911 – Baqa Jilani, Indian cricketer (d. 1941)
  • 1911 – José Zabala-Santos, Filipino author and illustrator (d. 1985)
  • 1912 – George Johnston, Australian journalist and author (d. 1970)
  • 1914 – Dobri Dobrev, Bulgarian philanthropist (d. 2018)
  • 1914 – Charilaos Florakis, Greek politician (d. 2005)
  • 1914 – Ersilio Tonini, Italian cardinal (d. 2013)
  • 1918 – Cindy Walker, American singer-songwriter and dancer (d. 2006)
  • 1919 – Edmund Hillary, New Zealand mountaineer and explorer (d. 2008)
  • 1919 – Jacquemine Charrott Lodwidge, English writer (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Elliot Richardson, American lieutenant and politician, 11th United States Secretary of Defense (d. 1999)
  • 1921 – Henri Alleg, English-French journalist and author (d. 2013)
  • 1922 – Alan Stephenson Boyd, American lawyer and politician, 1st United States Secretary of Transportation
  • 1923 – Stanisław Albinowski, Polish economist and journalist (d. 2005)
  • 1924 – Lola Albright, American actress and singer (d. 2017)
  • 1924 – Thomas Berger, American author and playwright (d. 2014)
  • 1924 – Mort Garson, Canadian-American songwriter and composer (d. 2008)
  • 1925 – Jacques Delors, French economist and politician, 8th President of the European Commission
  • 1925 – Frantz Fanon, French–Algerian psychiatrist and philosopher (d. 1961)
  • 1927 – Barbara Bergmann, American economist and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Heather Chasen, English actress (d. 2020)
  • 1927 – Michael Gielen, Austrian conductor and composer (d. 2019)
  • 1927 – Ian P. Howard, English-Canadian psychologist and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1928 – Józef Czyrek, Polish economist and politician, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2013)
  • 1928 – Belaid Abdessalam, Prime Minister of Algeria
  • 1929 – Hazel Hawke, Australian social worker and pianist, 23rd Spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia (d. 2013)
  • 1929 – Mike Ilitch, American businessman, co-founded Little Caesars (d. 2017)
  • 1929 – Rajendra Kumar, Pakistani-Indian actor and producer (d. 1999)
  • 1929 – David Tonkin, Australian politician, 38th Premier of South Australia (d. 2000)
  • 1930 – Giannis Agouris, Greek journalist and author (d. 2006)
  • 1930 – Chuck Daly, American basketball player and coach (d. 2009)
  • 1930 – William H. Goetzmann, American historian and author (d. 2010)
  • 1930 – Sally Ann Howes, English-American singer and actress
  • 1931 – Tony Marsh, English race car driver (d. 2009)
  • 1932 – Nam June Paik, American artist (d. 2006)
  • 1932 – Otto Schily, German lawyer and politician, German Minister of the Interior
  • 1933 – Buddy Knox, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1999)
  • 1933 – Cormac McCarthy, American novelist, playwright, and screenwriter
  • 1933 – Rex Williams, English snooker player
  • 1935 – Peter Palumbo, Baron Palumbo, English businessman and art collector
  • 1935 – Sleepy LaBeef, American rockabilly singer and musician (d. 2019)
  • 1936 – Alistair MacLeod, Canadian novelist and short story writer (d. 2014)
  • 1936 – Barbara Mikulski, American social worker and politician
  • 1938 – Deniz Baykal, Turkish lawyer and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey
  • 1938 – Roger Hunt, English footballer
  • 1938 – Tony Oliva, Cuban-American baseball player and coach
  • 1938 – Diana Rigg, English actress
  • 1938 – Natalie Wood, American actress (d. 1981)
  • 1939 – Judy Chicago, American painter and sculptor
  • 1941 – Don Chuy, American football player (d. 2014)
  • 1941 – Periklis Korovesis, Greek author and journalist
  • 1941 – Kurt Raab, German actor, screenwriter, and production designer (d. 1988)
  • 1942 – Pete Hamilton, American race car driver
  • 1943 – Chris Amon, New Zealand race car driver (d. 2016)
  • 1943 – Bob McNab, English footballer
  • 1943 – Adrian Păunescu, Romanian poet, journalist, and politician (d. 2010)
  • 1943 – Wendy Richard, English actress (d. 2009)
  • 1944 – Mel Daniels, American basketball player and coach (d. 2015)
  • 1944 – W. Cary Edwards, American politician (d. 2010)
  • 1944 – Olivier de Kersauson, French sailor
  • 1944 – T. G. Sheppard, American country music singer-songwriter
  • 1945 – Kim Carnes, American singer-songwriter
  • 1945 – Larry Craig, American soldier and politician
  • 1945 – John Lodge, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
  • 1945 – Bo Rein, American football player and coach (d. 1980)
  • 1946 – Randal Kleiser, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1947 – Gerd Binnig, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1947 – Carlos Santana, Mexican-American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1948 – Muse Watson, American actor and producer
  • 1950 – Edward Leigh, English lawyer and politician
  • 1950 – Lucille Lemay, Canadian archer
  • 1951 – Jeff Rawle, English actor and screenwriter
  • 1953 – Dave Evans, Welsh-Australian singer-songwriter
  • 1953 – Thomas Friedman, American journalist and author
  • 1953 – Marcia Hines, American-Australian singer and actress
  • 1954 – Moira Harris, American actress
  • 1954 – Jay Jay French, American guitarist and producer
  • 1955 – Desmond Douglas, Jamaican-English table tennis player
  • 1955 – René-Daniel Dubois, Canadian actor and playwright
  • 1955 – Jem Finer, English banjo player and songwriter
  • 1956 – Paul Cook, English drummer
  • 1956 – Thomas N’Kono, Cameroonian footballer
  • 1956 – Jim Prentice, Canadian lawyer and politician, 16th Premier of Alberta (d. 2016)
  • 1958 – Mick MacNeil, Scottish keyboard player and songwriter
  • 1959 – Radney Foster, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1960 – Claudio Langes, Italian race car driver
  • 1960 – Prvoslav Vujčić, Serbian-Canadian poet and philosopher
  • 1960 – Sudesh Berry, Indian actor
  • 1961 – Óscar Elías Biscet, Cuban physician and activist, founded the Lawton Foundation
  • 1962 – Carlos Alazraqui, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1962 – Giovanna Amati, Italian race car driver
  • 1962 – Julie Bindel, English journalist, author, and academic
  • 1963 – Frank Whaley, American actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1964 – Chris Cornell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2017)
  • 1964 – Terri Irwin, American-Australian zoologist and author
  • 1964 – Sebastiano Rossi, Italian footballer
  • 1964 – Bernd Schneider, German race car driver
  • 1965 – Jess Walter, American journalist and author
  • 1966 – Stone Gossard, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1966 – Enrique Peña Nieto, Mexican lawyer and politician, 57th President of Mexico
  • 1967 – Courtney Taylor-Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1968 – Jimmy Carson, American ice hockey player
  • 1968 – Hami Mandıralı, Turkish footballer and manager
  • 1968 – Kool G Rap, American hip-hop artist
  • 1969 – Josh Holloway, American actor
  • 1969 – Kreso Kovacec, Croatian-German footballer
  • 1969 – Giovanni Lombardi, Italian cyclist
  • 1969 – Joon Park, South Korean-American singer
  • 1969 – Tobi Vail, American singer and guitarist
  • 1971 – Charles Johnson, American baseball player
  • 1971 – Sandra Oh, Canadian actress
  • 1972 – Jamie Ainscough, Australian rugby league player
  • 1972 – Jozef Stümpel, Slovak ice hockey player
  • 1972 – Erik Ullenhag, Swedish jurist and politician
  • 1972 – Vitamin C, American singer-songwriter
  • 1973 – Omar Epps, American actor
  • 1973 – Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway
  • 1973 – Peter Forsberg, Swedish ice hockey player and manager
  • 1973 – Nixon McLean, Caribbean cricketer
  • 1973 – Roberto Orci, Mexican-American screenwriter and producer
  • 1973 – Claudio Reyna, American soccer player
  • 1975 – Ray Allen, American basketball player and actor
  • 1975 – Judy Greer, American actress and producer
  • 1975 – Erik Hagen, Norwegian footballer
  • 1975 – Birgitta Ohlsson, Swedish journalist and politician, 5th Swedish Minister for European Union Affairs
  • 1975 – Jason Raize, American singer and actor
  • 1975 – Yusuf Şimşek, Turkish footballer and manager
  • 1976 – Erica Hill, American journalist
  • 1976 – Debashish Mohanty, Indian cricketer and coach
  • 1976 – Andrew Stockdale, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1976 – Alex Yoong, Malaysian race car driver
  • 1977 – Kiki Musampa, Congolese footballer
  • 1977 – Yves Niaré, French shot putter (d. 2012)
  • 1977 – Alessandro Santos, Brazilian-Japanese footballer
  • 1978 – Pavel Datsyuk, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1978 – Will Solomon, American basketball player
  • 1978 – Elliott Yamin, American singer-songwriter
  • 1978 – Ieva Zunda, Latvian runner and hurdler
  • 1979 – Miklós Fehér, Hungarian footballer (d. 2004)
  • 1979 – Charlotte Hatherley, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1979 – David Ortega, Spanish swimmer
  • 1980 – Tesfaye Bramble, English-Montserratian footballer
  • 1980 – Gisele Bündchen, Brazilian model, fashionista, and businesswoman
  • 1981 – Viktoria Ladõnskaja, Estonian journalist and politician
  • 1982 – Antoine Vermette, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1984 – Alexi Casilla, Dominican baseball player
  • 1984 – Matt Gilroy, American ice hockey player
  • 1985 – John Francis Daley, American actor and screenwriter
  • 1985 – Harley Morenstein, Canadian actor and YouTube personality
  • 1985 – David Mundy, Australian footballer
  • 1986 – Osric Chau, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1987 – Nicola Benedetti, Scottish violinist
  • 1987 – Niall McGinn, Irish footballer
  • 1988 – Julianne Hough, American singer-songwriter, actress, and dancer
  • 1988 – Stephen Strasburg, American baseball player
  • 1988 – Shahram Mahmoudi, Iranian volleyball player
  • 1989 – Javier Cortés, Mexican footballer
  • 1989 – Cristian Pasquato, Italian footballer
  • 1990 – Lars Unnerstall, German footballer
  • 1991 – Chiyoshōma Fujio, Mongolian sumo wrestler
  • 1991 – Ryan James, Australian rugby league player
  • 1991 – Kira Kazantsev, Miss America 2015
  • 1991 – Philipp Reiter, German mountaineer and runner
  • 1993 – Steven Adams, New Zealand basketball player
  • 1995 – Moses Leota, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1996 – Ben Simmons, Australian basketball player

Deaths on July 20

  • 518 – Amantius, Byzantine grand chamberlain and Monophysite martyr
  • 833 – Ansegisus, Frankish abbot and saint
  • 985 – Boniface VII, antipope of Rome
  • 1031 – Robert II, king of France (b. 972)
  • 1156 – Toba, emperor of Japan (b. 1103)
  • 1320 – Oshin, king of Armenia (b. 1282)
  • 1332 – Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray, regent of Scotland
  • 1387 – Robert IV, French nobleman (b. 1356)
  • 1398 – Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, Welsh nobleman (b. 1374)
  • 1453 – Enguerrand de Monstrelet, French historian and author (b. 1400)
  • 1454 – John II, king of Castile and León (b. 1405)
  • 1514 – György Dózsa, Transylvanian peasant revolt leader (b. 1470)
  • 1524 – Claude, queen consort of France (b. 1499)
  • 1526 – García Jofre de Loaísa, Spanish explorer (b. 1490)
  • 1600 – William More, English courtier (b. 1520)
  • 1616 – Hugh O’Neill, Earl of Tyrone, Irish nobleman and rebel soldier (b. 1550)
  • 1704 – Peregrine White, English-American farmer and soldier (b. 1620)
  • 1752 – Johann Christoph Pepusch, German-English composer and theorist (b. 1667)
  • 1816 – Gavrila Derzhavin, Russian poet and politician (b. 1743)
  • 1866 – Bernhard Riemann, German mathematician and academic (b. 1826)
  • 1897 – Jean Ingelow, English poet and author (b. 1820)
  • 1901 – William Cosmo Monkhouse, English poet and critic (b. 1840)
  • 1903 – Leo XIII, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1810)
  • 1908 – Demetrius Vikelas, Greek businessman and author (b. 1835)
  • 1908 – Karl Bernhard Zoeppritz, German geophysicist and seismologist (b. 1881)
  • 1910 – Anderson Dawson, Australian politician, 14th Premier of Queensland (b. 1863)
  • 1922 – Andrey Markov, Russian mathematician and theorist (b. 1856)
  • 1923 – Pancho Villa, Mexican general and politician, Governor of Chihuahua (b. 1878)
  • 1926 – Felix Dzerzhinsky, Russian educator and politician (b. 1877)
  • 1927 – Ferdinand I, king of Romania (b. 1865)
  • 1928 – Kostas Karyotakis, Greek poet and author (b. 1896)
  • 1932 – René Bazin, French author and academic (b. 1853)
  • 1937 – Olga Hahn-Neurath, Austrian mathematician and philosopher from the Vienna Circle (b. 1882)
  • 1937 – Guglielmo Marconi, Italian physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1874)
  • 1941 – Lew Fields, American actor and producer (b. 1867)
  • 1944 – Ludwig Beck, German general (b. 1880)
  • 1945 – Paul Valéry, French author and poet (b. 1871)
  • 1951 – Abdullah I, king of Jordan (b. 1882)
  • 1953 – Dumarsais Estimé, Haitian lawyer and politician, 33rd President of Haiti (b. 1900)
  • 1953 – Jan Struther, English author and hymn-writer (b. 1901)
  • 1955 – Calouste Gulbenkian, Armenian businessman and philanthropist (b. 1869)
  • 1956 – James Alexander Calder, Canadian educator and politician, Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence (b. 1868)
  • 1959 – William D. Leahy, American admiral and diplomat, United States Ambassador to France (b. 1875)
  • 1965 – Batukeshwar Dutt, Indian activist (b. 1910)
  • 1968 – Bray Hammond, American historian and author (b. 1886)
  • 1970 – Iain Macleod, English journalist and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1913)
  • 1972 – Geeta Dutt, Indian singer and actress (b. 1930)
  • 1973 – Bruce Lee, American actor and martial artist (b. 1940)
  • 1973 – Robert Smithson, American photographer and sculptor (b. 1938)
  • 1974 – Allen Jenkins, American actor and singer (b. 1900)
  • 1974 – Kamal Dasgupta, Bengali music director, composer and folk artist. (b. 1912)
  • 1976 – Joseph Rochefort, American captain and cryptanalyst (b. 1900)
  • 1977 – Gary Kellgren, American record producer, co-founded Record Plant (b. 1939)
  • 1980 – Maria Martinez, San Ildefonso Pueblo (Native American) potter (b. 1887)
  • 1981 – Kostas Choumis, Greek-Romanian footballer (b. 1913)
  • 1983 – Frank Reynolds, American soldier and journalist (b. 1923)
  • 1987 – Richard Egan, American soldier and actor (b. 1921)
  • 1989 – Forrest H. Anderson, American judge and politician, 17th Governor of Montana (b. 1913)
  • 1990 – Herbert Turner Jenkins, American police officer (b. 1907)
  • 1993 – Vince Foster, American lawyer and political figure (b. 1945)
  • 1994 – Paul Delvaux, Belgian painter (b. 1897)
  • 1997 – M. E. H. Maharoof, Sri Lankan politician (b. 1939)
  • 1998 – June Byers, American wrestler (b. 1922)
  • 1999 – Sandra Gould, American actress (b. 1916)
  • 2002 – Michalis Kritikopoulos, Greek footballer (b. 1946)
  • 2003 – Nicolas Freeling, English author (b. 1927)
  • 2004 – Lala Mara, Fijian politician (b. 1931)
  • 2004 – Valdemaras Martinkėnas, Lithuanian footballer and coach (b. 1965)
  • 2005 – James Doohan, Canadian-American actor (b. 1920)
  • 2005 – Finn Gustavsen, Norwegian journalist and politician (b. 1926)
  • 2005 – Kayo Hatta, American director and cinematographer (b. 1958)
  • 2006 – Ted Grant, South African-English theorist and activist (b. 1913)
  • 2006 – Gérard Oury, French actor, director, and producer (b. 1919)
  • 2007 – Tammy Faye Messner, American Christian evangelist and talk show host (b. 1942)
  • 2008 – Artie Traum, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1943)
  • 2008 – Dinko Šakić, Croatian concentration camp commander (b. 1921)
  • 2009 – Vedat Okyar, Turkish footballer (b. 1945)
  • 2009 – Mark Rosenzweig, American psychologist and academic (b. 1922)
  • 2011 – Lucian Freud, German-English painter and illustrator (b. 1922)
  • 2012 – Alastair Burnet, English journalist (b. 1928)
  • 2012 – Jack Davis, American hurdler (b. 1930)
  • 2012 – José Hermano Saraiva, Portuguese historian, jurist, and politician, Portuguese Minister of Education (b. 1919)
  • 2013 – Pierre Fabre, French pharmacist and businessman, founded Laboratoires Pierre Fabre (b. 1926)
  • 2013 – Khurshed Alam Khan, Indian politician, 2nd Governor of Goa (b. 1919)
  • 2013 – Augustus Rowe, Canadian physician and politician (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – Helen Thomas, American journalist and author (b. 1920)
  • 2014 – Victor G. Atiyeh, American businessman and politician, 32nd Governor of Oregon (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Constantin Lucaci, Romanian sculptor and educator (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Bob McNamara, American football player (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – Klaus Schmidt, German archaeologist and academic (b. 1953)
  • 2015 – Wayne Carson, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1943)
  • 2015 – Fred Else, English footballer and manager (b. 1933)
  • 2015 – Dieter Moebius, Swiss-German keyboard player and producer (b. 1944)
  • 2016 – Radu Beligan, Romanian actor, director, and essayist (b. 1918)
  • 2017 – Chester Bennington, American singer (b. 1976)

Holidays and observances on July 20

  • Birthday of Crown Prince Haakon Magnus (Norway)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Ansegisus
    • Apollinaris of Ravenna
    • Aurelius
    • Ealhswith (or Elswith)
    • Elijah
    • Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Amelia Bloomer, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Ross Tubman (Episcopal Church (USA))
    • John Baptist Yi (one of The Korean Martyrs)
    • Margaret the Virgin
    • Thorlac (relic translation)
    • Wilgefortis (cult suppressed)
    • July 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Día del Amigo (Argentina, Brazil)
  • Engineer’s Day (Costa Rica)
  • Independence Day, celebrates the independence declaration of Colombia from Spain in 1810.
  • International Chess Day
  • Lempira Day (Honduras)
  • Tree Planting Day (Central African Republic)

