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

On This Day /
  • 762 – Baghdad is founded.
  • 1419 – First Defenestration of Prague: A crowd of radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council.
  • 1502 – Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay Islands off the coast of Honduras during his fourth voyage.
  • 1609 – Beaver Wars: At Ticonderoga (now Crown Point, New York), Samuel de Champlain shoots and kills two Iroquois chiefs on behalf of his native allies.
  • 1619 – In Jamestown, Virginia, the first Colonial European representative assembly in the Americas, the House of Burgesses, convenes for the first time.
  • 1626 – An earthquake in Naples, Italy, kills about 10,000 people.
  • 1635 – Eighty Years’ War: The Siege of Schenkenschans begins; Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange, begins the recapture of the strategically important fortress from the Spanish Army.
  • 1656 – Swedish forces under the command of King Charles X Gustav defeat the forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth at the Battle of Warsaw.
  • 1676 – Nathaniel Bacon issues the “Declaration of the People of Virginia”, beginning Bacon’s Rebellion against the rule of Governor William Berkeley.
  • 1729 – Founding of Baltimore, Maryland.
  • 1733 – The first Masonic Grand Lodge in the future United States is constituted in Massachusetts.
  • 1756 – In Saint Petersburg, Bartolomeo Rastrelli presents the newly built Catherine Palace to Empress Elizabeth and her courtiers.
  • 1811 – Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, leader of the Mexican insurgency, is executed by the Spanish in Chihuahua City, Mexico.
  • 1825 – Malden Island is discovered by captain George Byron, 7th Baron Byron.
  • 1859 – First ascent of Grand Combin, one of the highest summits in the Alps.
  • 1863 – American Indian Wars: Representatives of the United States and tribal leaders including Chief Pocatello (of the Shoshone) sign the Treaty of Box Elder.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of the Crater: Union forces attempt to break Confederate lines at Petersburg, Virginia by exploding a large bomb under their trenches.
  • 1865 – The steamboat Brother Jonathan sinks off the coast of Crescent City, California, killing 225 passengers, the deadliest shipwreck on the Pacific Coast of the U.S. at the time.
  • 1866 – Armed Confederate veterans in New Orleans riot against a meeting of Radical Republicans, killing 48 people and injuring another 100.
  • 1871 – The Staten Island Ferry Westfield’s boiler explodes, killing over 85 people.
  • 1912 – Japan’s Emperor Meiji dies and is succeeded by his son Yoshihito, who is now known as the Emperor Taishō.
  • 1930 – In Montevideo, Uruguay wins the first FIFA World Cup.
  • 1932 – Premiere of Walt Disney’s Flowers and Trees, the first cartoon short to use Technicolor and the first Academy Award winning cartoon short.
  • 1945 – World War II: Japanese submarine I-58 sinks the USS Indianapolis, killing 883 seamen. Most die during the following four days, until an aircraft notices the survivors.
  • 1956 – A joint resolution of the U.S. Congress is signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, authorizing In God We Trust as the U.S. national motto.
  • 1962 – The Trans-Canada Highway, the longest national highway in the world, is officially opened.
  • 1965 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Social Security Act of 1965 into law, establishing Medicare and Medicaid.
  • 1966 – England defeats West Germany to win the 1966 FIFA World Cup at Wembley Stadium after extra time.
  • 1969 – Vietnam War: US President Richard Nixon makes an unscheduled visit to South Vietnam and meets with President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu and U.S. military commanders.
  • 1971 – Apollo program: Apollo 15 Mission: David Scott and James Irwin on the Apollo Lunar Module Falcon land on the Moon with the first Lunar Rover.
  • 1971 – An All Nippon Airways Boeing 727 and a Japanese Air Force F-86 collide over Morioka, Iwate, Japan killing 162.
  • 1974 – Watergate scandal: U.S. President Richard Nixon releases subpoenaed White House recordings after being ordered to do so by the Supreme Court of the United States.
  • 1975 – Jimmy Hoffa disappears from the parking lot of the Machus Red Fox restaurant in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, at about 2:30 p.m. He is never seen or heard from again.
  • 1978 – The 730 (transport), Okinawa Prefecture changes its traffic on the right-hand side of the road to the left-hand side.
  • 1980 – Vanuatu gains independence.
  • 1980 – Israel’s Knesset passes the Jerusalem Law.
  • 1981 – As many as 50,000 demonstrators, mostly women and children, took to the streets in Łódź to protest food ration shortages in Communist Poland.
  • 1990 – Ian Gow, Conservative Member of Parliament, is assassinated at his home by IRA terrorists in a car bombing after he assured the group that the British government would never surrender to them.
  • 2003 – In Mexico, the last ‘old style’ Volkswagen Beetle rolls off the assembly line.
  • 2006 – The world’s longest running music show Top of the Pops is broadcast for the last time on BBC Two. The show had aired for 42 years.
  • 2011 – Marriage of Queen Elizabeth II’s eldest granddaughter Zara Phillips to former rugby union footballer Mike Tindall.
  • 2012 – A train fire kills 32 passengers and injures 27 on the Tamil Nadu Express in Andhra Pradesh, India.
  • 2012 – A power grid failure in Delhi leaves more than 300 million people without power in northern India.
  • 2014 – One hundred and fifty people are trapped after a landslide in Maharashtra, India; 20 are killed.

Births on July 30

  • 1470 – Hongzhi, emperor of the Ming dynasty (d. 1505)
  • 1511 – Giorgio Vasari, Italian painter, historian, and architect (d. 1574)
  • 1549 – Ferdinando I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1609)
  • 1641 – Regnier de Graaf, Dutch physician and anatomist (d. 1673)
  • 1751 – Maria Anna Mozart, Austrian pianist (d. 1829)
  • 1763 – Samuel Rogers, English poet and art collector (d. 1855)
  • 1809 – Charles Chiniquy, Canadian-American priest and theologian (d. 1899)
  • 1818 – Emily Brontë, English novelist and poet (d. 1848)
  • 1818 – Jan Heemskerk, Dutch lawyer and politician, 16th and 19th Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 1897)
  • 1825 – Chaim Aronson, Lithuanian engineer and author (d. 1893)
  • 1832 – George Lemuel Woods, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 3rd Governor of Oregon (d. 1890)
  • 1855 – Georg Wilhelm von Siemens, German-Swiss businessman (d. 1919)
  • 1857 – Thorstein Veblen, American economist and sociologist (d. 1929)
  • 1859 – Henry Simpson Lunn, English minister and humanitarian, founded Lunn Poly (d. 1939)
  • 1862 – Nikolai Yudenich, Russian general (d. 1933)
  • 1863 – Henry Ford, American engineer and businessman, founded the Ford Motor Company (d. 1947)
  • 1872 – Princess Clémentine of Belgium (d. 1955)
  • 1881 – Smedley Butler, American general, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1940)
  • 1890 – Casey Stengel, American baseball player and manager (d. 1975)
  • 1893 – Fatima Jinnah, Pakistani dentist and politician (d. 1967)
  • 1898 – Henry Moore, English sculptor and illustrator (d. 1986)
  • 1899 – Gerald Moore, English pianist (d. 1987)
  • 1901 – Alfred Lépine, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1955)
  • 1904 – Salvador Novo, Mexican poet and playwright (d. 1974)
  • 1909 – C. Northcote Parkinson, English historian and author (d. 1993)
  • 1910 – Edgar de Evia, Mexican-American photographer (d. 2003)
  • 1913 – Lou Darvas, American soldier and cartoonist (d. 1987)
  • 1914 – Michael Morris, 3rd Baron Killanin, Irish journalist and author, 6th President of the International Olympic Committee (d. 1999)
  • 1920 – Walter Schuck, German lieutenant and pilot (d. 2015)
  • 1921 – Grant Johannesen, American pianist and educator (d. 2005)
  • 1922 – Henry W. Bloch, American banker and businessman, co-founded H&R Block (d. 2019)
  • 1925 – Stan Stennett, Welsh actor and trumpet player (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Alexander Trocchi, Scottish author and poet (d. 1984)
  • 1926 – Betye Saar, African American artist
  • 1927 – Richard Johnson, English actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Pete Schoening, American mountaineer (d. 2004)
  • 1927 – Victor Wong, American actor (d. 2001)
  • 1928 – Joe Nuxhall, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2007)
  • 1929 – Sid Krofft, Canadian-American puppeteer and producer
  • 1931 – Dominique Lapierre, French historian and author
  • 1934 – Bud Selig, 9th Major League Baseball Commissioner
  • 1936 – Buddy Guy, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1936 – Infanta Pilar, Duchess of Badajoz (d. 2020)
  • 1938 – Hervé de Charette, French politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1938 – Terry O’Neill, English photographer (d. 2019)
  • 1939 – Peter Bogdanovich, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1939 – Eleanor Smeal, American activist, founded the Feminist Majority Foundation
  • 1940 – Patricia Schroeder, American lawyer and politician
  • 1940 – Clive Sinclair, English businessman, founded Sinclair Radionics and Sinclair Research
  • 1941 – Paul Anka, Canadian singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1942 – Pollyanna Pickering, English environmentalist and painter (d. 2018)
  • 1943 – Henri-François Gautrin, Canadian physicist and politician
  • 1944 – Gerry Birrell, Scottish race car driver (d. 1973)
  • 1944 – Peter Bottomley, English politician
  • 1944 – Frances de la Tour, English actress
  • 1945 – Patrick Modiano, French novelist and screenwriter, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1945 – David Sanborn, American saxophonist and composer
  • 1946 – Neil Bonnett, American race car driver and sportscaster (d. 1994)
  • 1946 – Jeffrey Hammond, English bass player
  • 1947 – William Atherton, American actor and producer
  • 1947 – Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, French virologist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1947 – Jonathan Mann, American physician and author (d. 1998)
  • 1947 – Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austrian-American bodybuilder, actor, and politician, 38th Governor of California
  • 1948 – Billy Paultz, American basketball player
  • 1948 – Jean Reno, Moroccan-French actor
  • 1948 – Otis Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1948 – Julia Tsenova, Bulgarian pianist and composer (d. 2010)
  • 1949 – Duck Baker, American guitarist
  • 1949 – Sonia Proudman, English lawyer and judge
  • 1950 – Harriet Harman, English lawyer and politician
  • 1950 – Frank Stallone, American singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1951 – Alan Kourie, South African cricketer
  • 1951 – Gerry Judah, Indian-English painter and sculptor
  • 1952 – Stephen Blackmore, English botanist and author
  • 1954 – Ken Olin, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1955 – Rat Scabies, English drummer and producer
  • 1955 – Christopher Warren-Green, English violinist and conductor
  • 1956 – Delta Burke, American actress
  • 1956 – Réal Cloutier, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1956 – Anita Hill, American lawyer and academic
  • 1956 – Soraida Martinez, American painter and educator
  • 1957 – Antonio Adamo, Italian director and cinematographer
  • 1957 – Bill Cartwright, American basketball player and coach
  • 1957 – Clint Hurdle, American baseball player and manager
  • 1957 – Nery Pumpido, Argentinian footballer, coach, and manager
  • 1958 – Kate Bush, English singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1958 – Liz Kershaw, English radio broadcaster
  • 1958 – Daley Thompson, English decathlete and trainer
  • 1960 – Jennifer Barnes, American-English musicologist and academic
  • 1960 – Richard Linklater, American director and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Brillante Mendoza, Filipino independent film director
  • 1961 – Laurence Fishburne, American actor and producer
  • 1962 – Alton Brown, American chef, author, and producer
  • 1962 – Jay Feaster, American ice hockey player and manager
  • 1962 – Yakub Memon, Indian accountant and terrorist (d. 2015)
  • 1963 – Peter Bowler, English-Australian cricketer
  • 1963 – Lisa Kudrow, American actress and producer
  • 1963 – Antoni Martí, Andorran architect and politician
  • 1963 – Chris Mullin, American basketball player, coach, and executive
  • 1964 – Ron Block, American singer-songwriter and banjo player
  • 1964 – Vivica A. Fox, American actress
  • 1964 – Alek Keshishian, Lebanese-American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1964 – Jürgen Klinsmann, German footballer and manager
  • 1964 – Laine Randjärv, Estonian lawyer and politician, 6th Estonian Minister of Culture
  • 1965 – Tim Munton, English cricketer
  • 1966 – Kerry Fox, New Zealand actress and screenwriter
  • 1966 – Craig Gannon, English guitarist and songwriter
  • 1966 – Allan Langer, Australian rugby league player and coach
  • 1966 – Louise Wener, English author and singer-songwriter
  • 1968 – Terry Crews, American football player and actor
  • 1968 – Robert Korzeniowski, Polish race walker and coach
  • 1968 – Sean Moore, Welsh drummer and songwriter
  • 1969 – Simon Baker, Australian actor, director, and producer
  • 1969 – Errol Stewart, South African cricketer and lawyer
  • 1970 – Alun Cairns, Welsh businessman and politician
  • 1970 – Dean Edwards, American comedian, actor, and singer
  • 1970 – Christopher Nolan, English-American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1971 – Elvis Crespo, American-Puerto Rican singer
  • 1971 – Tom Green, Canadian comedian and actor
  • 1972 – Jim McIlvaine, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1973 – Kenton Cool, English mountaineer
  • 1973 – Ümit Davala, Turkish footballer and manager
  • 1973 – Anastasios Katsabis, Greek footballer
  • 1973 – Markus Näslund, Swedish ice hockey player and manager
  • 1973 – Sonu Nigam, Indian playback singer and actor
  • 1973 – Clementa C. Pinckney, American minister and politician (d. 2015)
  • 1974 – Radostin Kishishev, Bulgarian footballer and manager
  • 1974 – Jason Robinson, English rugby league footballer, and rugby union footballer and coach
  • 1974 – Hilary Swank, American actress and producer
  • 1975 – Graham Nicholls, English author and activist
  • 1975 – Kate Starbird, American basketball player and computer scientist
  • 1977 – Diana Bolocco, Chilean model and journalist;
  • 1977 – Misty May-Treanor, American volleyball player and coach
  • 1977 – Jaime Pressly, American actress
  • 1977 – Bootsy Thornton, American basketball player
  • 1977 – Ian Watkins, Welsh singer-songwriter and child abuse convict
  • 1979 – Carlos Arroyo, Puerto Rican basketball player and singer
  • 1979 – Chad Keegan, South African cricketer and coach
  • 1979 – Graeme McDowell, Northern Irish golfer
  • 1979 – Maya Nasser, Syrian journalist (d. 2012)
  • 1980 – Seth Avett, American folk-rock singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1980 – Justin Rose, South African-English golfer
  • 1981 – Nicky Hayden, American motorcycle racer (d. 2017)
  • 1981 – Juan Smith, South African rugby union footballer
  • 1981 – Hope Solo, American soccer player
  • 1981 – Indrek Turi, Estonian decathlete
  • 1982 – Jehad Al-Hussain, Syrian footballer
  • 1982 – James Anderson, English cricketer
  • 1982 – Yvonne Strahovski, Australian actress
  • 1983 – Seán Dillon, Irish footballer
  • 1984 – Marko Asmer, Estonian race car driver
  • 1984 – Gabrielle Christian, American actress and singer
  • 1984 – Trudy McIntosh, Australian artistic gymnast
  • 1984 – Kevin Pittsnogle, American basketball player
  • 1985 – Chris Guccione, Australian tennis player
  • 1985 – Daniel Fredheim Holm, Norwegian footballer
  • 1985 – Luca Lanotte, Italian ice dancer
  • 1985 – Matthew Scott, Australian rugby league player
  • 1986 – Tiago Alencar, Brazilian footballer
  • 1986 – William Zillman, Australian rugby league player
  • 1987 – Anton Fink, German footballer
  • 1987 – Sam Saunders, American golfer
  • 1988 – Wen Chean Lim, Malaysian rhythmic gymnast
  • 1989 – Aleix Espargaró, Spanish motorcycle racer
  • 1989 – Wayne Parnell, South African cricketer
  • 1990 – Chris Maxwell, Welsh footballer
  • 1991 – Diana Vickers, English singer-songwriter
  • 1992 – Hannah Cockroft, English wheelchair racer
  • 1993 – Jacob Faria, American baseball player
  • 1993 – André Gomes, Portuguese footballer
  • 1993 – Margarida Moura, Portuguese tennis player
  • 1994 – Nelydia Senrose, Malaysian actress
  • 1996 – Nina Stojanović, Serbian tennis player

