July 15

July 15 is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 169 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 1099 – First Crusade: Christian soldiers take the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the final assault of a difficult siege.
• 1149 – The reconstructed Church of the Holy Sepulchre is consecrated in Jerusalem.
• 1207 – King John of England expels Canterbury monks for supporting Archbishop Stephen Langton.
• 1240 – Swedish-Novgorodian Wars: a Novgorodian army led by Alexander Nevsky defeats the Swedes in the Battle of the Neva.
• 1381 – John Ball, a leader in the Peasants' Revolt, is hanged, drawn and quartered in the presence of King Richard II of England.
• 1410 – Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War: Battle of Grunwald – the allied forces of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeat the army of the Teutonic Order.
• 1685 – Monmouth Rebellion: James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth is executed at Tower Hill, England after his defeat at the Battle of Sedgemoor on 6 July 1685.
• 1741 – Alexei Chirikov sights land in Southeast Alaska. He sends men ashore in a longboat, making them the first Europeans to visit Alaska.
• 1789 – Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette, is named by acclamation colonel-general of the new National Guard of Paris.
• 1799 – The Rosetta Stone is found in the Egyptian village of Rosetta by French Captain Pierre-François Bouchard during Napoleon's Egyptian Campaign.
• 1806 – Pike expedition: United States Army Lieutenant Zebulon Pike begins an expedition from Fort Bellefontaine near St. Louis, Missouri, to explore the west.
• 1815 – Napoleonic Wars: Napoléon Bonaparte surrenders aboard HMS Bellerophon.
• 1823 – A fire destroys the ancient Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome.
• 1838 – Ralph Waldo Emerson delivers the Divinity School Address at Harvard Divinity School, discounting Biblical miracles and declaring Jesus a great man, but not God. The Protestant community reacts with outrage.
• 1870 – Reconstruction era of the United States: Georgia becomes the last of the former Confederate states to be readmitted to the Union.
• 1870 – Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory are transferred to Canada from the Hudson's Bay Company, and the province of Manitoba and the North-West Territories are established from these vast territories.
• 1888 – The stratovolcano Mount Bandai erupts killing approximately 500 people, in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan.
• 1916 – In Seattle, Washington, William Boeing and George Conrad Westervelt incorporate Pacific Aero Products (later renamed Boeing).
• 1918 – World War I: the Second Battle of the Marne begins near the River Marne with a German attack.
• 1920 – The Polish Parliament establishes Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship before the Polish-German plebiscite.
• 1927 – Massacre of July 15, 1927: 89 protesters are killed by the Austrian police in Vienna.
• 1929 – First weekly radio broadcast of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir radio show, Music and the Spoken Word.
• 1934 – Continental Airlines commences operations.
• 1954 – First flight of the Boeing 367-80, prototype for both the Boeing 707 and C-135 series.
• 1955 – Eighteen Nobel laureates sign the Mainau Declaration against nuclear weapons, later co-signed by thirty-four others.
• 1959 – The steel strike of 1959 begins, leading to significant importation of foreign steel for the first time in United States history.
• 1974 – In Nicosia, Cyprus, Greek Junta-sponsored nationalists launch a coup d'état, deposing President Makarios and installing Nikos Sampson as Cypriot president.
• 1979 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter gives his so-called "malaise" speech, where he characterizes the greatest threat to the country as "this crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation" but in which he never uses the word malaise
• 1983 – A terrorist attack is launched by Armenian militant organisation ASALA at the Paris-Orly Airport in Paris; it leaves 8 people dead and 55 injured.
• 1996 – A Belgian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying the Royal Netherlands Army marching band crashes on landing at Eindhoven Airport.
• 1997 – In Miami, Florida, serial killer Andrew Phillip Cunanan guns down Gianni Versace outside his home.
• 2002 – "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and to possession of explosives during the commission of a felony.
• 2002 – Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan hands down the death sentence to British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and life terms to three others suspected of murdering Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.
• 2003 – AOL Time Warner disbands Netscape Communications Corporation. The Mozilla Foundation is established on the same day.