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

On This Day

July 19 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • AD 64 – The Great Fire of Rome causes widespread devastation and rages on for six days, destroying half of the city.
  • 484 – Leontius, Roman usurper, is crowned Eastern emperor at Tarsus (modern Turkey). He is recognized in Antioch and makes it his capital.
  • 711 – Umayyad conquest of Hispania: Battle of Guadalete: Umayyad forces under Tariq ibn Ziyad defeat the Visigoths led by King Roderic.
  • 939 – Battle of Simancas: King Ramiro II of León defeats the Moorish army under Caliph Abd-al-Rahman III near the city of Simancas.
  • 998 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Battle of Apamea: Fatimids defeat a Byzantine army near Apamea.
  • 1333 – Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Halidon Hill: The English win a decisive victory over the Scots.
  • 1544 – Italian War of 1542–46: The first Siege of Boulogne begins.
  • 1545 – The Tudor warship Mary Rose sinks off Portsmouth; in 1982 the wreck is salvaged in one of the most complex and expensive projects in the history of maritime archaeology.
  • 1553 – Lady Jane Grey is replaced by Mary I of England as Queen of England after only nine days on the throne.
  • 1588 – Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: The Spanish Armada is sighted in the English Channel.
  • 1701 – Representatives of the Iroquois Confederacy sign the Nanfan Treaty, ceding a large territory north of the Ohio River to England.
  • 1702 – Great Northern War: A numerically superior Polish-Saxon army of Augustus II the Strong, operating from an advantageous defensive position, is defeated by a Swedish army half its size under the command of King Charles XII in the Battle of Klissow.
  • 1817 – Unsuccessful in his attempt to conquer the Kingdom of Hawaii for the Russian-American Company, Georg Anton Schäffer is forced to admit defeat and leave Kauai.
  • 1821 – Coronation of George IV of the United Kingdom.
  • 1832 – The British Medical Association is founded as the Provincial Medical and Surgical Association by Sir Charles Hastings at a meeting in the Board Room of the Worcester Infirmary.
  • 1843 – Brunel’s steamship the SS Great Britain is launched, becoming the first ocean-going craft with an iron hull and screw propeller, becoming the largest vessel afloat in the world.
  • 1845 – Great New York City Fire of 1845: The last great fire to affect Manhattan began early in the morning and was subdued that afternoon. The fire killed four firefighters, 26 civilians, and destroyed 345 buildings.
  • 1848 – Women’s rights: A two-day Women’s Rights Convention opens in Seneca Falls, New York.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: Morgan’s Raid: At Buffington Island in Ohio, Confederate General John Hunt Morgan’s raid into the north is mostly thwarted when a large group of his men are captured while trying to escape across the Ohio River.
  • 1864 – Taiping Rebellion: Third Battle of Nanking: The Qing dynasty finally defeats the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
  • 1870 – Franco-Prussian War: France declares war on Prussia.
  • 1900 – The first line of the Paris Métro opens for operation.
  • 1903 – Maurice Garin wins the first Tour de France.
  • 1916 – World War I: Battle of Fromelles: British and Australian troops attack German trenches as part of the Battle of the Somme.
  • 1936 – Spanish Civil War: The CNT and UGT call a general strike in Spain – mobilizing workers’ militias against the Nationalist forces.
  • 1940 – World War II: Battle of Cape Spada: The Royal Navy and the Regia Marina clash; the Italian light cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni sinks, with 121 casualties.
  • 1940 – Field Marshal Ceremony: First occasion in World War II, that Hitler appointed field marshals due to military achievements.
  • 1940 – World War II: Army order 112 forms the Intelligence Corps of the British Army.
  • 1942 – World War II: The Second Happy Time of Hitler’s submarines comes to an end, as the increasingly effective American convoy system compels them to return to the central Atlantic.
  • 1943 – World War II: Rome is heavily bombed by more than 500 Allied aircraft, inflicting thousands of casualties.
  • 1947 – Prime Minister of the shadow Burmese government, Bogyoke Aung San and eight others are assassinated.
  • 1947 – Korean politician Lyuh Woon-hyung is assassinated.
  • 1952 – Opening of the Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland.
  • 1961 – Tunisia imposes a blockade on the French naval base at Bizerte; the French would capture the entire town four days later.
  • 1963 – Joe Walker flies a North American X-15 to a record altitude of 106,010 meters (347,800 feet) on X-15 Flight 90. Exceeding an altitude of 100 km, this flight qualifies as a human spaceflight under international convention.
  • 1964 – Vietnam War: At a rally in Saigon, South Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyễn Khánh calls for expanding the war into North Vietnam.
  • 1969 – Chappaquiddick incident: U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy crashes his car into a tidal pond at Chappaquiddick Island, Massachusetts, killing his passenger Mary Jo Kopechne.
  • 1972 – Dhofar Rebellion: British SAS units help the Omani government against Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman rebels in the Battle of Mirbat.
  • 1976 – Sagarmatha National Park in Nepal is created.
  • 1977 – The world’s first Global Positioning System (GPS) signal was transmitted from Navigation Technology Satellite 2 (NTS-2) and received at Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at 12:41 a.m. Eastern time (ET).
  • 1979 – The Sandinista rebels overthrow the government of the Somoza family in Nicaragua.
  • 1979 – The oil tanker SS Atlantic Empress collides with another oil tanker, causing the largest ever ship-borne oil spill.
  • 1980 – Opening of the Summer Olympics in Moscow.
  • 1981 – In a private meeting with U.S. President Ronald Reagan, French President François Mitterrand reveals the existence of the Farewell Dossier, a collection of documents showing the Soviet Union had been stealing American technological research and development.
  • 1982 – In one of the first militant attacks by Hezbollah, David S. Dodge, president of the American University of Beirut, is kidnapped.
  • 1983 – The first three-dimensional reconstruction of a human head in a CT is published.
  • 1985 – The Val di Stava dam collapses killing 268 people in Val di Stava, Italy.
  • 1989 – United Airlines Flight 232 crashes in Sioux City, Iowa killing 111.
  • 1992 – A car bomb kills Judge Paolo Borsellino and five members of his escort.
  • 1997 – The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army resumes a ceasefire to end their 25-year paramilitary campaign to end British rule in Northern Ireland.
  • 2014 – Gunmen in Egypt’s western desert province of New Valley Governorate attack a military checkpoint, killing at least 21 soldiers. Egypt reportedly declares a state of emergency on its border with Sudan.

Births on July 19

  • 810 – Muhammad al-Bukhari, Persian scholar (d. 870)
  • 1223 – Baibars, sultan of Egypt (d. 1277)
  • 1420 – William VIII, Marquess of Montferrat (d. 1483)
  • 1569 – Conrad Vorstius, Dutch theologian (d. 1622)
  • 1670 – Richard Leveridge, English singer-songwriter (d. 1758)
  • 1688 – Giuseppe Castiglione, Italian missionary and painter (d. 1766)
  • 1744 – Heinrich Christian Boie, German author and poet (d. 1806)
  • 1759 – Marianna Auenbrugger, Austrian pianist and composer (d. 1782)
  • 1759 – Seraphim of Sarov, Russian monk and saint (d. 1833)
  • 1771 – Thomas Talbot, Irish-Canadian colonel and politician (d. 1853)
  • 1794 – José Justo Corro, Mexican politician and president, (1836-1837) (d. 1864)
  • 1789 – John Martin, English painter, engraver, and illustrator (d. 1854)
  • 1800 – Juan José Flores, Venezuelan general and politician, 1st President of Ecuador (d. 1864)
  • 1814 – Samuel Colt, American businessman, founded the Colt’s Manufacturing Company (d. 1862)
  • 1819 – Gottfried Keller, Swiss author, poet, and playwright (d. 1890)
  • 1822 – Princess Augusta of Cambridge (d. 1916)
  • 1827 – Mangal Pandey, Indian soldier (d. 1857)
  • 1834 – Edgar Degas, French painter, sculptor, and illustrator (d. 1917)
  • 1835 – Justo Rufino Barrios, Guatemalan president (d. 1885)
  • 1842 – Frederic T. Greenhalge, English-American lawyer and politician, 38th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1896)
  • 1846 – Edward Charles Pickering, American astronomer and physicist (d. 1919)
  • 1849 – Ferdinand Brunetière, French scholar and critic (d. 1906)
  • 1865 – Georges Friedel, French mineralogist and crystallographer (d. 1933)
  • 1865 – Charles Horace Mayo, American surgeon, founded the Mayo Clinic (d. 1939)
  • 1860 – Lizzie Borden, American woman, tried and acquitted for the murders of her parents in 1892 (d. 1927)
  • 1868 – Florence Foster Jenkins, American soprano and educator (d. 1944)
  • 1869 – Xenophon Stratigos, Greek general and politician, Greek Minister of Transport (d. 1927)
  • 1875 – Alice Dunbar Nelson, African-American poet and activist (d. 1935)
  • 1876 – Joseph Fielding Smith, American religious leader, 10th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d. 1972)
  • 1877 – Arthur Fielder, English cricketer (d. 1949)
  • 1881 – Friedrich Dessauer, German physicist and philosopher (d. 1963)
  • 1883 – Max Fleischer, Austrian-American animator and producer (d. 1972)
  • 1886 – Michael Fekete, Hungarian-Israeli mathematician and academic (d. 1957)
  • 1888 – Enno Lolling, German physician (d. 1945)
  • 1890 – George II of Greece (d. 1947)
  • 1892 – Dick Irvin, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1957)
  • 1893 – Vladimir Mayakovsky, Russian actor, playwright, and poet (d. 1930)
  • 1894 – Aleksandr Khinchin, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1959)
  • 1894 – Khawaja Nazimuddin, Bangladeshi-Pakistani politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Pakistan (d. 1965)
  • 1894 – Percy Spencer, American physicist and inventor of the microwave oven (d. 1969)
  • 1895 – Xu Beihong, Chinese painter and academic (d. 1953)
  • 1896 – Reginald Baker, English film producer (d. 1985)
  • 1896 – A. J. Cronin, Scottish physician and novelist (d. 1981)
  • 1896 – Bob Meusel, American baseball player and sailor (d. 1977)
  • 1898 – Herbert Marcuse, German-American sociologist and philosopher (d. 1979)
  • 1899 – Balai Chand Mukhopadhyay, Indian physician, author, poet, and playwright (d. 1979)
  • 1902 – Samudrala Raghavacharya, Indian singer, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1968)
  • 1904 – Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, American lawyer and farmer (d. 1985)
  • 1907 – Isabel Jewell, American actress (d. 1972)
  • 1908 – Daniel Fry, American contactee (d. 1992)
  • 1909 – Balamani Amma, Indian poet and author (d. 2004)
  • 1912 – Peter Leo Gerety, American prelate (d. 2016)
  • 1914 – Marius Russo, American baseball player (d. 2005)
  • 1915 – Åke Hellman, Finnish painter (d. 2017)
  • 1916 – Phil Cavarretta, American baseball player and manager (d. 2010)
  • 1917 – William Scranton, American captain and politician, 13th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (d. 2013)
  • 1919 – Patricia Medina, English-American actress (d. 2012)
  • 1919 – Miltos Sachtouris, Greek poet and author (d. 2005)
  • 1919 – Ron Searle, English-Canadian soldier, publisher, and politician, 4th Mayor of Mississauga (d. 2015)
  • 1920 – Robert Mann, American violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 2018)
  • 1920 – Richard Oriani, Salvadoran-American metallurgist and engineer (d. 2015)
  • 1921 – Harold Camping, American evangelist, author, radio host (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – André Moynet, French soldier, race car driver, and politician (d. 1993)
  • 1921 – Elizabeth Spencer, American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (d. 2019)
  • 1921 – Rosalyn Sussman Yalow, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2011)
  • 1922 – George McGovern, American lieutenant, historian, and politician (d. 2012)
  • 1922 – Rachel Robinson, American professor, registered nurse, and the widow of baseball player Jackie Robinson
  • 1923 – Theo Barker, English historian (d. 2001)
  • 1923 – Alex Hannum, American basketball player and coach (d. 2002)
  • 1923 – Joseph Hansen, American author and poet (d. 2004)
  • 1923 – William A. Rusher, American lawyer and journalist (d. 2011)
  • 1923 – Lon Simmons, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2015)
  • 1924 – Stanley K. Hathaway, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 40th United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 2005)
  • 1924 – Pat Hingle, American actor and producer (d. 2009)
  • 1924 – Arthur Rankin Jr., American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – Sue Thompson, American singer
  • 1926 – Helen Gallagher, American actress, singer, and dancer
  • 1928 – Samuel John Hazo, American author
  • 1928 – Choi Yun-chil, South Korean long-distance runner and a two-time national champion in the marathon.
  • 1929 – Gaston Glock, Austrian engineer and businessman, co-founded Glock Ges.m.b.H.
  • 1929 – Orville Turnquest, Bahamian politician
  • 1932 – Buster Benton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1996)
  • 1932 – Jan Lindblad, Swedish biologist and photographer (d. 1987)
  • 1934 – Francisco de Sá Carneiro, Portuguese lawyer and politician, 111th Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 1980)
  • 1935 – Nick Koback, American baseball player and golfer (d. 2015)
  • 1936 – David Colquhoun, English pharmacologist and academic
  • 1937 – George Hamilton IV, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2014)
  • 1938 – Richard Jordan, American actor (d. 1993)
  • 1938 – Jayant Narlikar, Indian astrophysicist and astronomer
  • 1938 – Tom Raworth, English poet and academic (d. 2017)
  • 1941 – Vikki Carr, American singer and actress
  • 1941 – Neelie Kroes, Dutch politician and diplomat, European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society
  • 1943 – Han Sai Por, Singaporean sculptor and academic
  • 1944 – Tim McIntire, American actor and singer (d. 1986)
  • 1944 – Andres Vooremaa, Estonian chess player
  • 1945 – Paule Baillargeon, Canadian actress, director, and screenwriter
  • 1946 – Alan Gorrie, Scottish singer-songwriter and musician (Average White Band)
  • 1946 – Ilie Năstase, Romanian tennis player and politician
  • 1947 – André Forcier, Canadian director and screenwriter
  • 1947 – Hans-Jürgen Kreische, German footballer and manager
  • 1947 – Bernie Leadon, American guitarist and songwriter
  • 1947 – Brian May, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and astrophysicist
  • 1948 – Keith Godchaux, American keyboard player and songwriter (d. 1980)
  • 1949 – Kgalema Motlanthe, South African politician, 3rd President of South Africa
  • 1950 – Per-Kristian Foss, Norwegian politician, Norwegian Minister of Finance
  • 1950 – Freddy Moore, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1950 – Adrian Noble, English director and screenwriter
  • 1951 – Abel Ferrara, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1952 – Allen Collins, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1990)
  • 1952 – Jayne Anne Phillips American novelist and short story writer
  • 1954 – Mark O’Donnell, American playwright (d. 2012)
  • 1954 – Steve O’Donnell, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1954 – Srđa Trifković, Serbian-American journalist and historian
  • 1955 – Roger Binny, Indian cricketer and sportscaster
  • 1955 – Dalton McGuinty, Canadian lawyer and politician, 24th Premier of Ontario
  • 1956 – Mark Crispin, American computer scientist, designed the IMAP (d. 2012)
  • 1958 – Brad Drewett, Australian tennis player and sportscaster (d. 2013)
  • 1958 – Robert Gibson, American wrestler
  • 1958 – David Robertson, American conductor
  • 1959 – Juan J. Campanella, Argentinian director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Atom Egoyan, Egyptian-Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Kevin Haskins, English drummer and songwriter
  • 1961 – Harsha Bhogle, Indian journalist and author
  • 1961 – Maria Filatova, Russian gymnast
  • 1961 – Lisa Lampanelli, American comedian, actress, and author
  • 1961 – Benoît Mariage, Belgian director and screenwriter
  • 1961 – Hideo Nakata, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1961 – Campbell Scott, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1962 – Anthony Edwards, American actor and director
  • 1963 – Thomas Gabriel Fischer, Swiss musician
  • 1963 – Garth Nix, Australian author
  • 1964 – Teresa Edwards, American basketball player
  • 1964 – Masahiko Kondō, Japanese singer-songwriter and race car driver
  • 1965 – Evelyn Glennie, Scottish musician
  • 1965 – Claus-Dieter Wollitz, German footballer and manager
  • 1967 – Yael Abecassis, Israeli model and actress
  • 1967 – Jean-François Mercier, Canadian comedian, screenwriter, and television host
  • 1968 – Robb Flynn, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1968 – Pavel Kuka, Czech footballer and manager
  • 1968 – Jim Norton, American comedian, actor, and author
  • 1969 – Matthew Libatique, American cinematographer
  • 1970 – Bill Chen, American poker player and software designer
  • 1970 – Nicola Sturgeon, Scottish lawyer and politician, First Minister of Scotland
  • 1971 – Rene Busch, Estonian tennis player and coach
  • 1971 – Vitali Klitschko, Ukrainian boxer and politician, Mayor of Kiev
  • 1971 – Michael Modest, American wrestler
  • 1971 – Catriona Rowntree, Australian television host
  • 1971 – Lesroy Weekes, Montserratian cricketer
  • 1972 – Ebbe Sand, Danish footballer and manager
  • 1973 – Martin Powell, English keyboard player and songwriter
  • 1973 – Scott Walker, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1974 – Rey Bucanero, Mexican wrestler
  • 1974 – Francisco Copado, German footballer and manager
  • 1974 – Josée Piché, Canadian ice dancer
  • 1974 – Vince Spadea, American tennis player
  • 1974 – Preston Wilson, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1975 – Luca Castellazzi, Italian footballer
  • 1976 – Benedict Cumberbatch, English actor
  • 1976 – Gonzalo de los Santos, Uruguayan footballer and manager
  • 1977 – Jean-Sébastien Aubin, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1977 – Tony Mamaluke, American wrestler and manager
  • 1977 – Ed Smith, English cricketer and journalist
  • 1979 – Rick Ankiel, American baseball player
  • 1979 – Josué Anunciado de Oliveira, Brazilian footballer
  • 1979 – Dilhara Fernando, Sri Lankan cricketer
  • 1979 – Luke Young, English footballer
  • 1980 – Xavier Malisse, Belgian tennis player
  • 1980 – Giorgio Mondini, Italian race car driver
  • 1981 – Nenê, Brazilian footballer
  • 1981 – David Bernard, Jamaican cricketer
  • 1981 – Mark Gasnier, Australian rugby player and sportscaster
  • 1981 – Jimmy Gobble, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Grégory Vignal, French footballer
  • 1982 – Christopher Bear, American drummer
  • 1982 – Phil Coke, American baseball player
  • 1982 – Jared Padalecki, American actor
  • 1982 – Jess Vanstrattan, Australian footballer
  • 1983 – Helen Skelton, English television host and actress
  • 1983 – Fedor Tyutin, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1984 – Andrea Libman, Canadian voice actress
  • 1984 – Adam Morrison, American basketball player
  • 1984 – Ryan O’Byrne, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1984 – Lewis Price, Welsh footballer
  • 1985 – LaMarcus Aldridge, American basketball player
  • 1985 – Zhou Haibin, Chinese footballer
  • 1985 – Marina Kuzina, Russian basketball player
  • 1985 – Hadi Norouzi, Iranian footballer (d. 2015)
  • 1986 – Leandro Greco, Italian footballer
  • 1987 – Jon Jones, American mixed martial artist
  • 1987 – Marc Murphy, Australian footballer
  • 1988 – Shane Dawson, American comedian and actor
  • 1988 – Kevin Großkreutz, German footballer
  • 1988 – Jakub Kovář, Czech ice hockey player
  • 1989 – Sam McKendry, Australian-New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1991 – Eray İşcan, Turkish footballer
  • 1992 – Jake Nicholson, English footballer
  • 1994 – Christian Welch, Australian rugby league player
  • 1998 – Erin Cuthbert, footballer
  • 1998 – Ronaldo Vieira, Bissau-Guinean footballer