Deaths on July 30

  • 578 – Jacob Baradaeus, Greek bishop
  • 579 – Pope Benedict I
  • 734 – Tatwine, English archbishop (b. 670)
  • 829 – Shi Xiancheng, general of the Tang Dynasty
  • 1286 – Bar Hebraeus, Syrian scholar and historian (b. 1226)
  • 1393 – Alberto d’Este, Lord of Ferrara and Modena (b. 1347)
  • 1516 – Johann V of Nassau-Vianden-Dietz (b. 1455)
  • 1540 – Thomas Abel, English priest and martyr (b. 1497)
  • 1540 – Robert Barnes, English martyr and reformer (b. 1495)
  • 1550 – Thomas Wriothesley, 1st Earl of Southampton, English politician, Lord Chancellor of the United Kingdom (b. 1505)
  • 1566 – Guillaume Rondelet, French doctor (b. 1507)
  • 1608 – Rory O’Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, last King of Tyrconnell (b. 1575)
  • 1624 – Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox, British nobleman (b. 1579)
  • 1652 – Charles Amadeus, Duke of Nemours (b. 1624)
  • 1680 – Thomas Butler, 6th Earl of Ossory, Irish admiral and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1634)
  • 1683 – Maria Theresa of Spain (b. 1638)
  • 1691 – Daniel Georg Morhof, German scholar and academic (b. 1639)
  • 1700 – Prince William, Duke of Gloucester, English royal (b. 1689)
  • 1718 – William Penn, English businessman and philosopher, founded the Province of Pennsylvania (b. 1644)
  • 1771 – Thomas Gray, English poet (b. 1716)
  • 1811 – Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, Mexican priest and soldier (b. 1753)
  • 1832 – Lê Văn Duyệt, Vietnamese general, mandarin (b. 1763-4)
  • 1870 – Aasmund Olavsson Vinje, Norwegian poet and journalist (b. 1818)
  • 1875 – George Pickett, American general (b. 1825)
  • 1889 – Charlie Absolom, England cricketer (b. 1846)
  • 1898 – Otto von Bismarck, German lawyer and politician, 1st Chancellor of Germany (b. 1815)
  • 1900 – Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (b. 1844)
  • 1912 – Emperor Meiji of Japan (b. 1852)
  • 1918 – Joyce Kilmer, American soldier, journalist, and poet (b. 1886)
  • 1920 – Albert Gustaf Dahlman, Swedish executioner (b. 1848)
  • 1930 – Joan Gamper, Swiss-Spanish footballer and businessman, founded FC Barcelona (b. 1877)
  • 1938 – John Derbyshire, English swimmer and water polo player (b. 1878)
  • 1941 – Hugo Celmiņš, Latvian politician, former Prime Minister of Latvia (b. 1877)
  • 1947 – Joseph Cook, English-Australian miner and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1860)
  • 1965 – Jun’ichirō Tanizaki, Japanese author and playwright (b. 1886)
  • 1970 – Walter Murdoch, Scottish-Australian academic (b. 1874)
  • 1970 – George Szell, Hungarian-American conductor and composer (b. 1897)
  • 1971 – Thomas Hollway, Australian politician, 36th Premier of Victoria (b. 1906)
  • 1975 – James Blish, American author and critic (b. 1921)
  • 1977 – Emory Holloway, American scholar, author, and educator (b. 1885)
  • 1983 – Howard Dietz, American songwriter and publicist (b. 1896)
  • 1983 – Lynn Fontanne, English actress (b. 1887)
  • 1985 – Julia Robinson, American mathematician and theorist (b. 1919)
  • 1989 – Lane Frost, American professional bull rider
  • 1990 – Ian Gow, British Member of Parliament who was assassinated by the IRA (b. 1937)
  • 1992 – Brenda Marshall, Filipino-American actress and singer (b. 1915)
  • 1992 – Joe Shuster, Canadian-American illustrator, co-created Superman (b. 1914)
  • 1996 – Claudette Colbert, French-American actress (b. 1903)
  • 1997 – Bảo Đại, Vietnamese emperor (b. 1913)
  • 1998 – Buffalo Bob Smith, American television host (b. 1917)
  • 2001 – Anton Schwarzkopf, German engineer (b. 1924)
  • 2003 – Steve Hislop, Scottish motorcycle racer (b. 1962)
  • 2003 – Sam Phillips, American record producer, founded Sun Records (b. 1923)
  • 2005 – Ray Cunningham, American baseball player (b. 1905)
  • 2005 – John Garang, Sudanese colonel and politician, 6th President of South Sudan (b. 1945)
  • 2006 – Duygu Asena, Turkish journalist and author(b. 1946)
  • 2006 – Al Balding, Canadian golfer (b. 1924)
  • 2006 – Murray Bookchin, American philosopher and author (b. 1921)
  • 2006 – Anthony Galla-Rini, American accordion player and composer (b. 1904)
  • 2006 – Akbar Mohammadi, Iranian activist (b. 1972)
  • 2007 – Michelangelo Antonioni, Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1912)
  • 2007 – Teoctist Arăpașu, Romanian patriarch (b. 1915)
  • 2007 – Ingmar Bergman, Swedish director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1918)
  • 2007 – Bill Walsh, American football player and coach (b. 1931)
  • 2008 – Anne Armstrong, American businesswoman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (b. 1927)
  • 2009 – Mohammed Yusuf, Nigerian militant leader, founded Boko Haram (b. 1970)
  • 2009 – Peter Zadek, German director and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 2011 – Bob Peterson, American basketball player (b. 1932)
  • 2012 – Maeve Binchy, Irish author, playwright, and journalist (b. 1939)
  • 2012 – Bill Doss, American singer and guitarist (b. 1968)
  • 2012 – Stig Ossian Ericson, Swedish actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1923)
  • 2012 – Les Green, English footballer and manager (b. 1941)
  • 2012 – Jonathan Hardy, New Zealand-Australian actor and screenwriter (b. 1940)
  • 2012 – Bill Kitchen, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1960)
  • 2012 – Mary Louise Rasmuson, American colonel (b. 1911)
  • 2013 – Cecil Alexander, American architect, designed the State of Georgia Building (b. 1918)
  • 2013 – Berthold Beitz, German businessman (b. 1913)
  • 2013 – Robert Neelly Bellah, American sociologist and author (b. 1927)
  • 2013 – Harry F. Byrd Jr., American lieutenant, publisher, and politician (b. 1914)
  • 2013 – Antoni Ramallets, Spanish footballer and manager (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Ossie Schectman, American basketball player (b. 1919)
  • 2013 – Benjamin Walker, Indian-English author, poet, and playwright (b. 1913)
  • 2014 – Robert Drew, American director and producer (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Harun Farocki, German director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1944)
  • 2014 – Julio Grondona, Argentinian businessman (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – Peter Hall, English geographer, author, and academic (b. 1932)
  • 2014 – Dick Smith, American make-up artist (b. 1922)
  • 2014 – Dick Wagner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
  • 2015 – Lynn Anderson, American singer (b. 1947)
  • 2015 – Endel Lippmaa, Estonian physicist (b. 1930)
  • 2015 – Francis Paul Prucha, American historian and academic (b. 1921)
  • 2015 – Alena Vrzáňová, Czech figure skater (b. 1931)
  • 2016 – Gloria DeHaven, American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1925)
  • 2018 – Michael A. Sheehan, American author, former government official and military officer (b. 1955)

Holidays and observances on July 30

  • Christian feast day:
    • Abdon and Sennen
    • Hatebrand
    • Maxima, Donatilla, and Secunda
    • Peter Chrysologus
    • Robert Barnes (Lutheran)
    • Rufinus of Assisi
    • Tatwine
    • Ursus of Auxerre
    • Solanus Casey
    • July 30 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Feast of the Throne (Morocco)
  • Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Vanuatu from the United Kingdom and France in 1980.
  • International Day of Friendship (international), and its related observances:
    • Día del Amigo (Paraguay)
  • Martyrs Day (South Sudan)

July 30 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 29 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 587 BC – The Neo-Babylonian Empire sacks Jerusalem and destroys the First Temple.
  • 238 – The Praetorian Guard storm the palace and capture Pupienus and Balbinus. They are dragged through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day, Gordian III, age 13, is proclaimed emperor.
  • 615 – Pakal ascends the throne of Palenque at the age of 12.
  • 904 – Sack of Thessalonica: Saracen raiders under Leo of Tripoli sack Thessaloniki, the Byzantine Empire’s second-largest city, after a short siege, and plunder it for a week.
  • 923 – Battle of Firenzuola: Lombard forces under King Rudolph II and Adalbert I, margrave of Ivrea, defeat the dethroned Emperor Berengar I of Italy at Firenzuola (Tuscany).
  • 1014 – Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat on the Bulgarian army, and his subsequent treatment of 15,000 prisoners reportedly causes Tsar Samuil of Bulgaria to die of a heart attack less than three months later, on October 6.
  • 1018 – Count Dirk III defeats an army sent by Emperor Henry II in the Battle of Vlaardingen.
  • 1030 – Ladejarl-Fairhair succession wars: Battle of Stiklestad: King Olaf II fights and dies trying to regain his Norwegian throne from the Danes.
  • 1148 – The Siege of Damascus ends in a decisive crusader defeat and leads to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
  • 1565 – The widowed Mary, Queen of Scots marries Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Duke of Albany, at Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh, Scotland.
  • 1567 – James VI is crowned King of Scotland at Stirling.
  • 1588 – Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: English naval forces under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake defeat the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France.
  • 1693 – War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen: France wins a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands.
  • 1775 – Founding of the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps: General George Washington appoints William Tudor as Judge Advocate of the Continental Army.
  • 1818 – French physicist Augustin Fresnel submits his prizewinning “Memoir on the Diffraction of Light”, precisely accounting for the limited extent to which light spreads into shadows, and thereby demolishing the oldest objection to the wave theory of light.
  • 1836 – Inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France.
  • 1848 – Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt: In County Tipperary, Ireland, then in the United Kingdom, an unsuccessful nationalist revolt against British rule is put down by police.
  • 1851 – Annibale de Gasparis discovers asteroid 15 Eunomia.
  • 1858 – United States and Japan sign the Harris Treaty.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Confederate spy Belle Boyd is arrested by Union troops and detained at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C.
  • 1871 – The Connecticut Valley Railroad opens between Old Saybrook, Connecticut and Hartford, Connecticut in the United States.
  • 1899 – The First Hague Convention is signed.
  • 1900 – In Italy, King Umberto I of Italy is assassinated by the anarchist Gaetano Bresci.
  • 1907 – Sir Robert Baden-Powell sets up the Brownsea Island Scout camp in Poole Harbour on the south coast of England. The camp runs from August 1 to August 9, 1907, and is regarded as the foundation of the Scouting movement.
  • 1914 – The Cape Cod Canal opened.
  • 1920 – Construction of the Link River Dam begins as part of the Klamath Reclamation Project.
  • 1921 – Adolf Hitler becomes leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party.
  • 1932 – Great Depression: In Washington, D.C., troops disperse the last of the “Bonus Army” of World War I veterans.
  • 1937 – Tōngzhōu Incident: In Tōngzhōu, China, the East Hopei Army attacks Japanese troops and civilians.
  • 1945 – The BBC Light Programme radio station is launched for mainstream light entertainment and music.
  • 1948 – Olympic Games: The Games of the XIV Olympiad: After a hiatus of 12 years caused by World War II, the first Summer Olympics to be held since the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, open in London.
  • 1950 – Korean War: After four days, the No Gun Ri Massacre ends when the US Army 7th Cavalry Regiment is withdrawn.
  • 1957 – The International Atomic Energy Agency is established.
  • 1958 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which creates the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
  • 1959 – First United States Congress elections in Hawaii as a state of the Union.
  • 1965 – Vietnam War: The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrive in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay.
  • 1967 – Vietnam War: Off the coast of North Vietnam the USS Forrestal catches on fire in the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134.
  • 1967 – During the fourth day of celebrating its 400th anniversary, the city of Caracas, Venezuela is shaken by an earthquake, leaving approximately 500 dead.
  • 1973 – Greeks vote to abolish the monarchy, beginning the first period of the Metapolitefsi.
  • 1973 – During the Dutch Grand Prix driver Roger Williamson was killed in the race, after a suspected tire failure caused the car to pitch into the barriers at high speed.
  • 1976 – In New York City, David Berkowitz (a.k.a. the “Son of Sam”) kills one person and seriously wounds another in the first of a series of attacks.
  • 1980 – Iran adopts a new “holy” flag after the Islamic Revolution.
  • 1981 – A worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watch the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul’s Cathedral in London.
  • 1981 – After impeachment on June 21, Abolhassan Banisadr flees with Massoud Rajavi to Paris, in an Iranian Air Force Boeing 707, piloted by Colonel Behzad Moezzi, to form the National Council of Resistance of Iran.
  • 1987 – British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand sign the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel).
  • 1987 – Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and President of Sri Lanka J. R. Jayewardene sign the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on ethnic issues.
  • 1993 – The Supreme Court of Israel acquits alleged Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk of all charges and he is set free.
  • 1996 – The child protection portion of the Communications Decency Act is struck down by a U.S. federal court as too broad.
  • 2005 – Astronomers announce their discovery of the dwarf planet Eris.
  • 2010 – An overloaded passenger ferry capsizes on the Kasai River in Bandundu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, resulting in at least 80 deaths.
  • 2013 – Two passenger trains collide in the Swiss municipality of Granges-près-Marnand near Lausanne injuring 25 people.
  • 2019 – Prison riot between rival gangs broke out in Brazil, at least 57 people have been killed.