Births

• 1273 – Ewostatewos, Ethiopian monk and religious leader (d. 1352)
• 1353 – Vladimir the Bold, Russian prince (d. 1410)
• 1471 – Eskender, Emperor of Ethiopia (d. 1494)
• 1553 – Archduke Ernest of Austria (d. 1595)
• 1573 – Inigo Jones, English architect (d. 1652)
• 1606 – Rembrandt, Dutch painter (d. 1669)
• 1631 – Jens Juel, Danish diplomat (d. 1700)
• 1704 – August Gottlieb Spangenberg, German religious leader (d. 1792)
• 1737 – Princess Louise-Marie of France, daughter of King Louis XV of France (d. 1787)
• 1779 – Clement Clarke Moore, American educator, author, and poet (d. 1863)
• 1796 – Thomas Bulfinch, American mythologist (d. 1867)
• 1799 – Reuben Chapman, American lawyer and politician (d. 1882)
• 1808 – Henry Edward Manning, English Catholic archbishop and cardinal (d. 1892)
• 1812 – James Hope-Scott, English barrister (d. 1873)
• 1837 – Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, German-born Queen consort of Portugal, wife of King Peter V of Portugal (d. 1859)
• 1848 – Vilfredo Pareto, Italian economist and sociologist (d. 1923)
• 1850 – Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini, Italian-born American Catholic nun and saint (d. 1917)
• 1851 – Eduardo Gutiérrez, Argentinian writer (d. 1889)
• 1864 – Marie Tempest, English singer and actress (d. 1942)
• 1865 – Wilhelm Wirtinger, Austrian mathematician (d. 1945)
• 1870 – Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov, Russian publisher and politician (d. 1922)
• 1871 – Kunikida Doppo, Japanese writer (d. 1908)
• 1892 – Walter Benjamin, German literary critic and writer (d. 1940)
• 1893 – Dick Rauch, American football player and coach (d. 1970)
• 1894 – Tadeusz Sendzimir, Polish-American engineer and inventor (d. 1989)
• 1899 – Seán Lemass, Irish politician, 3rd Taoiseach (d. 1971)
• 1902 – Jean Rey, Belgian politician, 2nd President of the European Commission (d. 1983)
• 1903 – Kumaraswami Kamaraj, Indian politician (d. 1975)
• 1904 – Rudolf Arnheim, German-born American author and psychologist (d. 2007)
• 1905 – Dorothy Fields, American librettist and lyricist (d. 1974)
• 1906 – Rudolf Uhlenhaut, England-born German automotive engineer and test driver (Mercedes Benz) (d. 1989)
• 1911 – Edward Shackleton, English explorer (d. 1994)
• 1913 – Cowboy Copas, American country singer (d. 1963)
• 1913 – Abraham Sutzkever, Russian Yiddish poet (d. 2010)
• 1914 – Akhtar Hameed Khan, Pakistani social scientist, pioneer of microcredit in developing countries (d. 1999)
• 1914 – Hammond Innes, English writer (d. 1998)
• 1914 – Howard Vernon, Swiss actor (d. 1996)
• 1915 – Albert Ghiorso, American nuclear scientist
• 1918 – Bertram N. Brockhouse, Canadian physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2003)
• 1918 – Joan Roberts, American actress
• 1919 – Iris Murdoch, Irish writer (d. 1999)
• 1921 – Robert Bruce Merrifield, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 2006)
• 1921 – Henri Colpi, French film director (d. 2006)
• 1922 – Leon M. Lederman, American physicist, Nobel laureate
• 1925 – Philip Carey, American actor (d. 2009)
• 1926 – Driss Chraïbi, Moroccan novelist (d. 2007)
• 1926 – Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentine dictator (d. 2003)
• 1927 – Nan Martin, American actress (d. 2010)
• 1928 – Carl Woese, American microbiologist
• 1929 – Charles Anthony, American tenor
• 1929 – Francis Bebey, Cameroonian-born French musician and novelist (d. 2001)
• 1930 – Jacques Derrida, French philosopher (d. 2004)
• 1930 – Stephen Smale, American mathematician
• 1930 – Richard Garneau, French-Canadian sports journalist
