16 July

Events

Pre-1600

* 622 – The beginning of the Islamic calendar.
* 997 – Battle of Spercheios: Bulgarian forces of Tsar Samuel are defeated by a Byzantine army under general Nikephoros Ouranos at the Spercheios River in Greece.
*1054 – Three Roman legates break relations between Western and Eastern Christian Churches through the act of placing a Papal bull (of doubtful validity) of Excommunication on the altar of Hagia Sophia during Saturday afternoon divine liturgy. Historians frequently describe the event as the formal start of the East–West Schism.
*1212 – Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa: After Pope Innocent III calls European knights to a crusade, forces of Kings Alfonso VIII of Castile, Sancho VII of Navarre, Peter II of Aragon and Afonso II of Portugal defeat those of the Berber Muslim leader Almohad, thus marking a significant turning point in the ''Reconquista'' and in the medieval history of Spain.
*1228 – The canonization of Saint Francis of Assisi
*1232 – The Spanish town of Arjona declares independence and names its native Muhammad ibn Yusuf as ruler. This marks the Muhammad's first rise to prominence; he would later establish the Nasrid Emirate of Granada, the last independent Muslim state in Spain.
*1251 – Celebrated by the Carmelite Order–but doubted by modern historians–as the day when Saint Simon Stock had a vision of the Virgin Mary.Fr. Paul D'Souza, OCD
The Carmelite Scapular: History and Devotion
/ref>
*1377 – King Richard II of England is crowned.
*1536 – Jacques Cartier, navigator and explorer, returns home to St. Malo after claiming Stadacona (Quebec), Hochelaga (Montereal) and the River of Canada (St. Lawrence River) region for France.

1601–1900

*1661 – The first banknotes in Europe are issued by the Swedish bank Stockholms Banco.
*1683 – Manchu Qing dynasty naval forces under traitorous commander Shi Lang defeat the Kingdom of Tungning in the Battle of Penghu near the Pescadores Islands.
*1769 – Father Junípero Serra founds California's first mission, Mission San Diego de Alcalá. Over the following decades, it evolves into the city of San Diego, California.
*1779 – American Revolutionary War: Light infantry of the Continental Army seize a fortified British Army position in a midnight bayonet attack at the Battle of Stony Point.
*1790 – The District of Columbia is established as the capital of the United States after signature of the Residence Act.
*1809 – The city of La Paz, in what is today Bolivia, declares its independence from the Spanish Crown during the La Paz revolution and forms the Junta Tuitiva, the first independent government in Spanish America, led by Pedro Domingo Murillo.
*1849 – Antonio María Claret y Clará founds the Congregation of the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, popularly known as the Claretians in Vic, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
*1858 – The last apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubirous in Lourdes, France.
*1861 – American Civil War: At the order of President Abraham Lincoln, Union troops begin a 25-mile march into Virginia for what will become the First Battle of Bull Run, the first major land battle of the war.
*1862 – American Civil War: David Farragut is promoted to rear admiral, becoming the first officer in United States Navy to hold an admiral rank.