Deaths on July 19

  • 514 – Symmachus, pope of the Catholic Church
  • 806 – Li Shigu, Chinese general (b. 778)
  • 973 – Kyunyeo, Korean monk and poet (b. 917)
  • 998 – Damian Dalassenos, Byzantine general (b. 940)
  • 1030 – Adalberon, French bishop
  • 1234 – Floris IV, Dutch nobleman (b. 1210)
  • 1249 – Jacopo Tiepolo, doge of Venice
  • 1333 – John Campbell, Scottish nobleman
  • 1333 – Alexander Bruce, Scottish nobleman
  • 1333 – Sir Archibald Douglas, Scottish nobleman
  • 1333 – Maol Choluim II, Scottish nobleman
  • 1333 – Kenneth de Moravia, 4th Earl of Sutherland
  • 1374 – Petrarch, Italian poet and scholar (b. 1304)
  • 1415 – Philippa of Lancaster, Portuguese queen (b. 1360)
  • 1543 – Mary Boleyn, English daughter of Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire (b. 1499)
  • 1631 – Cesare Cremonini, Italian philosopher and academic (b. 1550)
  • 1742 – William Somervile, English poet and author (b. 1675)
  • 1810 – Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Prussian queen (b. 1776)
  • 1814 – Matthew Flinders, English navigator and cartographer (b. 1774)
  • 1824 – Agustín de Iturbide, Mexican general and emperor (b. 1783)
  • 1838 – Pierre Louis Dulong, French physicist and chemist (b. 1785)
  • 1850 – Margaret Fuller, American journalist and critic (b. 1810)
  • 1855 – Konstantin Batyushkov, Russian poet and translator (b. 1787)
  • 1857 – Stefano Franscini, Swiss statistician and politician (b. 1796)
  • 1878 – Yegor Ivanovich Zolotarev, Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1847)
  • 1896 – Abraham H. Cannon, American publisher and religious leader (b. 1859)
  • 1913 – Clímaco Calderón, Colombian lawyer and politician, 15th President of Colombia (b. 1852)
  • 1925 – John Indermaur, British lawyer (b. 1851)
  • 1930 – Robert Stout, Scottish-New Zealand politician, 13th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1844)
  • 1933 – Kaarle Krohn, Finnish historian and academic (b. 1863)
  • 1939 – Rose Hartwick Thorpe, American poet and author (b. 1850)
  • 1943 – Yekaterina Budanova, Russian captain and pilot (b. 1916)
  • 1947 – U Razak, Burmese educator and politician (b. 1898)
  • 1947 – Aung San, Burmese general and politician (b. 1915)
  • 1947 – Lyuh Woon-hyung, South Korean politician (b. 1886)
  • 1963 – William Andrew, English priest (b. 1884)
  • 1965 – Syngman Rhee, South Korean journalist and politician, 1st President of South Korea (b. 1875)
  • 1967 – Odell Shepard, American poet and politician, 66th Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut (b. 1884)
  • 1969 – Stratis Myrivilis, Greek soldier and author (b. 1890)
  • 1974 – Ernő Schwarz, Hungarian-American soccer player and coach (b. 1904)
  • 1975 – Lefty Frizzell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1928)
  • 1977 – Karl Ristikivi, Estonian geographer, author, and poet (b. 1912)
  • 1980 – Margaret Craven, American journalist and author (b. 1901)
  • 1980 – Nihat Erim, Turkish jurist and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1912)
  • 1980 – Hans Morgenthau, German-American political scientist, philosopher, and academic (b. 1904)
  • 1981 – Roger Doucet, Canadian tenor (b. 1919)
  • 1982 – Hugh Everett III, American physicist and mathematician (b. 1930)
  • 1984 – Faina Ranevskaya, Russian actress (b. 1896)
  • 1984 – Aziz Sami, Iraqi writer and translator (b. 1895)
  • 1985 – Janusz Zajdel, Polish author (b. 1938)
  • 1989 – Kazimierz Sabbat, Polish businessman and politician, President of the Republic of Poland (b. 1913)
  • 1990 – Eddie Quillan, American actor (b. 1907)
  • 1992 – Paolo Borsellino, Italian lawyer and judge (b. 1940)
  • 1994 – Victor Barbeau, Canadian author and academic (b. 1896)
  • 1998 – Elmer Valo, Polish-American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1921)
  • 2002 – Dave Carter, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1952)
  • 2002 – Alan Lomax, American historian, scholar, and activist (b. 1915)
  • 2003 – Bill Bright, American evangelist and author, founded the Campus Crusade for Christ (b. 1921)
  • 2003 – Pierre Graber, Swiss politician, President of the Swiss National Council (b. 1908)
  • 2004 – Sylvia Daoust, Canadian sculptor (b. 1902)
  • 2004 – J. Gordon Edwards, American entomologist, mountaineer, and DDT advocate (b. 1919)
  • 2004 – Francis A. Marzen, American priest, and journalist (b. 1924)
  • 2004 – Zenkō Suzuki, Japanese politician, 70th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1911)
  • 2005 – Edward Bunker, American author and screenwriter (b. 1933)
  • 2006 – Jack Warden, American actor (b. 1920)
  • 2007 – A. K. Faezul Huq, Bangladeshi journalist, lawyer, and politician (b. 1945)
  • 2007 – Roberto Fontanarrosa, Argentinian cartoonist (b. 1944)
  • 2008 – Dercy Gonçalves, Brazilian comedian and actress (b. 1907)
  • 2009 – Frank McCourt, American author and educator (b. 1930)
  • 2009 – Henry Surtees, English race car driver (b. 1991)
  • 2010 – Cécile Aubry, French actress, author, television screenwriter and director (b. 1928)
  • 2010 – Jon Cleary, Australian author and playwright (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Humayun Ahmed, Bangladeshi director and playwright (b. 1948)
  • 2012 – Tom Davis, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1952)
  • 2012 – Mohammad Hassan Ganji, Iranian meteorologist and academic (b. 1912)
  • 2012 – Omar Suleiman, Egyptian general, and politician, 16th Vice President of Egypt (b. 1935)
  • 2012 – Sylvia Woods, American businesswoman, co-founded Sylvia’s Restaurant of Harlem (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Valiulla Yakupov, Islamic cleric (b. 1963)
  • 2013 – Mikhail Gorsheniov, Russian singer-songwriter (b. 1973)
  • 2013 – Geeto Mongol, Canadian-American wrestler and trainer (b. 1931)
  • 2013 – Mel Smith, English actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1952)
  • 2013 – Bert Trautmann, German footballer and manager (b. 1923)
  • 2013 – Phil Woosnam, Welsh-American soccer player and manager (b. 1932)
  • 2013 – Peter Ziegler, Swiss geologist and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Leyla Erbil, Turkish author (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – Rubem Alves, Brazilian theologian (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – David Easton, Canadian-American political scientist and academic (b. 1917)
  • 2014 – Paul M. Fleiss, American pediatrician and author (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – James Garner, American actor (b. 1928)
  • 2014 – Jerzy Jurka, Polish biologist (b. 1950)
  • 2014 – Ray King, English footballer and manager (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Ingemar Odlander, Swedish journalist (b. 1936)
  • 2014 – Harry Pougher, English cricketer (b. 1941)
  • 2014 – Leen Vleggeert, Dutch politician (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – John Winkin, American baseball player, coach, and journalist (b. 1919)
  • 2015 – Van Alexander, American composer and conductor (b. 1915)
  • 2015 – Galina Prozumenshchikova, Ukrainian-Russian swimmer and journalist (b. 1948)
  • 2015 – Carmino Ravosa, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (b. 1930)
  • 2015 – Gennadiy Seleznyov, Russian journalist and politician, 2nd Speaker of the Duma (b. 1947)
  • 2016 – Garry Marshall, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1934)
  • 2018 – Jon Schnepp, American producer, director, voice actor, editor, writer, cartoonist, animator, and cinematographer (b. 1967)
  • 2018 – Denis Ten, Kazakhstani figure skater (b. 1993)
  • 2019 – Rutger Hauer, Dutch actor, director, and producer (b. 1944)

Holidays and observances on July 19

  • Christian feast day:
    • Arsenius (Catholic Church)
    • Bernold, Bishop of Utrecht
    • Justa and Rufina
    • Kirdjun (or Abakerazum)
    • Macrina the Younger, Sister of St. Basil the Great
    • Symmachus
    • July 19 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Martyrs’ Day (Myanmar)
  • Sandinista Day or Liberation Day (Nicaragua)

July 19 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 18- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 477 BC – Battle of the Cremera as part of the Roman–Etruscan Wars. Veii ambushes and defeats the Roman army.
  • 387 BC– Roman-Gaulish Wars: Battle of the Allia: A Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, leading to the subsequent sacking of Rome.
  • 362 – Roman–Persian Wars: Emperor Julian arrives at Antioch with a Roman expeditionary force (60,000 men) and stays there for nine months to launch a campaign against the Persian Empire.
  • 452 – Sack of Aquileia: After an earlier defeat on the Catalaunian Plains, Attila lays siege to the metropolis of Aquileia and eventually destroys it.
  • 645 – Chinese forces under general Li Shiji besiege the strategic fortress city of Anshi (Liaoning) during the Goguryeo–Tang War.
  • 1195 – Battle of Alarcos: Almohad forces defeat the Castilian army of Alfonso VIII and force its retreat to Toledo.
  • 1290 – King Edward I of England issues the Edict of Expulsion, banishing all Jews (numbering about 16,000) from England; this was Tisha B’Av on the Hebrew calendar, a day that commemorates many Jewish calamities.
  • 1334 – The bishop of Florence blesses the first foundation stone for the new campanile (bell tower) of the Florence Cathedral, designed by the artist Giotto di Bondone.
  • 1389 – France and England agree to the Truce of Leulinghem, inaugurating a 13-year peace, the longest period of sustained peace during the Hundred Years’ War.
  • 1391 – Tokhtamysh–Timur war: Battle of the Kondurcha River: Timur defeats Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde in present-day southeast Russia.
  • 1507 – In Brussels, Prince Charles I, is crowned Duke of Burgundy and Count of Flanders, a year after inheriting the title.
  • 1555 – The College of Arms is reincorporated by Royal charter signed by Queen Mary I of England and King Philip II of Spain.
  • 1806 – A gunpowder magazine explosion in Birgu, Malta, kills around 200 people.
  • 1812 – The Treaties of Orebro end both the Anglo-Russian and Anglo-Swedish Wars.
  • 1841 – Coronation of Emperor Pedro II of Brazil.
  • 1857 – Louis Faidherbe, French governor of Senegal, arrives to relieve French forces at Kayes, effectively ending El Hajj Umar Tall’s war against the French.
  • 1862 – First ascent of Dent Blanche, one of the highest summits in the Alps.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Fort Wagner: One of the first formal African American military units, the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, supported by several white regiments, attempts an unsuccessful assault on Confederate-held Battery Wagner.
  • 1870 – The First Vatican Council decrees the dogma of papal infallibility.
  • 1872 – The Ballot Act 1872 in the United Kingdom introduced the requirement that parliamentary and local government elections be held by secret ballot.
  • 1914 – The U.S. Congress forms the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps, giving official status to aircraft within the U.S. Army for the first time.
  • 1925 – Adolf Hitler publishes Mein Kampf.
  • 1936 – On the Spanish mainland, a faction of the army supported by fascists, rises up against the Second Spanish Republic in a coup d’etat starting the 3-year-long Civil War, resulting in the longest dictatorship in modern European history.
  • 1942 – World War II: During the Beisfjord massacre in Norway, 15 Norwegian paramilitary guards help members of the SS to kill 288 political prisoners from Yugoslavia.
  • 1942 – The Germans test fly the Messerschmitt Me 262 using its jet engines for the first time.
  • 1944 – World War II: Hideki Tōjō resigns as Prime Minister of Japan because of numerous setbacks in the war effort.
  • 1966 – Human spaceflight: Gemini 10 is launched from Cape Kennedy on a 70-hour mission that includes docking with an orbiting Agena target vehicle.
  • 1966 – A racially charged incident in a bar sparks the six-day Hough riots in Cleveland, Ohio; 1,700 Ohio National Guard troops intervene to restore order.
  • 1968 – Intel is founded in Mountain View, California.
  • 1976 – Nadia Comăneci becomes the first person in Olympic Games history to score a perfect 10 in gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics.
  • 1982 – Two hundred sixty-eight Guatemalan campesinos (“peasants” or “country people”) are slain in the Plan de Sánchez massacre.
  • 1984 – McDonald’s massacre in San Ysidro, California: In a fast-food restaurant, James Oliver Huberty opens fire, killing 21 people and injuring 19 others before being shot dead by police.
  • 1992 – A picture of Les Horribles Cernettes was taken, which became the first ever photo posted to the World Wide Web.
  • 1994 – The bombing of the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (Argentine Jewish Community Center) in Buenos Aires kills 85 people (mostly Jewish) and injures 300.
  • 1994 – Rwandan genocide: The Rwandan Patriotic Front takes control of Gisenyi and north western Rwanda, forcing the interim government into Zaire and ending the genocide.
  • 1995 – On the Caribbean island of Montserrat, the Soufrière Hills volcano erupts. Over the course of several years, it devastates the island, destroying the capital, forcing most of the population to flee.
  • 1996 – Storms provoke severe flooding on the Saguenay River, beginning one of Quebec’s costliest natural disasters ever.
  • 1996 – Battle of Mullaitivu: The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam capture the Sri Lanka Army’s base, killing over 1200 soldiers.
  • 2012 – At least seven people are killed and 32 others are injured after a bomb explodes on an Israeli tour bus at Burgas Airport, Bulgaria.
  • 2013 – The Government of Detroit, with up to $20 billion in debt, files for the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.
  • 2019 – A man sets fire to an anime studio in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan, killing at 35 people and injuring dozens of others.

Births on July 18

  • 1013 – Hermann of Reichenau, German composer, mathematician, and astronomer (b. 1013)
  • 1501 – Isabella of Austria, queen of Denmark (d. 1526)
  • 1504 – Heinrich Bullinger, Swiss pastor and reformer (d. 1575)
  • 1534 – Zacharius Ursinus, German theologian (d. 1583)
  • 1552 – Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1612)
  • 1634 – Johannes Camphuys, Dutch politician, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1695)
  • 1659 – Hyacinthe Rigaud, French painter (d. 1743)
  • 1670 – Giovanni Bononcini, Italian cellist and composer (d. 1747)
  • 1702 – Maria Clementina Sobieska, Polish noble (d. 1735)
  • 1718 – Saverio Bettinelli, Italian poet, playwright, and critic (d. 1808)
  • 1720 – Gilbert White, English ornithologist and ecologist (d. 1793)
  • 1724 – Maria Antonia of Bavaria, Electress of Saxony (d. 1780)
  • 1750 – Frederick Adolf, duke of Östergötland (d. 1803)
  • 1796 – Immanuel Hermann Fichte, German philosopher and academic (d. 1879)
  • 1811 – William Makepeace Thackeray, English author and poet (d. 1863)
  • 1818 – Louis Gerhard De Geer, Swedish lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Sweden (d. 1896)
  • 1821 – Pauline Viardot, French soprano and composer (d. 1910)
  • 1837 – Vasil Levski, Bulgarian priest and activist (d. 1873)
  • 1843 – Virgil Earp, American marshal (d. 1905)
  • 1845 – Tristan Corbière, French poet (d. 1875)
  • 1848 – W. G. Grace, English cricketer and physician (d. 1915)
  • 1853 – Hendrik Lorentz, Dutch physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1928)
  • 1861 – Kadambini Ganguly, Indian physician, one of the first Indian women to obtain a degree (d. 1923)
  • 1864 – Philip Snowden, 1st Viscount Snowden, English politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (d. 1937)
  • 1867 – Margaret Brown, American philanthropist and activist (d. 1932)
  • 1871 – Giacomo Balla, Italian painter (d.1958)
  • 1871 – Sada Yacco, Japanese actress and dancer (d. 1946)
  • 1881 – Larry McLean, Canadian-American baseball player (d. 1921)
  • 1884 – Alberto di Jorio, Italian cardinal (d. 1979)
  • 1886 – Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr., American general (d. 1945)
  • 1887 – Vidkun Quisling, Norwegian military officer and politician, Minister President of Norway (d. 1945)
  • 1889 – Kōichi Kido, Japanese politician, 13th Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal of Japan (d. 1977)
  • 1890 – Frank Forde, Australian educator and politician, 15th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1983)
  • 1892 – Arthur Friedenreich, Brazilian footballer (d. 1969)
  • 1893 – David Ogilvy, 12th Earl of Airlie, Scottish peer, soldier and courtier (d. 1968)
  • 1895 – Olga Spessivtseva, Russian-American ballerina (d. 1991)
  • 1895 – Machine Gun Kelly, American gangster (d. 1954)
  • 1897 – Ernest Eldridge, English race car driver and engineer (d. 1935)
  • 1898 – John Stuart, Scottish-English actor (d. 1979)
  • 1899 – Ernst Scheller, German soldier and politician, 8th Mayor of Marburg (d. 1942)
  • 1900 – Nathalie Sarraute, French lawyer and author (d. 1999)
  • 1902 – Jessamyn West, American author (d. 1984)
  • 1902 – Chill Wills, American actor (d. 1978)
  • 1905 – Robert Elton Brooker, American business executive (d. 2000)
  • 1906 – S. I. Hayakawa, Canadian-American academic and politician (d. 1992)
  • 1906 – Clifford Odets, American director, playwright, and screenwriter (d. 1963)
  • 1908 – Peace Pilgrim, American mystic and activist (d. 1981)
  • 1908 – Lupe Vélez, Mexican-American actress and dancer (d. 1944)
  • 1908 – Beatrice Aitchison, American mathematician, statistician, and transportation economist (d. 1997)
  • 1909 – Bishnu Dey, Indian poet, critic, and academic (d. 1982)
  • 1909 – Andrei Gromyko, Belarusian-Russian economist and politician, Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1989)
  • 1909 – Mohammed Daoud Khan, Afghan commander and politician, 1st President of Afghanistan (d. 1978)
  • 1909 – Harriet Nelson, American singer and actress (d. 1994)
  • 1910 – Diptendu Pramanick, Indian businessman (d. 1989)
  • 1910 – Mamadou Dia, Senegalese politician; 1st Prime Minister of Senegal (d. 2009)
  • 1911 – Hume Cronyn, Canadian-American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
  • 1913 – Red Skelton, American actor and comedian (d. 1997)
  • 1914 – Gino Bartali, Italian cyclist (d. 2000)
  • 1914 – Oscar Heisserer, French footballer (d. 2004)
  • 1915 – Carequinha, Brazilian clown and actor (d. 2006)
  • 1915 – Roxana Cannon Arsht, American judge (d. 2003)
  • 1915 – Louis Le Bailly, British Royal Navy officer (d. 2010)
  • 1916 – Charles Kittel, American physicist (d. 2019)
  • 1917 – Henri Salvador, French singer and guitarist (d. 2008)
  • 1917 – Paul Streeten, Austrian-born British economics professor (d. 2019)
  • 1918 – Nelson Mandela, South African lawyer and politician, 1st President of South Africa, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
  • 1919 – Lilia Dale, Italian actress
  • 1920 – Eric Brandon, English race car driver and businessman (d. 1982)
  • 1921 – Peter Austin, English brewer, founded Ringwood Brewery (d. 2014)
  • 1921 – Aaron T. Beck, American psychiatrist and academic
  • 1921 – John Glenn, American colonel, astronaut, and politician (d. 2016)
  • 1921 – Richard Leacock, English-French director and producer (d. 2011)
  • 1921 – Heinz Bennent, German actor (d. 2011)
  • 1922 – Thomas Kuhn, American physicist, historian, and philosopher (d. 1996)
  • 1923 – Jerome H. Lemelson, American engineer and businessman (d. 1997)
  • 1923 – Michael Medwin, English actor (d. 2020)
  • 1924 – Inge Sørensen, Danish swimmer (d. 2011)
  • 1924 – Tullio Altamura, Italian actor
  • 1925 – Shirley Strickland, Australian runner and hurdler (d. 2004)
  • 1925 – Friedrich Zimmermann, German lawyer and politician, German Federal Minister of the Interior (d. 2012)
  • 1925 – Raymond Jones, Australian Modernist architect
  • 1925 – Windy McCall, American baseball relief pitcher (d. 2015)
  • 1926 – Margaret Laurence, Canadian author and academic (d. 1987)
  • 1926 – Nita Bieber, American actress (d. 2019)
  • 1926 – Bernard Pons, French politician and medical doctor
  • 1926 – Maunu Kurkvaara, Finnish film director and screenwriter
  • 1927 – Mehdi Hassan, Pakistani ghazal singer and playback singer (d. 2012)
  • 1927 – Kurt Masur, German conductor and educator (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Antonio García-Trevijano, Spanish republican, political activist, and author (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – Keith MacDonald, Canadian politician
  • 1927 – Anthony Mirra, American gangster, member of the Bonanno Crime Family (d. 1982)
  • 1928 – Andrea Gallo, Italian priest and author (d. 2013)
  • 1928 – Baddiewinkle, American internet personality
  • 1929 – Dick Button, American figure skater and actor
  • 1929 – Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, American R&B singer-songwriter, musician, and actor (d. 2000)
  • 1932 – Robert Ellis Miller, American director and screenwriter (d. 2017)
  • 1933 – Jean Yanne, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
  • 1933 – Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Russian poet and playwright (d. 2017)
  • 1934 – Edward Bond, English director, playwright, and screenwriter
  • 1934 – Darlene Conley, American actress (d. 2007)
  • 1935 – Tenley Albright, American figure skater and physician
  • 1935 – Jayendra Saraswathi, Indian guru, 69th Shankaracharya
  • 1937 – Roald Hoffmann, Polish chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1937 – Hunter S. Thompson, American journalist and author (d. 2005)
  • 1938 – John Connelly, English footballer (d. 2012)
  • 1938 – Ian Stewart, Scottish keyboard player and manager (d. 1985)
  • 1938 – Paul Verhoeven, Dutch director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1939 – Brian Auger, English rock and jazz keyboard player
  • 1939 – Dion DiMucci, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1939 – Jerry Moore, American football player and coach
  • 1940 – James Brolin, American actor
  • 1940 – Joe Torre, American baseball player and manager
  • 1941 – Frank Farian, German songwriter and producer
  • 1941 – Lonnie Mack, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2016)
  • 1941 – Martha Reeves, American singer and politician
  • 1942 – Giacinto Facchetti, Italian footballer (d. 2006)
  • 1942 – Adolf Ogi, Swiss politician, 84th President of the Swiss Confederation
  • 1943 – Joseph J. Ellis, American historian and author
  • 1944 – David Hemery, English hurdler and author
  • 1945 – Pat Doherty, Irish Republican politician
  • 1946 – Kalpana Mohan, Indian actress
  • 1946 – John Naughton, Scottish-Irish journalist, author, and academic
  • 1947 – Steve Forbes, American publisher and politician
  • 1948 – Carlos Colón Sr., Puerto Rican-American wrestler and promoter
  • 1948 – Jeanne Córdova, American journalist and activist (d. 2016)
  • 1948 – Graham Spanier, 16th President of Pennsylvania State University
  • 1948 – Hartmut Michel, German biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1949 – Dennis Lillee, Australian cricketer and coach
  • 1950 – Richard Branson, English businessman, founded Virgin Group
  • 1950 – Jack Dongarra, American computer scientist and academic
  • 1950 – Kostas Eleftherakis, Greek footballer
  • 1950 – Glenn Hughes, American disco singer (Village People) and actor (d. 2001)
  • 1950 – Jack Layton, Canadian political scientist, academic, and politician (d. 2011)
  • 1950 – Mark Udall, American educator and politician
  • 1951 – Elio Di Rupo, Belgian chemist, academic, and politician, 68th Prime Minister of Belgium
  • 1951 – Margo Martindale, American actress
  • 1954 – Ricky Skaggs, American singer-songwriter, mandolin player, and producer
  • 1955 – Bernd Fasching, Austrian painter and sculptor
  • 1957 – Nick Faldo, English golfer and sportscaster
  • 1957 – Keith Levene, English guitarist, songwriter, and producer
  • 1960 – Simon Heffer, English journalist and author
  • 1961 – Elizabeth McGovern, American actress
  • 1961 – Alan Pardew, English footballer and manager
  • 1961 – Pasi Rautiainen, Finnish footballer, coach, and manager
  • 1962 – Shaun Micallef, Australian comedian, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1963 – Marc Girardelli, Austrian-Luxembourgian skier
  • 1963 – Martín Torrijos, Panamanian economist and politician, 35th President of Panama
  • 1964 – Wendy Williams, American talk show host
  • 1965 – Vesselina Kasarova, Bulgarian soprano
  • 1966 – Dan O’Brien, American decathlete and coach
  • 1967 – Vin Diesel, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter1968 – Grant Bowler, New Zealand-Australian actor
  • 1968 – Scott Gourley, Australian rugby player
  • 1969 – Elizabeth Gilbert, American author
  • 1969 – The Great Sasuke, Japanese wrestler and politician
  • 1971 – Penny Hardaway, American basketball player and coach
  • 1971 – Sukhwinder Singh, Indian singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1974 – Alan Morrison, British poet
  • 1975 – Torii Hunter, American baseball player
  • 1975 – Daron Malakian, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1975 – M.I.A., English rapper and producer5
  • 1976 – Elsa Pataky, Spanish actress
  • 1976 – Go Soo-hee, South Korean actress
  • 1977 – Alexander Morozevich, Russian chess player and author
  • 1978 – Adabel Guerrero, Argentinian actress, singer, and dancer
  • 1978 – Shane Horgan, Irish rugby player and sportscaster
  • 1978 – Crystal Mangum, American murderer responsible for making false rape allegations in the Duke lacrosse case
  • 1978 – Joo Sang-wook, South Korean actor
  • 1978 – Ben Sheets, American baseball player and coach
  • 1978 – Mélissa Theuriau, French journalist
  • 1979 – Deion Branch, American football player
  • 1979 – Joey Mercury, American wrestler and producer
  • 1980 – Kristen Bell, American actress
  • 1981 – Dennis Seidenberg, German ice hockey player
  • 1982 – Ryan Cabrera, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1982 – Priyanka Chopra, Indian actress, singer, and film producer
  • 1982 – Carlo Costly, Honduran footballer
  • 1983 – Carlos Diogo, Uruguayan footballer
  • 1983 – Aaron Gillespie, American singer-songwriter and drummer
  • 1983 – Mikk Pahapill, Estonian decathlete
  • 1983 – Jan Schlaudraff, German footballer
  • 1985 – Chace Crawford, American actor
  • 1985 – Panagiotis Lagos, Greek footballer
  • 1985 – James Norton, English actor
  • 1986 – Natalia Mikhailova, Russian ice dancer
  • 1987 – Tontowi Ahmad, Indonesian badminton player
  • 1988 – Änis Ben-Hatira, German-Tunisian footballer
  • 1988 – César Villaluz, Mexican footballer
  • 1989 – Jamie Benn, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1989 – Sebastian Mielitz, German footballer
  • 1989 – Yohan Mollo, French footballer
  • 1993 – Lee Tae-min, South Korean singer and actor
  • 1993 – Michael Lichaa, Australian rugby league player
  • 1994 – Nilo Soares, East Timorese footballer
  • 1997 – Noah Lyles, American sprinter
  • 2001 – Agustina Roth, Argentine BMX rider