• 1931 – Clive Cussler, American novelist
• 1932 – Ed Litzenberger, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1932 – Paulo Moura, Brazilian clarinetist and saxophonist (d. 2010)
• 1933 – Julian Bream, English guitarist and lutenist
• 1933 – Guido Crepax, Italian comics artist (d. 2003)
• 1934 – Harrison Birtwistle, English composer
• 1934 – Risto Jarva, Finnish filmmaker (d. 1977)
• 1935 – Donn Clendenon, American baseball player (d. 2005)
• 1935 – Ken Kercheval, American actor
• 1935 – Alex Karras, American football player and actor
• 1936 – George Voinovich, American politician
• 1938 – Ernie Barnes, American painter and football player (d. 2009)
• 1938 – Barry Goldwater Jr., American politician
• 1939 – Aníbal Cavaco Silva, Portuguese politician
• 1939 – Patrick Wayne, American actor
• 1940 – Ronald Gene Simmons, American mass-murderer (d. 1990)
• 1941 – Denis Héroux, French-Canadian film director and producer
• 1942 – Mil Máscaras, Mexican professional wrestler and actor
• 1943 – Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Irish astrophysicist
• 1944 – Millie Jackson, American singer
• 1944 – Jan-Michael Vincent, American actor
• 1945 – Jürgen Möllemann, German politician (d. 2003)
• 1946 – Linda Ronstadt, American singer
• 1946 – Hassanal Bolkiah, 29th Sultan of Brunei
• 1947 – Peter Banks, British guitarist (Yes)
• 1948 – Alicia Bridges, American singer
• 1948 – Artimus Pyle, American drummer (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
• 1949 – Carl Bildt, Swedish politician
• 1949 – Trevor Horn, British music producer
• 1950 – Colin Barnett, Australian politician
• 1950 – Arianna Huffington, Greek-born American newspaper columnist
• 1951 – Jesse Ventura, American professional wrestler and politician
• 1952 – Celia Imrie, British actress
• 1952 – Judy McGrath, American television executive
• 1952 – Terry O'Quinn, American actor
• 1952 – Johnny Thunders, American guitarist, singer and songwriter (New York Dolls, The Heartbreakers) (d. 1991)
• 1953 – Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haitian politician and Head of State
• 1953 – John Denham, British politician
• 1954 – Mario Kempes, Argentine football player
• 1956 – Ian Curtis, British singer and songwriter (Joy Division) (d. 1980)
• 1956 – Barry Melrose, Canadian hockey coach and commentator
• 1956 – Marky Ramone, American drummer (Ramones, Richard Hell & the Voidoids)
• 1956 – Joe Satriani, American guitarist
• 1956 – Wayne Taylor, South African race car driver
• 1958 – Gary Heale, English footballer
• 1958 – Mac Thornberry, American politician
• 1959 – Vincent Lindon, French actor
• 1959 – Shep Pettibone, American record producer
• 1960 – Kim Alexis, American supermodel and actress
• 1960 – Willie Aames, American actor
• 1961 – Lolita Davidovich, Canadian actress
• 1961 – Jean-Christophe Grangé, French writer and screenwriter
• 1961 – Scott Ritter, American UN weapons inspector
• 1961 – Forest Whitaker, American actor
• 1962 – Steve Brown, American darts player
• 1963 – Steve Thomas, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1963 – Brigitte Nielsen, Danish-born actress
• 1965 – David Miliband, British politician
• 1966 – Jason Bonham, English drummer (Bonham), son of John Bonham
• 1966 – Irène Jacob, French-born Swiss actress
• 1966 – Dimitris P. Kraniotis, Greek poet
• 1967 – Adam Savage, co-host of the television series MythBusters
• 1968 – Eddie Griffin, American comedian
• 1968 – Stan Kirsch, American actor
• 1971 – Danijela, Croatian singer
• 1972 – Scott Foley, American actor
• 1972 – Beth Ostrosky, American model