1901–present

*1909 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar is forced out as Shah of Persia and is replaced by his son Ahmad Shah Qajar.
*1910 – John Robertson Duigan makes the first flight of the Duigan pusher biplane, the first aircraft built in Australia.
*1915 – Henry James becomes a British citizen to highlight his commitment to Britain during the first World War.
* 1915 – At Treasure Island on the Delaware River in the United States, the First Order of the Arrow ceremony takes place and the Order of the Arrow is founded to honor American Boy Scouts who best exemplify the Scout Oath and Law.
*1927 – Augusto César Sandino leads a raid on U.S. Marines and Nicaraguan Guardia Nacional that had been sent to apprehend him in the village of Ocotal, but is repulsed by one of the first dive-bombing attacks in history.
*1931 – Emperor Haile Selassie signs the first constitution of Ethiopia.
*1935 – The world's first parking meter is installed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
*1941 – Joe DiMaggio hits safely for the 56th consecutive game, a streak that still stands as an MLB record.
*1942 – Holocaust: Vel' d'Hiv Roundup (''Rafle du Vel' d'Hiv''): The government of Vichy France orders the mass arrest of 13,152 Jews who are held at the Vélodrome d'Hiver in Paris before deportation to Auschwitz.
*1945 – Manhattan Project: The Atomic Age begins when the United States successfully detonates a plutonium-based test nuclear weapon near Alamogordo, New Mexico.
* 1945 – World War II: The heavy cruiser leaves San Francisco with parts for the atomic bomb " Little Boy" bound for Tinian Island.
*1948 – Following token resistance, the city of Nazareth, revered by Christians as the hometown of Jesus, capitulates to Israeli troops during Operation Dekel in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
* 1948 – The storming of the cockpit of the ''Miss Macao'' passenger seaplane, operated by a subsidiary of the Cathay Pacific Airways, marks the first aircraft hijacking of a commercial plane.
*1950 – Chaplain–Medic massacre: American POWs are massacred by North Korean Army.
*1951 – King Leopold III of Belgium abdicates in favor of his son, Baudouin I of Belgium.
* 1951 – J. D. Salinger publishes his popular yet controversial novel, ''The Catcher in the Rye''.
*1956 – Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus closes its last "Big Tent" show in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; due to changing economics, all subsequent circus shows will be held in arenas.
*1957 – KLM Flight 844 crashes off the Schouten Islands in present day Indonesia (then Netherlands New Guinea), killing 58 people.
*1965 – The Mont Blanc Tunnel linking France and Italy opens.
* 1965 – South Vietnamese Colonel Phạm Ngọc Thảo, a formerly undetected communist spy and double agent, is hunted down and killed by unknown individuals after being sentenced to death ''in absentia'' for a February 1965 coup attempt against Nguyễn Khánh.
*1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11, the first mission to land astronauts on the Moon, is launched from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Kennedy, Florida.
*1979 – Iraqi President Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr resigns and is replaced by Saddam Hussein.
*1983 – Sikorsky S-61 disaster: A helicopter crashes off the Isles of Scilly, causing 20 fatalities.
*1990 – The Luzon earthquake strikes the Philippines with an intensity of 7.7, affecting Benguet, Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, La Union, Aurora, Bataan, Zambales and Tarlac.
* 1990 – The Parliament of the Ukrainian SSR declares state sovereignty over the territory of the Ukrainian SSR.
*1994 – The comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 is destroyed in a head-on collision with Jupiter.
*1999 – John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, die when the aircraft he is piloting crashes into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Martha's Vineyard.
*2004 – Millennium Park, considered Chicago's first and most ambitious early 21st-century architectural project, is opened to the public by Mayor Richard M. Daley.
*2005 – An Antonov An-24 crashes near Baney in Bioko Norte, Equatorial Guinea, killing 60 people.
*2007 – An earthquake of magnitude 6.8 and 6.6 aftershock occurs off the Niigata coast of Japan killing eight people, injuring at least 800 and damaging a nuclear power plant.
*2009 – Teoh Beng Hock, an aide to a politician in Malaysia is found dead on the rooftop of a building adjacent to the offices of the Anti-Corruption Commission, sparking an inquest that gains nationwide attention.
*2013 – As many as 27 children die and 25 others are hospitalized after eating lunch served at their school in eastern India.
* 2013 – Syrian civil war: The Battle of Ras al-Ayn resumes between the People's Protection Units (YPG) and Islamist forces, beginning the Rojava–Islamist conflict.
*2015 – Four U.S. Marines and one gunman die in a shooting spree targeting military installations in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
*2019 – A 100-year-old building in Mumbai, India, collapses, killing at least 10 people and leaving many others trapped.

Births

Pre-1600

*1194 – Clare of Assisi, Italian nun and saint (d. 1253)
*1486 – Andrea del Sarto, Italian painter (d. 1530)
*1517 – Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk, English duchess (d. 1559)
*1529 – Petrus Peckius the Elder, Dutch jurist, writer on international maritime law (d. 1589)

