July 21

July 21 is the 202nd day of the year (203rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 163 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 356 BC - Herostratus sets fire to the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
• 285 - Diocletian appoints Maximian as Caesar, co-ruler.
• 1403 - Battle of Shrewsbury: King Henry IV of England defeats rebels to the north of the county town of Shropshire, England.
• 1545 - The first landing of French troops onto the coast of the Isle of Wight during the French invasion of the Isle of Wight occurs.
• 1568 - Eighty Years' War: Battle of Jemmingen - Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alva defeats Louis of Nassau.
• 1718 - The Treaty of Passarowitz between the Ottoman Empire, Austria and the Republic of Venice is signed.
• 1774 - Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774: Russia and the Ottoman Empire sign the Treaty of Kuchuk-Kainarji ending the war.
• 1831 - Inauguration of Léopold I of Belgium, first king of the Belgians.
• 1861 - American Civil War: First Battle of Bull Run - at Manassas Junction, Virginia, the first major battle of the war begins. The Confederate won.
• 1865 - In the market square of Springfield, Missouri, Wild Bill Hickok shoots and kills Davis Tutt in what is regarded as the first true western showdown.
• 1873 - At Adair, Iowa, Jesse James and the James-Younger gang pull off the first successful train robbery in the American West.
• 1877 - After rioting by Baltimore and Ohio Railroad workers and the deaths of nine rail workers at the hands of the Maryland militia, workers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania stage a sympathy strike that is met with an assault by the state militia.
• 1918 - U-156 shells Nauset Beach, in Orleans, Massachusetts.
• 1919 - The dirigible Wingfoot Air Express crashes into the Illinois Trust and Savings Building in Chicago, killing 12 people.
• 1925 - Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, high school biology teacher John T. Scopes is found guilty of teaching evolution in class and fined $100.
• 1944 - World War II: Battle of Guam - American troops land on Guam starting the battle. It would end on August 10.
• 1949 - The United States Senate ratifies the North Atlantic Treaty.
• 1954 - First Indochina War: The Geneva Conference partitions Vietnam into North Vietnam and South Vietnam.
• 1960 - Sirimavo Bandaranaike is elected prime minister of Sri Lanka and becomes the first woman prime minister in the world.
• 1961 - Mercury program: Mercury-Redstone 4 Mission - Gus Grissom piloting Liberty Bell 7 becomes the second American to go into space (in a suborbital mission).
• 1964 - Singapore Race Riot - every year since then, Racial Harmony Day is celebrated on this day.
• 1969 - Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin become the first men to walk on the Moon, during the Apollo 11 mission.
• 1970 - After 11 years of construction, the Aswan High Dam in Egypt is completed.
• 1972 - Bloody Friday bombing by the Provisional Irish Republican Army around Belfast, Northern Ireland - 22 bomb explosions, 9 people killed and 130 people seriously injured.
• 1973 - In the Lillehammer affair in Norway, Israeli Mossad agents kill a waiter whom they mistakenly thought was involved in 1972's Munich Olympics Massacre.
• 1976 - Christopher Ewart-Biggs British ambassador to the Republic of Ireland is assassinated by the Provisional IRA.
• 1977 - The start of a four day long Libyan-Egyptian War takes place.
• 1983 - The world's lowest temperature is recorded at Vostok Station, Antarctica at −89.2°C (−129°F).
• 1994 - Tony Blair is declared the winner of the leadership election of the British Labour Party, paving the way for him to become Prime Minister in 1997.
• 1995 - Third Taiwan Strait Crisis: The People's Liberation Army begins firing missiles into the waters north of Taiwan.
• 1997 - The fully restored USS Constitution (aka "Old Ironsides") celebrates her 200th birthday by setting sail for the first time in 116 years.
• 2002 - Telecom giant WorldCom files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the largest such filing in United States history.
• 2004 - The United Kingdom government publishes Delivering Security in a Changing World, a paper detailing wide-ranging reform of the country's armed forces.
• 2005 - Four terrorist bombings, occurring exactly two weeks after the similar July 7 bombings, target London's public transportation system. All four bombs fail to detonate and all four suspected suicide bombers are captured and later convicted and imprisoned for long terms.
• 2008 - Bosnian-Serb war criminal Radovan Karadžić is arrested in Serbia and is indicted by the UN's ICTY tribunal.