• 1973 – John Dolmayan, Lebanese-born American drummer (System of a Down)
• 1973 – Brian Austin Green, American actor
• 1973 – Kris Holm, Canadian mountain unicycling pioneer
• 1974 – Chris Taylor, Australian comedian (The Chaser)
• 1974 – Chot Ulep, Filipino bassist and songwriter
• 1975 – Kara Drew (Cherry), American pro wrestler
• 1975 – Ben Pepper, Australian basketball player
• 1976 – Diane Kruger, German actress and former fashion model
• 1977 – Faraz Anwar, Pakistani guitarist (Mizraab)
• 1977 – Kitana Baker, American model
• 1977 – Andre Nel, South African cricketer
• 1977 – Lana Parrilla, American actress
• 1977 – John St. Clair, American Football player
• 1977 – Ray Toro, American guitarist (My Chemical Romance)
• 1978 – Miguel Olivo, Dominican baseball player
• 1979 – Laura Benanti, American musical theatre actress
• 1979 – Alexander Frei, Swiss footballer
• 1980 – Jonathan Cheechoo, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1980 – Reggie Abercrombie, American baseball player
• 1980 – Jasper Pääkkönen, Finnish actor and film producer
• 1980 – Kelli Martin, American fashion designer
• 1980 – Mike Zambidis, Greek kickboxer
• 1982 – Alan Pérez, Spanish cyclist
• 1983 – Nelson Merlo, Brazilian racing driver
• 1984 – Alex Boyd, Scottish photographer
• 1984 – Vice Cooler, American singer-songwriter (Hawnay Troof, Xbxrx)
• 1986 – Tyler Kennedy, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1989 – Tristan Wilds, American actor
• 1990 – Zach Bogosian, American ice hockey player
• 1990 – J.B. Gaynor, American actor
• 1991 – Derrick Favors, American basketball player
• 1992 – Koharu Kusumi, Japanese singer (Morning Musume)

Deaths

• 1085 – Robert Guiscard, Norman adventurer (b. c. 1015)
• 1262 – Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford, English soldier (b. 1222)
• 1274 – Bonaventure, Italian theologian and saint (b. 1221)
• 1291 – Rudolph I of Germany, King of the Romans (b. 1218)
• 1381 – John Ball, English priest (b. 1338)
• 1406 – Duke William of Austria (b. c. 1370)
• 1410 – Ulrich von Jungingen, German Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights (killed in battle) (b. 1360)
• 1521 – Juan Ponce de León, Spanish explorer (b. 1458)
• 1544 – René of Châlon, Dutch Prince of the House of Orange (b. 1519)
• 1571 – Shimazu Takahisa, Japanese samurai and warlord (b. 1514)
• 1609 – Annibale Carracci, Italian painter (b. 1560)
• 1614 – Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de Brantôme, French historian and biographer (b. c. 1540)
• 1655 – Girolamo Rainaldi, Italian architect (b. 1570)
• 1685 – James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, illegitimate son of King Charles II of England (b. 1649)
• 1750 – Vasily Tatishchev, Russian statesman (b. 1686)
• 1765 – Charles-André van Loo, French painter (b. 1705)
• 1767 – Michael Bruce, Scottish poet (b. 1746)
• 1789 – Jacques Duphly, French composer (b. 1715)
• 1828 – Jean Antoine Houdon, French sculptor (b. 1741)
• 1839 – Winthrop Mackworth Praed, English poet (b. 1802)
• 1844 – Claude Charles Fauriel, French historian (b. 1772)
• 1857 – Carl Czerny, Austrian composer (b. 1791)
• 1871 – Tad Lincoln, son of U.S. president Abraham Lincoln (b. 1858)
• 1885 – Rosalia de Castro, Spanish writer and poet (b. 1837)
• 1890 – Gottfried Keller, Swiss writer (b. 1819)
• 1898 – Jean-Baptiste Salpointe, French-born American Catholic prelate, the first Bishop of Arizona and the second Archbishop of Santa Fe (d. 1825)
• 1904 – Anton Chekhov, Russian writer (b. 1860)
• 1919 – Hermann Emil Fischer, German chemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1852)