Births on July 29 

  • 869 – Muhammad al-Mahdi, Iraqi 12th Imam (d. 941)
  • 996 – Fujiwara no Norimichi, Japanese nobleman (d. 1075)
  • 1166 – Henry II, French nobleman and king of Jerusalem (d. 1197)
  • 1356 – Martin the Elder, king of Aragon, Valencia and Majorca (d. 1410)
  • 1537 – Pedro Téllez-Girón, Spanish nobleman (d. 1590)
  • 1573 – Philip II, duke of Pomerania-Stettin (d. 1618)
  • 1580 – Francesco Mochi, Italian sculptor (d. 1654)
  • 1605 – Simon Dach, German poet and hymn-writer (d. 1659)
  • 1646 – Johann Theile, German organist and composer (d. 1724)
  • 1744 – Giulio Maria della Somaglia, Italian cardinal (d. 1830)
  • 1763 – Philip Charles Durham, Scottish admiral and politician (d. 1845)
  • 1797 – Daniel Drew, American businessman and financier (d. 1879)
  • 1801 – George Bradshaw, English cartographer and publisher (d. 1853)
  • 1805 – Alexis de Tocqueville, French historian and philosopher (d. 1859)
  • 1806 – Horace Abbott, American businessman and banker (d. 1887)
  • 1817 – Ivan Aivazovsky, Armenian-Russian painter and illustrator (d. 1900)
  • 1817 – Martin Körber, Baltic German pastor, composer, and conductor (d. 1893)
  • 1841 – Gerhard Armauer Hansen, Norwegian physician (d. 1912)
  • 1843 – Johannes Schmidt, German linguist and academic (d. 1901)
  • 1846 – Sophie Menter, German pianist and composer (d. 1918)
  • 1846 – Isabel, Brazilian princess (d. 1921)
  • 1849 – Max Nordau, Hungarian physician, author, and critic, co-founded the World Zionist Organization (d. 1923)
  • 1860 – Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, English politician, 8th Governor of Queensland (d. 1940)
  • 1867 – Berthold Oppenheim, Moravian rabbi (d. 1942)
  • 1869 – Booth Tarkington, American novelist and dramatist (d. 1946)
  • 1871 – Jakob Mändmets, Estonian writer and journalist (d. 1930)
  • 1872 – Eric Alfred Knudsen, American author, lawyer, and politician (d. 1957)
  • 1874 – J. S. Woodsworth, Canadian minister and politician (d. 1942)
  • 1876 – Maria Ouspenskaya, Russian-American actress and acting teacher (d. 1949)
  • 1878 – Don Marquis, American author, poet, and playwright (d. 1937)
  • 1883 – Porfirio Barba-Jacob, Colombian poet and author (d. 1942)
  • 1883 – Benito Mussolini, Italian fascist revolutionary and politician, 27th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1945)
  • 1884 – Ralph Austin Bard, American financier and politician, 2nd Under Secretary of the Navy (d. 1975)
  • 1885 – Theda Bara, American actress (d. 1955)
  • 1887 – Sigmund Romberg, Hungarian-American pianist and composer (d. 1951)
  • 1888 – Vladimir K. Zworykin, Russian-American engineer, invented the Iconoscope (d. 1982)
  • 1891 – Bernhard Zondek, German-Israeli gynecologist and academic (d. 1966)
  • 1892 – William Powell, American actor and singer (d. 1984)
  • 1896 – Maria L. de Hernández, Mexican-American rights activist (d. 1986)
  • 1897 – Neil Ritchie, Guyanese-English general (d. 1983)
  • 1898 – Isidor Isaac Rabi, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1988)
  • 1899 – Walter Beall, American baseball player (d. 1959)
  • 1900 – Mary V. Austin, Australian community worker and political activist (d. 1986)
  • 1900 – Eyvind Johnson, Swedish novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1976)
  • 1900 – Teresa Noce, Italian labor leader, activist, and journalist (d. 1980)
  • 1900 – Don Redman, American composer, and bandleader (d. 1964)
  • 1904 – Mahasi Sayadaw, Burmese monk and philosopher (d. 1982)
  • 1904 – J. R. D. Tata, French-Indian pilot and businessman, founded Tata Motors and Tata Global Beverages (d. 1993)
  • 1905 – Clara Bow, American actress (d. 1965)
  • 1905 – Dag Hammarskjöld, Swedish economist and diplomat, 2nd Secretary-General of the United Nations, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1961)
  • 1905 – Stanley Kunitz, American poet and translator (d. 2006)
  • 1906 – Thelma Todd, American actress and singer (d. 1935)
  • 1907 – Melvin Belli, American lawyer (d. 1996)
  • 1909 – Samm Sinclair Baker, American author (d. 1997)
  • 1909 – Chester Himes, American-Spanish author (d. 1984)
  • 1910 – Gale Page, American actress (d. 1983)
  • 1911 – Foster Furcolo, American lawyer and politician, 60th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1995)
  • 1911 – Archbishop Iakovos of America (d. 2005)
  • 1913 – Erich Priebke, German war criminal, leader of the 1944 Ardeatine massacre (d. 2013)
  • 1914 – Irwin Corey, American actor and activist (d. 2017)
  • 1915 – Bruce R. McConkie, American colonel and religious leader (d. 1985)
  • 1915 – Francis W. Sargent, American soldier and politician, 64th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1998)
  • 1916 – Budd Boetticher, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2001)
  • 1916 – Charlie Christian, American guitarist (d. 1942)
  • 1916 – Rupert Hamer, Australian politician, 39th Premier of Victoria (d. 2004)
  • 1917 – Rochus Misch, German SS officer (d. 2013)
  • 1918 – Don Ingalls, American writer and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1918 – Edwin O’Connor, American journalist and author (d. 1968)
  • 1918 – Mary Lee Settle, American novelist, essayist, and memoirist (d. 2005)
  • 1920 – Neville Jeffress, Australian businessman (d. 2007)
  • 1921 – Richard Egan, American actor (d. 1987)
  • 1921 – Chris Marker, French photographer and journalist (d. 2012)
  • 1923 – George Burditt, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – Edgar Cortright, American scientist and engineer (d. 2014)
  • 1923 – Jim Marshall, English businessman, founded Marshall Amplification (d. 2012)
  • 1923 – Gordon Mitchell, American bodybuilder and actor (d. 2003)
  • 1924 – Lloyd Bochner, Canadian-American actor (d. 2005)
  • 1924 – Robert Horton, American actor (d. 2016)
  • 1925 – Harold W. Kuhn, American mathematician and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – Ted Lindsay, Canadian ice hockey player, manager, and sportscaster (d. 2019)
  • 1925 – Mikis Theodorakis, Greek composer
  • 1926 – Robert Kilpatrick, Baron Kilpatrick of Kincraig, Scottish physician, academic, and politician (d. 2015)
  • 1927 – Harry Mulisch, Dutch author, poet, and playwright (d. 2010)
  • 1930 – Paul Taylor, American dancer and choreographer (d. 2018)
  • 1931 – Kjell Karlsen, Norwegian pianist, composer, and bandleader (d. 2020)
  • 1932 – Leslie Fielding, English diplomat
  • 1932 – Nancy Kassebaum, American businesswoman and politician
  • 1933 – Lou Albano, Italian-American wrestler, manager, and actor (d. 2009)
  • 1933 – Colin Davis, English race car driver (d. 2012)
  • 1933 – Robert Fuller, American actor and rancher
  • 1933 – Randy Sparks, American folk singer-songwriter and musician (The New Christy Minstrels)
  • 1935 – Peter Schreier, German tenor and conductor (d. 2019)
  • 1936 – Elizabeth Dole, American lawyer and politician, 20th United States Secretary of Labor
  • 1937 – Daniel McFadden, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize Laureate
  • 1938 – Peter Jennings, Canadian-American journalist and author (d. 2005)
  • 1938 – Jean Rochon, Canadian physician and politician
  • 1940 – Betty Harris, American chemist
  • 1940 – Winnie Monsod, Filipina economist and political commentator
  • 1941 – Jennifer Dunn, American engineer and politician (d. 2007)
  • 1941 – Goenawan Mohamad, Indonesian poet and playwright
  • 1941 – David Warner, English actor
  • 1942 – Doug Ashdown, Australian singer-songwriter
  • 1943 – David Taylor, English snooker player and sportscaster
  • 1944 – Jim Bridwell, American rock climber and mountaineer
  • 1945 – Sharon Creech, American author and educator
  • 1945 – Mircea Lucescu, Romanian footballer, coach, and manager
  • 1946 – Ximena Armas, Chilean painter
  • 1946 – Stig Blomqvist, Swedish race car driver
  • 1946 – Neal Doughty, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer
  • 1946 – Alessandro Gogna, Italian mountaineer and adventurer
  • 1946 – Diane Keen, English actress
  • 1946 – Aleksei Tammiste, Estonian basketball player
  • 1947 – Dick Harmon, American golfer and coach (d. 2006)
  • 1948 – John Clarke, New Zealand-Australian comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2017)
  • 1949 – Leslie Easterbrook, American actress
  • 1949 – Jamil Mahuad, Ecuadorian lawyer and politician, 51st President of Ecuador
  • 1950 – Jenny Holzer, American painter, author, and dancer
  • 1951 – Susan Blackmore, English psychologist and theorist
  • 1951 – Dan Driessen, American baseball player and coach
  • 1951 – Dean Pitchford, American actor, director, screenwriter, and composer
  • 1952 – Norman Blackwell, Baron Blackwell, English businessman and politician
  • 1952 – Joe Johnson, English snooker player and sportscaster
  • 1952 – Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou, Greek politician
  • 1953 – Ken Burns, American director and producer
  • 1953 – Geddy Lee, Canadian musician
  • 1953 – Frank McGuinness, Irish poet and playwright
  • 1953 – Tim Gunn, American television host and actor
  • 1954 – Patti Scialfa, American musician
  • 1955 – Jean-Hugues Anglade, French actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1955 – Dave Stevens, American illustrator (d. 2008)
  • 1955 – Stephen Timms, English politician, Minister of State for Competitiveness
  • 1956 – Teddy Atlas, American boxer, trainer, and sportscaster
  • 1956 – Ronnie Musgrove, American lawyer and politician, 62nd Governor of Mississippi
  • 1956 – Faustino Rupérez, Spanish cyclist
  • 1957 – Liam Davison, Australian author and educator (d. 2014)
  • 1957 – Viktor Gavrikov, Lithuanian-Swiss chess player (d. 2016)
  • 1957 – Nellie Kim, Russian gymnast and coach
  • 1958 – Gail Dines, English-American author, activist, and academic
  • 1958 – Simon Nye, English screenwriter and producer
  • 1958 – Cynthia Rowley, American fashion designer
  • 1959 – Sanjay Dutt, Indian actor, singer, and producer
  • 1959 – Ruud Janssen, Dutch blogger and illustrator
  • 1959 – Dave LaPoint, American baseball player and manager
  • 1959 – John Sykes, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1960 – Didier Van Cauwelaert, French author
  • 1962 – Carl Cox, English DJ and producer
  • 1962 – Frank Neubarth, German footballer and manager
  • 1962 – Scott Steiner, American wrestler
  • 1962 – Vincent Rousseau, Belgian runner
  • 1963 – Hans-Holger Albrecht, Belgian-German businessman
  • 1963 – Jim Beglin, Irish footballer and sportscaster
  • 1963 – Julie Elliott, English politician
  • 1963 – Azeem Hafeez, Pakistani cricketer
  • 1963 – Alexandra Paul, American actress and producer
  • 1963 – Graham Poll, English footballer, referee, and journalist
  • 1964 – Jaanus Veensalu, Estonian footballer
  • 1965 – Luis Alicea, Puerto Rican-American baseball player and coach
  • 1965 – Dean Haglund, Canadian actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1965 – Adam Holloway, English captain and politician
  • 1965 – Stan Koziol, American soccer player (d. 2014)
  • 1965 – Chang-Rae Lee, South Korean-American author and academic
  • 1965 – Xavier Waterkeyn, Australian author
  • 1965 – Woody Weatherman, American guitarist and songwriter
  • 1966 – Sally Gunnell, English hurdler and sportscaster
  • 1966 – Stuart Lampitt, English cricketer
  • 1966 – Martina McBride, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1968 – Gideon Henderson, English geologist and academic
  • 1968 – Paavo Lötjönen, Finnish cellist and educator
  • 1970 – Adele Griffin, American author
  • 1970 – Andi Peters, English journalist, actor, and producer
  • 1970 – John Rennie, Zimbabwean cricketer
  • 1971 – Andrea Philipp, German sprinter
  • 1972 – Wil Wheaton, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1973 – Stephen Dorff, American actor and producer
  • 1973 – Denis Urubko, Kazakh mountaineer
  • 1975 – Yoshihiro Akiyama, Japanese mixed martial artist
  • 1975 – Lanka de Silva, Sri Lankan cricketer
  • 1975 – Corrado Grabbi, Italian footballer
  • 1975 – Jaanus Sirel, Estonian footballer
  • 1978 – Mike Adams, American baseball player
  • 1978 – Marina Lazarovska, Macedonian tennis player
  • 1979 – Karim Essediri, Tunisian footballer
  • 1979 – Ronald Murray, American basketball player
  • 1979 – Juris Umbraško, Latvian basketball player
  • 1980 – Ryan Braun, Canadian-American baseball player
  • 1980 – Fernando González, Chilean tennis player
  • 1980 – Ben Koller, American drummer
  • 1980 – John Morris, Australian rugby league player
  • 1981 – Fernando Alonso, Spanish race car driver
  • 1981 – Andrés Madrid, Argentinian footballer
  • 1981 – Troy Perkins, American soccer player
  • 1982 – Janez Aljančič, Slovenian footballer
  • 1982 – Jônatas Domingos, Brazilian footballer
  • 1982 – Allison Mack, American actress and criminal
  • 1983 – Jason Belmonte, Australian bowler
  • 1983 – Inés Gómez Mont, Mexican journalist and actress
  • 1983 – Alexei Kaigorodov, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1983 – Jerious Norwood, American football player
  • 1983 – Elise Testone, American singer-songwriter
  • 1984 – Oh Beom-seok, South Korean footballer
  • 1984 – Chad Billingsley, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Wilson Palacios, Honduran footballer
  • 1985 – Besart Berisha, Albanian footballer
  • 1985 – Okinoumi Ayumi, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1985 – Simon Santoso, Indonesian badminton player
  • 1988 – Tarjei Bø, Norwegian biathlete
  • 1989 – Grit Šadeiko, Estonian heptathlete
  • 1991 – Dale Copley, Australian rugby league player
  • 1991 – Irakli Logua, Russian footballer
  • 1992 – Karen Torrez, Bolivian swimmer
  • 1993 – Nicole Melichar, American tennis player
  • 1994 – Liam O’Brien, Canadian ice hockey player

Deaths on July 29

  • 238 – Balbinus, Roman emperor (b. 165)
  • 238 – Pupienus, Roman emperor (b. 178)
  • 451 – Tuoba Huang, prince of Northern Wei (b. 428)
  • 796 – Offa of Mercia (b. 730)
  • 846 – Li Shen, chancellor of the Tang Dynasty
  • 1030 – Olaf II of Norway (b. 995)
  • 1095 – Ladislaus I of Hungary (b. 1040)
  • 1099 – Pope Urban II (b. 1042)
  • 1108 – Philip I of France (b. 1052)
  • 1236 – Ingeborg of Denmark, Queen of France (b. 1175)
  • 1326 – Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster (b. 1259)
  • 1504 – Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby (b. 1435)
  • 1507 – Martin Behaim, German-Bohemian geographer and astronomer (b. 1459)
  • 1573 – John Caius, English physician and academic (b. 1510)
  • 1612 – Jacques Bongars, French scholar and diplomat (b. 1554)
  • 1644 – Pope Urban VIII (b. 1568)
  • 1752 – Peter Warren, Irish admiral and politician (b. 1703)
  • 1781 – Johann Kies, German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1713)
  • 1792 – René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, French lawyer and politician, Chancellor of France (b. 1714)
  • 1813 – Jean-Andoche Junot, French general (b. 1771)
  • 1833 – William Wilberforce, English philanthropist and politician (b. 1759)
  • 1839 – Gaspard de Prony, French mathematician and engineer (b. 1755)
  • 1844 – Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart, Austrian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1791)
  • 1856 – Robert Schumann, German composer and critic (b. 1810)
  • 1857 – Thomas Dick, Scottish minister, astronomer, and author (b. 1774)
  • 1887 – Agostino Depretis, Italian politician, 9th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1813)
  • 1890 – Vincent van Gogh, Dutch painter and illustrator (b. 1853)
  • 1895 – Floriano Peixoto, Brazilian general and politician, 2nd President of Brazil (b. 1839)
  • 1900 – Umberto I of Italy (b. 1844)
  • 1908 – Marie Adam-Doerrer (b. 1838)
  • 1913 – Tobias Asser, Dutch lawyer and jurist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1838)
  • 1918 – Ernest William Christmas, Australian-American painter (b. 1863)
  • 1924 – Sotirios Krokidas, Greek educator and politician, 110th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1852)
  • 1934 – Didier Pitre, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1883)
  • 1938 – Nikolai Krylenko, Russian lawyer, jurist, and politician, Prosecutor General of the Russian SFSR (b. 1885)
  • 1950 – Joe Fry, English race car driver (b. 1915)
  • 1951 – Ali Sami Yen, Turkish footballer and manager, founded Galatasaray S.K. (b. 1886)
  • 1954 – Coen de Koning, Dutch speed skater (b. 1879)
  • 1960 – Hasan Saka, Turkish politician, 7th Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1885)
  • 1962 – Ronald Fisher, English biologist and statistician (b. 1890)
  • 1962 – Leonardo De Lorenzo, Italian-American flute player and educator (b. 1875)
  • 1964 – Vean Gregg, American baseball player (b. 1885)
  • 1966 – Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, Nigerian general and politician, 2nd Head of State of Nigeria (b. 1924)
  • 1966 – Adekunle Fajuyi, Nigerian colonel (b. 1926)
  • 1970 – John Barbirolli, English cellist and conductor (b. 1899)
  • 1973 – Norm Smith, Australian footballer and coach (b. 1915)
  • 1973 – Roger Williamson, English race car driver (b. 1948)
  • 1974 – Cass Elliot, American singer (b. 1941)
  • 1974 – Erich Kästner, German author and poet (b. 1899)
  • 1976 – Mickey Cohen, American gangster (b. 1913)
  • 1978 – Andrzej Bogucki, Polish actor, operetta singer, and songwriter (b. 1904)
  • 1979 – Herbert Marcuse, German sociologist and philosopher (b. 1898)
  • 1979 – Bill Todman, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1916)
  • 1981 – Robert Moses, American urban planner, designed the Northern State Parkway and Southern State Parkway (b. 1888)
  • 1982 – Harold Sakata, American wrestler and actor (b. 1920)
  • 1982 – Vladimir K. Zworykin, Russian-American engineer, invented the Iconoscope (b. 1889)
  • 1983 – Luis Buñuel, Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1900)
  • 1983 – Raymond Massey, Canadian-American actor and screenwriter (b. 1896)
  • 1983 – David Niven, English military officer and actor (b. 1910)
  • 1984 – Fred Waring, American television host and bandleader (b. 1900)
  • 1987 – Bibhutibhushan Mukhopadhyay, Indian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1894)
  • 1990 – Bruno Kreisky, Austrian academic and politician, 22nd Chancellor of Austria (b. 1911)
  • 1992 – Michel Larocque, Canadian ice hockey player and manager (b. 1952)
  • 1994 – John Britton, American physician (b. 1925)
  • 1994 – Dorothy Hodgkin, Egyptian-English biochemist and biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
  • 1995 – Les Elgart, American trumpet player and bandleader (b. 1917)
  • 1996 – Ric Nordman, Canadian businessman and politician (b. 1919)
  • 1996 – Marcel-Paul Schützenberger, French mathematician and theorist (b. 1920)
  • 1996 – Jason Thirsk, American singer and bass player (b. 1967)
  • 1998 – Jerome Robbins, American director, producer, and choreographer (b. 1918)
  • 2001 – Edward Gierek, Polish soldier and politician (b. 1913)
  • 2001 – Wau Holland, German computer scientist, co-founded Chaos Computer Club (b. 1951)
  • 2003 – Foday Sankoh, Sierra Leonean soldier, founded the Revolutionary United Front (b. 1937)
  • 2004 – Rena Vlahopoulou, Greek actress and singer (b. 1923)
  • 2007 – Mike Reid, English comedian, actor, and author (b. 1940)
  • 2007 – Michel Serrault, French actor (b. 1928)
  • 2007 – Tom Snyder, American journalist and talk show host (b. 1936)
  • 2007 – Marvin Zindler, American journalist (b. 1921)
  • 2008 – Bruce Edward Ivins, American scientist and bio-defense researcher (b. 1946)
  • 2010 – Charles E. Wicks, American chemist and academic (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – Tatiana Egorova, Russian footballer and manager (b. 1970)
  • 2012 – August Kowalczyk, Polish actor and director (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Chris Marker, French photographer and journalist (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – James Mellaart, English archaeologist and author (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – John Stampe, Danish footballer and coach (b. 1957)
  • 2013 – Christian Benítez, Ecuadorian footballer (b. 1986)
  • 2013 – Peter Flanigan, American banker and civil servant (b. 1923)
  • 2013 – Tony Gaze, Australian soldier, pilot, and race car driver (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – Munir Hussain, Indian cricketer and sportscaster (b. 1929)
  • 2014 – M. Caldwell Butler, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Jon R. Cavaiani, English-American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1943)
  • 2014 – Giorgio Gaslini, Italian pianist and composer (b. 1929)
  • 2014 – María Antonia Iglesias, Spanish journalist and author (b. 1945)
  • 2014 – Péter Kiss, Hungarian engineer and politician (b. 1959)
  • 2014 – Idris Muhammad, American drummer and composer (b. 1939)
  • 2014 – Thomas R. St. George, American soldier and author (b. 1919)
  • 2015 – Antony Holland, English-Canadian actor, director, and playwright (b. 1920)
  • 2015 – Peter O’Sullevan, Anglo-Irish sportscaster (b. 1918)
  • 2015 – Mike Pyle, American football player and sportscaster (b. 1939)
  • 2015 – Franklin H. Westervelt, American computer scientist, engineer, and academic (b. 1930)
  • 2018 – Oliver Dragojević, a Croatian recording artist (b. 1947)
  • 2018 – Josip Peruzovic, Yugoslav-born American professional wrestler (b. 1947)