Deaths on July 18

  • 707 – Emperor Monmu of Japan (b. 683)
  • 715 – Muhammad bin Qasim, Umayyad general (b. 695)
  • 912 – Zhu Wen, Chinese emperor (b. 852)
  • 924 – Abu’l-Hasan Ali ibn al-Furat, Abbasid vizier (b. 855)
  • 928 – Stephen II, patriarch of Constantinople
  • 984 – Dietrich I, bishop of Metz
  • 1100 – Godfrey of Bouillon, Frankish knight (b. 1016)
  • 1185 – Stefan, first Archbishop of Uppsala (b. before 1143)
  • 1194 – Guy of Lusignan, king consort of Jerusalem (b. c. 1150)
  • 1232 – John de Braose, Marcher Lord of Bramber and Gower
  • 1270 – Boniface of Savoy, Archbishop of Canterbury
  • 1300 – Gerard Segarelli, Italian religious leader, founded the Apostolic Brethren (b. 1240)
  • 1450 – Francis I, Duke of Brittany (b. 1414)
  • 1488 – Alvise Cadamosto, Italian explorer (b. 1432)
  • 1566 – Bartolomé de las Casas, Spanish bishop and historian (b. 1484)
  • 1591 – Jacobus Gallus, Slovenian composer (b. 1550)
  • 1608 – Joachim Frederick, Elector of Brandenburg (b. 1546)
  • 1610 – Caravaggio, Italian painter (b. 1571)
  • 1639 – Bernard of Saxe-Weimar, German general (b. 1604)
  • 1650 – Robert Levinz, English Royalist, hanged in London by Parliamentary forces as a spy (b. 1615)
  • 1695 – Johannes Camphuys, Dutch politician, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (b. 1634)
  • 1698 – Johann Heinrich Heidegger, Swiss theologian and author (b. 1633)
  • 1721 – Jean-Antoine Watteau, French painter (b. 1684)
  • 1730 – François de Neufville, duc de Villeroy, French general (b. 1644)
  • 1756 – Pieter Langendijk, Dutch poet and playwright (b. 1683)
  • 1792 – John Paul Jones, Scottish-American admiral and diplomat (b. 1747)
  • 1817 – Jane Austen, English novelist (b. 1775)
  • 1837 – Vincenzo Borg, Maltese merchant and rebel leader (b. 1777)
  • 1863 – Robert Gould Shaw, American colonel (b. 1837)
  • 1872 – Benito Juárez, Mexican lawyer and politician, 26th President of Mexico (b. 1806)
  • 1884 – Ferdinand von Hochstetter, Austrian geologist and academic (b. 1829)
  • 1887 – Dorothea Dix, American social reformer and activist (b. 1802)
  • 1890 – Lydia Becker, English journalist, author, and activist, co-founded the Women’s Suffrage Journal (b. 1827)
  • 1892 – Thomas Cook, English travel agent, founded the Thomas Cook Group (b. 1808)
  • 1899 – Horatio Alger, American novelist and journalist (b. 1832)
  • 1916 – Benjamin C. Truman, American journalist and author (b. 1835)
  • 1925 – Louis-Nazaire Bégin, Canadian cardinal (b. 1840)
  • 1932 – Jean Jules Jusserand, French author and diplomat, French Ambassador to the United States (b. 1855)
  • 1937 – Julian Bell, English poet and academic (b. 1908)
  • 1938 – Marie of Romania (b. 1875)
  • 1944 – Thomas Sturge Moore, English author, poet, and playwright (b. 1870)
  • 1947 – Evald Tipner, Estonian footballer and ice hockey player (b. 1906)
  • 1948 – Herman Gummerus, Finnish historian, academic, and politician (b. 1877)
  • 1949 – Vítězslav Novák, Czech composer and educator (b. 1870)
  • 1949 – Francisco Javier Arana, Guatemalan Army colonel and briefly Guatemalan head of state (b.1905)
  • 1950 – Carl Clinton Van Doren, American critic and biographer (b. 1885)
  • 1952 – Paul Saintenoy, Belgian architect and historian (b. 1862)
  • 1954 – Machine Gun Kelly, American gangster (b. 1895)
  • 1966 – Bobby Fuller, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
  • 1968 – Corneille Heymans, Belgian physiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
  • 1969 – Mary Jo Kopechne, American educator and secretary (b. 1940)
  • 1973 – Jack Hawkins, English actor (b. 1910)
  • 1975 – Vaughn Bodē, American illustrator (b. 1941)
  • 1981 – Sonja Branting-Westerståhl, Swedish lawyer (b. 1890)
  • 1982 – Roman Jakobson, Russian–American linguist and theorist (b. 1896)
  • 1984 – Lally Bowers, English actress (b. 1914)
  • 1984 – Grigori Kromanov, Estonian director and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 1987 – Gilberto Freyre, Brazilian sociologist, anthropologist, historian, writer, painter, journalist and congressman (b. 1907)
  • 1988 – Nico, German singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and actress (b. 1938)
  • 1988 – Joly Braga Santos, Portuguese composer and conductor (b. 1924)
  • 1989 – Donnie Moore, American baseball player (b. 1954)
  • 1989 – Rebecca Schaeffer, American model and actress (b.1967)
  • 1990 – Karl Menninger, American psychiatrist and author (b. 1896)
  • 1990 – Yun Posun, South Korean politician, 2nd President of South Korea (b. 1897)
  • 2001 – Mimi Fariña, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1945)
  • 2002 – Metin Toker, Turkish journalist and author (b. 1924)
  • 2004 – André Castelot, Belgian-French historian and author (b. 1911)
  • 2004 – Émile Peynaud, French wine maker (b. 1912)
  • 2005 – Amy Gillett, Australian cyclist and rower (b. 1976)
  • 2005 – William Westmoreland, American general (b. 1914)
  • 2006 – Henry Hewes, American theater writer (b. 1917)
  • 2007 – Jerry Hadley, American tenor (b. 1952)
  • 2007 – Kenji Miyamoto, Japanese politician (b. 1908)
  • 2009 – Henry Allingham, English soldier (b. 1896)
  • 2009 – Jill Balcon, English actress (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – Yosef Shalom Eliashiv, Lithuanian-Israeli rabbi and author (b. 1910)
  • 2012 – Jean François-Poncet, French politician and diplomat, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1928)
  • 2012 – Dawoud Rajiha, Syrian general and politician, Syrian Minister of Defense (b. 1947)
  • 2012 – Assef Shawkat, Syrian general and politician (b. 1950)
  • 2012 – Hasan Turkmani, Syrian general and politician, Syrian Minister of Defense (b. 1935)
  • 2012 – Rajesh Khanna, Indian actor (b. 1942)
  • 2013 – Vaali, Indian poet, songwriter, and actor (b. 1931)
  • 2013 – Olivier Ameisen, French-American cardiologist and academic (b. 1953)
  • 2014 – Andreas Biermann, German footballer (b. 1980)
  • 2014 – João Ubaldo Ribeiro, Brazilian journalist, author, and academic (b. 1941)
  • 2014 – Dietmar Schönherr, Austrian-Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Alex Rocco, American actor (b. 1936)
  • 2018 – Jonathan Gold, American food critic (b. 1960)
  • 2018 – Adrian Cronauer, American Radio personality (b. 1938)

Holidays and observances on July 18

  • Christian feast day:
    • Arnulf of Metz
    • Bartolomé de las Casas (Episcopal Church (USA))
    • Bruno of Segni
    • Camillus de Lellis (optional memorial, United States only)
    • Eadburh (or Edburga) of Bicester
    • Elizabeth Ferard (Church of England)
    • Frederick of Utrecht
    • Goneri of Brittany
    • Gundenis
    • Marina of Aguas Santas
    • Maternus of Milan
    • Minnborinus of Cologne
    • Pambo
    • Philastrius (or Filaster)
    • Symphorosa
    • Teneu (or Theneva)
    • Theodosia of Constantinople
    • July 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Constitution Day (Uruguay)
  • Nelson Mandela International Day

July 18- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 16 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 622 – The beginning of the Islamic calendar.
  • 997 – Battle of Spercheios: Bulgarian forces of Tsar Samuel are defeated by a Byzantine army under general Nikephoros Ouranos at the Spercheios River in Greece.
  • 1054 – Three Roman legates break relations between Western and Eastern Christian Churches through the act of placing an invalidly-issued Papal bull of Excommunication on the altar of Hagia Sophia during Saturday afternoon divine liturgy. Historians frequently describe the event as the start of the East–West Schism.
  • 1212 – Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa: After Pope Innocent III calls European knights to a crusade, forces of Kings Alfonso VIII of Castile, Sancho VII of Navarre, Peter II of Aragon and Afonso II of Portugal defeat those of the Berber Muslim leader Almohad, thus marking a significant turning point in the Reconquista and in the medieval history of Spain.
  • 1232 – The Spanish town of Arjona declares independence and names its native Muhammad ibn Yusuf as ruler. This marks Muhammad’s first rise to prominence; he would later establish the Nasrid Emirate of Granada, the last independent Muslim state in Spain.
  • 1251 – Celebrated by the Carmelite Order – but doubted by modern historians – as the day when Saint Simon Stock had a vision of the Virgin Mary
  • 1377 – King Richard II of England is crowned.
  • 1661 – The first banknotes in Europe are issued by the Swedish bank Stockholms Banco.
  • 1683 – Manchu Qing dynasty naval forces under traitorous commander Shi Lang defeat the Kingdom of Tungning in the Battle of Penghu near the Pescadores Islands.
  • 1769 – Father Junípero Serra founds California’s first mission, Mission San Diego de Alcalá. Over the following decades, it evolves into the city of San Diego, California.
  • 1779 – American Revolutionary War: Light infantry of the Continental Army seize a fortified British Army position in a midnight bayonet attack at the Battle of Stony Point.
  • 1790 – The District of Columbia is established as the capital of the United States after signature of the Residence Act.
  • 1809 – The city of La Paz, in what is today Bolivia, declares its independence from the Spanish Crown during the La Paz revolution and forms the Junta Tuitiva, the first independent government in Spanish America, led by Pedro Domingo Murillo.
  • 1849 – Antonio María Claret y Clará founds the Congregation of the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, popularly known as the Claretians in Vic, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: At the order of President Abraham Lincoln, Union troops begin a 25-mile march into Virginia for what will become the First Battle of Bull Run, the first major land battle of the war.
  • 1862 – American Civil War: David Farragut is promoted to rear admiral, becoming the first officer in United States Navy to hold an admiral rank.
  • 1909 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar is forced out as Shah of Persia and is replaced by his son Ahmad Shah Qajar.
  • 1910 – John Robertson Duigan makes the first flight of the Duigan pusher biplane, the first aircraft built in Australia.
  • 1915 – Henry James becomes a British citizen to highlight his commitment to Britain during the first World War.
  • 1915 – At Treasure Island on the Delaware River in the United States, the First Order of the Arrow ceremony takes place and the Order of the Arrow is founded to honor American Boy Scouts who best exemplify the Scout Oath and Law.
  • 1927 – Augusto César Sandino leads a raid on U.S. Marines and Nicaraguan Guardia Nacional that had been sent to apprehend him in the village of Ocotal, but is repulsed by one of the first dive-bombing attacks in history.
  • 1931 – Emperor Haile Selassie signs the first constitution of Ethiopia.
  • 1935 – The world’s first parking meter is installed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
  • 1941 – Joe DiMaggio hits safely for the 56th consecutive game, a streak that still stands as an MLB record.
  • 1942 – Holocaust: Vel’ d’Hiv Roundup (Rafle du Vel’ d’Hiv): The government of Vichy France orders the mass arrest of 13,152 Jews who are held at the Vélodrome d’Hiver in Paris before deportation to Auschwitz.
  • 1945 – World War II: The heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis leaves San Francisco with parts for the atomic bomb “Little Boy” bound for Tinian Island.
  • 1945 – Manhattan Project: The Atomic Age begins when the United States successfully detonates a plutonium-based test nuclear weapon near Alamogordo, New Mexico.
  • 1948 – Following token resistance, the city of Nazareth, revered by Christians as the hometown of Jesus, capitulates to Israeli troops during Operation Dekel in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
  • 1948 – The storming of the cockpit of the Miss Macao passenger seaplane, operated by a subsidiary of the Cathay Pacific Airways, marks the first aircraft hijacking of a commercial plane.
  • 1950 – Chaplain–Medic massacre: American POWs are massacred by North Korean Army.
  • 1951 – King Leopold III of Belgium abdicates in favor of his son, Baudouin I of Belgium.
  • 1956 – Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus closes its last “Big Tent” show in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; due to changing economics, all subsequent circus shows will be held in arenas.
  • 1965 – The Mont Blanc Tunnel linking France and Italy opens.
  • 1965 – South Vietnamese Colonel Phạm Ngọc Thảo, a formerly undetected communist spy and double agent, is hunted down and killed by unknown individuals after being sentenced to death in absentia for a February 1965 coup attempt against Nguyễn Khánh.
  • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11, the first mission to land astronauts on the Moon, is launched from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Kennedy, Florida.
  • 1979 – Iraqi President Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr resigns and is replaced by Saddam Hussein.
  • 1983 – Sikorsky S-61 disaster: A helicopter crashes off the Isles of Scilly, causing 20 fatalities.
  • 1990 – The Luzon earthquake strikes the Philippines with an intensity of 7.7, affecting Benguet, Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, La Union, Aurora, Bataan, Zambales and Tarlac.
  • 1990 – The Parliament of the Ukrainian SSR declares state sovereignty over the territory of the Ukrainian SSR.
  • 1999 – John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife, Carolyn, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, died when the Piper Saratoga PA-32R aircraft he was piloting crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard.
  • 2004 – Millennium Park, considered Chicago’s first and most ambitious early 21st-century architectural project, is opened to the public by Mayor Richard M. Daley.
  • 2007 – An earthquake of magnitude 6.8 and 6.6 aftershock occurs off the Niigata coast of Japan killing eight people, injuring at least 800 and damaging a nuclear power plant.
  • 2013 – As many as 27 children die and 25 others are hospitalized after eating lunch served at their school in eastern India.
  • 2015 – Four U.S. Marines and one gunman die in a shooting spree targeting military installations in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
  • 2019 – 100 years old building in Mumbai, India, collapsed, killing at least 10 people and many remaining trapped.