Births

• 810 - Imam Bukhari, Islamic scholar (d. 870)
• 1515 - Philip Neri, Italian churchman (d. 1595)
• 1620 - Jean Picard, French astronomer (d. 1682)
• 1664 - Matthew Prior, English poet and diplomat (d. 1721)
• 1693 - Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1768)
• 1710 - Paul Möhring, German physician (d. 1792)
• 1808 - Simion Bărnuţiu, Romanian philosopher and politician (d. 1864)
• 1810 - Henri Victor Regnault, French chemist (d. 1878)
• 1816 - Paul Reuter, German-born British journalist and media owner (Reuters) (d. 1899)
• 1858 - Lovis Corinth, German painter (d. 1925)
• 1858 - Maria Christina of Austria, queen of Spain (d. 1929)
• 1858 - Alfred Henry O'Keeffe, New Zealand artist (d. 1941)
• 1863 - Aubrey Smith, English cricketer and actor (d. 1948)
• 1870 - Emil Orlik, Czech painter (d. 1932)
• 1880 - Milan Rastislav Štefánik, Slovak politician, French general and astronomer (d. 1919)
• 1882 - David Burliuk, Ukrainian artist (d. 1967)
• 1893 - Hans Fallada, German writer (d. 1947)
• 1899 - Hart Crane, American poet (d. 1932)
• 1899 - Ernest Hemingway, American writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1961)
• 1903 - Roy Neuberger, American financier
• 1908 - Harold "Jug" McSpaden, American professional golfer (d. 1996)
• 1911 - Marshall McLuhan, Canadian author (d. 1980)
• 1920 - Constance Dowling, American actress (d. 1969)
• 1920 - Isaac Stern, Ukrainian-born violinist (d. 2001)
• 1923 - Rudolph A. Marcus, Canadian chemist, Nobel laureate
• 1922 - Kay Starr, American singer
• 1924 - Don Knotts, American actor (d. 2006)
• 1925 - Anne Meacham, American actress
• 1926 - Paul Burke, American actor
• 1926 - Norman Jewison, Canadian film director
• 1926 - Rahimuddin Khan, Pakistani general
• 1926 - Karel Reisz, British film director (d. 2002)
• 1926 - Queenie Watts, English actress (d. 1980)
• 1928 - Marcel Gauthier, Canadian wrestler (d. 1998)
• 1929 - Bob Orton, American wrestler (d. 2006)
• 1930 - Anand Bakshi, Indian lyricist (d. 2002)
• 1932 - Ernie Warlick, American football player
• 1933 - John Gardner, American author (d. 1982)
• 1934 - Chandu Borde, Former Indian cricketer
• 1935 - Norbert Blüm, German politician
• 1935 - Moe Drabowsky, baseball player (d. 2006)
• 1938 - Les Aspin, American politician (d. 1995)
• 1938 - Anton Kuerti, Canadian pianist, composer and conductor
• 1938 - Janet Reno, 79th United States Attorney General
• 1939 - John Negroponte, 1st United States Director of National Intelligence
• 1943 - Edward Herrmann, American actor
• 1944 - Tony Scott, British film director
• 1944 - Paul Wellstone, American politician (d. 2002)
• 1945 - John Lowe, English darts player
• 1945 - Lydia Shum, Hong Kong comedian and actress (d. 2008)
• 1945 - Barry Richards, Former South African cricketer
• 1945 - Geoff Dymock, Former Australian cricketer
• 1946 - Kenneth Starr, American lawyer
• 1946 - Barry Whitwam, British musician (Herman's Hermits)
• 1947 - Chetan Chauhan, Former Indian cricketer
• 1948 - Ed Hinton, American sportswriter
• 1948 - Yusuf Islam, stage name was "Cat Stevens", English singer/songwriter
• 1948 - Garry Trudeau, American cartoonist
• 1949 - Al Hrabosky, baseball player
• 1950 - Ubaldo Fillol, Argentinian footballer
• 1951 - Robin Williams, American comedian/actor
• 1952 - John Barrasso, American politician, junior senator from Wyoming
• 1953 - Brian Talbot, British footballer
• 1953 - Jeff Fatt, Chinese Australian actor
• 1955 - Howie Epstein, American musician (d. 2003)
• 1955 - Taco Ockerse, Indonesian singer
• 1956 - Michael Connelly, American author
• 1957 - Jon Lovitz, American comedian
• 1957 - George Landress, American songwriter and music producer
• 1959 - Paul "Fatty" Vautin, Australian rugby league player
• 1960 - Lance Guest, American actor
• 1960 - Fritz Walter, German footballer
• 1961 - Amar Singh Chamkila, Punjabi folk singer
• 1961 - Jim Martin, American musician (Faith No More)
• 1963 - Kevin Poole, English footballer
• 1963 - Paulo Silva, Brazilian mixed martial artist and professional wrestler
• 1964 - Jens Weißflog, German ski jumper
• 1965 - Gudni Bergsson, Icelandic footballer
• 1965 - Mike Bordick, American baseball player
• 1965 - Jovy Marcelo, Filipino racing driver (d. 1992)
• 1966 - Arija Bareikis, American actress
• 1968 - Johnnie Barnes, American football player
• 1968 - Brandi Chastain, American soccer player
• 1968 - Lyle Odelein, Canadian hockey player
• 1969 - Emerson Hart, American musician (Tonic)
• 1969 - Klaus Graf, German racing driver
• 1970 - Shawn Stasiak, American professional wrestler
• 1971 - Emmanuel Bangué, French long jumper
• 1971 - Charlotte Gainsbourg, French actress and singer
• 1971 - Nuno Markl, Portuguese comedian and radio host
• 1972 - Shinjiro Otani, Japanese professional wrestler
• 1973 - Ali Landry, American model and actress
• 1974 - Geoff Jenkins, American baseball player
• 1975 - Mike Sellers, National Football League fullback
• 1975 - Ravindra Pushpakumara, Former Sri Lankan cricketer
• 1977 - Paul Casey, English golfer
• 1977 - Jaime Murray, British actress
• 1978 - Josh Hartnett, American actor
• 1978 - Justin Bartha, American actor
• 1978 - Damian Marley, Jamaican musician
• 1978 - Gary Teale, Scottish football player
• 1979 - David Carr, American football player
• 1979 - Tamika Catchings, American basketball player
• 1980 - Tailor James, Canadian model
• 1980 - CC Sabathia, American baseball player
• 1981 - Titus Bramble, English footballer
• 1981 - Stefan Schumacher, German cyclist
• 1981 - Joaquín Sánchez, Spanish footballer
• 1981 - Chrishell Stause, American actress
• 1983 - Eivør Pálsdóttir, Faroese singer
• 1983 - Kellen Winslow II, American football player
• 1984 - Paul Davis, American basketball player
• 1984 - Liam Ridgewell, English footballer
• 1985 - Von Wafer, American basketball player
• 1987 - AnnaLynne McCord, American actress
• 1988 - Chris Mitchell, Scottish footballer
• 1989 - Jamie Waylett, British actor
• 1989 - Rory Culkin, American actor
• 1989 - Chris Gunter, Welsh footballer
• 1992 - Rachael Flatt, American figure skater