Holidays and observances on July 29

  • Christian feast day:
    • Lupus of Troyes
    • Martha of Bethany (Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran Church)
    • Mary of Bethany
    • Olaf II of Norway
    • Simplicius, Faustinus and Beatrix
    • July 29 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which Somer’s Day can fall, while August 4 is the latest; celebrated on Friday before the first Monday in August. (Bermuda)
  • International Tiger Day
  • Mohun Bagan Day (India)
  • National Anthem Day (Romania)
  • National Thai Language Day (Thailand)
  • Ólavsøka or Olsok, opening of the Løgting session. (Faroe Islands and the Nordic countries)

July 29 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 28 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 1364 – Troops of the Republic of Pisa and the Republic of Florence clash in the Battle of Cascina.
  • 1540 – Thomas Cromwell is executed at the order of Henry VIII of England on charges of treason. Henry marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, on the same day.
  • 1571 – La Laguna encomienda, known today as the Laguna province in the Philippines is founded by the Spaniards as one of the oldest encomiendas (provinces) in the country.
  • 1635 – In the Eighty Years’ War the Spanish capture the strategic Dutch fortress of Schenkenschans.
  • 1656 – Second Northern War: Battle of Warsaw begins.
  • 1778 – Constitution of the province of Cantabria ratified at the Assembly Hall in Bárcena la Puente, Reocín, Spain.
  • 1794 – French Revolution: Maximilien Robespierre and Louis Antoine de Saint-Just are executed by guillotine in Paris, France.
  • 1808 – Mahmud II became Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and Caliph of Islam.
  • 1809 – Peninsular War: Battle of Talavera: Sir Arthur Wellesley’s British, Portuguese and Spanish army defeats a French force led by Joseph Bonaparte.
  • 1821 – José de San Martín declares the independence of Peru from Spain.
  • 1854 – USS Constellation (1854), the last all-sail warship built by the United States Navy, is commissioned.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Ezra Church: Confederate troops make a third unsuccessful attempt to drive Union forces from Atlanta, Georgia.
  • 1866 – At the age of 18, Vinnie Ream becomes the first and youngest female artist to receive a commission from the United States government for a statue (of Abraham Lincoln).
  • 1868 – The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution is certified, establishing African American citizenship and guaranteeing due process of law.
  • 1896 – The city of Miami, Florida is incorporated.
  • 1914 – In the culmination of the July Crisis, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, igniting World War I.
  • 1915 – The United States begins a 19-year occupation of Haiti.
  • 1917 – The Silent Parade took place in New York City, in protest to murders, lynchings, and other violence directed towards African Americans.
  • 1932 – U.S. President Herbert Hoover orders the United States Army to forcibly evict the “Bonus Army” of World War I veterans gathered in Washington, D.C.
  • 1935 – First flight of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress.
  • 1938 – Hawaii Clipper disappears between Guam and Manila as the first loss of an airliner in trans-Pacific China Clipper service.
  • 1939 – The Sutton Hoo helmet is discovered.
  • 1942 – World War II: Soviet leader Joseph Stalin issues Order No. 227. In response to alarming German advances, all those who retreat or otherwise leave their positions without orders to do so are to be tried in a military court, with punishment ranging from duty in a shtrafbat battalion, imprisonment in a Gulag, or execution.
  • 1943 – World War II: Operation Gomorrah: The Royal Air Force bombs Hamburg, Germany causing a firestorm that kills 42,000 German civilians.
  • 1945 – A U.S. Army B-25 bomber crashes into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building killing 14 and injuring 26.
  • 1957 – Heavy rain and a mudslide in Isahaya, western Kyushu, Japan, kills 992.
  • 1960 – The German Volkswagen Act came into force.
  • 1965 – Vietnam War: U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson announces his order to increase the number of United States troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000.
  • 1973 – Summer Jam at Watkins Glen: Nearly 600,000 people attend a rock festival at the Watkins Glen International Raceway.
  • 1974 – Spetsgruppa A, Russia’s elite special force, was formed.
  • 1976 – The Tangshan earthquake measuring between 7.8 and 8.2 moment magnitude flattens Tangshan in the People’s Republic of China, killing 242,769 and injuring 164,851.
  • 1984 – The Summer Olympics officially known as the games of the XXIII were opened in Los Angeles.
  • 1996 – The remains of a prehistoric man are discovered near Kennewick, Washington. Such remains will be known as the Kennewick Man.
  • 2001 – Australian Ian Thorpe becomes the first swimmer to win six gold medals at a single World Championship.
  • 2002 – Nine coal miners trapped in the flooded Quecreek Mine in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, are rescued after 77 hours underground.
  • 2002 – Pulkovo Aviation Enterprise Flight 9560 crashes after takeoff from Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow, Russia, killing 14 of the 16 people on board.
  • 2005 – The Provisional Irish Republican Army calls an end to its thirty-year-long armed campaign in Northern Ireland.
  • 2010 – Airblue Flight 202 crashes into the Margalla Hills north of Islamabad, Pakistan, killing all 152 people aboard. It is the deadliest aviation accident in Pakistan history and the first involving an Airbus A321.
  • 2011 – While flying from Seoul, South Korea to Shanghai, China, Asiana Airlines Flight 991 develops an in-flight fire in the cargo hold. The Boeing 747-400F freighter attempts to divert to Jeju International Airport, but crashes into the sea South-West of Jeju island, killing both crew members on board.
  • 2017 – Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif was disqualified for lifetime by Supreme Court of Pakistan founding him guilty of corruption charges.
  • 2018 – Australian Wendy Tuck becomes the first woman skipper to win the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

Births on July 28

  • 1347 – Margaret of Durazzo, Queen of Naples and Hungary (d. 1412)
  • 1516 – William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, German nobleman (d. 1592)
  • 1609 – Judith Leyster, Dutch painter (d. 1660)
  • 1635 – Robert Hooke, English physicist and chemist (d. 1703)
  • 1645 – Marguerite Louise d’Orléans, French princess (d. 1721)
  • 1659 – Charles Ancillon, French jurist and diplomat (d. 1715)
  • 1746 – Thomas Heyward, Jr., American judge and politician (d. 1809)
  • 1750 – Fabre d’Églantine, French actor, playwright, and politician (d. 1794)
  • 1783 – Friedrich Wilhelm von Bismarck, German army officer and writer (d. 1860)
  • 1796 – Ignaz Bösendorfer, Austrian businessman, founded the Bösendorfer Company (d. 1859)
  • 1804 – Ludwig Feuerbach, German anthropologist and philosopher (d. 1872)
  • 1815 – Stefan Dunjov, Bulgarian colonel (d. 1889)
  • 1844 – Gerard Manley Hopkins, English poet (d. 1889)
  • 1857 – Ballington Booth, English-American activist, co-founded Volunteers of America (d. 1940)
  • 1860 – Elias M. Ammons, American businessman and politician, 19th Governor of Colorado (d. 1925)
  • 1860 – Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia (d. 1922)
  • 1863 – Huseyn Khan Nakhchivanski, Russian general (d. 1919)
  • 1866 – Beatrix Potter, English children’s book writer and illustrator (d. 1943)
  • 1866 – Albertson Van Zo Post, American fencer (d. 1938)
  • 1867 – Charles Dillon Perrine, American-Argentinian astronomer (d. 1951)
  • 1872 – Albert Sarraut, French journalist and politician, 106th Prime Minister of France (d. 1962)
  • 1874 – Ernst Cassirer, Polish-American philosopher and academic (d. 1945)
  • 1879 – Lucy Burns, American activist, co-founded the National Woman’s Party (d. 1966)
  • 1879 – Stefan Filipkiewicz, Polish painter (d. 1944)
  • 1887 – Marcel Duchamp, French-American painter and sculptor (d. 1968)
  • 1887 – Willard Price, Canadian-American journalist and author (d. 1983)
  • 1893 – Rued Langgaard, Danish organist and composer (d. 1952)
  • 1896 – Barbara La Marr, American actress and screenwriter (d. 1926)
  • 1898 – Lawrence Gray, American actor (d. 1970)
  • 1901 – Freddie Fitzsimmons, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1979)
  • 1901 – Rudy Vallée, American actor, singer, and saxophonist (d. 1986)
  • 1902 – Albert Namatjira, Australian painter (d. 1959)
  • 1902 – Sir Karl Popper, Austrian-English philosopher and academic (d. 1994)
  • 1907 – Earl Tupper, American inventor and businessman, founded Tupperware Brands (d. 1983)
  • 1909 – Aenne Burda, German publisher (d. 2005)
  • 1909 – Malcolm Lowry, English novelist and poet (d. 1957)
  • 1914 – Carmen Dragon, American conductor and composer (d. 1984)
  • 1915 – Charles Hard Townes, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2015)
  • 1915 – Dick Sprang, American illustrator (d. 2000)
  • 1915 – Frankie Yankovic, American polka musician (d. 1998)
  • 1916 – David Brown, American journalist and producer (d. 2010)
  • 1920 – Andrew V. McLaglen, English-American director and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1922 – Jacques Piccard, Belgian-Swiss oceanographer and engineer (d. 2008)
  • 1923 – Ray Ellis, American conductor and producer (d. 2008)
  • 1924 – Luigi Musso, Italian race car driver (d. 1958)
  • 1924 – C. T. Vivian, American minister, author, and activist
  • 1925 – Baruch Samuel Blumberg, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2011)
  • 1926 – Charlie Biddle, American-Canadian bassist (d. 2003)
  • 1927 – John Ashbery, American poet (d. 2017)
  • 1929 – Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, American journalist and socialite, 37th First Lady of the United States (d. 1994)
  • 1929 – Shirley Ann Grau, American novelist and short story writer
  • 1930 – Firoza Begum, Bangladeshi singer (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – Junior Kimbrough, American singer and guitarist (d. 1998)
  • 1930 – Jean Roba, Belgian author and illustrator (d. 2006)
  • 1930 – Ramsey Muir Withers, Canadian general (d. 2014)
  • 1931 – Alan Brownjohn, English poet and author
  • 1931 – Johnny Martin, Australian cricketer (d. 1992)
  • 1932 – Natalie Babbitt, American author and illustrator (d. 2016)
  • 1932 – Carlos Alberto Brilhante Ustra, Brazilian colonel (d. 2015)
  • 1933 – Charlie Hodge, Canadian ice hockey player and scout (d. 2016)
  • 1934 – Jacques d’Amboise, American dancer and choreographer
  • 1935 – Neil McKendrick, English historian and academic
  • 1936 – Russ Jackson, Canadian football player and coach
  • 1936 – Garfield Sobers, Barbadian cricketer
  • 1937 – Francis Veber, French director and screenwriter
  • 1938 – Luis Aragonés, Spanish footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2014)
  • 1938 – Arsen Dedić, Croatian singer-songwriter and poet (d. 2015)
  • 1938 – Alberto Fujimori, Peruvian engineer, academic, and politician, 90th President of Peru
  • 1938 – Chuan Leekpai, Thai lawyer and politician, 20th Prime Minister of Thailand
  • 1939 – Richard Johns, English air marshal
  • 1940 – Philip Proctor, American voice actor and screenwriter
  • 1941 – Riccardo Muti, Italian conductor and educator
  • 1941 – Susan Roces, Filipino actress and producer
  • 1942 – Marty Brennaman, American sportscaster
  • 1942 – Tonia Marketaki, Greek director and screenwriter (d. 1994)
  • 1943 – Mike Bloomfield, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1981)
  • 1943 – Bill Bradley, American basketball player and politician
  • 1943 – Richard Wright, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player (d. 2008)
  • 1945 – Jim Davis, American cartoonist, created Garfield
  • 1946 – Jonathan Edwards, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1946 – Linda Kelsey, American actress
  • 1946 – Fahmida Riaz, Pakistani poet and activist
  • 1947 – Peter Cosgrove, Australian general and politician, 26th Governor General of Australia
  • 1947 – Sally Struthers, American actress
  • 1948 – Gerald Casale, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and director
  • 1948 – Eiichi Ohtaki, Japanese singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2013)
  • 1949 – Vida Blue, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1949 – Peter Doyle, Australian singer and guitarist (d. 2001)
  • 1949 – Simon Kirke, English drummer
  • 1949 – Steve Peregrin Took, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1980)
  • 1949 – Randall Wallace, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1950 – Shahyar Ghanbari, Iranian singer-songwriter
  • 1950 – Tapley Seaton, Kittitian politician, 4th Governor-General of Saint Kitts and Nevis
  • 1951 – Santiago Calatrava, Spanish architect and engineer, designed the Athens Olympic Sports Complex
  • 1951 – Doug Collins, American basketball player and coach
  • 1951 – Gregg Giuffria, American rock musician and businessman
  • 1951 – Ray Kennedy, English footballer
  • 1952 – Vajiralongkorn, King of Thailand
  • 1954 – Hugo Chávez, Venezuelan colonel and politician, President of Venezuela (d. 2013)
  • 1954 – Gerd Faltings, German mathematician and academic
  • 1954 – Steve Morse, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1954 – Mikey Sheehy, Irish footballer
  • 1955 – Nikolay Zimyatov, Russian skier
  • 1956 – John Feinstein, American journalist and author
  • 1956 – Robert Swan, English explorer
  • 1958 – Terry Fox, Canadian runner and activist (d. 1981)
  • 1958 – Michael Hitchcock, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1959 – William T. Vollmann, American novelist, short story writer and journalist
  • 1960 – Luiz Fernando Carvalho, Brazilian director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Jon J. Muth, American author and illustrator
  • 1960 – Yōichi Takahashi, Japanese illustrator
  • 1961 – Yannick Dalmas, French race car driver
  • 1962 – Rachel Sweet, American singer, television writer, and actress
  • 1964 – Lori Loughlin, American actress
  • 1965 – Priscilla Chan, Hong Kong singer
  • 1966 – Sossina M. Haile, Ethiopian American chemist
  • 1966 – Miguel Ángel Nadal, Spanish footballer
  • 1966 – Jimmy Pardo, American stand-up comedian, actor, and host
  • 1966 – Shikao Suga, Japanese singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1967 – Taka Hirose, Japanese bass player
  • 1969 – Garth Snow, American ice hockey player and manager
  • 1969 – Alexis Arquette, American actress (d. 2016)
  • 1970 – Michael Amott, Swedish guitarist and songwriter
  • 1970 – Isabelle Brasseur, Canadian figure skater
  • 1970 – Paul Strang, Zimbabwean cricketer and coach
  • 1971 – Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Iraqi leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
  • 1971 – Ludmilla Lacueva Canut, Andorran writer
  • 1971 – Stephen Lynch, American singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1971 – Annie Perreault, Canadian speed skater
  • 1972 – Robert Chapman, English cricketer
  • 1973 – Marc Dupré, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1973 – Steve Staios, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1974 – Alexis Tsipras, Greek engineer and politician, 186th Prime Minister of Greece
  • 1974 – Elizabeth Berkley, American actress
  • 1975 – Leonor Watling, Spanish actress
  • 1976 – Jacoby Shaddix, American singer-songwriter
  • 1977 – Aki Berg, Finnish-Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1977 – Manu Ginóbili, Argentinian basketball player
  • 1977 – Miyabiyama Tetsushi, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1978 – Kārlis Vērdiņš, Latvian poet
  • 1978 – Hitomi Yaida, Japanese singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1979 – Henrik Hansen, Danish footballer
  • 1979 – Birgitta Haukdal, Icelandic singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1979 – Lee Min-woo, South Korean singer-songwriter and dancer
  • 1979 – Alena Popchanka, Belarusian-French swimmer and coach
  • 1980 – Stephen Christian, American singer-songwriter
  • 1980 – Anthony Weaver, American football player
  • 1981 – Michael Carrick, English footballer
  • 1983 – Sam Dastyari, Iranian-Australian politician
  • 1983 – Cody Hay, Canadian figure skater
  • 1984 – Zach Parise, American ice hockey player
  • 1985 – Mathieu Debuchy, French footballer
  • 1985 – Dustin Milligan, Canadian actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1985 – Darren Murphy, Irish footballer
  • 1986 – Alexandra Chando, American actress
  • 1986 – Lauri Korpikoski, Finnish ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Dulquer Salmaan, Indian actor
  • 1987 – Yasser Corona, Mexican footballer
  • 1987 – Yevhen Khacheridi, Ukrainian-Greek footballer
  • 1987 – Pedro, Spanish footballer
  • 1988 – Greg Hardy, American football player
  • 1989 – Felipe Kitadai, Brazilian martial artist
  • 1990 – Soulja Boy, American rapper, producer, and actor
  • 1990 – Simone Pizzuti, Italian footballer
  • 1993 – Harry Kane, English footballer
  • 1993 – Moses Odubajo, English footballer
  • 1993 – Cher Lloyd, English singer-songwriter
  • 1995 – Josh Addo-Carr, Australian rugby league player

