Events
of the day
1174
– William I of Scotland, a
key rebel in the Revolt of
1173–1174, is captured at
Alnwick by forces loyal to
Henry II of England.
1260 – The Livonian Order
suffers its greatest defeat
in the 13th century in the
Battle of Durbe against the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
1558 – Battle of Gravelines:
in France, Spanish forces
led by Count Lamoral of Egmont
defeat the French forces of
Marshal Paul de Thermes at
Gravelines.
1573 – Eighty Years' War:
the Siege of Haarlem ends
after seven months.
1643 – English Civil War:
Battle of Roundway Down –
In England, Henry Wilmot,
1st Earl of Rochester, commanding
the Royalist forces, heavily
defeats the Parliamentarian
forces led by Sir William
Waller.
1787 – The Continental Congress
enacts the Northwest Ordinance
establishing governing rules
for the Northwest Territory.
It also establishes procedures
for the admission of new states
and limits the expansion of
slavery.
1793 – Journalist and French
revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat
is assassinated in his bathtub
by Charlotte Corday, a member
of the opposing political
faction.
1794 – The Battle of the Vosges
is fought between French forces
and those of Prussia and Austria.
1814 – The Carabinieri, the
national gendarmerie of Italy,
is established.
1830 – The General Assembly's
Institution, now the Scottish
Church College, one of the
pioneering institutions that
ushered the Bengal Renaissance,
is founded by Alexander Duff
and Raja Ram Mohan Roy, in
Calcutta, India.
1854 – In the Battle of Guaymas,
Mexico, General Jose Maria
Yanez stops the French invasion
led by Count Gaston de Raousset-Boulbon.
1863 – New York Draft Riots:
in New York City, opponents
of conscription begin three
days of rioting which will
be later regarded as the worst
in United States history.
1878 – Treaty of Berlin: the
European powers redraw the
map of the Balkans. Serbia,
Montenegro and Romania become
completely independent of
the Ottoman empire.
1905 – The verdict in the
six-month long Smarthavicharam
trial of Kuriyedath Thathri
is pronounced, leading to
the excommunication of 65
men of various castes.
1919 – The British airship
R34 lands in Norfolk, England,
completing the first airship
return journey across the
Atlantic in 182 hours of flight.
1923 – The Hollywood Sign
is officially dedicated in
the hills above Hollywood,
Los Angeles. It originally
reads "Hollywoodland
" but the four last letters
are dropped after renovation
in 1949.
1941 – World War II: Montenegrins
begin a popular uprising against
the Axis Powers (Trinaestojulski
ustanak), the first in Axis-controlled
countries.
1962 – In an unprecedented
action, British Prime Minister
Harold Macmillan dismisses
seven members of his Cabinet,
marking the effective end
of the National Liberals as
a distinct force within British
politics.
1973 – Alexander Butterfield
reveals the existence of the
"Nixon tapes" to
the special Senate committee
investigating the Watergate
break in.
1977 – New York City, amidst
a period of financial and
social turmoil experiences
a blackout lasting nearly
24 hours that leads to widespread
fires and looting.
1985 – The Live Aid benefit
concert takes place in London
and Philadelphia, as well
as other venues such as Sydney
and Moscow.
1985 – Vice President George
H.W. Bush becomes the Acting
President for the day when
President Ronald Reagan undergoes
surgery to remove polyps from
his colon.
1990 – An earthquake with
its epicentre in Afghanistan
results in the greatest number
of fatalities in a mountaineering
accident in High Asian mountains
when an avalanche kills 43
climbers in Camp I on Pik
Lenina (Lenin Peak).
2003 – French DGSE personnel
abort an operation to rescue
Ingrid Betancourt from FARC
rebels in Colombia, causing
a political scandal when details
are leaked to the press.
2008 – War in Afghanistan:
Taliban guerrillas attack
NATO troops near the village
of Wanat in the Waygal district
in Afghanistan's far eastern
province of Nuristan.
2011 – Mumbai is rocked by
three bomb blasts during the
evening rush hour, killing
26 and injuring 130.
Holidays
and observances
Christian
Feast Day:
Abd-al-Masih
Abel of Tacla Haimonot (Coptic
Church)
Clelia Barbieri
Eugenius of Carthage
Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
Mildthryth
Silas (Roman Catholic Church)
Teresa of the Andes
July 13 (Eastern Orthodox
liturgics)
Feast of Kalimát, first day
of the seventh month of the
Bahá'í calendar. (Bahá'í Faith)
Statehood Day (Montenegro)
The last day of Naadam (Mongolia)
Rock Worldwide Day
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