Births on July 16

  • 1194 – Clare of Assisi, an Italian nun and saint (d. 1253)
  • 1486 – Andrea del Sarto, Italian painter (d. 1530)
  • 1517 – Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk, English duchess (d. 1559)
  • 1529 – Petrus Peckius the Elder, Dutch jurist, writer on international maritime law (d. 1589)
  • 1611 – Cecilia Renata of Austria (d. 1644)
  • 1661 – Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville, Canadian captain, explorer, and politician (d. 1706)
  • 1714 – Marc René, marquis de Montalembert, French engineer and author (d. 1800)
  • 1722 – Joseph Wilton, English sculptor and academic (d. 1803)
  • 1723 – Joshua Reynolds, English painter and academic (d. 1792)
  • 1731 – Samuel Huntington, American jurist and politician, 18th Governor of Connecticut (d. 1796)
  • 1749 – Cyrus Griffin, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 16th President of the Continental Congress (d. 1810)
  • 1796 – Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, French painter and etcher (d. 1875)
  • 1821 – Mary Baker Eddy, American religious leader and author, founded Christian Science (d. 1910)
  • 1841 – Nikolai von Glehn, Estonian-German architect and activist (d. 1923)
  • 1858 – Eugène Ysaÿe, Belgian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1931)
  • 1862 – Ida B. Wells, American journalist and activist (d. 1931)
  • 1863 – Anderson Dawson, Australian politician, 14th Premier of Queensland (d. 1910)
  • 1870 – Lambert McKenna, Irish priest, lexicographer, and scholar (d. 1956)
  • 1871 – John Maxwell, American golfer (d. 1906)
  • 1872 – Roald Amundsen, Norwegian pilot and explorer (d. 1928)
  • 1872 – Frank Cooper, Australian politician, 25th Premier of Queensland (d. 1949)
  • 1880 – Kathleen Norris, American journalist and author (d. 1966)
  • 1882 – Violette Neatley Anderson, American judge (d. 1937)
  • 1883 – Charles Sheeler, American photographer and painter (d. 1965)
  • 1884 – Anna Vyrubova, Russian author (d. 1964)
  • 1887 – Shoeless Joe Jackson, American baseball player and manager (d. 1951)
  • 1888 – Percy Kilbride, American actor (d. 1964)
  • 1888 – Frits Zernike, Dutch physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1966)
  • 1889 – Arthur Bowie Chrisman, American author (d. 1953)
  • 1895 – Wilfrid Hamel, Canadian businessman and politician, 35th Mayor of Quebec City (d. 1968)
  • 1896 – Otmar Freiherr von Verschuer, German biologist and eugenicist (d. 1969)
  • 1896 – Trygve Lie, Norwegian trade union leader and politician, 1st Secretary-General of the United Nations (d. 1968)
  • 1902 – Alexander Luria, Russian psychologist and physician (d. 1977)
  • 1902 – Mary Philbin, American actress (d. 1993)
  • 1903 – Fritz Bauer, German lawyer and judge (d. 1968)
  • 1903 – Carmen Lombardo, Canadian singer-songwriter (d. 1971)
  • 1903 – Irmgard Flügge-Lotz, German mathematician and engineer (d. 1974)
  • 1904 – Goffredo Petrassi, Italian composer and conductor (d. 2003)
  • 1906 – Vincent Sherman, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1907 – Frances Horwich, American educator and television host (d. 2001)
  • 1907 – Orville Redenbacher, American farmer and businessman, founded Orville Redenbacher’s (d. 1995)
  • 1907 – Barbara Stanwyck, American actress (d. 1990)
  • 1910 – Stan McCabe, Australian cricketer (d. 1968)
  • 1910 – Gordon Prange, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1980)
  • 1911 – Ginger Rogers, American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 1995)
  • 1911 – Sonny Tufts, American actor (d. 1970)
  • 1912 – Milt Bocek, American baseball player (d. 2007)
  • 1912 – Amy Patterson, Argentine composer, singer, poet, and teacher (d. 2019)
  • 1915 – Barnard Hughes, American actor (d. 2006)
  • 1915 – Elaine Barrie, American actress (d. 2003)
  • 1918 – Denis Edward Arnold, English soldier (d. 2015)
  • 1918 – Paul Farnes, famed World War II Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter pilot and one of “The Few” surviving pilots of the Battle of Britain (d. 2020)
  • 1918 – Samuel Victor Perry, English biochemist and rugby player (d. 2009)
  • 1919 – Hermine Braunsteiner, Austrian SS officer (d. 1999)
  • 1919 – Choi Kyu-hah, South Korean politician, 4th President of South Korea (d. 2006)
  • 1920 – Anatole Broyard, American critic and editor (d. 1990)
  • 1923 – Chris Argyris, American psychologist, theorist, and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – Bola Sete, Brazilian guitarist (d. 1987)
  • 1924 – James L. Greenfield, American journalist and politician
  • 1924 – Bess Myerson, American model, actress, game show panelist, and politician, Miss America 1945 (d. 2014)
  • 1924 – Rupert Deese, Northern Mariana Islander ceramic artist (d. 2010)
  • 1925 – Frank Jobe, American sergeant and surgeon (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – Rosita Quintana, Argentine actress
  • 1925 – Cal Tjader, American jazz musician (d. 1982)
  • 1926 – Ivica Horvat, Croatian footballer and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1926 – Irwin Rose, American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Pierre F. Côté, Canadian lawyer and civil servant (d. 2013)
  • 1927 – Shirley Hughes, English author and illustrator
  • 1927 – Derek Hawksworth, English footballer
  • 1928 – Anita Brookner, English novelist and art historian (d. 2016)
  • 1928 – Bella Davidovich, Soviet-American pianist
  • 1928 – Robert Sheckley, American author and screenwriter (d. 2005)
  • 1928 – Jim Rathmann, American race car driver (d. 2011)
  • 1928 – Dave Treen, American lawyer and politician, 51st Governor of Louisiana (d. 2009)
  • 1928 – Andrzej Zawada, Polish mountaineer and author (d. 2000)
  • 1929 – Charles Ray Hatcher, American serial killer (d. 1984)
  • 1929 – Sheri S. Tepper, American author and poet (d. 2016)
  • 1929 – Gaby Tanguy, French swimmer
  • 1930 – Guy Béart, Egyptian-French singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1930 – Michael Bilirakis, American lawyer and politician
  • 1930 – Bert Rechichar, American football defensive back and kicker (d. 2019)
  • 1931 – Fergus Gordon Kerr, Scottish Roman Catholic priest of the English Dominican Province
  • 1931 – Norm Sherry, American former catcher, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball
  • 1932 – John Chilton, English trumpet player and composer (d. 2016)
  • 1932 – Max McGee, American football player and sportscaster (d. 2007)
  • 1932 – Dick Thornburgh, American lawyer and politician, 76th United States Attorney General
  • 1933 – Julian A. Brodsky, American businessman
  • 1934 – Tomás Eloy Martínez, Argentine journalist (d. 2010)
  • 1934 – Katherine D. Ortega, 38th Treasurer of the United States
  • 1934 – Donald M. Payne, American educator and politician (d. 2012)
  • 1935 – Carl Epting Mundy Jr., American general (d. 2014)
  • 1935 – Lynn Wyatt, American socialite and philanthropist
  • 1936 – Yasuo Fukuda, Japanese politician, 91st Prime Minister of Japan
  • 1936 – Buddy Merrill, American guitarist
  • 1936 – Jerry Norman, American sinologist and linguist (d. 2012)
  • 1936 – Venkataraman Subramanya, Indian-Australian cricketer
  • 1937 – Richard Bryan, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Nevada
  • 1937 – John Daly, English director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2008)
  • 1938 – Cynthia Enloe, American author and academic
  • 1938 – Tony Jackson, English singer and bass player (d. 2003)
  • 1939 – William Bell, American singer-songwriter
  • 1939 – Lido Vieri, Italian football manager and football player
  • 1939 – Denise LaSalle, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2018)
  • 1939 – Ruth Perry, president of Liberia (d. 2017)
  • 1939 – Shringar Nagaraj, Indian actor and producer (d. 2013)
  • 1939 – Corin Redgrave, English actor and activist (d. 2010)
  • 1939 – Mariele Ventre, Italian singer and conductor (d. 1995)
  • 1941 – Desmond Dekker, Jamaican singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1941 – Dag Solstad, Norwegian author and playwright
  • 1941 – Hans Wiegel, Dutch journalist and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands
  • 1941 – Sir George Young, 6th Baronet, English banker and politician, Secretary of State for Transport
  • 1942 – Margaret Court, Australian tennis player and minister
  • 1943 – Reinaldo Arenas, Cuban-American author, poet, and playwright (d. 1990)
  • 1943 – Vernon Bogdanor, English political scientist and academic
  • 1943 – Jimmy Johnson, American football player and coach
  • 1944 – Angharad Rees, English-Welsh actress and jewellery designer (d. 2012)
  • 1946 – Louise Fréchette, Canadian civil servant and diplomat, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
  • 1946 – Barbara Lee, American politician
  • 1946 – Ron Yary, American football player
  • 1947 – Don Burke, Australian television host and producer
  • 1947 – Alexis Herman, American businesswoman and politician, 23rd United States Secretary of Labor
  • 1947 – Assata Shakur, American-Cuban criminal and activist
  • 1948 – Rubén Blades, Panamanian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
  • 1948 – Lars Lagerbäck, Swedish footballer and manager
  • 1948 – Kevin McKenzie, South African cricketer
  • 1948 – Pinchas Zukerman, Israeli violinist and conductor
  • 1949 – Alan Fitzgerald, American guitarist and keyboardist
  • 1950 – Pierre Paradis, Canadian lawyer and politician
  • 1950 – Dennis Priestley, English darts player
  • 1950 – Frances Spalding, English historian and academic
  • 1950 – Tom Terrell, American journalist and photographer (d. 2007)
  • 1951 – Jean-Luc Mongrain, Canadian journalist
  • 1951 – Che Rosli, Malaysian politician
  • 1952 – Stewart Copeland, American drummer and songwriter
  • 1952 – Richard Egielski, American author and illustrator
  • 1952 – Marc Esposito, French director and screenwriter
  • 1952 – Ken McEwan, South African cricketer
  • 1953 – Douglas J. Feith, American lawyer and politician, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
  • 1954 – Jeanette Mott Oxford, American politician
  • 1955 – Susan Wheeler, American poet and academic
  • 1955 – Saw Swee Leong, Malaysian badminton player
  • 1956 – Tony Kushner, American playwright and screenwriter
  • 1957 – Faye Grant, American actress
  • 1957 – Alexandra Marinina, Ukrainian-Russian colonel and author
  • 1958 – Mick Cornett, American politician, and former mayor of Oklahoma City.
  • 1958 – Michael Flatley, American-Irish dancer and choreographer
  • 1958 – Mike Rogers, American politician
  • 1959 – Gary Anderson, South African-American football player
  • 1959 – James MacMillan, Scottish composer and conductor
  • 1959 – Zoran Jolevski, Macedonian economist, politician, and diplomat, Macedonian Ambassador to the United States
  • 1959 – Jürgen Ligi, Estonian economist and politician, 25th Estonian Minister of Defence
  • 1960 – Terry Pendleton, American baseball player and coach
  • 1962 – Grigory Leps, Russian singer-songwriter
  • 1963 – Phoebe Cates, American actress
  • 1963 – Srečko Katanec, Slovenian footballer and coach
  • 1963 – Mikael Pernfors, Swedish tennis player
  • 1964 – Phil Hellmuth, American poker player
  • 1964 – Miguel Induráin, Spanish cyclist
  • 1965 – Michel Desjoyeaux, French sailor
  • 1965 – Claude Lemieux, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1965 – Sherri Stoner, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1966 – Jyrki Lumme, Finnish ice hockey player
  • 1967 – Will Ferrell, American actor, comedian, and producer
  • 1968 – Dhanraj Pillay, Indian field hockey player and manager
  • 1968 – Barry Sanders, American football player
  • 1968 – Larry Sanger, American philosopher and businessman, co-founded Wikipedia and Citizendium
  • 1968 – Michael Searle, Australian rugby league player and businessman
  • 1968 – Robert Sherman, American songwriter and businessman
  • 1968 – Olga Souza, Brazilian singer and dancer
  • 1969 – Jules De Martino, English singer-songwriter and bass player
  • 1969 – Kathryn Harby-Williams, Australian netball player and sportscaster
  • 1970 – Raimonds Miglinieks, Latvian basketball player and coach
  • 1970 – Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thai director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1971 – Corey Feldman, American actor
  • 1971 – Ed Kowalczyk, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Live)
  • 1972 – Ben Cahoon, American-Canadian football player and coach
  • 1972 – François Drolet, Canadian speed skater
  • 1973 – Shaun Pollock, South African cricketer
  • 1973 – Graham Robertson, American director and producer
  • 1973 – Tim Ryan, American politician
  • 1974 – Jeremy Enigk, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1974 – Maret Maripuu, Estonian politician, Estonian Minister of Social Affairs
  • 1974 – Ryan McCombs, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1974 – Wendell Sailor, Australian rugby player
  • 1975 – Bas Leinders, Belgian race car driver
  • 1976 – Tomasz Kuchar, Polish race car driver
  • 1976 – Carlos Humberto Paredes, Paraguayan footballer
  • 1976 – Anna Smashnova, Belarusian-Israeli tennis player
  • 1977 – Bryan Budd, Northern Ireland-born English soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 2006)
  • 1979 – Chris Mihm, American basketball player
  • 1979 – Mai Nakamura, Japanese swimmer
  • 1979 – Kim Rhode, American sport shooter
  • 1979 – Nathan Rogers, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1979 – Konstantin Skrylnikov, Russian footballer
  • 1980 – Adam Scott, Australian golfer
  • 1981 – Giuseppe Di Masi, Italian footballer
  • 1981 – Robert Kranjec, Slovenian ski jumper
  • 1981 – Zach Randolph, American basketball player
  • 1981 – Vicente Rodríguez, Spanish footballer
  • 1982 – André Greipel, German cyclist
  • 1982 – Carli Lloyd, American soccer player
  • 1982 – Michael Umaña, Costa Rican footballer
  • 1983 – Duncan Keith, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1984 – Hayanari Shimoda, Japanese race car driver
  • 1984 – Attila Szabó, Hungarian decathlete
  • 1985 – Mārtiņš Kravčenko, Latvian basketball player
  • 1986 – Dustin Boyd, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Misako Uno, Japanese actress, singer, and fashion designer
  • 1987 – Mousa Dembélé, Belgian footballer
  • 1987 – AnnaLynne McCord, American actress and producer
  • 1987 – Knowshon Moreno, American football player
  • 1988 – Sergio Busquets, Spanish footballer
  • 1989 – Gareth Bale, Welsh footballer
  • 1990 – Bureta Faraimo, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1990 – Wizkid, Nigerian singer and songwriter
  • 1990 – Johann Zarco, French motorcycle racer
  • 1991 – Nate Schmidt, American ice hockey player
  • 1991 – Andros Townsend, English footballer
  • 1996 – Daniel Pearson, English actor and presenter

Deaths on July 16

  • 784 – Fulrad, Frankish diplomat and saint (b. 710)
  • 866 – Irmgard, Frankish abbess
  • 1212 – William de Brus, 3rd Lord of Annandale
  • 1216 – Pope Innocent III (b. 1160)
  • 1324 – Emperor Go-Uda of Japan (b. 1267)
  • 1342 – Charles I of Hungary (b. 1288)
  • 1344 – An-Nasir Ahmad, Sultan of Egypt (b. 1316)
  • 1509 – João da Nova, Portuguese explorer (b. 1460)
  • 1546 – Anne Askew, English author and poet (b. 1520)
  • 1557 – Anne of Cleves (b. 1515)
  • 1576 – Isabella de’ Medici, Italian noble (b. 1542)
  • 1647 – Masaniello, Italian rebel (b. 1622)
  • 1664 – Andreas Gryphius, German poet and playwright (b. 1616)
  • 1686 – John Pearson, English bishop and scholar (b. 1612)
  • 1691 – François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois, French politician, French Secretary of State for War (b. 1641)
  • 1729 – Johann David Heinichen, German composer and theorist (b. 1683)
  • 1747 – Giuseppe Crespi, Italian painter (b. 1665)
  • 1770 – Francis Cotes, English painter and academic (b. 1726)
  • 1796 – George Howard, English field marshal and politician (b. 1718)
  • 1831 – Louis Alexandre Andrault de Langeron, French-Russian general (b. 1763)
  • 1849 – Sarah Allen, African-American missionary for the African Methodist Episcopal Church (b. 1764)
  • 1868 – Dmitry Pisarev, Russian author and critic (b. 1840)
  • 1879 – Edward Deas Thomson, Scottish-Australian politician, 3rd Chief Secretary of New South Wales (b. 1800)
  • 1882 – Mary Todd Lincoln, First Lady of the United States 1861-1865 (b. 1818)
  • 1886 – Ned Buntline, American journalist and author (b. 1823)
  • 1896 – Edmond de Goncourt, French critic and publisher, founded Académie Goncourt (b. 1822)
  • 1915 – Ellen G. White, American theologian and author (b. 1827)
  • 1917 – Philipp Scharwenka, German composer and educator (b. 1847)
  • 1939 – Bartholomeus Roodenburch, Dutch swimmer (b. 1866)
  • 1949 – Vyacheslav Ivanov, Russian poet and playwright (b. 1866)
  • 1953 – Hilaire Belloc, French-born British writer and historian (b. 1870)
  • 1954 – Herms Niel, German soldier, trombonist, and composer (b. 1888)
  • 1960 – Albert Kesselring, German field marshal (b. 1881)
  • 1960 – John P. Marquand, American author (b. 1893)
  • 1964 – Rauf Orbay, Turkish colonel and politician, Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1881)
  • 1965 – Boris Artzybasheff, Ukrainian-American illustrator (b.1899)
  • 1969 – James Scott Douglas, English-born Scottish race car driver and 6th Baronet Douglas (b. 1930)
  • 1981 – Harry Chapin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
  • 1982 – Charles Robberts Swart, South African lawyer and politician, 1st State President of South Africa (b. 1894)
  • 1985 – Heinrich Böll, German novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917)
  • 1985 – Wayne King, American saxophonist, songwriter, and bandleader (b. 1901)
  • 1989 – Herbert von Karajan, Austrian conductor and manager (b. 1908)
  • 1990 – Robert Blackburn, Irish educator (b. 1927)
  • 1990 – Miguel Muñoz, Spanish footballer and manager (b. 1922)
  • 1991 – Meindert DeJong, Dutch-American soldier and author (b. 1906)
  • 1991 – Robert Motherwell, American painter and academic (b. 1915)
  • 1991 – Frank Rizzo, American police officer and politician, 93rd Mayor of Philadelphia (b. 1920)
  • 1992 – Buck Buchanan, American football player and coach (b. 1940)
  • 1994 – Julian Schwinger, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
  • 1995 – May Sarton, American playwright and novelist (b. 1912)
  • 1995 – Stephen Spender, English author and poet (b. 1909)
  • 1996 – Adolf von Thadden, German lieutenant and politician (b. 1921)
  • 1998 – John Henrik Clarke, American historian and scholar (b. 1915)
  • 1999 – John F. Kennedy Jr., American lawyer and publisher (b. 1960)
  • 1999 – Alan Macnaughton, Canadian lawyer and politician, Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons (b. 1903)
  • 2001 – Morris, Belgian cartoonist (b. 1923)
  • 2002 – John Cocke, American computer scientist and engineer (b. 1925)
  • 2003 – Celia Cruz, Cuban-American singer and actress (b. 1925)
  • 2003 – Carol Shields, American-Canadian novelist and short story writer (b. 1935)
  • 2004 – George Busbee, American lawyer and politician, 77th Governor of Georgia (b. 1927)
  • 2004 – Charles Sweeney, American general and pilot (b. 1919)
  • 2005 – Pietro Consagra, Italian sculptor (b. 1920)
  • 2005 – Camillo Felgen, Luxembourgian singer-songwriter and radio host (b. 1920)
  • 2006 – Winthrop Paul Rockefeller, American businessman and politician, 13th Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas (b. 1948)
  • 2007 – Caterina Bueno, Italian singer and historian (b. 1943)
  • 2008 – Jo Stafford, American singer (b. 1917)
  • 2008 – Lindsay Thompson, Australian politician, 40th Premier of Victoria (b. 1923)
  • 2011 – Forrest Blue, American football player (b. 1944)
  • 2012 – William Asher, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Stephen Covey, American businessman and author (b. 1932)
  • 2012 – Gilbert Esau, American businessman and politician (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Ed Lincoln, Brazilian bassist, pianist, and composer (b. 1932)
  • 2012 – Masaharu Matsushita, Japanese businessman (b. 1913)
  • 2012 – Kitty Wells, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1919)
  • 2013 – Alex Colville, Canadian painter and academic (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – Marv Rotblatt, American baseball player (1927)
  • 2014 – Karl Albrecht, German businessman, co-founded Aldi (b. 1920)
  • 2014 – Mary Ellen Otremba, American educator and politician (b. 1950)
  • 2014 – Johnny Winter, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1944)
  • 2014 – Heinz Zemanek, Austrian computer scientist and academic (b. 1920)
  • 2015 – Denis Avey, English soldier, engineer, and author (b. 1919)
  • 2015 – Evelyn Ebsworth, English chemist and academic (b. 1933)
  • 2015 – Alcides Ghiggia, Uruguayan footballer and manager (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Jack Goody, English anthropologist, author, and academic (b. 1919)
  • 2017 – George Romero, American filmmaker (b. 1940)