Deaths on July 28

  • 450 – Theodosius II, Roman emperor (b. 401)
  • 938 – Thankmar, half-brother of Otto I (during Siege of Eresburg) (b. c. 908)
  • 942 – Shi Jingtang, emperor of Later Jin (b. 892)
  • 1057 – Victor II, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1018)
  • 1128 – William Clito, English son of Sybilla of Conversano (b. 1102)
  • 1230 – Leopold VI, Duke of Austria (b. 1176)
  • 1271 – Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster (b. 1220)
  • 1285 – Keran, Queen of Armenia
  • 1333 – Guy VIII of Viennois, Dauphin of Vienne (b. 1309)
  • 1345 – Sancia of Majorca, queen regent of Naples (b. c. 1285)
  • 1458 – John II, king of Cyprus and Armenia
  • 1488 – Edward Woodville, Lord Scales (at the Battle of St. Aubin-du-Cormier)
  • 1508 – Robert Blackadder, bishop of Glasgow
  • 1527 – Rodrigo de Bastidas, Spanish explorer, founded the city of Santa Marta (b. 1460)
  • 1540 – Thomas Cromwell, English lawyer and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1495)
  • 1585 – Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford (b. 1527)
  • 1631 – Guillén de Castro y Bellvis, Spanish playwright (b. 1569)
  • 1655 – Cyrano de Bergerac, French poet and playwright (b. 1619)
  • 1667 – Abraham Cowley, English poet and author (b. 1618)
  • 1675 – Bulstrode Whitelocke, English lawyer and politician (b. 1605)
  • 1685 – Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington, English politician and diplomat, Secretary of State for the Southern Department (b. 1618)
  • 1718 – Étienne Baluze, French scholar and academic (b. 1630)
  • 1741 – Antonio Vivaldi, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1678)
  • 1750 – Johann Sebastian Bach, German organist and composer (b. 1685)
  • 1762 – George Dodington, 1st Baron Melcombe, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Somerset (b. 1691)
  • 1794 – Maximilien Robespierre, French lawyer and politician, 2nd President of the Committee of Public Safety (b. 1758)
  • 1794 – Louis Antoine de Saint-Just, French soldier and politician (b. 1767)
  • 1808 – Selim III, Ottoman sultan (b. 1761)
  • 1809 – Richard Beckett, English cricketer and captain (b.1772)
  • 1818 – Gaspard Monge, French mathematician and engineer (b. 1746)
  • 1835 – Édouard Mortier, duc de Trévise, French general and politician, 15th Prime Minister of France (b. 1768)
  • 1836 – Nathan Mayer Rothschild, German-English banker and financier (b. 1777)
  • 1842 – Clemens Brentano, German author and poet (b. 1778)
  • 1844 – Joseph Bonaparte, French diplomat and brother of Napoleon (b. 1768)
  • 1849 – Charles Albert of Sardinia (b. 1798)
  • 1869 – Jan Evangelista Purkyně, Czech anatomist and physiologist (b. 1787)
  • 1878 – George Law Curry, American publisher and politician (b. 1820)
  • 1885 – Moses Montefiore, British philanthropist, sheriff and banker (b. 1784)
  • 1895 – Edward Beecher, American minister and theologian (b. 1803)
  • 1930 – John DeWitt, American hammer thrower (b. 1881)
  • 1930 – Allvar Gullstrand, Swedish ophthalmologist and optician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1862)
  • 1933 – Nishinoumi Kajirō III, Japanese sumo wrestler, 30th yokozuna (b. 1890)
  • 1934 – Marie Dressler, Canadian-American actress and singer (b. 1868)
  • 1934 – Louis Tancred, South African cricketer and pilot (b. 1876)
  • 1935 – Meletius IV of Constantinople (b. 1871)
  • 1942 – Flinders Petrie, English archaeologist and academic (b. 1853)
  • 1946 – Saint Alphonsa, first woman of Indian origin to be Canonization as a saint by the Catholic Church (b. 1910)
  • 1957 – Edith Abbott, American economist, social worker, and educator (b. 1876)
  • 1957 – Isaac Heinemann, German-Israeli scholar and academic (b. 1876)
  • 1965 – Edogawa Ranpo, Japanese author and critic (b. 1894)
  • 1965 – Attallah Suheimat, Jordanian politician (b. 1875)
  • 1967 – Karl W. Richter, American lieutenant and pilot (b. 1942)
  • 1968 – Otto Hahn, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
  • 1969 – Ramón Grau, Cuban physician and politician, 6th President of Cuba (b. 1882)
  • 1969 – Frank Loesser, American composer (b. 1910)
  • 1971 – Lawrence Moore Cosgrave, Canadian colonel and diplomat (b. 1890)
  • 1971 – Myril Hoag, American baseball player (b. 1908)
  • 1971 – Charles E. Pont, French-American minister and painter (b. 1898)
  • 1972 – Helen Traubel, American soprano and actress (b. 1903)
  • 1979 – Don Miller, American football player and coach (b. 1902)
  • 1979 – Charles Shadwell, English conductor and bandleader (b. 1898)
  • 1980 – Rose Rand, Austrian-born American logician and philosopher (b. 1903)
  • 1981 – Stanley Rother, American priest and missionary (b. 1935)
  • 1982 – Keith Green, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1953)
  • 1987 – Jack Renshaw, Australian politician, 31st Premier of New South Wales (b. 1909)
  • 1990 – Jill Esmond, English actress (b. 1908)
  • 1992 – Sulev Nõmmik, Estonian actor and director (b. 1931)
  • 1993 – Stanley Woods, Irish motorcycle racer (b. 1903)
  • 1996 – Roger Tory Peterson, American ornithologist and academic (b. 1908)
  • 1997 – Rosalie Crutchley, English actress (b. 1920)
  • 1997 – Seni Pramoj, Thai lawyer and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Thailand (b. 1905)
  • 1998 – Zbigniew Herbert, Polish poet and author (b. 1924)
  • 1998 – Lenny McLean, English boxer, actor, and author (b. 1949)
  • 1998 – Consalvo Sanesi, Italian race car driver (b. 1911)
  • 1999 – Trygve Haavelmo, Norwegian economist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
  • 2000 – Abraham Pais, Dutch-American physicist and historian (b. 1918)
  • 2001 – Ahmed Sofa, Bangladeshi poet, author, and critic (b. 1943)
  • 2002 – Archer John Porter Martin, English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
  • 2003 – Valerie Goulding, Irish activist and politician (b. 1918)
  • 2004 – Francis Crick, English biologist and biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
  • 2004 – Tiziano Terzani, Italian journalist and author (b. 1938)
  • 2006 – David Gemmell, English author (b. 1948)
  • 2007 – Karl Gotch, Belgian-American wrestler and trainer (b. 1924)
  • 2007 – Jim LeRoy, American soldier and pilot (b. 1961)
  • 2009 – Jim Johnson, American football player and coach (b. 1941)
  • 2011 – Abdul Fatah Younis, Libyan general (b. 1944)
  • 2012 – Colin Horsley, New Zealand-English pianist and educator (b. 1920)
  • 2012 – Sepp Mayerl, Austrian mountaineer (b. 1937)
  • 2012 – William F. Milliken Jr., American race car driver and engineer (b. 1911)
  • 2013 – Mustafa Adrisi, Ugandan general and politician, 3rd Vice President of Uganda (b. 1922)
  • 2013 – Eileen Brennan, American actress and singer (b. 1932)
  • 2013. – Rita Reys, Dutch jazz singer (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – William Scranton, American captain and politician, 13th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (b. 1917)
  • 2013 – Ersilio Tonini, Italian cardinal (b. 1914)
  • 2014 – Margot Adler, American journalist and author (b. 1946)
  • 2014 – Alex Forbes, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Alakbar Mammadov, Azerbaijani footballer and manager (b. 1930)
  • 2014 – Theodore Van Kirk, American soldier, pilot, and navigator (b. 1921)
  • 2015 – Jan Kulczyk, Polish businessman (b. 1950)
  • 2015 – Edward Natapei, Vanuatuan politician, 6th Prime Minister of Vanuatu (b. 1954)
  • 2015 – Clive Rice, South African cricketer and coach (b. 1949)
  • 2016 – Émile Derlin Zinsou, Beninese politician (b. 1918)
  • 2016 – Mahasweta Devi, Indian Bengali fiction writer and socio-political activist (b. 1926)
  • 2018 – Wanny van Gils, Dutch footballer (b. 1959)

Holidays and observances on July 28

  • Christian feast day:
    • Alphonsa Muttathupadathu (Syro-Malabar Catholic Church)
    • Botvid
    • Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frederick Handel, Henry Purcell (Episcopal Church commemoration)
    • Johann Sebastian Bach, Heinrich Schütz, George Frederick Handel (Lutheran commemoration)
    • Nazarius and Celsus
    • Pedro Poveda Castroverde
    • Pope Innocent I
    • Pope Victor I
    • Samson of Dol
    • July 28 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of Commemoration of the Great Upheaval (Canada)
  • Earliest day on which Emancipation Day can fall, while August 3 is the latest; celebrated on Thursday before the first Monday in August (Bermuda)
  • Fiestas Patrias, celebrates the independence of Peru from Spain by General José de San Martín in 1821.
  • Liberation Day (San Marino)
  • Ólavsøka Eve (Faroe Islands)
  • World Hepatitis Day

July 28 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

On This Day /

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

July 26 in History

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

Births on July 26

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

Deaths on July 26

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

Holidays and observances on July 26

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

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

On This Day

July 25 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 306 – Constantine I is proclaimed Roman emperor by his troops.
  • 315 – The Arch of Constantine is completed near the Colosseum in Rome to commemorate Constantine I’s victory over Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge.
  • 677 – Climax of the Siege of Thessalonica by the Slavs in a three-day assault on the city walls.
  • 864 – The Edict of Pistres of Charles the Bald orders defensive measures against the Vikings.
  • 1137 – Eleanor of Aquitaine marries Prince Louis, later King Louis VII of France, at the Cathedral of Saint-André in Bordeaux.
  • 1139 – Battle of Ourique: The Almoravids, led by Ali ibn Yusuf, are defeated by Prince Afonso Henriques who is proclaimed King of Portugal.
  • 1261 – The city of Constantinople is recaptured by Nicaean forces under the command of Alexios Strategopoulos, re-establishing the Byzantine Empire.
  • 1278 – The naval Battle of Algeciras takes place in the context of the Spanish Reconquista resulting in a victory for the Emirate of Granada and the Maranid Dynasty over the Kingdom of Castile.
  • 1467 – The Battle of Molinella: The first battle in Italy in which firearms are used extensively.
  • 1536 – Sebastián de Belalcázar on his search of El Dorado founds the city of Santiago de Cali.
  • 1538 – The city of Guayaquil is founded by the Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Orellana and given the name Muy Noble y Muy Leal Ciudad de Santiago de Guayaquil.
  • 1547 – Henry II of France is crowned.
  • 1554 – Mary I marries Philip II of Spain at Winchester Cathedral.
  • 1567 – Don Diego de Losada founds the city of Santiago de Leon de Caracas, modern-day Caracas, the capital city of Venezuela.
  • 1593 – Henry IV of France publicly converts from Protestantism to Roman Catholicism.
  • 1603 – James VI of Scotland is crowned king of England (James I of England), bringing the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into personal union. Political union would occur in 1707.
  • 1609 – The English ship Sea Venture, en route to Virginia, is deliberately driven ashore during a storm at Bermuda to prevent its sinking; the survivors go on to found a new colony there.
  • 1693 – Ignacio de Maya founds the Real Santiago de las Sabinas, now known as Sabinas Hidalgo, Nuevo León, Mexico.
  • 1722 – Dummer’s War begins along the Maine-Massachusetts border.
  • 1755 – British governor Charles Lawrence and the Nova Scotia Council order the deportation of the Acadians.
  • 1759 – French and Indian War: In Western New York, British forces capture Fort Niagara from the French, who subsequently abandon Fort Rouillé.
  • 1783 – American Revolutionary War: The war’s last action, the Siege of Cuddalore, is ended by a preliminary peace agreement.
  • 1788 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart completes his Symphony No. 40 in G minor (K550).
  • 1792 – The Brunswick Manifesto is issued to the population of Paris promising vengeance if the French royal family is harmed.
  • 1797 – Horatio Nelson loses more than 300 men and his right arm during the failed conquest attempt of Tenerife (Spain).
  • 1799 – At Abu Qir in Egypt, Napoleon I of France defeats 10,000 Ottomans under Mustafa Pasha.
  • 1814 – War of 1812: An American attack on Canada is repulsed.
  • 1824 – Costa Rica annexes Guanacaste from Nicaragua.
  • 1837 – The first commercial use of an electrical telegraph is successfully demonstrated in London by William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone.
  • 1853 – Joaquin Murrieta, the famous Californio bandit known as the “Robin Hood of El Dorado”, is killed.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: The United States Congress passes the Crittenden–Johnson Resolution, stating that the war is being fought to preserve the Union and not to end slavery.
  • 1866 – The United States Congress passes legislation authorizing the rank of General of the Army. Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant becomes the first to be promoted to this rank.
  • 1868 – The Wyoming Territory is established.
  • 1869 – The Japanese daimyōs begin returning their land holdings to the emperor as part of the Meiji Restoration reforms. (Traditional Japanese Date: June 17, 1869).
  • 1894 – The First Sino-Japanese War begins when the Japanese fire upon a Chinese warship.
  • 1898 – In the Puerto Rican Campaign, the United States seizes Puerto Rico from Spain.
  • 1908 – Ajinomoto is founded. Kikunae Ikeda of the Tokyo Imperial University discovers that a key ingredient in kombu soup stock is monosodium glutamate (MSG), and patents a process for manufacturing it.
  • 1909 – Louis Blériot makes the first flight across the English Channel in a heavier-than-air machine from Calais to Dover, England, United Kingdom in 37 minutes.
  • 1915 – RFC Captain Lanoe Hawker becomes the first British pursuit aviator to earn the Victoria Cross.
  • 1917 – Sir Robert Borden introduces the first income tax in Canada as a “temporary” measure (lowest bracket is 4% and highest is 25%).
  • 1925 – Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union (TASS) is established.
  • 1934 – The Nazis assassinate Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss in a failed coup attempt.
  • 1940 – General Henri Guisan orders the Swiss Army to resist German invasion and makes surrender illegal.
  • 1942 – The Norwegian Manifesto calls for nonviolent resistance to the German occupation.
  • 1943 – World War II: Benito Mussolini is forced out of office by the Grand Council of Fascism and is replaced by Pietro Badoglio.
  • 1944 – World War II: Operation Spring is one of the bloodiest days for the First Canadian Army during the war.
  • 1946 – Nuclear weapons testing: Operation Crossroads: An atomic bomb is detonated underwater in the lagoon of Bikini Atoll.
  • 1956 – Forty-five miles south of Nantucket Island, the Italian ocean liner SS Andrea Doria collides with the MS Stockholm in heavy fog and sinks the next day, killing 51.
  • 1957 – The Republic of Tunisia is proclaimed, under President Habib Bourguiba.
  • 1958 – The African Regroupment Party (PRA) holds its first congress in Cotonou.
  • 1961 – Cold War: In a speech John F. Kennedy emphasizes that any attack on Berlin is an attack on NATO.
  • 1965 – Bob Dylan goes electric at the Newport Folk Festival, signaling a major change in folk and rock music.
  • 1969 – Vietnam War: U.S. President Richard Nixon declares the Nixon Doctrine, stating that the United States now expects its Asian allies to take care of their own military defense. This is the start of the “Vietnamization” of the war.
  • 1973 – Soviet Mars 5 space probe is launched.
  • 1976 – Viking program: Viking 1 takes the famous Face on Mars photo.
  • 1978 – Puerto Rican police shoot two nationalists in the Cerro Maravilla murders.
  • 1978 – Birth of Louise Joy Brown, the first human to have been born after conception by in vitro fertilisation, or IVF.
  • 1979 – Another section of the Sinai Peninsula is peacefully returned by Israel to Egypt.
  • 1983 – Black July: Thirty-seven Tamil political prisoners at the Welikada high security prison in Colombo are massacred by the fellow Sinhalese prisoners.
  • 1984 – Salyut 7 cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya becomes the first woman to perform a space walk.
  • 1993 – Israel launches a massive attack against Lebanon in what the Israelis call Operation Accountability, and the Lebanese call the Seven-Day War.
  • 1993 – The Saint James Church massacre occurs in Kenilworth, Cape Town, South Africa.
  • 1994 – Israel and Jordan sign the Washington Declaration, that formally ends the state of war that had existed between the nations since 1948.
  • 1995 – A gas bottle explodes in Saint Michel station of line B of the RER (Paris regional train network). Eight are killed and 80 wounded.
  • 1996 – In a military coup in Burundi, Pierre Buyoya deposes Sylvestre Ntibantunganya.
  • 2000 – Concorde Air France Flight 4590 crashes at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport, killing 113 people.
  • 2007 – Pratibha Patil is sworn in as India’s first female president.
  • 2010 – WikiLeaks publishes classified documents about the War in Afghanistan, one of the largest leaks in U.S. military history.
  • 2018 – As-Suwayda attacks: Coordinated attacks occur in Syria.
  • 2019 – National extreme heat records set this day in the UK, Belgium and Germany during the July 2019 European heatwave.