• 1929 – Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Austrian writer (b. 1874)
• 1930 – Leopold Auer, Hungarian violinist and composer (b. 1845)
• 1931 – Ladislaus Bortkiewicz, Russian economist (b. 1868)
• 1932 – Cornelis Jacobus Langenhoven, South African politician and writer (b. 1873)
• 1933 – Irving Babbitt, American literary critic (b. 1865)
• 1933 – Freddie Keppard, American Jazz cornetist (b. 1890)
• 1940 – Robert Wadlow, American; at 8 ft. 11.1 in, the tallest person ever known (b. 1918)
• 1942 – Wenceslao Vinzons, Filipino politician and resistance leader (bayoneted to death) (b. 1910)
• 1944 – Marie-Victorin, French Canadian De La Salle Christian Brother and botanist (b. 1885)
• 1946 – Razor Smith, English cricketer (b. 1877)
• 1947 – Walter Donaldson, American songwriter (b. 1893)
• 1948 – John J. Pershing, U.S. general (b. 1860)
• 1953 – Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, Indian Christian Bishop, founder of the Order of the Imitation of Christ (b. 1882)
• 1957 – James M. Cox, American politician (b. 1870)
• 1957 – Vasily Maklakov, Russian orator and liberal politician (b. 1869)
• 1958 – Julia Lennon, English mother of John Lennon (b. 1914)
• 1959 – Ernest Bloch, Swiss composer (b. 1880)
• 1959 – Vance Palmer, Australian novelist, dramatist, essayist and critic (b. 1885)
• 1960 – Lawrence Tibbett, American opera singer and actor (b. 1896)
• 1960 – Set Persson, Swedish Communist politician (b. 1897)
• 1961 – John E. Brownlee, Canadian politician (b. 1884)
• 1965 – Francis Cherry, American politician (b. 1908)
• 1974 – Christine Chubbuck, American television news reporter (b. 1944)
• 1979 – Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Mexican politician, 29th President of Mexico (b. 1911)
• 1982 – Bill Justis, American trumpet and saxophone player and producer (b. 1926)
• 1986 – Billy Haughton, American harness driver and trainer (b. 1923)
• 1989 – Laurie Cunningham, English footballer (b. 1956)
• 1990 – Margaret Lockwood, British actress (b. 1916)
• 1991 – Bert Convy, American actor (b. 1933)
• 1992 – Chingiz Mustafayev, Azerbaijani journalist (b. 1960)
• 1992 – Hammer DeRoburt, first President of Nauru (b. 1922)
• 1993 – David Brian, American actor (b. 1914)
• 1993 – Bobby Kent, American murder victim (b. 1973)
• 1996 – Dana Hill, American actress (b. 1964)
• 1997 – Gianni Versace, Italian fashion designer (b. 1946)
• 2000 – Louis Quilico, Canadian baritone (b. 1925)
• 2003 – Roberto Bolaño, Chilean writer (b. 1953)
• 2003 – Tex Schramm, American football team president and general manager (b. 1920)
• 2006 – Robert H. Brooks, American founder of Hooters of America (b. 1937)
• 2008 – Gyorgy Kolonics, Hungarian canoeist (b. 1972)
• 2008 – Karl Unterkircher, Italian mountaineer (b. 1970)
• 2009 – Natalya Estemirova, Russian activist (b. 1958)
• 2010 – James E. Akins, American diplomat and advisor to Richard Nixon (b. 1926)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day
  • Abhai (Syriac Orthodox Church)
  • Bonaventure
  • Donald of Ogilvy
  • Editha
  • Plechelm
  • Quiricus and Julitta
  • Swithun
  • Vladimir the Great (Eastern Orthodox; Roman Catholic).
• Confuflux (Discordianism)
• Earliest day on which Marine Day can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July. (Japan)
• Festival of Castor and Pollux (Roman Empire)
• Festival of Santa Rosalia (Palermo, Sicily)
• In Norse mythology, it's the day of Rowana, the goddess of the rowan tree, a sacred symbol of protection.

External links

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