Holidays and observances on July 16

  • Christian feast day:
    • Gondulphus of Tongeren
    • Helier
    • Our Lady of Mount Carmel
      • Fiesta de La Tirana (Tarapacá Region, Chile)
    • Reineldis
    • July 16 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Engineer’s Day (Honduras)
  • Holocaust Memorial Day (France)

July 16 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 484 BC – Dedication of the Temple of Castor and Pollux in ancient Rome
  • AD 70 – Titus and his armies breach the walls of Jerusalem. (17th of Tammuz in the Hebrew calendar).
  • 756 – An Lushan Rebellion: Emperor Xuanzong of Tang is ordered by his Imperial Guards to execute chancellor Yang Guozhong by forcing him to commit suicide or face a mutiny. General An Lushan has other members of the emperor’s family killed.
  • 1099 – First Crusade: Christian soldiers take the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the final assault of a difficult siege.
  • 1149 – The reconstructed Church of the Holy Sepulchre is consecrated in Jerusalem.
  • 1207 – King John of England expels Canterbury monks for supporting Archbishop Stephen Langton.
  • 1240 – Swedish–Novgorodian Wars: A Novgorodian army led by Alexander Nevsky defeats the Swedes in the Battle of the Neva.
  • 1381 – John Ball, a leader in the Peasants’ Revolt, is hanged, drawn, and quartered in the presence of King Richard II of England.
  • 1410 – Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War: Battle of Grunwald: The allied forces of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeat the army of the Teutonic Order.
  • 1482 – Muhammad XII is crowned the twenty-second and last Nasrid king of Granada.
  • 1738 – Baruch Laibov and Alexander Voznitzin are burned alive in St. Petersburg, Russia. Vonitzin had converted to Judaism with Laibov’s help, with the consent of Empress Anna Ivanovna.
  • 1741 – Aleksei Chirikov sights land in Southeast Alaska. He sends men ashore in a longboat, making them the first Europeans to visit Alaska.
  • 1789 – Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, is named by acclamation Colonel General of the new National Guard of Paris.
  • 1799 – The Rosetta Stone is found in the Egyptian village of Rosetta by French Captain Pierre-François Bouchard during Napoleon’s Egyptian Campaign.
  • 1806 – Pike Expedition: United States Army Lieutenant Zebulon Pike begins an expedition from Fort Bellefontaine near St. Louis, Missouri, to explore the west.
  • 1815 – Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon Bonaparte surrenders aboard HMS Bellerophon.
  • 1823 – A fire destroys the ancient Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, Italy.
  • 1834 – The Spanish Inquisition is officially disbanded after nearly 356 years.
  • 1838 – Ralph Waldo Emerson delivers the Divinity School Address at Harvard Divinity School, discounting Biblical miracles and declaring Jesus a great man, but not God. The Protestant community reacts with outrage.
  • 1862 – The CSS Arkansas, the most effective ironclad on the Mississippi River, battles with Union ships commanded by Admiral David Farragut, severely damaging three ships and sustaining heavy damage herself. The encounter changed the complexion of warfare on the Mississippi and helped to reverse Rebel fortunes on the river in the summer of 1862.
  • 1870 – Reconstruction Era of the United States: Georgia becomes the last of the former Confederate states to be readmitted to the Union.
  • 1870 – Rupert’s Land and the North-Western Territory are transferred to Canada from the Hudson’s Bay Company, and the province of Manitoba and the Northwest Territories are established from these vast territories.
  • 1888 – The stratovolcano Mount Bandai erupts killing approximately 500 people, in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan.
  • 1910 – In his book Clinical Psychiatry, Emil Kraepelin gives a name to Alzheimer’s disease, naming it after his colleague Alois Alzheimer.
  • 1916 – In Seattle, Washington, William Boeing and George Conrad Westervelt incorporate Pacific Aero Products (later renamed Boeing).
  • 1918 – World War I: The Second Battle of the Marne begins near the River Marne with a German attack.
  • 1920 – The Polish Parliament establishes Silesian Voivodeship before the Polish-German plebiscite.
  • 1922 – Japanese Communist Party is established in Japan.
  • 1927 – Massacre of July 15, 1927: Eighty-nine protesters are killed by the Austrian police in Vienna.
  • 1946 – State of North Borneo, today in Sabah, Malaysia, annexed by the United Kingdom.
  • 1954 – First flight of the Boeing 367-80, prototype for both the Boeing 707 and C-135 series.
  • 1955 – Eighteen Nobel laureates sign the Mainau Declaration against nuclear weapons, later co-signed by thirty-four others.
  • 1959 – The steel strike of 1959 begins, leading to significant importation of foreign steel for the first time in United States history.
  • 1966 – Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam begin Operation Hastings to push the North Vietnamese out of the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone.
  • 1971 – The United Red Army is founded in Japan.
  • 1974 – In Nicosia, Cyprus, Greek junta-sponsored nationalists launch a coup d’état, deposing President Makarios and installing Nikos Sampson as Cypriot president.
  • 1975 – Space Race: Apollo–Soyuz Test Project features the dual launch of an Apollo spacecraft and a Soyuz spacecraft on the first joint Soviet-United States human-crewed flight. It was both the last launch of an Apollo spacecraft, and the Saturn family of rockets.
  • 1979 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter gives his “malaise speech”.
  • 1983 – An attack at Orly Airport in Paris is launched by Armenian militant organisation ASALA, leaving eight people dead and 55 injured.
  • 1996 – A Belgian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying the Royal Netherlands Army marching band crashes on landing at Eindhoven Airport.
  • 1998 – Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP S. Shanmuganathan is killed by a claymore mine.
  • 2002 – “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and to possession of explosives during the commission of a felony.
  • 2002 – Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan hands down the death sentence to British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and life terms to three others suspected of murdering The Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.
  • 2003 – AOL Time Warner disbands Netscape. The Mozilla Foundation is established on the same day.
  • 2006 – Twitter, later one of the largest social media platforms in the world, is launched.
  • 2014 – A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 24 and injuring more than 160 others.
  • 2016 – Factions of the Turkish Armed Forces attempt a coup.

Births on July 15

  • 980 – Ichijō, Japanese emperor (d. 1011)
  • 1273 – Ewostatewos, Ethiopian monk and saint (d. 1352)
  • 1353 – Vladimir the Bold, Russian prince (d. 1410)
  • 1359 – Antonio Correr, Italian cardinal (d. 1445)
  • 1442 – Boček IV of Poděbrady, Bohemian nobleman (d. 1496)
  • 1455 – Queen Yun, Korean queen (d. 1482)
  • 1471 – Eskender, Ethiopian emperor (d. 1494)
  • 1478 – Barbara Jagiellon, duchess consort of Saxony and Margravine consort of Meissen (d. 1534)
  • 1573 – Inigo Jones, English architect, designed the Queen’s House (d. 1652)
  • 1600 – Jan Cossiers, Flemish painter (d. 1671)
  • 1606 – Rembrandt, Dutch painter and etcher (d. 1669)
  • 1611 – Jai Singh I, maharaja of Jaipur (d. 1667)
  • 1613 – Gu Yanwu, Chinese philologist and geographer (d. 1682)
  • 1631 – Jens Juel, Danish politician and diplomat, Governor-general of Norway (d. 1700)
  • 1631 – Richard Cumberland, English philosopher (d. 1718)
  • 1638 – Giovanni Buonaventura Viviani, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1693)
  • 1704 – August Gottlieb Spangenberg, German bishop and theologian (d. 1792)
  • 1779 – Clement Clarke Moore, American author, poet, and educator (d. 1863)
  • 1793 – Almira Hart Lincoln Phelps, American educator, author, editor (d. 1884)
  • 1796 – Thomas Bulfinch, American mythologist (d. 1867)
  • 1799 – Reuben Chapman, American lawyer and politician, 13th Governor of Alabama (d. 1882)
  • 1800 – Sidney Breese, American jurist and politician (d. 1878)
  • 1808 – Henry Edward Manning, English cardinal (d. 1892)
  • 1812 – James Hope-Scott, English lawyer and academic (d. 1873)
  • 1817 – Sir John Fowler, 1st Baronet, English engineer, designed the Forth Bridge (d. 1898)
  • 1827 – W. W. Thayer American lawyer and politician, 6th Governor of Oregon (d. 1899)
  • 1848 – Vilfredo Pareto, Italian economist and sociologist (d. 1923)
  • 1850 – Frances Xavier Cabrini, Italian-American nun and saint (d. 1917)
  • 1852 – Josef Josephi, Polish-born singer and actor (d. 1920)
  • 1858 – Emmeline Pankhurst, English political activist and suffragist (d. 1928)
  • 1864 – Marie Tempest, English actress and singer (d. 1942)
  • 1865 – Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe, Anglo-Irish businessman and publisher, founded the Amalgamated Press (d. 1922)
  • 1865 – Wilhelm Wirtinger, Austrian-German mathematician and theorist (d. 1945)
  • 1867 – Jean-Baptiste Charcot, French physician and explorer (d. 1936)
  • 1871 – Doppo Kunikida, Japanese journalist, author, and poet (d. 1908)
  • 1880 – Enrique Mosca, Argentinian lawyer and politician (d. 1950)
  • 1887 – Wharton Esherick, American sculptor (d. 1970)
  • 1892 – Walter Benjamin, German philosopher and critic (d. 1940)
  • 1893 – Enid Bennett, Australian-American actress (d. 1969)
  • 1893 – Dick Rauch, American football player and coach (d. 1970)
  • 1894 – Tadeusz Sendzimir, Polish-American engineer (d. 1989)
  • 1899 – Seán Lemass, Irish soldier and politician, 4th Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 1971)
  • 1902 – Jean Rey, Belgian lawyer and politician, 2nd President of the European Commission (d. 1983)
  • 1903 – Walter D. Edmonds, American journalist and author (d. 1998)
  • 1903 – K. Kamaraj, Indian journalist and politician (d. 1975)
  • 1904 – Rudolf Arnheim, German-American psychologist and author (d. 2007)
  • 1905 – Dorothy Fields, American songwriter (d. 1974)
  • 1905 – Anita Farra, Italian actress (d. 2008)
  • 1906 – R. S. Mugali, Indian poet and academic (d. 1993)
  • 1906 – Rudolf Uhlenhaut, English-German engineer (d. 1989)
  • 1909 – Jean Hamburger, French physician and surgeon (d. 1992)
  • 1911 – Edward Shackleton, Baron Shackleton, English geographer and politician, Secretary of State for Air (d. 1994)
  • 1913 – Cowboy Copas, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1963)
  • 1913 – Hammond Innes, English journalist and author (d. 1998)
  • 1913 – Abraham Sutzkever, Russian poet and author (d. 2010)
  • 1914 – Akhtar Hameed Khan, Pakistani economist, scholar, and activist (d. 1999)
  • 1914 – Howard Vernon, Swiss-French actor (d. 1996)
  • 1915 – Albert Ghiorso, American chemist and academic (d. 2010)
  • 1915 – Kashmir Singh Katoch, Indian army officer (d. 2007)
  • 1916 – Sumner Gerard, American politician and diplomat (d. 2004)
  • 1917 – Robert Conquest, English-American historian, poet, and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1917 – Joan Roberts, American actress and singer (d. 2012)
  • 1917 – Nur Muhammad Taraki, Afghan journalist and politician (d. 1979)
  • 1918 – Bertram Brockhouse, Canadian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2003)
  • 1918 – Brenda Milner, English-Canadian neuropsychologist and academic
  • 1919 – Fritz Langanke, German lieutenant (d. 2012)
  • 1919 – Iris Murdoch, Anglo-Irish British novelist and philosopher (d. 1999)
  • 1921 – Jack Beeson, American pianist and composer (d. 2010)
  • 1921 – Henri Colpi, Swiss-French director and screenwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Robert Bruce Merrifield, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Jean Heywood, British actress (d. 2019)
  • 1922 – Leon M. Lederman, American physicist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2018)
  • 1922 – Jean-Pierre Richard, French writer (d. 2019)
  • 1923 – Francisco de Andrade, Portuguese sailor
  • 1924 – Jeremiah Denton, American admiral and politician (d. 2014)
  • 1924 – Marianne Bernadotte, Swedish actress and philanthropist
  • 1925 – Philip Carey, American actor (d. 2009)
  • 1925 – Taylor Hardwick, American architect, designed Haydon Burns Library and Friendship Fountain Park (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – D. A. Pennebaker, American documentary filmmaker (d. 2019)
  • 1925 – Evan Hultman, American politician
  • 1925 – Antony Carbone, American actor
  • 1925 – Pandel Savic, American football player (d. 2018)
  • 1926 – Driss Chraïbi, Moroccan-French journalist and author (d. 2007)
  • 1926 – Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentinian general and politician, 44th President of Argentina (d. 2003)
  • 1926 – Raymond Gosling, English physicist and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1926 – Sir John Graham, 4th Baronet, English diplomat (d. 2019)
  • 1927 – Nan Martin, American actress (d. 2010)
  • 1927 – Carmen Zapata, American actress (d. 2014)
  • 1927 – Håkon Brusveen, Norwegian cross-country skier
  • 1928 – Carl Woese, American microbiologist and biophysicist (d. 2012)
  • 1928 – Viramachaneni Vimla Devi, Indian parliamentarian (d. 1967)
  • 1929 – Charles Anthony, American tenor and actor (d. 2012)
  • 1929 – Francis Bebey, Cameroonian-French guitarist (d. 2001)
  • 1929 – Ian Stewart, Scottish race car driver (d. 2017)
  • 1930 – Jacques Derrida, Algerian-French philosopher and academic (d. 2004)
  • 1930 – Richard Garneau, Canadian journalist and sportscaster (d. 2013)
  • 1930 – Stephen Smale, American mathematician and computer scientist
  • 1930 – Einosuke Akiya, Japanese Buddhist leader
  • 1931 – Clive Cussler, American archaeologist and author (d. 2020)
  • 1931 – Joanna Merlin, American actress and casting director
  • 1931 – Jacques-Yvan Morin, Canadian lawyer and politician, Deputy Premier of Quebec
  • 1932 – Ed Litzenberger, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2010)
  • 1933 – Guido Crepax, Italian author and illustrator (d. 2003)
  • 1933 – M. T. Vasudevan Nair, Indian author and screenwriter
  • 1934 – Harrison Birtwistle, English composer and academic
  • 1934 – Eva Krížiková, Czech actress (d. 2020)
  • 1934 – Risto Jarva, Finnish director and producer (d. 1977)
  • 1935 – Donn Clendenon, American baseball player and lawyer (d. 2005)
  • 1935 – Alex Karras, American football player, wrestler, and actor (d. 2012)
  • 1935 – Ken Kercheval, American actor and director (d. 2019)
  • 1936 – George Voinovich, American lawyer and politician, 65th Governor of Ohio (d. 2016)
  • 1937 – Prabhash Joshi, Indian journalist (d. 2009)
  • 1938 – Ernie Barnes, American football player, actor, and painter (d. 2009)
  • 1938 – Carmen Callil, Australian publisher, founded Virago Press
  • 1938 – Barry Goldwater, Jr., American lawyer and politician
  • 1939 – Aníbal Cavaco Silva, Portuguese economist and politician, 19th President of the Portuguese Republic
  • 1940 – Denis Héroux, Canadian director and producer (d. 2015)
  • 1940 – Ronald Gene Simmons, American sergeant and convicted murderer (d. 1990)
  • 1940 – Robert Winston, English surgeon, academic, and politician
  • 1942 – Vivian Malone Jones, American civil rights activist (d. 2005)
  • 1943 – Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Northern Irish astrophysicist, astronomer, and academic
  • 1944 – Millie Jackson, American singer-songwriter
  • 1945 – Jan-Michael Vincent, American actor (d. 2019)
  • 1945 – David Arthur Granger, Guyanese politician, 9th President of Guyana
  • 1945 – Peter Lewis (musician), American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1945 – Jürgen Möllemann, German soldier and politician, Vice-Chancellor of Germany (d. 2003)
  • 1946 – Linda Ronstadt, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
  • 1946 – Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan of Brunei
  • 1947 – Peter Banks, English guitarist and songwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1947 – Lydia Davis, American short story writer, novelist, and essayist
  • 1947 – Pridiyathorn Devakula, Thai economist and politician, Thai Minister of Finance
  • 1947 – Roky Erickson, American singer-songwriter and musician (d. 2019)
  • 1948 – Twinkle, English singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1948 – Dimosthenis Kourtovik, Greek anthropologist and critic
  • 1948 – Artimus Pyle, American rock drummer and songwriter (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
  • 1949 – Carl Bildt, Swedish politician and diplomat, Prime Minister of Sweden
  • 1949 – Trevor Horn, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
  • 1949 – Richard Russo, American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter
  • 1950 – Colin Barnett, Australian economist and politician, 29th Premier of Western Australia
  • 1950 – Arianna Huffington, Greek-American journalist and publisher (The Huffington Post)
  • 1951 – Gregory Isaacs, Jamaican-English singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
  • 1951 – Jesse Ventura, American wrestler, actor, and politician, 38th Governor of Minnesota
  • 1952 – David Pack, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1952 – Celia Imrie, English actress
  • 1952 – Terry O’Quinn, American actor
  • 1952 – Marky Ramone, American drummer and songwriter
  • 1952 – Johnny Thunders, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1991)
  • 1953 – Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haitian priest and politician, 49th President of Haiti
  • 1953 – Sultanah Haminah, Malaysian royal consort
  • 1953 – Mohamad Shahrum Osman, Malaysian politician
  • 1953 – Alicia Bridges, American singer-songwriter
  • 1954 – John Ferguson, Australian rugby league player
  • 1954 – Jeff Jarvis, American journalist and blogger
  • 1954 – Giorgos Kaminis, American-Greek lawyer and politician, 78th Mayor of Athens
  • 1954 – Mario Kempes, Argentinian footballer and manager
  • 1956 – Ashoke Sen, Indian theoretical physicist and string theorist
  • 1956 – Ian Curtis, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Joy Division) (d. 1980)
  • 1956 – Nicholas Harberd, British botanist, educator and academician
  • 1956 – Barry Melrose, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1956 – Steve Mortimer, Australian rugby league player, coach, and administrator
  • 1956 – Joe Satriani, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1956 – Wayne Taylor, South African race car driver
  • 1958 – Gary Heale, English footballer and coach
  • 1958 – Mac Thornberry, American lawyer and politician
  • 1959 – Vincent Lindon, French actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Kim Alexis, American fashion model
  • 1961 – Lolita Davidovich, Canadian actress
  • 1961 – Jean-Christophe Grangé, French journalist and screenwriter
  • 1961 – Scott Ritter, American soldier and international weapons inspector
  • 1961 – Forest Whitaker, American actor
  • 1962 – Nikos Filippou, Greek basketball player and manager
  • 1962 – Michelle Ford, Australian swimmer
  • 1963 – Brigitte Nielsen, Danish-Italian actress
  • 1963 – Steve Thomas, English-Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1965 – Alistair Carmichael, Scottish lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Scotland
  • 1965 – Gero Miesenböck, Austrian neuroscientist and educator
  • 1965 – David Miliband, English politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
  • 1966 – Jason Bonham, English singer-songwriter and drummer
  • 1966 – Irène Jacob, French-Swiss actress
  • 1967 – Adam Savage, American actor and special effects designer
  • 1967 – Elbert West, American singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1968 – Eddie Griffin, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1969 – Ain Tammus, Estonian footballer and coach
  • 1970 – Tarkan Gözübüyük, Turkish bass player and producer
  • 1972 – Scott Foley, American actor
  • 1973 – Brian Austin Green, American actor
  • 1975 – Cherry, American wrestler and manager
  • 1975 – Danny Law, English cricketer
  • 1975 – Ben Pepper, Australian basketball player
  • 1976 – Steve Cunningham, American boxer
  • 1976 – Marco Di Vaio, Italian footballer
  • 1976 – Diane Kruger, German actress and model
  • 1976 – Gabriel Iglesias, Mexican-American comedian and voice actor
  • 1977 – André Nel, South African cricketer
  • 1977 – Lana Parrilla, American actress
  • 1977 – John St. Clair, American football player
  • 1977 – Ray Toro, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1978 – Miguel Olivo, Dominican baseball player
  • 1979 – Laura Benanti, American actress and singer
  • 1979 – Alexander Frei, Swiss footballer
  • 1979 – Edda Garðarsdóttir, Icelandic footballer
  • 1979 – Renata Kučerová, Czech tennis player
  • 1980 – Reggie Abercrombie, American baseball player
  • 1980 – BxB Hulk, Japanese professional wrestler
  • 1980 – Jonathan Cheechoo, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1980 – Julia Perez, Indonesian singer and actress (d. 2017)
  • 1981 – Alou Diarra, French footballer
  • 1981 – Petros Klampanis, Greek bassist and composer
  • 1981 – Marius Stankevičius, Lithuanian footballer
  • 1982 – Alan Pérez, Spanish cyclist
  • 1982 – Neemia Tialata, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1982 – Aída Yéspica, Venezuelan model and actress
  • 1983 – Nelson Merlo, Brazilian race car driver
  • 1983 – Will Rudge, English cricketer
  • 1983 – Heath Slater, American wrestler
  • 1984 – Angelo Siniscalchi, Italian footballer
  • 1984 – Veronika Velez-Zuzulová, Slovak skier
  • 1985 – Sanjeev, Tamil actor
  • 1985 – Tomer Kapon, Israeli actor
  • 1986 – Tyler Kennedy, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1988 – Riki Christodoulou, English race car driver
  • 1989 – Steven Jahn, German footballer
  • 1989 – Alisa Kleybanova, Russian tennis player
  • 1989 – Anthony Randolph, American basketball player
  • 1990 – Zach Bogosian, American ice hockey player
  • 1990 – Damian Lillard, American basketball player
  • 1991 – Danilo, Brazilian footballer
  • 1991 – Derrick Favors, American basketball player
  • 1991 – Evgeny Tishchenko, Russian boxer
  • 1992 – Tobias Harris, American basketball player
  • 1992 – Hokutōfuji Daiki, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1992 – Wayde van Niekerk, South African sprinter
  • 1993 – Håvard Nielsen, Norwegian footballer