Births on July 25

  • 975 – Thietmar, bishop of Merseburg (d. 1018)
  • 1016 – Casimir I the Restorer, duke of Poland (d. 1058)
  • 1109 – Afonso I, king of Portugal (d. 1185)
  • 1165 – Ibn Arabi, Andalusian Sufi mystic, poet, and philosopher (d. 1240)
  • 1261 – Arthur II, Duke of Brittany (d. 1312)
  • 1291 – Hawys Gadarn, Welsh noblewoman (d. 1353)
  • 1336 – Albert I, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1404)
  • 1394 – James I, king of Scotland (d. 1437)
  • 1404 – Philip I, Duke of Brabant (d. 1430)
  • 1421 – Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland, English politician (d. 1461)
  • 1450 – Jakob Wimpfeling, Renaissance humanist (d. 1528)
  • 1486 – Albrecht VII, Duke of Mecklenburg (d. 1547)
  • 1498 – Hernando de Aragón, Archbishop of Zaragoza (d. 1575)
  • 1532 – Alphonsus Rodriguez, Jesuit lay brother and saint (d. 1617)
  • 1556 – George Peele, English translator, poet, and dramatist (d. 1596)
  • 1562 – Katō Kiyomasa, Japanese warlord (d. 1611)
  • 1573 – Christoph Scheiner, German astronomer and Jesuit (d. 1650)
  • 1581 – Brian Twyne, English archivist (d. 1644)
  • 1605 – Theodore Haak, German scholar (d. 1690)
  • 1633 – Joseph Williamson, English politician (d. 1701)
  • 1654 – Agostino Steffani, Italian composer and diplomat (d. 1728)
  • 1657 – Philipp Heinrich Erlebach, German composer (d. 1714)
  • 1658 – Archibald Campbell, 1st Duke of Argyll, Scottish general (d. 1703)
  • 1683 – Pieter Langendijk, Dutch playwright and poet (d. 1756)
  • 1750 – Henry Knox, American general and politician, 1st United States Secretary of War (d. 1806)
  • 1753 – Santiago de Liniers, 1st Count of Buenos Aires, French-Spanish captain and politician, 10th Viceroy of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata (d. 1810)
  • 1797 – Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel (d. 1889)
  • 1806 – Maria Weston Chapman, American abolitionist (d. 1885)
  • 1839 – Francis Garnier, French captain and explorer (d. 1873)
  • 1844 – Thomas Eakins, American painter, sculptor, and photographer (d. 1916)
  • 1847 – Paul Langerhans, German pathologist, physiologist and biologist (d. 1888)
  • 1848 – Arthur Balfour, Scottish-English lieutenant and politician, 33rd Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1930)
  • 1857 – Frank J. Sprague, American naval officer and inventor (d. 1934)
  • 1865 – Jac. P. Thijsse, Dutch botanist and conservationist (d. 1945)
  • 1866 – Frederick Blackman, English physiologist and academic (d. 1947)
  • 1867 – Max Dauthendey, German author and painter (d. 1918)
  • 1867 – Alexander Rummler, American painter (d. 1959)
  • 1869 – Platon, Estonian bishop and saint (d. 1919)
  • 1870 – Maxfield Parrish, American painter and illustrator (d. 1966)
  • 1875 – Jim Corbett, Indian hunter, environmentalist, and author (d. 1955)
  • 1878 – Masaharu Anesaki, Japanese philosopher and scholar (d. 1949)
  • 1882 – George S. Rentz, American commander (d. 1942)
  • 1883 – Alfredo Casella, Italian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1947)
  • 1886 – Edward Cummins, American golfer (d. 1926)
  • 1894 – Walter Brennan, American actor (d. 1974)
  • 1894 – Gavrilo Princip, Bosnian Serb revolutionary (d. 1918)
  • 1895 – Ingeborg Spangsfeldt, Danish actress (d. 1968)
  • 1896 – Jack Perrin, American actor and stuntman (d. 1967)
  • 1896 – Josephine Tey, Scottish author and playwright (d. 1952)
  • 1901 – Ruth Krauss, American author and poet (d. 1993)
  • 1901 – Mohammed Helmy, Egyptian physician and Righteous Among the Nations (d.1982)
  • 1901 – Lila Lee, American actress and singer (d. 1973)
  • 1902 – Eric Hoffer, American philosopher and author (d. 1983)
  • 1905 – Elias Canetti, Bulgarian-Swiss novelist, playwright, and memoirist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1994)
  • 1905 – Georges Grignard, French race car driver (d. 1977)
  • 1905 – Denys Watkins-Pitchford, English author and illustrator (d. 1990)
  • 1906 – Johnny Hodges, American saxophonist and clarinet player (d. 1970)
  • 1908 – Bill Bowes, English cricketer (d. 1987)
  • 1908 – Ambroise-Marie Carré, French priest and author (d. 2004)
  • 1908 – Jack Gilford, American actor (d. 1990)
  • 1914 – Woody Strode, American football player and actor (d. 1994)
  • 1915 – S. U. Ethirmanasingham, Sri Lankan businessman and politician
  • 1915 – Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., American lieutenant and pilot (d. 1944)
  • 1916 – Lucien Saulnier, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 1989)
  • 1917 – Fritz Honegger, Swiss lawyer and politician (d. 1999)
  • 1918 – Jane Frank, American painter and sculptor (d. 1986)
  • 1920 – Rosalind Franklin, English biophysicist, chemist, and academic (d. 1958)
  • 1921 – Adolph Herseth, American soldier and trumpet player (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Lionel Terray, French mountaineer (d. 1965)
  • 1923 – Estelle Getty, American actress (d. 2008)
  • 1923 – Edgar Gilbert, American mathematician and theorist (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – Maria Gripe, Swedish journalist and author (d. 2007)
  • 1924 – Frank Church, American lawyer and politician (d. 1984)
  • 1924 – Scotch Taylor, South African cricketer and hockey player (d. 2004)
  • 1925 – Benny Benjamin, American R&B drummer (The Funk Brothers) (d. 1969)
  • 1925 – Jerry Paris, American actor and director (d. 1986)
  • 1925 – Dick Passwater, American race car driver
  • 1925 – Jutta Zilliacus, Finnish journalist and politician
  • 1926 – Whitey Lockman, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 2009)
  • 1926 – Bernard Thompson, British television producer and director (d. 1998)
  • 1926 – Beatriz Segall, Brazilian actress (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – Daniel Ceccaldi, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
  • 1927 – Midge Decter, American journalist and author
  • 1927 – Sadiq Hussain Qureshi, Pakistani politician, 10th Governor of Punjab (d. 2000)
  • 1927 – Jean-Marie Seroney, Kenyan activist and politician (d. 1982)
  • 1928 – Dolphy, Filipino actor, singer, and producer (d. 2012)
  • 1928 – Mario Montenegro, Filipino actor (d. 1988)
  • 1928 – Nils Taube, Estonian-English businessman (d. 2008)
  • 1929 – Judd Buchanan, Canadian businessman and politician, 36th Canadian Minister of Public Works
  • 1929 – Somnath Chatterjee, Indian lawyer and politician, 14th Speaker of the Lok Sabha (d. 2018)
  • 1929 – Eddie Mazur, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1995)
  • 1930 – Murray Chapple, New Zealand cricketer and manager (d. 1985)
  • 1930 – Maureen Forrester, Canadian actress and singer (d. 2010)
  • 1930 – Alice Parizeau, Polish-Canadian journalist and criminologist (d. 1990)
  • 1930 – Herbert Scarf, American economist and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1930 – Annie Ross, Scottish-American singer and actress
  • 1931 – James Butler, English sculptor and educator
  • 1932 – Paul J. Weitz, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2017)
  • 1934 – Don Ellis, American trumpet player and composer (d. 1978)
  • 1934 – Claude Zidi, French director and screenwriter
  • 1935 – Barbara Harris, American actress and singer (d. 2018)
  • 1935 – Adnan Khashoggi, Saudi Arabian businessman (d. 2017)
  • 1935 – Gilbert Parent, Canadian educator and politician, 33rd Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada (d. 2009)
  • 1935 – John Robinson, American football player and coach
  • 1935 – Larry Sherry, American baseball player and coach (d. 2006)
  • 1935 – Lars Werner, Swedish lawyer and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1936 – Gerry Ashmore, English race car driver
  • 1936 – Glenn Murcutt, English-Australian architect and academic
  • 1937 – Colin Renfrew, Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, English archaeologist and academic
  • 1940 – Richard Ballantine, American-English journalist and author (d. 2013)
  • 1941 – Manny Charlton, Spanish-born Scottish rock musician and songwriter
  • 1941 – Nate Thurmond, American basketball player (d. 2016)
  • 1941 – Emmett Till, American lynching victim (d. 1955)
  • 1942 – Bruce Woodley, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1943 – Jim McCarty, English singer and drummer
  • 1943 – Erika Steinbach, Polish-German politician
  • 1944 – Sally Beauman, English journalist and author (d. 2016)
  • 1946 – José Areas, Nicaraguan drummer
  • 1946 – Nicole Farhi, French fashion designer and sculptor
  • 1946 – John Gibson, American radio host
  • 1946 – Rita Marley, Cuban-Jamaican singer
  • 1946 – P. Selvarasa, Sri Lankan politician
  • 1946 – Ljupka Dimitrovska, Macedonian-Croatian pop singer (d. 2016)
  • 1948 – Steve Goodman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1984)
  • 1950 – Mark Clarke, English singer-songwriter and bass player
  • 1951 – Jack Thompson, American lawyer and activist
  • 1951 – Verdine White, American bass player and producer
  • 1952 – Eduardo Souto de Moura, Portuguese architect, designed the Estádio Municipal de Braga
  • 1953 – Joseph A. Tunzi, Chicago based author, foremost expert on Elvis Presley
  • 1953 – Robert Zoellick, American banker and politician, 14th United States Deputy Secretary of State
  • 1954 – Ken Greer, Canadian guitarist, keyboard player, and producer
  • 1954 – Sheena McDonald, Scottish journalist
  • 1954 – Walter Payton, American football player and race car driver (d. 1999)
  • 1954 – Jochem Ziegert, German footballer and manager
  • 1955 – Iman, Somalian-English model and actress
  • 1955 – Randall Bewley, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 2009)
  • 1956 – Andy Goldsworthy, English-Scottish sculptor and photographer
  • 1956 – Frances Arnold, American scientist and engineer
  • 1957 – Mark Hunter, English politician
  • 1957 – Steve Podborski, Canadian skier
  • 1958 – Alexei Filippenko, American astrophysicist and academic
  • 1958 – Thurston Moore, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1959 – Fyodor Cherenkov, Russian footballer and manager (d. 2014)
  • 1959 – Geoffrey Zakarian, American chef and author
  • 1960 – Alain Robidoux, Canadian snooker player
  • 1960 – Justice Howard, American photographer
  • 1960 – Māris Martinsons, Latvian film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor
  • 1962 – Carin Bakkum, Dutch tennis player
  • 1962 – Doug Drabek, American baseball player and coach
  • 1963 – Denis Coderre, Canadian politician, 44th Mayor of Montreal
  • 1963 – Julian Hodgson, Welsh chess player
  • 1964 – Anne Applebaum, American journalist and author
  • 1964 – Tony Granato, American ice hockey player and coach
  • 1964 – Breuk Iversen, American designer and journalist
  • 1965 – Marty Brown, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1965 – Illeana Douglas, American actress, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1965 – Dale Shearer, Australian rugby league player
  • 1966 – Daryl Halligan, New Zealand rugby player and sportscaster
  • 1966 – Maureen Herman, American bass player
  • 1966 – Diana Johnson, English politician
  • 1967 – Matt LeBlanc, American actor and producer
  • 1967 – Ruth Peetoom, Dutch minister and politician
  • 1967 – Tommy Skjerven, Norwegian footballer and referee
  • 1968 – Rudi Bryson, South African cricketer
  • 1968 – Shi Tao, Chinese journalist and poet
  • 1969 – Jon Barry, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1969 – Annastacia Palaszczuk, Australian politician, 39th Premier of Queensland
  • 1971 – Roger Creager, American singer-songwriter
  • 1971 – Tracy Murray, American basketball player
  • 1971 – Billy Wagner, American baseball player and coach
  • 1972 – David Penna, Australian rugby league player and coach
  • 1973 – Dani Filth, English singer-songwriter
  • 1973 – Kevin Phillips, English footballer
  • 1973 – Igli Tare, Albanian footballer
  • 1974 – Lauren Faust, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1974 – Julia Laffranque, Estonian lawyer and judge
  • 1974 – Kenzo Suzuki, Japanese rugby player and wrestler
  • 1975 – Jody Craddock, English footballer and coach
  • 1975 – Jean-Claude Darcheville, Guianan-French footballer
  • 1975 – El Zorro, Mexican wrestler
  • 1975 – Brian Gibson, American bass player
  • 1975 – Evgeni Nabokov, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1976 – Marcos Assunção, Brazilian footballer
  • 1976 – Jovica Tasevski-Eternijan, Macedonian poet and critic
  • 1976 – Javier Vázquez, Puerto Rican-American baseball player
  • 1977 – Kenny Thomas, American basketball player
  • 1978 – Gerard Warren, American football player
  • 1978 – Louise Brown, first human to be born via IVF
  • 1979 – Ali Carter, English snooker player
  • 1979 – Tom Lungley, English cricketer and umpire
  • 1980 – Shawn Riggans, American baseball player
  • 1980 – Toni Vilander, Finnish race car driver
  • 1980 – David Wachs, American actor and producer
  • 1980 – Scott Waldrom, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1981 – Conor Casey, American soccer player
  • 1981 – Constantinos Charalambidis, Cypriot footballer
  • 1981 – Yūichi Komano, Japanese footballer
  • 1981 – Mac Lethal, American rapper and producer
  • 1981 – Jani Rita, Finnish ice hockey player
  • 1982 – Brad Renfro, American actor and musician (d. 2008)
  • 1982 – Jason Dundas, Australian TV host
  • 1983 – Nenad Krstić, Serbian basketball player
  • 1984 – Loukas Mavrokefalidis, Greek basketball player
  • 1985 – James Lafferty, American actor and athlete
  • 1985 – Nelson Piquet Jr., Brazilian race car driver
  • 1985 – Hugo Rodallega, Colombian footballer
  • 1986 – Abraham Gneki Guié, Ivorian footballer
  • 1986 – Hulk, Brazilian footballer
  • 1987 – Richard Bachman, American ice hockey player
  • 1987 – Mitchell Burgzorg, Dutch footballer and rapper
  • 1987 – Fernando, Brazilian footballer
  • 1987 – Jax Jones, English DJ, singer and songwriter
  • 1987 – Eran Zahavi, Israeli footballer
  • 1988 – John Goossens, Dutch footballer
  • 1988 – Tom Hiariej, Dutch footballer
  • 1988 – Stacey Kemp, English skater
  • 1988 – Paulinho, Brazilian footballer
  • 1988 – Anthony Stokes, Irish footballer
  • 1989 – Natalia Vieru, Russian basketball player
  • 1990 – Thodoris Karapetsas, Greek footballer
  • 1991 – Toni Duggan, English footballer
  • 1992 – Sergei Simonov, Russian ice hockey player (d. 2016)
  • 1997 – Nat Butcher, Australian rugby league player