Deaths

• 1403 - Henry Percy, English nobleman and soldier (b. ca.1364)
• 1425 - Manuel II Palaeologus, Byzantine Emperor (b. 1350)
• 1688 - James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde, English statesman and soldier (b. 1610)
• 1793 - Bruni d'Entrecasteaux, French explorer (b. 1739)
• 1796 - Robert Burns, Scottish poet (b. 1759)
• 1798 - François Sebastien Charles Joseph de Croix, Count of Clerfayt, Austrian field marshal (b. 1733)
• 1880 - Hiram Walden, American politician (b. 1800)
• 1889 - Nelson Dewey, American politician, 1st Governor of Wisconsin (b. 1813)
• 1899 - Robert G. Ingersoll, American politician and military officer (b. 1833)
• 1932 - Bill Gleason, late 19th century baseball player
• 1938 - Owen Wister, American author (b. 1860)
• 1941 - Bohdan Lepky, Ukrainian writer and poet (b. 1872)
• 1943 - Charlie Paddock, American athlete (b. 1900)
• 1944 - Claus von Stauffenberg, German, leader of failed plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler, by execution (b. 1907)
• 1944 - Ludwig Beck, German Chief of Staff (b. 1880)
• 1946 - Gualberto Villarroel, President of Bolivia (b. 1908)
• 1948 - Arshile Gorky, Armenian-born American artist (b. 1904)
• 1967 - Jimmie Foxx, baseball player (b. 1907)
• 1967 - Albert Lutuli, South African politician, Nobel Peace Prize laureate
• 1967 - Basil Rathbone, English actor (b. 1892)
• 1968 - Ruth St. Denis, dancer and choreographer (b. 1878)
• 1970 - Mikhail Gerasimov, Russian anthropologist and sculptor (b. 1907)
• 1970 - Bob Kalsu, American football player (b. 1945)
• 1972 - Ralph Craig, American athlete (b. 1889)
• 1982 - Dave Garroway, American television host (b. 1913)
• 1986 - Ernest Maas, American screenwriter (b. 1892)
• 1991 - Paul Warwick, English racing driver (b. 1969)
• 1998 - Alan Shepard, astronaut (b. 1923)
• 1998 - Robert Young, American actor (b. 1907)
• 2001 - Steve Barton, American actor (b. 1954)
• 2001 - Sivaji Ganesan, South Indian Tamil actor (b. 1927)
• 2003 - John Davies, New Zealand Olympic Committee president (b. 1938)
• 2003 - Walter M. "Matt" Jefferies, American film art director (b. 1921)
• 2004 - Jerry Goldsmith, American composer (b. 1929)
• 2004 - Edward B. Lewis, American geneticist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate (b. 1918)
• 2005 - Long John Baldry, British blues musician (b. 1941)
• 2005 - Lord Alfred Hayes, British Wrestling Announcer for WWE (b. 1928)
• 2006 - Mako, Japanese-born American actor (b. 1933)
• 2006 - Ta Mok, "The Khmer Rouge Butcher", war criminal in Democratic Kampuchea (b. 1926)

Holidays and observances

• Belgium: National holiday (1831 - inauguration of Léopold I, first king of the Belgians)
• Guam: Liberation Day (1944)
• Russia: summer Kazanskaya
• Singapore: Racial Harmony Day

Roman Catholic

• Saint Arbogastus, bishop of Strasburg, confessor [Basel, Constance, Strassburg]
• Saint Daniel
• Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, priest, Doctor of the Church
• Saint Praxedes (Praxidis)
• Saint Victor of Marseilles, and companions, martyrs [Trier, southern France; Paris]

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada
• The New York Times: On This Day