Deaths on July 15

  • 756 – Yang Guifei, consort of Xuan Zong (b. 719)
  • 998 – Abū al-Wafā’ Būzjānī, Persian mathematician and astronomer (b. 940)
  • 1015 – Vladimir the Great, Grand prince of Kievan Rus’ (b. c. 958)
  • 1274 – Bonaventure, Italian bishop and saint (b. 1221)
  • 1291 – Rudolf I of Germany (b. 1218)
  • 1299 – King Eric II of Norway (b. c. 1268)
  • 1381 – John Ball, English Lollard priest
  • 1388 – Agnes of Durazzo, titular Latin empress consort of Constantinople (d. 1313)
  • 1397 – Catherine of Henneberg, German ruler (b. c. 1334)
  • 1406 – William, Duke of Austria
  • 1410 – Ulrich von Jungingen, German Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights (b. 1360)
  • 1445 – Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland
  • 1542 – Lisa del Giocondo, subject of Leonardo da Vinci’s painting Mona Lisa (b. 1479)
  • 1544 – René of Châlon (b. 1519)
  • 1571 – Shimazu Takahisa, Japanese daimyō (b. 1514)
  • 1609 – Annibale Carracci, Italian painter and illustrator (b. 1560)
  • 1614 – Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de Brantôme, French soldier, historian, and author (b. 1540)
  • 1655 – Girolamo Rainaldi, Italian architect (b. 1570)
  • 1685 – James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, Dutch-English general and politician, Governor of Kingston-upon-Hull (b. 1649)
  • 1750 – Vasily Tatishchev, Russian ethnographer and politician (b. 1686)
  • 1765 – Charles-André van Loo, French painter (b. 1705)
  • 1767 – Michael Bruce, Scottish poet and composer (b. 1746)
  • 1789 – Jacques Duphly, French harpsichord player and composer (b. 1715)
  • 1828 – Jean-Antoine Houdon, French sculptor (b. 1741)
  • 1839 – Winthrop Mackworth Praed, English poet and politician (b. 1802)
  • 1844 – Claude Charles Fauriel, French philologist and historian (b. 1772)
  • 1851 – Juan Felipe Ibarra, Argentinian general and politician (b. 1787)
  • 1857 – Carl Czerny, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1791)
  • 1858 – Alexander Andreyevich Ivanov, Russian painter (b. 1806)
  • 1883 – General Tom Thumb, American circus performer (b. 1838)
  • 1885 – Rosalía de Castro, Spanish author and poet (b. 1837)
  • 1890 – Gottfried Keller, Swiss author, poet, and playwright (b. 1819)
  • 1898 – Jean-Baptiste Salpointe, French-American archbishop (d. 1825)
  • 1904 – Anton Chekhov, Russian playwright and short story writer (b. 1860)
  • 1919 – Hermann Emil Fischer, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1852)
  • 1929 – Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Austrian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1874)
  • 1930 – Leopold Auer, Hungarian violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1845)
  • 1931 – Ladislaus Bortkiewicz, Russian-German economist and mathematician (b. 1868)
  • 1932 – Bahíyyih Khánum, Iranian writer and leader in the Baha’i faith (b. 1846)
  • 1932 – Cornelis Jacobus Langenhoven, South African poet and politician (b. 1873)
  • 1933 – Irving Babbitt, American scholar, critic, and academic (b. 1865)
  • 1933 – Freddie Keppard, American cornet player (b. 1890)
  • 1940 – Eugen Bleuler, Swiss psychiatrist and physician (b. 1857)
  • 1940 – Robert Wadlow, American giant, 8″11′ 271 cm (b.1918)
  • 1942 – Wenceslao Vinzons, Filipino lawyer and politician (b. 1910)
  • 1944 – Marie-Victorin Kirouac, Canadian botanist and academic (b. 1885)
  • 1946 – Razor Smith, English cricketer and coach (b. 1877)
  • 1947 – Walter Donaldson, American soldier and songwriter (b. 1893)
  • 1948 – John J. Pershing, American general (b. 1860)
  • 1953 – Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, Indian archbishop, founded the Order of the Imitation of Christ (b. 1882)
  • 1957 – James M. Cox, American publisher and politician, 46th Governor of Ohio (b. 1870)
  • 1957 – Vasily Maklakov, Russian lawyer and politician (b. 1869)
  • 1959 – Ernest Bloch, Swiss-American composer and academic (b. 1880)
  • 1959 – Vance Palmer, Australian author and critic (b. 1885)
  • 1960 – Set Persson, Swedish politician (b. 1897)
  • 1960 – Lawrence Tibbett, American singer and actor (b. 1896)
  • 1961 – John Edward Brownlee, Canadian lawyer and politician, 5th Premier of Alberta (b. 1884)
  • 1961. – Nina Bari, Russian mathematician (b. 1901)
  • 1965 – Francis Cherry, American lawyer and politician, 35th Governor of Arkansas (b. 1908)
  • 1966 – Seyfi Arkan, Turkish architect (b. 1903)
  • 1974 – Christine Chubbuck, American journalist (b. 1944)
  • 1976 – Paul Gallico, American journalist and author (b. 1897)
  • 1977 – Donald Mackay, Australian businessman and activist (b. 1933)
  • 1979 – Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Mexican academic and politician, 29th President of Mexico, 1964-1970 (b. 1911)
  • 1981 – Frédéric Dorion, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1898)
  • 1982 – Bill Justis, American saxophonist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1926)
  • 1986 – Billy Haughton, American harness racer and trainer (b. 1923)
  • 1988 – Eleanor Estes, American librarian, author, and illustrator (b. 1906)
  • 1989 – Laurie Cunningham, English footballer (b. 1956)
  • 1990 – Zaim Topčić, Yugoslav and Bosnian writer (b. 1920)
  • 1990 – Margaret Lockwood, English actress (b. 1916)
  • 1990 – Omar Abu Risha, Syrian poet and diplomat, 4th Syrian Ambassador to the United States (b. 1910)
  • 1991 – Bert Convy, American actor, singer, and game show host (b. 1933)
  • 1992 – Hammer DeRoburt, Nauruan educator and politician, 1st President of Nauru (b. 1922)
  • 1992 – Chingiz Mustafayev, Azerbaijani journalist and author (b. 1960)
  • 1997 – Justinas Lagunavičius, Lithuanian basketball player (b. 1924)
  • 1997 – Gianni Versace, Italian fashion designer, founded Versace (b. 1946)
  • 1998 – S. Shanmuganathan, Sri Lankan politician (b. 1960)
  • 2000 – Louis Quilico, Canadian opera singer and educator (b. 1925)
  • 2001 – C. Balasingham, Sri Lankan lawyer and civil servant (b. 1917)
  • 2003 – Roberto Bolaño, Chilean novelist, short-story writer, poet, and essayist (b. 1953)
  • 2003 – Elisabeth Welch, American actress and singer (b. 1904)
  • 2006 – Robert H. Brooks, American businessman, founder of Hooters and Naturally Fresh, Inc. (b. 1937)
  • 2006 – Alireza Shapour Shahbazi, Iranian archaeologist and academic (b. 1942)
  • 2008 – György Kolonics, Hungarian canoe racer (b. 1972)
  • 2010 – James E. Akins, American politician and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia (b. 1926)
  • 2011 – Friedrich Wilhelm Schnitzler, German landowner and politician (b. 1928)
  • 2011 – Googie Withers, British-Australian actress (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Boris Cebotari, Moldovan footballer (b. 1975)
  • 2012 – Tsilla Chelton, Israeli-French actress (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Grant Feasel, American football player (b. 1960)
  • 2012 – David Fraser, English general (b. 1920)
  • 2012 – Celeste Holm, American actress and singer (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Yoichi Takabayashi, Japanese director and screenwriter (b. 1931)
  • 2013 – Ninos Aho, Syrian-American poet and activist (b. 1945)
  • 2013 – Henry Braden, American lawyer and politician (b. 1944)
  • 2013 – Tom Greenwell, American lawyer and judge (b. 1956)
  • 2013 – Earl Gros, American football player (b. 1940)
  • 2013 – Noël Lee, Chinese-American pianist and composer (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Meskerem Legesse, Ethiopian runner (b. 1986)
  • 2013 – John T. Riedl, American computer scientist and academic (b. 1962)
  • 2014 – Óscar Acosta, Honduran author, poet, and diplomat (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – James MacGregor Burns, American historian, political scientist, and author (b. 1918)
  • 2014 – Saúl Lara, Spanish footballer (b. 1982)
  • 2014 – Edward Perl, American neuroscientist and academic (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Robert A. Roe, American soldier and politician (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Masahiko Aoki, Japanese-American economist and academic (b. 1938)
  • 2015 – Wan Li, Chinese politician, 4th Vice Premier of the People’s Republic of China (b. 1916)
  • 2015 – Aubrey Morris, British actor (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Dave Somerville, Canadian singer (b. 1933)
  • 2017 – Martin Landau, American film and television actor (b. 1928)

Holidays and observances on July 15

  • Christian feast day:
    • Abhai (Syriac Orthodox Church)
    • Anne-Marie Javouhey
    • Bernhard II, Margrave of Baden-Baden
    • Bonaventure
    • Dispersion of the Apostles (No longer officially celebrated by the Catholic Church)
    • Donald of Ogilvy
    • Edith of Polesworth
    • Edith of Wilton
    • Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
    • Plechelm
    • Quriaqos and Julietta
    • Swithun
    • Vladimir the Great (Eastern Orthodox; Catholic Church)
    • July 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which Birthday of Don Luis Muñoz Rivera can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July. (Puerto Rico)
  • Earliest day on which Galla Bayramy can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Sunday of July. (Turkmenistan)
  • Earliest day on which Marine Day can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July. (Japan)
  • Earliest day on which President’s Day (Botswana) can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July.
  • Elderly Men Day (Kiribati)
  • Festival of Santa Rosalia (Palermo, Sicily)
  • Sultan’s Birthday (Brunei Darussalam)

July 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

July 14 in History

  • 756 – An Lushan Rebellion: Emperor Xuanzong flees the capital Chang’an as An Lushan’s forces advance toward the city.
  • 1223 – Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father, Philip II.
  • 1420 – Battle of Vítkov Hill, decisive victory of Czech Hussite forces commanded by Jan Žižka against Crusade army led by Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.
  • 1769 – An expedition led by Gaspar de Portolá leaves its base in California and sets out to find the Port of Monterey (now Monterey, California).
  • 1771 – Foundation of the Mission San Antonio de Padua in modern California by the Franciscan friar Junípero Serra.
  • 1789 – French Revolution: Citizens of Paris storm the Bastille.
  • 1789 – Alexander Mackenzie finally completes his journey to the mouth of the great river he hoped would take him to the Pacific, but which turns out to flow into the Arctic Ocean. Later named after him, the Mackenzie is the second-longest river system in North America.
  • 1790 – French Revolution: Citizens of Paris celebrate the unity of the French people and the national reconciliation in the Fête de la Fédération.
  • 1791 – The Priestley Riots drive Joseph Priestley, a supporter of the French Revolution, out of Birmingham, England.
  • 1798 – The Sedition Act becomes law in the United States making it a federal crime to write, publish, or utter false or malicious statements about the United States government.
  • 1853 – Opening of the first major US world’s fair, the Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations in New York City.
  • 1865 – The first ascent of the Matterhorn by Edward Whymper and party, four of whom die on the descent.
  • 1874 – The Chicago Fire of 1874 burns down 47 acres of the city, destroying 812 buildings, killing 20, and resulting in the fire insurance industry demanding municipal reforms from Chicago’s city council.
  • 1877 – The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 began in Martinsburg, West Virginia when wages of Baltimore and Ohio Railroad workers were cut for the third time in a year. The strike was ended on Sept 4 by local and state militias and federal troops.
  • 1881 – Billy the Kid is shot and killed by Pat Garrett outside Fort Sumner.
  • 1900 – Armies of the Eight-Nation Alliance capture Tientsin during the Boxer Rebellion.
  • 1902 – The Campanile in St Mark’s Square, Venice collapses, also demolishing the loggetta.
  • 1911 – Harry Atwood, an exhibition pilot for the Wright brothers, lands his airplane at the South Lawn of the White House. He is later awarded a Gold medal from U.S. President William Howard Taft for this feat.
  • 1915 – World War I: The McMahon–Hussein Correspondence between Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca and the British official Henry McMahon concerning the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire begins.
  • 1916 – World War I: Start of the Battle of Delville Wood as an action within the Battle of the Somme, which was to last until 3 September 1916.
  • 1928 – New Vietnam Revolutionary Party is founded in Huế, providing some of the communist party’s most important leaders in its early years.
  • 1933 – Gleichschaltung: In Germany, all political parties are outlawed except the Nazi Party.
  • 1933 – The Nazi eugenics begins with the proclamation of the Law for the Prevention of Hereditarily Diseased Offspring that calls for the compulsory sterilization of any citizen who suffers from alleged genetic disorders.
  • 1938 – Howard Hughes sets a new record by completing a 91-hour airplane flight around the world.
  • 1940 – People’s Seimas held parliamentary elections, and the Union of Labor Lithuania (ULL) won, paving the way for Lithuania to become Lithuanian SSR; Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, consolidating into the Soviet Union on July 21, 1940.
  • 1943 – In Diamond, Missouri, the George Washington Carver National Monument becomes the first United States National Monument in honor of an African American.
  • 1948 – Palmiro Togliatti, leader of the Italian Communist Party, is shot and wounded near the Italian Parliament.
  • 1950 – Korean War: North Korean troops initiate the Battle of Taejon.
  • 1957 – Rawya Ateya takes her seat in the National Assembly of Egypt, thereby becoming the first female parliamentarian in the Arab world.
  • 1958 – Iraqi Revolution: In Iraq the monarchy is overthrown by popular forces led by Abd al-Karim Qasim, who becomes the nation’s new leader.
  • 1960 – Jane Goodall arrives at the Gombe Stream Reserve in present-day Tanzania to begin her famous study of chimpanzees in the wild.
  • 1965 – The Mariner 4 flyby of Mars takes the first close-up photos of another planet.
  • 1969 – Football War: After Honduras loses a soccer match against El Salvador, riots break out in Honduras against Salvadoran migrant workers.
  • 1969 – The Federal Reserve Banks begins removing large denominations of United States currency from circulation.
  • 1976 – Capital punishment is abolished in Canada.
  • 1992 – 386BSD is released by Lynne Jolitz and William Jolitz beginning the Open Source operating system revolution. Linus Torvalds releases his Linux soon afterwards.
  • 2002 – French President Jacques Chirac escapes an assassination attempt unscathed during Bastille Day celebrations.
  • 2003 – Hurricane Claudette gathers strength over the Gulf of Mexico and heads for the Texas coast, killing two people.
  • 2013 – The dedication of statue of Rachel Carson, a sculpture named for the environmentalist, in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
  • 2015 – NASA’s New Horizons probe performs the first flyby of Pluto, and thus completes the initial survey of the Solar System.
  • 2016 – A terrorist vehicular attack in Nice, France kills 86 civilians and injures over 400 others.