Deaths on July 25

  • 306 – Constantius Chlorus, Roman emperor (b. 250)
  • 885 – Ragenold, margrave of Neustria
  • 1011 – Ichijō, emperor of Japan (b. 980)
  • 1190 – Sibylla, queen of Jerusalem
  • 1409 – Martin I, king of Sicily (b. 1376)
  • 1471 – Thomas à Kempis, German priest and mystic
  • 1472 – Charles of Artois, French nobleman (b. 1394)
  • 1492 – Innocent VIII, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1432)
  • 1564 – Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1503)
  • 1572 – Isaac Luria, Ottoman rabbi and mystic (b. 1534)
  • 1608 – Pomponio Nenna, Italian composer (b. 1556)
  • 1616 – Andreas Libavius, German physician and chemist (b. 1550)
  • 1643 – Robert Pierrepont, 1st Earl of Kingston-upon-Hull, English general and politician (b. 1584)
  • 1681 – Urian Oakes, English-American minister and educator (b. 1631)
  • 1790 – Johann Bernhard Basedow, German educator and reformer (b. 1723)
  • 1790 – William Livingston, American soldier and politician, 1st Governor of New Jersey (b. 1723)
  • 1791 – Isaac Low, American merchant and politician (b. 1735)
  • 1794 – André Chénier, Greek-French poet and author (b. 1762)
  • 1794 – Jean-Antoine Roucher, French poet and author (b. 1745)
  • 1794 – Friedrich von der Trenck, Prussian adventurer and author (b. 1726)
  • 1826 – Kondraty Ryleyev, Russian poet and publisher (b. 1795)
  • 1831 – Maria Szymanowska, Polish composer and pianist (b. 1789)
  • 1834 – Samuel Taylor Coleridge, English philosopher, poet, and critic (b. 1772)
  • 1842 – Dominique Jean Larrey, French physician and surgeon (b. 1766)
  • 1843 – Charles Macintosh, Scottish chemist and engineer (b. 1766)
  • 1861 – Jonas Furrer, Swiss lawyer and politician, President of the Swiss Confederation (b. 1805)
  • 1865 – James Barry, English soldier and surgeon (b. 1799)
  • 1887 – John Taylor, American religious leader, 3rd President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1808)
  • 1934 – François Coty, French businessman, founded Coty, Inc. (b. 1874)
  • 1934 – Engelbert Dollfuss, Austrian politician, 14th Chancellor of Austria (b. 1892)
  • 1942 – Fred Englehardt, American triple jumper (b. 1879)
  • 1952 – Herbert Murrill, English organist and composer (b. 1909)
  • 1958 – Otto Lasanen, Finnish wrestler (b. 1891)
  • 1959 – Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog, Polish-born Irish rabbi and author (b. 1888)
  • 1962 – Thibaudeau Rinfret, Canadian lawyer and jurist, 9th Chief Justice of Canada (b. 1879)
  • 1963 – Ugo Cerletti, Italian neurologist and academic (b. 1877)
  • 1966 – Frank O’Hara, American poet and critic (b. 1926)
  • 1967 – Konstantinos Parthenis, Egyptian-Greek painter (b. 1878)
  • 1971 – John Meyers, American swimmer and water polo player (b. 1880)
  • 1971 – Leroy Robertson, American composer and educator (b. 1896)
  • 1973 – Amy Jacques Garvey, Jamaican-American journalist and activist (b. 1895)
  • 1973 – Louis St. Laurent, Canadian lawyer and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1882)
  • 1980 – Vladimir Vysotsky, Russian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1938)
  • 1981 – Rosa A. González, Puerto Rican nurse, author, feminist, and activist (b. 1889)
  • 1982 – Hal Foster, Canadian-American author and illustrator (b. 1892)
  • 1984 – Bryan Hextall, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1913)
  • 1984 – Big Mama Thornton, American singer-songwriter (b. 1926)
  • 1986 – Vincente Minnelli, American director and screenwriter (b. 1903)
  • 1988 – Judith Barsi, American child actress (b. 1978)
  • 1989 – Steve Rubell, American businessman, co-owner of Studio 54 (b. 1943)
  • 1991 – Lazar Kaganovich, Soviet politician (b. 1893)
  • 1992 – Alfred Drake, American actor and singer (b. 1914)
  • 1995 – Charlie Rich, American singer-songwriter (b. 1932)
  • 1997 – Ben Hogan, American golfer (b. 1912)
  • 1998 – Evangelos Papastratos, Greek businessman, co-founded Papastratos (b. 1910)
  • 2000 – Rudi Faßnacht, German footballer, coach, and manager (b. 1934)
  • 2002 – Abdel Rahman Badawi, Egyptian philosopher and poet (b. 1917)
  • 2003 – Ludwig Bölkow, German engineer (b. 1912)
  • 2003 – John Schlesinger, English actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 2004 – John Passmore, Australian philosopher and academic (b. 1914)
  • 2005 – Albert Mangelsdorff, German trombonist (b. 1928)
  • 2006 – Ezra Fleischer, Romanian-Israeli poet and philologist (b. 1928)
  • 2007 – Bernd Jakubowski, German footballer and manager (b. 1952)
  • 2008 – Jeff Fehring, Australian footballer (b. 1955)
  • 2008 – Tracy Hall, American chemist and academic (b. 1919)
  • 2008 – Randy Pausch, American computer scientist and educator (b. 1960)
  • 2009 – Vernon Forrest, American boxer (b. 1971)
  • 2009 – Stanley Middleton, English author (b. 1919)
  • 2009 – Harry Patch, English soldier (b. 1898)
  • 2011 – Michael Cacoyannis, Cypriot-Greek director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1922)
  • 2012 – B. R. Ishara, Indian director and screenwriter (b. 1934)
  • 2012 – Barry Langford, English director and producer (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Greg Mohns, American-Canadian football player and coach (b. 1950)
  • 2012 – Franz West, Austrian painter and sculptor (b. 1947)
  • 2013 – Walter De Maria, American sculptor, illustrator, and composer (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – William J. Guste, American lawyer and politician (b. 1922)
  • 2013 – Hugh Huxley, English-American biologist and academic (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Bel Kaufman, German-American author and academic (b. 1911)
  • 2014 – Richard Larter, Australian painter and illustrator (b. 1929)
  • 2015 – Jacques Andreani, French diplomat, French ambassador to the United States (b. 1929)
  • 2015 – R. S. Gavai, Indian lawyer and politician, 18th Governor of Kerala (b. 1929)
  • 2015 – Bob Kauffman, American basketball player and coach (b. 1946)
  • 2017 – Michael Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1944)
  • 2018 – Sergio Marchionne, Italian-Canadian businessman(b. 1952)
  • 2019 – Beji Caid Essebsi , 4th President and 9th Prime Minister of Tunisia (b. 1926)

Holidays and observances on July 25

  • Christian feast day:
    • Anne (Eastern Christianity)
    • Christopher (Western Christianity)
    • Cucuphas
    • Glodesind
    • James the Great (Western Christianity)
    • John I Agnus
    • Julian of Le Mans (translation)
    • Magnerich of Trier
    • July 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which Father’s Day can fall, while July 31 is the latest; celebrated on last Sunday in July. (Dominican Republic)
  • Earliest day on which National Tree Planting Day can fall, while July 31 is the latest; celebrated on last Sunday in July. (Australia)
  • Earliest day on which Navy Day can fall, while July 31 is the latest; celebrated on last Sunday in July. (Russia)
  • Guanacaste Day (Costa Rica)
  • National Baha’i Day (Jamaica)
  • National Day of Galicia (Galicia)
  • Puerto Rico Constitution Day (Puerto Rico)
  • Republic Day (Tunisia)

July 25 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

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

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

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

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

On This Day /
  • 180 – Twelve inhabitants of Scillium (near Kasserine, modern-day Tunisia) in North Africa are executed for being Christians. This is the earliest record of Christianity in that part of the world.
  • 1048 – Damasus II is elected pope.
  • 1203 – The Fourth Crusade captures Constantinople by assault. The Byzantine emperor Alexios III Angelos flees from his capital into exile.
  • 1402 – Zhu Di, better known by his era name as the Yongle Emperor, assumes the throne over the Ming dynasty of China.
  • 1429 – Hundred Years’ War: Charles VII of France is crowned the King of France in the Reims Cathedral after a successful campaign by Joan of Arc.
  • 1453 – Battle of Castillon: The last battle of Hundred Years’ War, the French under Jean Bureau defeat the English under the Earl of Shrewsbury, who is killed in the battle in Gascony.
  • 1717 – King George I of Great Britain sails down the River Thames with a barge of 50 musicians, where George Frideric Handel’s Water Music is premiered.
  • 1762 – Catherine II becomes tsar of Russia upon the murder of Peter III of Russia.
  • 1771 – Bloody Falls massacre: Chipewyan chief Matonabbee, traveling as the guide to Samuel Hearne on his Arctic overland journey, massacres a group of unsuspecting Inuit.
  • 1791 – Members of the French National Guard under the command of General Lafayette open fire on a crowd of radical Jacobins at the Champ de Mars, Paris, during the French Revolution, killing scores of people.
  • 1794 – The 16 Carmelite Martyrs of Compiègne are executed ten days prior to the end of the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror.
  • 1867 – Harvard School of Dental Medicine is established in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the first dental school in the U.S. that is affiliated with a university.
  • 1821: The Kingdom of Spain cedes the territory of Florida to the United States.
  • 1899 – NEC Corporation is organized as the first Japanese joint venture with foreign capital.
  • 1902 – Willis Carrier creates the first air conditioner in Buffalo, New York.
  • 1917 – King George V issues a Proclamation stating that the male line descendants of the British Royal Family will bear the surname Windsor.
  • 1918 – Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and his immediate family and retainers are executed by Bolshevik Chekists at the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg, Russia.
  • 1918 – The RMS Carpathia, the ship that rescued the 705 survivors from the RMS Titanic, is sunk off Ireland by the German SM U-55; five lives are lost.
  • 1932 – Altona Bloody Sunday: A riot between the Nazi Party paramilitary forces, the SS and SA, and the German Communist Party ensues.
  • 1936 – Spanish Civil War: An Armed Forces rebellion against the recently elected leftist Popular Front government of Spain starts the civil war.
  • 1938 – Douglas Corrigan takes off from Brooklyn to fly the “wrong way” to Ireland and becomes known as “Wrong Way” Corrigan.
  • 1944 – Port Chicago disaster: Near the San Francisco Bay, two ships laden with ammunition for the war explode in Port Chicago, California, killing 320.
  • 1944 – World War II: At Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery. in Normandy Field Marshal Erwin Rommel was strafed by allied aircraft while returning to his headquarters.
  • 1945 – World War II: The main three leaders of the Allied nations, Winston Churchill, Harry S. Truman and Joseph Stalin, meet in the German city of Potsdam to decide the future of a defeated Germany.
  • 1953 – The largest number of United States midshipman casualties in a single event results from an aircraft crash in Florida, killing 44.
  • 1955 – Disneyland is dedicated and opened by Walt Disney in Anaheim, California.
  • 1962 – Nuclear weapons testing: The “Small Boy” test shot Little Feller I becomes the last atmospheric test detonation at the Nevada National Security Site.
  • 1968 – Abdul Rahman Arif is overthrown and the Ba’ath Party is installed as the governing power in Iraq with Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr as the new Iraqi President.
  • 1973 – King Mohammed Zahir Shah of Afghanistan, while having surgery in Italy, is deposed by his cousin Mohammed Daoud Khan.
  • 1975 – Apollo–Soyuz Test Project: An American Apollo and a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft dock with each other in orbit marking the first such link-up between spacecraft from the two nations.
  • 1976 – East Timor is annexed, and becomes the 27th province of Indonesia.
  • 1976 – The opening of the Summer Olympics in Montreal is marred by 25 African teams boycotting the games because of New Zealand’s participation. Contrary to rulings by other international sports organizations, the IOC had declined to exclude New Zealand because of their participation in South African sporting events during apartheid.
  • 1979 – Nicaraguan dictator General Anastasio Somoza Debayle resigns and flees to Miami, Florida, United States.
  • 1981 – A structural failure leads to the collapse of a walkway at the Hyatt Regency in Kansas City, Missouri, killing 114 people and injuring more than 200.
  • 1984 – The national drinking age in the United States was changed from 18 to 21.
  • 1985 – Founding of the EUREKA Network by former head of states François Mitterrand (France) and Helmut Kohl (Germany).
  • 1989 – First flight of the B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber.
  • 1989 – Holy See–Poland relations are restored.
  • 1996 – TWA Flight 800: Off the coast of Long Island, New York, a Paris-bound TWA Boeing 747 explodes, killing all 230 on board.
  • 1998 – The 7.0 Mw  Papua New Guinea earthquake triggers a tsunami that destroys ten villages in Papua New Guinea, killing up to 2,700 people, and leaving several thousand injured.
  • 1998 – A diplomatic conference adopts the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, establishing a permanent international court to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.
  • 2000 – During approach to Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Airport, Alliance Air Flight 7412 suddenly crashes into a residential neighborhood in Patna, killing 60 people.
  • 2001 – Concorde is brought back into service nearly a year after the July 2000 crash.
  • 2006 – The 7.7 Mw  Pangandaran tsunami earthquake severely affects the Indonesian island of Java, killing 668 people, and leaving more than 9,000 injured.
  • 2007 – TAM Airlines Flight 3054, an Airbus A320, crashes into a warehouse after landing too fast and missing the end of the São Paulo–Congonhas Airport runway, killing 199 people.
  • 2014 – Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, a Boeing 777, crashes near the border of Ukraine and Russia after being shot down. All 298 people on board are killed.
  • 2014 – A French regional train on the Pau-Bayonne line crashes into a high-speed train near the town of Denguin, resulting in at least 25 injuries.
  • 2015 – At least 120 people are killed and 130 injured by a suicide bombing in Diyala Governorate, Iraq.
  • 2018 – 12 new moons are discovered orbiting. Jupiter