Births on July 14

  • 926 – Murakami, emperor of Japan (d. 967)
  • 1410 – Arnold, Duke of Guelders, (d. 1473)
  • 1448 – Philip, Elector Palatine (d. 1508)
  • 1454 – Poliziano, Italian poet and scholar (d. 1494)
  • 1515 – Philip I, Duke of Pomerania (d. 1560)
  • 1602 – Cardinal Mazarin, Italian-French cardinal and politician, 2nd Chief Minister of the French Monarch (d. 1661)
  • 1608 – George Goring, Lord Goring, English general (d. 1657)
  • 1610 – Ferdinando II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1670)
  • 1634 – Pasquier Quesnel, French priest and theologian (d. 1719)
  • 1671 – Jacques d’Allonville, French astronomer and mathematician (d. 1732)
  • 1675 – Claude Alexandre de Bonneval, French general (d. 1747)
  • 1676 – Caspar Abel, German historian, poet, and theologian (d. 1763)
  • 1696 – William Oldys, English historian and author (d. 17610
  • 1721 – John Douglas, Scottish bishop and scholar (d. 1807)
  • 1743 – Gavrila Derzhavin, Russian poet and politician (d. 1816)
  • 1755 – Michel de Beaupuy, French general (d. 1796)
  • 1785 – Mordecai Manuel Noah, American journalist, playwright, and diplomat (d. 1851)
  • 1795 – Eleanor Anne Porden, British Romantic poet; wife of the explorer, John Franklin (d. 1825)
  • 1801 – Johannes Peter Müller, German physiologist and anatomist (d. 1858)
  • 1816 – Arthur de Gobineau, French author and diplomat (d. 1882)
  • 1829 – Edward Benson, English archbishop (d. 1896)
  • 1859 – Willy Hess, German violinist and educator (d. 1928)
  • 1861 – Kate M. Gordon, American activist (d. 1931)
  • 1862 – Florence Bascom, American geologist and educator (d. 1945)
  • 1862 – Gustav Klimt, Austrian painter and illustrator (d. 1918)
  • 1863 – Arthur Coningham, Australian cricketer (d. 1939)
  • 1865 – Arthur Capper, American journalist and politician, 20th Governor of Kansas (d. 1951)
  • 1866 – Juliette Wytsman, Belgian painter (d. 1925)
  • 1868 – Gertrude Bell, English archaeologist and spy (d. 1926)
  • 1872 – Albert Marque, French sculptor and doll maker (d. 1939)
  • 1874 – Abbas II of Egypt (d. 1944)
  • 1874 – Crawford Vaughan, Australian politician, 27th Premier of South Australia (d. 1947)
  • 1878 – Donald Meek, Scottish actor (d. 1946)
  • 1885 – Sisavang Vong, Laotian king (d. 1959)
  • 1888 – Scipio Slataper, Italian author and critic (d. 1915)
  • 1889 – Marco de Gastyne, French painter and illustrator (d. 1982)
  • 1889 – Ante Pavelić, Croatian fascist dictator during World War II (d. 1959)
  • 1893 – Clarence J. Brown, American publisher and politician, 36th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio (d. 1965)
  • 1893 – Garimella Satyanarayana, Indian poet and author (d. 1952)
  • 1894 – Dave Fleischer, American animator, director, and producer (d. 1979)
  • 1896 – Buenaventura Durruti, Spanish soldier and anarchist (d. 1936)
  • 1898 – Happy Chandler, American lawyer and politician, 49th Governor of Kentucky, second Commissioner of Baseball (d. 1991)
  • 1901 – Gerald Finzi, English composer and academic (d. 1956)
  • 1901 – George Tobias, American actor (d. 1980)
  • 1903 – Irving Stone, American author and educator (d. 1989)
  • 1906 – Tom Carvel, Greek-American businessman, founded Carvel (d. 1990)
  • 1906 – William H. Tunner, American general (d. 1983)
  • 1907 – Chico Landi, Brazilian race car driver (d. 1989)
  • 1910 – William Hanna, American animator, director, producer, and actor, co-founded Hanna-Barbera (d. 2001)
  • 1911 – Pavel Prudnikau, Belarusian poet and author (d. 2000)
  • 1912 – Woody Guthrie, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1967)
  • 1912 – Buddy Moreno, American musician (d. 2015)
  • 1913 – Gerald Ford, American commander, lawyer, and politician, 38th President of the United States (d. 2006)
  • 1914 – Fred Fox, French musician (d. 2019)
  • 1918 – Ingmar Bergman, Swedish director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1918 – Arthur Laurents, American director, screenwriter, and playwright (d. 20110
  • 1918 – Jay Wright Forrester, American computer engineer and systems scientist (d. 2016)
  • 1920 – Shankarrao Chavan, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Finance (d. 2004)
  • 1920 – Marijohn Wilkin, American country and gospel songwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Sixto Durán Ballén, American-Ecuadorian architect and politician, 48th President of Ecuador (d. 2016)
  • 1921 – Leon Garfield, English author (d. 1996)
  • 1921 – Armand Gaudreault, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Geoffrey Wilkinson, English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1996)
  • 1922 – Robin Olds, American general and pilot (d. 2007)
  • 1922 – Elfriede Rinkel, German SS officer (d. 2018)
  • 1922 – Käbi Laretei, Estonian-Swedish concert pianist (d. 2014)
  • 1923 – René Favaloro, Argentine surgeon and cardiologist (d. 2000)
  • 1923 – Dale Robertson, American actor (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – Robert Zildjian, American businessman, founded Sabian (d. 2013)
  • 1924 – Warren Giese, American football player, coach, and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Bruce L. Douglas, American politician
  • 1926 – Wallace Jones, American basketball player and coach (d. 2014)
  • 1926 – Harry Dean Stanton, American actor, musician, and singer (d. 2017)
  • 1926 – Himayat Ali Shair, Urdu poet (d. 2019)
  • 1927 – John Chancellor, American journalist (d. 1996)
  • 1927 – Mike Esposito, American author and illustrator (d. 2010)
  • 1928 – Nancy Olson, American actress
  • 1928 – William Rees-Mogg, English journalist and public servant (d. 2012)
  • 1930 – Polly Bergen, American actress and singer (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – Benoît Sinzogan, Beninese military officer and politician
  • 1931 – Jacqueline de Ribes, French fashion designer and philanthropist
  • 1931 – E. V. Thompson, English police officer and author (d. 2012)
  • 1932 – Rosey Grier, American football player and actor
  • 1932 – Del Reeves, American country singer-songwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1933 – Robert Bourassa, Canadian lawyer and politician, 22nd Premier of Quebec (d. 1996)
  • 1933 – Dumaagiin Sodnom, Mongolian politician; 13th Prime Minister of Mongolia
  • 1933 – Franz, Duke of Bavaria, head of the House of Wittelsbach
  • 1936 – Robert F. Overmyer, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1996)
  • 1937 – Yoshirō Mori, Japanese journalist and politician, 55th Prime Minister of Japan
  • 1938 – Jerry Rubin, American activist, author, and businessman (d. 1994)
  • 1938 – Tommy Vig, Hungarian vibraphone player, drummer, and composer
  • 1939 – Karel Gott, Czech singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2019)
  • 1939 – George Edgar Slusser, American scholar and author (d. 2014)
  • 1940 – Susan Howatch, English author and academic
  • 1941 – Maulana Karenga, American philosopher, author, and activist, created Kwanzaa
  • 1941 – Andreas Khol, German-Austrian lawyer and politician
  • 1942 – Javier Solana, Spanish physicist and politician, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1945 – Jim Gordon, American drummer and songwriter
  • 1946 – Sue Lawley, English journalist
  • 1946 – John Wood, Australian actor and screenwriter
  • 1947 – John Blackman, Australian radio and television presenter
  • 1947 – Claudia J. Kennedy, American general
  • 1947 – Salih Neftçi, Turkish economist and author (d. 2009)
  • 1947 – Navin Ramgoolam, Mauritius physician and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Mauritius
  • 1948 – Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu, Zulu king
  • 1948 – Tom Latham, American politician
  • 1948 – Earl Williams, American baseball player (d. 2013)
  • 1949 – Tommy Mottola, American businessman and music publisher
  • 1950 – Bruce Oldfield, English fashion designer
  • 1952 – Bob Casale, American guitarist, keyboard player, and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1952 – Franklin Graham, American evangelist and missionary
  • 1952 – George Lewis, American musician and composer
  • 1952 – Joel Silver, American actor and producer, co-founded Dark Castle Entertainment
  • 1953 – Martha Coakley, American lawyer and politician, 58th Attorney General of Massachusetts
  • 1955 – L. Brent Bozell III, American journalist and activist, founded the Media Research Center
  • 1958 – Mircea Geoană, Romanian politician and diplomat, 97th Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1959 – Aubrey McClendon, American businessman (d. 2016)
  • 1960 – Anna Bligh, Australian politician, 37th Premier of Queensland
  • 1960 – Kyle Gass, American singer-songwriter, musician, and actor
  • 1960 – Angélique Kidjo, Beninese singer-songwriter, activist, and actor
  • 1960 – Jane Lynch, American actress and game show host
  • 1960 – Mike McPhee, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1961 – Jackie Earle Haley, American actor
  • 1962 – Vanessa Lawrence, English geographer and civil servant
  • 1963 – Jacques Lacombe, Canadian organist and conductor
  • 1964 – Brett Ogle, Australian golfer
  • 1964 – Igor Shpilband, Russian-American ice dancer and coach
  • 1965 – Urmas Kruuse, Estonian lawyer and politician, 41st Mayor of Tartu
  • 1965 – Collins Nweke, Belgian politician of Nigerian origin, 1st foreign born person elected to political office in West Flanders
  • 1966 – Matthew Fox, American actor
  • 1966 – Matt Hume, American mixed martial artist and trainer
  • 1966 – Brian Selznick, American author and illustrator
  • 1967 – Marios Constantinou, Cypriot footballer and manager
  • 1967 – Jeff Jarrett, American wrestler and promoter, co-founder of Impact Wrestling
  • 1967 – Patrick J. Kennedy, American politician
  • 1967 – Hashan Tillakaratne, Sri Lankan cricketer
  • 1967 – Robin Ventura, American baseball player and manager
  • 1968 – Michael Palmer, Singaporean lawyer and politician, 8th Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore
  • 1969 – José Hernández, Puerto Rican-American baseball player and coach
  • 1969 – Sven Sester, Estonian politician
  • 1970 – Jacob Young, Norwegian guitarist
  • 1971 – Howard Webb, English footballer and referee
  • 1973 – Tani Fuga, Samoan rugby player
  • 1973 – Paul Methric, American rapper and producer
  • 1974 – Erick Dampier, American basketball player
  • 1974 – David Mitchell, British comedian
  • 1975 – Derlei, Brazilian footballer
  • 1975 – Tim Hudson, American baseball player
  • 1975 – Jamey Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1977 – Gordon Cree, Scottish singer-songwriter and pianist
  • 1977 – Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden
  • 1978 – Mattias Ekström, Swedish race car driver
  • 1979 – Bernie Castro, Dominican baseball player
  • 1979 – Axel Teichmann, German skier
  • 1980 – George Smith, Australian rugby player
  • 1981 – Matti Hautamäki, Finnish ski jumper
  • 1981 – Robbie Maddison, Australian motorcycle racer
  • 1982 – Dmitry Chaplin, Russian-American dancer and choreographer
  • 1982 – Achille Coser, Italian footballer
  • 1983 – Igor Andreev, Russian tennis player
  • 1983 – Thomas Howard, American football player (d. 2013)
  • 1983 – Tito Muñoz, American conductor and academic
  • 1984 – Renaldo Balkman, American basketball player
  • 1984 – Erica Blasberg, American golfer (d. 2010)
  • 1984 – Lenka Dlhopolcová, Slovak tennis player
  • 1984 – Mounir El Hamdaoui, Moroccan footballer
  • 1984 – Samir Handanović, Slovenian footballer
  • 1984 – Nilmar, Brazilian footballer
  • 1985 – Billy Celeski, Australian footballer
  • 1985 – Darrelle Revis, American football player
  • 1985 – Chris Wright, English cricketer
  • 1986 – Alexander Gerndt, Swedish footballer
  • 1986 – Nikolay Kulemin, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Dan Smith, English singer-songwriter
  • 1987 – Aqeel Ahmed, English director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1987 – Margus Hunt, Estonian-American football player, discus thrower, and shot putter
  • 1987 – Adam Johnson, English footballer
  • 1987 – Dan Reynolds, American singer-songwriter
  • 1987 – Sean Smith, American football player
  • 1987 – Ryan Sweeting, Bahamian-American tennis player
  • 1988 – Conor McGregor, Irish mixed martial artist
  • 1988 – Jérémy Stravius, French swimmer
  • 1988 – James Vaughan, English footballer
  • 1989 – Sakari Mattila, Finnish footballer
  • 1989 – Rolando McClain, American football player
  • 1989 – Cyril Rioli, Australian rules footballer
  • 1991 – Shabazz Napier, American basketball player
  • 1993 – Sayaka Yamamoto, Japanese singer
  • 1995 – Megan Cunningham, Scottish footballer
  • 1995 – Serge Gnabry, German footballer
  • 1995 – Kim Hyo-joo, South Korean golfer
  • 1995 – Federico Mattiello, Italian footballer
  • 1997 – Cengiz Ünder, Turkish footballer

Deaths on July 14

  • 664 – Eorcenberht, king of Kent
  • 809 – Ōtomo no Otomaro, Japanese general and Shōgun (b. 731)
  • 850 – Wei Fu, chancellor of the Tang Dynasty
  • 937 – Arnulf I, duke of Bavaria
  • 1223 – Philip II, king of France (b. 1165)
  • 1242 – Hōjō Yasutoki, regent of Japan (b. 1183)
  • 1262 – Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester, English soldier (b. 1222)
  • 1486 – Margaret of Denmark, daughter of Christian I of Denmark (b. 1456)
  • 1526 – John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford, English peer, landowner, and Lord Great Chamberlain of England (b. 1499)
  • 1575 – Richard Taverner, English translator (b. 1505)
  • 1614 – Camillus de Lellis, Italian priest and saint (b. 1550)
  • 1723 – Claude Fleury, French historian and author (b. 1640)
  • 1742 – Richard Bentley, English scholar and theologian (b. 1662)
  • 1766 – František Maxmilián Kaňka, Czech architect (b. 1674)
  • 1774 – James O’Hara, 2nd Baron Tyrawley, Irish field marshal (b. 1682)
  • 1780 – Charles Batteux, French philosopher and academic (b. 1713)
  • 1789 – Jacques de Flesselles, French politician (b. 1721)
  • 1789 – Bernard-René de Launay, French politician (b. 1740)
  • 1790 – Ernst Gideon von Laudon, Austrian field marshal (b. 1717)
  • 1809 – Nicodemus the Hagiorite, Greek monk and saint (b. 1749)
  • 1816 – Francisco de Miranda, Venezuelan general (b. 1750)
  • 1817 – Germaine de Staël, French philosopher and author (b. 1766)
  • 1827 – Augustin-Jean Fresnel, French physicist and engineer, reviver of a wave theory of light, inventor of catadioptric lighthouse lens (b. 1788)
  • 1834 – Edmond-Charles Genêt, French-American diplomat (b. 1763)
  • 1850 – August Neander, German historian and theologian (b. 1789)
  • 1856 – Edward Vernon Utterson, English lawyer and historian (b. 1775)
  • 1876 – John Buckley, English soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1813)
  • 1881 – Billy the Kid, American criminal (b. 1859)
  • 1904 – Paul Kruger, South African politician, 5th President of the South African Republic (b. 1824)
  • 1907 – William Henry Perkin, English chemist and academic (b. 1838)
  • 1910 – Marius Petipa, French dancer and choreographer (b. 1818)
  • 1917 – Octave Lapize, French cyclist (b. 1887)
  • 1918 – Quentin Roosevelt, American lieutenant and pilot (b. 1897)
  • 1936 – Dhan Gopal Mukerji, Indian-American author and scholar (b. 1890)
  • 1937 – Julius Meier, American businessman and politician, 20th Governor of Oregon (b. 1874)
  • 1939 – Alphonse Mucha, Czech painter and illustrator (b. 1860)
  • 1954 – Jacinto Benavente, Spanish author and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1866)
  • 1965 – Adlai Stevenson II, American soldier and politician, 5th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (b. 1900)
  • 1966 – Julie Manet, French painter and art collector (b. 1878)
  • 1967 – Tudor Arghezi, Romanian author and poet (b. 1880)
  • 1968 – Konstantin Paustovsky, Russian author and poet (b. 1892)
  • 1970 – Preston Foster, American actor (b. 1900)
  • 1973 – Ali Kılıç, Turkish captain and politician (b. 1890)
  • 1974 – Carl Andrew Spaatz, American general (b. 1891)
  • 1975 – Madan Mohan, Iraqi-Indian composer and conductor (b. 1924)
  • 1979 – Walter Keppel, 9th Earl of Albemarle, English nobleman and soldier (b. 1882)
  • 1984 – Ernest Tidyman, American author and screenwriter (b. 1928)
  • 1986 – Raymond Loewy, French-American industrial designer (b. 1893)
  • 1989 – Frank Bell, English linguist and academic (b. 1916)
  • 1991 – Constance Stokes, Australian painter (b. 1906)
  • 1993 – Léo Ferré, Monacan singer-songwriter, pianist, and poet (b. 1916)
  • 1994 – César Tovar, Venezuelan baseball player (b. 1940)
  • 1996 – Jeff Krosnoff, American race car driver (b. 1964)
  • 1998 – Richard McDonald, American businessman, co-founded McDonald’s (b. 1909)
  • 2000 – Pepo, Chilean cartoonist (b. 1911)
  • 2000 – William Roscoe Estep, American historian and academic (b. 1920)
  • 2000 – Meredith MacRae, American actress (b. 1944)
  • 2001 – Guy de Lussigny, French painter (b. 1929)
  • 2002 – Joaquín Balaguer, Dominican lawyer and politician, 41st President of the Dominican Republic (b. 1906)
  • 2002 – Fritz Glatz, Austrian race car driver (b. 1943)
  • 2003 – François-Albert Angers, Canadian economist and academic (b. 1909)
  • 2005 – Joe Harnell, American pianist and composer (b. 1924)
  • 2005 – Cicely Saunders, English hospice founder (b. 1918)
  • 2007 – John Ferguson Sr., Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (b. 1938)
  • 2012 – John Arbuthnott, 16th Viscount of Arbuthnott, Scottish businessman and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Kincardineshire (b. 1924)
  • 2012 – Don Brinkley, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Frank R. Burns, American football player and coach (b. 1928)
  • 2012 – King Hill, American football player (b. 1936)
  • 2012 – Sixten Jernberg, Swedish skier (b. 1929)
  • 2012 – Roy Shaw, English businessman and boxer (b. 1936)
  • 2013 – Herbert M. Allison, American lieutenant and businessman (b. 1943)
  • 2013 – Matt Batts, American baseball player and coach (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Dennis Burkley, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1945)
  • 2013 – Bill Warner, American motorcycle racer (b. 1969)
  • 2013 – Vladimir Mikhailovich Zakharov, Russian dancer and choreographer (b. 1946)
  • 2014 – Alice Coachman, American high jumper (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Vange Leonel, Brazilian singer-songwriter and activist (b. 1963)
  • 2014 – John Victor Parker, American soldier, lawyer, and judge (b. 1928)
  • 2015 – Willer Bordon, Italian businessman, academic, and politician, Italian Minister of the Environment (b. 1949)
  • 2015 – Wolf Gremm, German director and producer (b. 1942)
  • 2015 – Masao Horiba, Japanese businessman, founded Horiba (b. 1924)
  • 2016 – Helena Benitez, Filipino politician, educator and environmentalist (b. 1914)
  • 2017 – Maryam Mirzakhani, Iranian mathematician (b. 1977)

Holidays and observances on July 14

  • Christian feast day:
    • Boniface of Savoy
    • Camillus de Lellis (Roman Catholic Church, except in the United States)
    • Deusdedit of Canterbury
    • Francis Solanus
    • Gaspar de Bono
    • Idus of Leinster
    • Kateri Tekakwitha (United States)
    • Samson Occom (Episcopal Church (United States))
    • John Keble (Church of England)
    • Libert of Saint-Trond
    • Ulrich of Zell
    • July 14 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Bastille Day (France and French dependencies)
  • Birthday of Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, an official flag day. (Sweden)
  • Republic Day (Iraq)
  • Hondurans’ Day (Honduras)
  • Black Country Day, (United Kingdom)

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

On This Day