Births on July 17

  • 1487 – Ismail I of Iran (d. 1524)
  • 1499 – Maria Salviati, Italian noblewoman (d. 1543)
  • 1531 – Antoine de Créqui Canaples, Roman Catholic cardinal (d. 1574)
  • 1674 – Isaac Watts, English hymnwriter and theologian (d. 1748)
  • 1695 – Christian Karl Reinhard of Leiningen-Dachsburg-Falkenburg-Heidesheim (d. 1766)
  • 1698 – Pierre Louis Maupertuis, French mathematician and philosopher (d. 1759)
  • 1708 – Frederick Christian, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (d. 1769)
  • 1714 – Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten, German philosopher and academic (d. 1762)
  • 1744 – Elbridge Gerry, American merchant and politician, 5th Vice President of the United States (d. 1814)
  • 1763 – John Jacob Astor, German-American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1848)
  • 1774 – John Wilbur, American minister and theologian (d. 1856)
  • 1797 – Paul Delaroche, French painter and academic (d. 1856)
  • 1823 – Leander Clark, American businessman, judge, and politician (d. 1910)
  • 1831 – Xianfeng Emperor of China (d. 1861)
  • 1837 – Joseph-Alfred Mousseau, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician, 7th Secretary of State for Canada (d. 1886)
  • 1839 – Ephraim Shay, American engineer, invented the Shay locomotive (d. 1916)
  • 1853 – Alexius Meinong, Ukrainian-Austrian philosopher and academic (d. 1920)
  • 1868 – Henri Nathansen, Danish director and playwright (d. 1944)
  • 1870 – Charles Davidson Dunbar, Scottish soldier and bagpipe player (d. 1939)
  • 1871 – Lyonel Feininger, German-American painter and illustrator (d. 1956)
  • 1879 – Jack Laviolette, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 1960)
  • 1882 – James Somerville, English admiral and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Somerset (d. 1949)
  • 1888 – Shmuel Yosef Agnon, Ukrainian-Israeli novelist, short story writer, and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1970)
  • 1889 – Erle Stanley Gardner, American lawyer and author (d. 1970)
  • 1894 – Georges Lemaître, Belgian priest, astronomer, and cosmologist (d. 1966)
  • 1896 – Rupert Atkinson, English RAF officer (d. 1919)
  • 1898 – Berenice Abbott, American photographer (d. 1991)
  • 1898 – Osmond Borradaile, Canadian soldier and cinematographer (d. 1999)
  • 1899 – James Cagney, American actor and dancer (d. 1986)
  • 1900 – Marcel Dalio, French actor (d. 1983)
  • 1901 – Luigi Chinetti, Italian-American race car driver (d. 1994)
  • 1901 – Bruno Jasieński, Polish poet and author (d. 1938)
  • 1901 – Patrick Smith, Irish farmer and politician, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (d. 1982)
  • 1902 – Christina Stead, Australian author and academic (d. 1983)
  • 1905 – William Gargan, American actor (d. 1979)
  • 1910 – James Coyne, Canadian lawyer and banker, 2nd Governor of the Bank of Canada (d. 2012)
  • 1910 – Frank Olson, American chemist and microbiologist (d. 1953)
  • 1911 – Lionel Ferbos, American trumpet player (d. 2014)
  • 1911 – Heinz Lehmann, German-Canadian psychiatrist and academic (d. 1999)
  • 1912 – Erwin Bauer, German race car driver (d. 1958)
  • 1912 – Art Linkletter, Canadian-American radio and television host (d. 2010)
  • 1913 – Bertrand Goldberg, American architect, designed the Marina City Building (d. 1997)
  • 1914 – Eleanor Steber, American soprano and educator (d. 1990)
  • 1915 – Bijon Bhattacharya, Indian actor, singer, and screenwriter (d. 1978)
  • 1915 – Arthur Rothstein, American photographer and educator (d. 1985)
  • 1917 – Lou Boudreau, American baseball player and manager (d. 2001)
  • 1917 – Phyllis Diller, American actress, comedian, and voice artist (d. 2012)
  • 1917 – Kenan Evren, Turkish general and politician, 7th President of Turkey (d. 2015)
  • 1917 – Christiane Rochefort, French author (d. 1998)
  • 1918 – Carlos Manuel Arana Osorio, Guatemalan soldier and politician, President of Guatemala (d. 2003)
  • 1918 – Red Sovine, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1980)
  • 1920 – Gordon Gould, American physicist and academic, invented the laser (d. 2005)
  • 1920 – Juan Antonio Samaranch, Spanish businessman, 7th President of the International Olympic Committee (d. 2010)
  • 1921 – George Barnes, American guitarist, producer, and songwriter (d. 1977)
  • 1921 – Louis Lachenal, French mountaineer (d. 1955)
  • 1921 – Mary Osborne, American guitarist (d. 1992)
  • 1921 – Toni Stone, American baseball player (d. 1996)
  • 1921 – František Zvarík, Slovak actor (d. 2008)
  • 1923 – Jeanne Block, American psychologist (d. 1981)
  • 1923 – John Cooper, English car designer, co-founded the Cooper Car Company (d. 2000)
  • 1924 – Garde Gardom, Canadian lawyer and politician, 26th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Jimmy Scott, American singer and actor (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – Mohammad Hasan Sharq, Afghan politician
  • 1926 – Édouard Carpentier, French-Canadian wrestler (d. 2010)
  • 1926 – Willis Carto, American activist and theorist (d. 2015)
  • 1928 – Vince Guaraldi, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1976)
  • 1929 – Sergei K. Godunov, Russian mathematician and academic
  • 1932 – Niccolò Castiglioni, Italian composer (d. 1996)
  • 1932 – Red Kerr, American basketball player and coach (d. 2009)
  • 1932 – Wojciech Kilar, Polish pianist and composer (d. 2013)
  • 1932 – Karla Kuskin, American author and illustrator (d. 2009)
  • 1932 – Slick Leonard, American basketball player and coach
  • 1932 – Quino, Spanish-Argentinian cartoonist
  • 1932 – Hal Riney, American businessman, founded Publicis & Hal Riney (d. 2008)
  • 1933 – Keiko Awaji, Japanese actress (d. 2014)
  • 1933 – Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, Maltese politician, 9th Prime Minister of Malta
  • 1933 – Tony Pithey, Zimbabwean-South African cricketer (d. 2006)
  • 1934 – Lucio Tan, Chinese-Filipino billionaire businessman and educator
  • 1935 – Diahann Carroll, American actress and singer (d. 2019)
  • 1935 – Peter Schickele, American composer and educator
  • 1935 – Donald Sutherland, Canadian actor and producer
  • 1938 – Hermann Huppen, Belgian author and illustrator
  • 1939 – Andrée Champagne, Canadian actress and politician
  • 1939 – Spencer Davis, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1939 – Ali Khamenei, Iranian cleric and politician, 2nd Supreme Leader of Iran
  • 1940 – Tim Brooke-Taylor, English actor and screenwriter (d. 2020)
  • 1941 – Daryle Lamonica, American football player
  • 1941 – Bob Taylor, English cricketer
  • 1941 – Achim Warmbold, German race car driver and manager
  • 1942 – Don Kessinger, American baseball player and manager
  • 1942 – Gale Garnett, New Zealand–born Canadian singer
  • 1942 – Connie Hawkins, American basketball player (d. 2017)
  • 1942 – Zoot Money, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1943 – LaVyrle Spencer, American author and educator
  • 1944 – Mark Burgess, New Zealand cricketer and footballer
  • 1944 – Catherine Schell, Hungarian-English actress
  • 1944 – Carlos Alberto Torres, Brazilian footballer and manager (d. 2016)
  • 1945 – Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia
  • 1945 – John Patten, Baron Patten, English politician, Secretary of State for Education
  • 1946 – Chris Crutcher, American novelist and short story writer
  • 1946 – Ted Sampley, American POW/MIA activist (d. 2009)
  • 1947 – Joyce Anelay, Baroness Anelay of St John’s, English educator and politician
  • 1947 – Robert Begerau, German footballer and manager
  • 1947 – Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
  • 1947 – Wolfgang Flür, German musician (Kraftwerk)
  • 1947 – Mick Tucker, English rock drummer (Sweet) (d. 2002)
  • 1948 – Ron Asheton, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 2009)
  • 1948 – Luc Bondy, Swiss director and producer (d. 2015)
  • 1949 – Geezer Butler, English bass player and songwriter
  • 1949 – Charley Steiner, American journalist and sportscaster
  • 1950 – Phoebe Snow, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2011)
  • 1950 – Tengku Sulaiman Shah, Malaysian corporate figure
  • 1950 – Sadhan Chandra Majumder, Bangladeshi politician
  • 1951 – Lucie Arnaz, American actress and singer
  • 1951 – Mark Bowden, American journalist and author
  • 1951 – Andrew Robathan, English soldier and politician, Minister of State for the Armed Forces
  • 1952 – David Hasselhoff, American actor, singer, and producer
  • 1952 – Nicolette Larson, American singer-songwriter (d. 1997)
  • 1952 – Thé Lau, Dutch singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2015)
  • 1952 – Robert R. McCammon, American author
  • 1954 – António Costa, Prime Minister of Portugal
  • 1954 – Angela Merkel, German chemist and politician, 8th Chancellor of Germany
  • 1954 – Edward Natapei, Vanuatuan politician, 6th Prime Minister of Vanuatu (d. 2015)
  • 1954 – J. Michael Straczynski, American author, screenwriter, and producer
  • 1955 – Sylvie Léonard, Canadian actress and screenwriter
  • 1955 – Paul Stamets, American mycologist and author
  • 1956 – Julie Bishop, Australian lawyer and politician, 38th Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs
  • 1956 – Bryan Trottier, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach
  • 1957 – Bruce Crump, American drummer and songwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1957 – Wendy Freedman, Canadian-American cosmologist and astronomer
  • 1958 – Wong Kar-wai, Chinese director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1958 – Suzanne Moore, English journalist
  • 1958 – Susan Silver, American music manager
  • 1958 – Thérèse Rein, Australian businesswoman, founded Ingeus
  • 1959 – Pola Uddin, Baroness Uddin, Bangladeshi-English politician
  • 1960 – Kim Barnett, English cricketer and coach
  • 1960 – Mark Burnett, English-American screenwriter and producer
  • 1960 – Nancy Giles, American journalist and actress
  • 1960 – Robin Shou, Hong Kong martial artist and actor
  • 1960 – Dawn Upshaw, American soprano
  • 1960 – Jan Wouters, Dutch footballer and manager
  • 1961 – António Costa, Portuguese politician, 119th Prime Minister of Portugal
  • 1961 – Jeremy Hardy, English comedian and actor (d. 2019)
  • 1963 – Regina Belle, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
  • 1963 – Letsie III of Lesotho
  • 1963 – Matti Nykänen, Finnish ski jumper and singer (d. 2019)
  • 1965 – Craig Morgan, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1965 – Alex Winter, English-American actor, film director and screenwriter
  • 1966 – Lou Barlow, American guitarist and songwriter
  • 1966 – Sten Tolgfors, Swedish lawyer and politician, 30th Swedish Minister of Defence
  • 1969 – Scott Johnson, American cartoonist
  • 1969 – Jaan Kirsipuu, Estonian cyclist
  • 1971 – Calbert Cheaney, American basketball player and coach
  • 1971 – Cory Doctorow, Canadian author and activist
  • 1971 – Nico Mattan, Belgian cyclist
  • 1972 – Elizabeth Cook, American singer and guitarist
  • 1972 – Donny Marshall, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1972 – Jason Rullo, American drummer
  • 1972 – Jaap Stam, Dutch footballer and manager
  • 1972 – Eric Williams, American basketball player
  • 1973 – Eric Moulds, American football player
  • 1974 – Claudio López, Argentine footballer
  • 1975 – Andre Adams, New Zealand cricketer
  • 1975 – Elena Anaya, Spanish actress
  • 1975 – Darude, Finnish DJ and producer
  • 1975 – Harlette, Australian-English fashion designer
  • 1975 – Loretta Harrop, Australian triathlete
  • 1976 – Luke Bryan, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1976 – Gino D’Acampo, Italian chef and author
  • 1976 – Dagmara Domińczyk, Polish-American actress
  • 1976 – Marcos Senna, Brazilian-Spanish footballer
  • 1976 – Anders Svensson, Swedish footballer and sportscaster
  • 1977 – Andrew Downton, Australian cricketer
  • 1977 – Leif Hoste, Belgian cyclist
  • 1977 – Marc Savard, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1978 – Ricardo Arona, Brazilian mixed martial artist
  • 1978 – Panda Bear, American musician and songwriter
  • 1978 – Jason Jennings, American baseball player
  • 1979 – Mike Vogel, American actor
  • 1980 – Javier Camuñas, Spanish footballer
  • 1980 – Ryan Miller, American ice hockey player
  • 1981 – Hely Ollarves, Venezuelan runner
  • 1982 – Omari Banks, Anguillan cricketer
  • 1982 – Natasha Hamilton, English singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
  • 1983 – Ryan Guettler, Australian motocross racer
  • 1983 – Adam Lind, American baseball player
  • 1985 – Loui Eriksson, Swedish ice hockey player
  • 1985 – Tom Fletcher, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1985 – Neil McGregor, Scottish footballer
  • 1986 – DeAngelo Smith, American football player
  • 1986 – Lacey Von Erich, American wrestler
  • 1987 – Darius Boyd, Australian rugby league player
  • 1987 – Jan Charouz, Czech race car driver
  • 1987 – Jeremih, American singer, songwriter, and record producer
  • 1994 – Benjamin Mendy, French footballer
  • 1994 – Kali Uchis, American singer-songwriter
  • 1998 – Rosana Serrano, Cuban rower

Deaths on July 17

  • 521 – Magnus Felix Ennodius, Gallo-Roman bishop
  • 855 – Leo IV, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 790)
  • 924 – Edward the Elder, English king (b. 877)
  • 952 – Wu Hanyue, Chinese noblewoman (b. 913)
  • 961 – Du, empress dowager of the Song Dynasty
  • 1070 – Baldwin VI, count of Flanders (b. 1030)
  • 1085 – Robert Guiscard, Norman adventurer
  • 1119 – Baldwin VII, count of Flanders (b. 1093)
  • 1210 – Sverker II, king of Sweden (b. 1210)
  • 1304 – Edmund Mortimer, 2nd Baron Mortimer (b. 1251)
  • 1399 – Jadwiga, queen of Poland (b. 1374)
  • 1453 – Dmitry Shemyaka, Grand Prince of Moscow
  • 1453 – John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury, English commander and politician (b. 1387)
  • 1531 – Hosokawa Takakuni, Japanese commander (b. 1484)
  • 1571 – Georg Fabricius, German poet and historian (b. 1516)
  • 1588 – Mimar Sinan, Ottoman architect and engineer, designed the Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque and Süleymaniye Mosque (b. 1489)
  • 1603 – Mózes Székely, Hungarian noble (b. 1553)
  • 1645 – Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, English-Scottish politician, Lord Chamberlain of the United Kingdom (b. 1587)
  • 1704 – Pierre-Charles Le Sueur, French fur trader and explorer (b. 1657)
  • 1709 – Robert Bolling, English planter and merchant (b. 1646)
  • 1725 – Thomas King, English and British soldier, MP for Queenborough, lieutenant-governor of Sheerness (b. before 1660?).
  • 1762 – Peter III of Russia (b. 1728)
  • 1790 – Adam Smith, Scottish economist and philosopher (b. 1723)
  • 1791 – Martin Dobrizhoffer, Austrian missionary and author (b. 1717)
  • 1793 – Charlotte Corday, French murderer (b. 1768)
  • 1794 – John Roebuck, English chemist and businessman (b. 1718)
  • 1845 – Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1764)
  • 1871 – Karl Tausig, Polish virtuoso pianist, arranger and composer (b. 1841)
  • 1878 – Aleardo Aleardi, Italian poet and politician (b. 1812)
  • 1879 – Maurycy Gottlieb, Ukrainian-Polish painter (b. 1856)
  • 1881 – Jim Bridger, American scout and explorer (b. 1804)
  • 1883 – Tự Đức, Vietnamese emperor (b. 1829)
  • 1885 – Jean-Charles Chapais, Canadian farmer and politician, 1st Canadian Minister of Agriculture (b. 1811)
  • 1887 – Dorothea Dix, American nurse and activist (b. 1802)
  • 1893 – Frederick A. Johnson, American banker and politician (b. 1833)
  • 1894 – Leconte de Lisle, French poet and translator (b. 1818)
  • 1894 – Josef Hyrtl, Austrian anatomist and biologist (b. 1810)
  • 1900 – Thomas McIlwraith, Scottish-Australian politician, 8th Premier of Queensland (b. 1835)
  • 1907 – Hector Malot, French author and critic (b. 1830)
  • 1912 – Henri Poincaré, French mathematician, physicist, and engineer (b. 1854)
  • 1918 – Victims of the Shooting of the Romanov family
    • Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia (b. 1901)
    • Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia (b. 1899)
    • Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia (b. 1895)
    • Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia (b. 1897)
    • Alexandra Fyodorovna of Russia (b. 1872)
    • Aleksei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia (b. 1904)
    • Nikolai II of Russia (b. 1868)
    • Anna Demidova (b. 1878)
    • Ivan Kharitonov (b. 1872)
    • Alexei Trupp (b. 1858)
    • Yevgeny Botkin (b. 1865)
  • 1925 – Lovis Corinth, German painter (b. 1858)
  • 1928 – Giovanni Giolitti, Italian politician, 13th Prime Minister of Italy (b. 1842)
  • 1928 – Álvaro Obregón, Mexican general and politician, 39th President of Mexico (b. 1880)
  • 1932 – Rasmus Rasmussen, Norwegian actor, singer, and director (b. 1862)
  • 1935 – George William Russell, Irish poet and painter (b. 1867)
  • 1942 – Robina Nicol, New Zealand photographer and suffragist (b. 1861)
  • 1944 – William James Sidis, American mathematician and anthropologist (b. 1898)
  • 1945 – Ernst Busch, German field marshal (b. 1885)
  • 1946 – Florence Fuller, South African-born Australian artist (b. 1867)
  • 1946 – Draža Mihailović, Serbian general (b. 1893)
  • 1950 – Evangeline Booth, English 4th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1865)
  • 1950 – Antonie Nedošinská, Czech actress (b. 1885)
  • 1959 – Billie Holiday, American singer (b. 1915)
  • 1959 – Eugene Meyer, American businessman and publisher (b. 1875)
  • 1960 – Maud Menten, Canadian physician and biochemist (b. 1879)
  • 1961 – Ty Cobb, American baseball player and manager (b. 1886)
  • 1961 – Emin Halid Onat, Turkish architect and academic (b. 1908)
  • 1967 – John Coltrane, American saxophonist and composer (b. 1926)
  • 1974 – Dizzy Dean, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1910)
  • 1975 – Konstantine Gamsakhurdia, Georgian author (b. 1893)
  • 1980 – Don “Red” Barry, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1912)
  • 1980 – Boris Delaunay, Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1890)
  • 1988 – Bruiser Brody, American football player and wrestler (b. 1946)
  • 1989 – Itubwa Amram, Nauruan pastor and politician (b. 1922)
  • 1991 – John Patrick Spiegel, American psychiatrist and academic (b. 1911)
  • 1994 – Jean Borotra, French tennis player (b. 1898)
  • 1995 – Juan Manuel Fangio, Argentinian race car driver (b. 1911)
  • 1996 – Victims of TWA Flight 800
    • Michel Breistroff, French ice hockey player (b. 1971)
    • Marcel Dadi, Tunisian-French guitarist (b. 1951)
    • David Hogan, American composer (b. 1949)
    • Jed Johnson, American interior designer and director (b. 1948)
  • 1996 – Chas Chandler, American bass player and producer (b. 1938)
  • 1998 – Lillian Hoban, American author and illustrator (b. 1925)
  • 2001 – Katharine Graham, American publisher (b. 1917)
  • 2002 – Joseph Luns, Dutch politician and Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1911)
  • 2003 – David Kelly, Welsh weapons inspector (b. 1944)
  • 2003 – Rosalyn Tureck, American pianist and harpsichord player (b. 1914)
  • 2003 – Walter Zapp, Latvian-Swiss inventor, invented the Minox (b. 1905)
  • 2005 – Geraldine Fitzgerald, Irish-American actress (b. 1913)
  • 2005 – Edward Heath, English colonel and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1916)
  • 2005 – Joe Vialls, Australian journalist and theorist (b. 1944)
  • 2006 – Sam Myers, American singer-songwriter (b. 1936)
  • 2006 – Mickey Spillane, American crime novelist (b. 1918)
  • 2007 – Grant Forsberg, American actor and businessman (b. 1959)
  • 2007 – Júlio Redecker, Brazilian politician (b. 1956)
  • 2007 – Paulo Rogério Amoretty Souza, Brazilian lawyer and businessman (b. 1945)
  • 2009 – Walter Cronkite, American journalist and actor (b. 1916)
  • 2009 – Leszek Kołakowski, Polish historian and philosopher (b. 1927)
  • 2010 – Larry Keith, American actor (b. 1931)
  • 2011 – David Ngoombujarra, Australian actor (b. 1967)
  • 2012 – Richard Evatt, English boxer (b. 1973)
  • 2012 – Forrest S. McCartney, American general (b. 1931)
  • 2012 – İlhan Mimaroğlu, Turkish-American composer and producer (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – William Raspberry, American journalist and academic (b. 1935)
  • 2012 – Marsha Singh, Indian-English politician (b. 1954)
  • 2013 – Henri Alleg, English-French journalist and author (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Peter Appleyard, English-Canadian vibraphone player and composer (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Vincenzo Cerami, Italian screenwriter and producer (b. 1940)
  • 2013 – Don Flye, American tennis player (b. 1933)
  • 2013 – Ian Gourlay, English general (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – David White, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1933)[18]
  • 2014 – Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 victims:
    • Liam Davison, Australian author and critic (b. 1957)
    • Shuba Jay, Malaysian actress (b. 1976)
    • Joep Lange, Dutch physician and academic (b. 1954)
    • Willem Witteveen, Dutch scholar and politician (b. 1952)
  • 2014 – Henry Hartsfield, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – Otto Piene, German sculptor and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2014 – Elaine Stritch, American actress and singer (b. 1925)
  • 2015 – Bill Arnsparger, American football player and coach (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Jules Bianchi, French race car driver (b. 1989)
  • 2015 – Owen Chadwick, English rugby player, historian, and academic (b. 1916)
  • 2015 – Van Miller, American sportscaster (b. 1927)
  • 2015 – John Taylor, English pianist and educator (b. 1942)

Holidays and observances on July 17

  • Christian feast day:
    • Alexius of Rome (Western Church)
    • Andrew Zorard
    • Cynehelm
    • Cynllo
    • Inácio de Azevedo
    • Jadwiga of Poland
    • Magnus Felix Ennodius
    • Marcellina
    • Martyrs of Compiègne
    • Blessed Pavel Peter Gojdič (Greek Catholic Church)
    • Pope Leo IV
    • Romanov sainthood (Russian Orthodox Church)
    • Speratus and companions
    • William White (Episcopal Church))
    • July 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Constitution Day (South Korea)
  • Gion Matsuri (Yasaka Shrine, Kyoto)
  • Independence Day (Slovakia)
  • International Firgun Day (international)
  • King’s Birthday (Lesotho)
  • U Tirot Sing Day (Meghalaya, India)
  • World Day for International Justice (International)
  • World Emoji Day (International)

July 17 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

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