1601–1900

*1611 – Cecilia Renata of Austria (d. 1644)
*1661 – Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville, Canadian captain, explorer, and politician (d. 1706)
*1714 – Marc René, marquis de Montalembert, French engineer and author (d. 1800)
*1722 – Joseph Wilton, English sculptor and academic (d. 1803)
*1723 – Joshua Reynolds, English painter and academic (d. 1792)
*1731 – Samuel Huntington, American jurist and politician, 18th Governor of Connecticut (d. 1796)
*1749 – Cyrus Griffin, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 16th President of the Continental Congress (d. 1810)
*1796 – Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, French painter and etcher (d. 1875)
*1821 – Mary Baker Eddy, American religious leader and author, founded Christian Science (d. 1910)
*1841 – Nikolai von Glehn, Estonian-German architect and activist (d. 1923)
*1858 – Eugène Ysaÿe, Belgian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1931)
*1862 – Ida B. Wells, American journalist and activist (d. 1931)
*1863 – Anderson Dawson, Australian politician, 14th Premier of Queensland (d. 1910)
*1870 – Lambert McKenna, Irish priest, lexicographer, and scholar (d. 1956)
*1871 – John Maxwell, American golfer (d. 1906)
*1872 – Roald Amundsen, Norwegian pilot and explorer (d. 1928)
* 1872 – Frank Cooper, Australian politician, 25th Premier of Queensland (d. 1949)
*1880 – Kathleen Norris, American journalist and author (d. 1966)
*1882 – Violette Neatley Anderson, American judge (d. 1937)
*1883 – Charles Sheeler, American photographer and painter (d. 1965)
*1884 – Anna Vyrubova, Russian author (d. 1964)
*1887 – Shoeless Joe Jackson, American baseball player and manager (d. 1951)
*1888 – Percy Kilbride, American actor (d. 1964)
* 1888 – Frits Zernike, Dutch physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1966)
*1889 – Arthur Bowie Chrisman, American author (d. 1953)
*1895 – Wilfrid Hamel, Canadian businessman and politician, 35th Mayor of Quebec City (d. 1968)
*1896 – Otmar Freiherr von Verschuer, German biologist and eugenicist (d. 1969)
* 1896 – Trygve Lie, Norwegian trade union leader and politician, 1st Secretary-General of the United Nations (d. 1968)
*1898 – Lady Eve Balfour, British farmer, educator, and founding figure in the organic movement (d. 1990)

1901–present

*1902 – Alexander Luria, Russian psychologist and physician (d. 1977)
* 1902 – Mary Philbin, American actress (d. 1993)
*1903 – Fritz Bauer, German lawyer and judge (d. 1968)
* 1903 – Carmen Lombardo, Canadian singer-songwriter (d. 1971)
* 1903 – Irmgard Flügge-Lotz, German mathematician and engineer (d. 1974)
*1904 – Goffredo Petrassi, Italian composer and conductor (d. 2003)
*1906 – Vincent Sherman, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2006)
*1907 – Frances Horwich, American educator and television host (d. 2001)
* 1907 – Orville Redenbacher, American farmer and businessman, founded Orville Redenbacher's (d. 1995)
* 1907 – Barbara Stanwyck, American actress (d. 1990)
*1910 – Stan McCabe, Australian cricketer (d. 1968)
* 1910 – Gordon Prange, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1980)
*1911 – Ginger Rogers, American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 1995)
* 1911 – Sonny Tufts, American actor (d. 1970)
*1912 – Milt Bocek, American baseball player (d. 2007)
* 1912 – Amy Patterson, Argentine composer, singer, poet, and teacher (d. 2019)
*1915 – Barnard Hughes, American actor (d. 2006)
* 1915 – Elaine Barrie, American actress (d. 2003)
*1918 – Denis Edward Arnold, English soldier (d. 2015)
* 1918 – Paul Farnes, British Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter pilot (d. 2020)
* 1918 – Samuel Victor Perry, English biochemist and rugby player (d. 2009)
*1919 – Hermine Braunsteiner, Austrian SS officer (d. 1999)
* 1919 – Choi Kyu-hah, South Korean politician, 4th President of South Korea (d. 2006)
*1920 – Anatole Broyard, American critic and editor (d. 1990)
*1923 – Chris Argyris, American psychologist, theorist, and academic (d. 2013)
* 1923 – Bola Sete, Brazilian guitarist (d. 1987)
*1924 – James L. Greenfield, American journalist and politician
* 1924 – Bess Myerson, American model, actress, game show panelist, and politician, Miss America 1945 (d. 2014)
* 1924 – Rupert Deese, Northern Mariana Islander ceramic artist (d. 2010)
*1925 – Frank Jobe, American sergeant and surgeon (d. 2014)
* 1925 – Rosita Quintana, Argentine actress (d. 2021)
* 1925 – Cal Tjader, American jazz musician (d. 1982)
*1926 – Ivica Horvat, Croatian footballer and manager (d. 2012)
* 1926 – Irwin Rose, American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2015)
*1927 – Pierre F. Côté, Canadian lawyer and civil servant (d. 2013)
* 1927 – Shirley Hughes, English author and illustrator (d. 2022)
* 1927 – Derek Hawksworth, English footballer (d. 2021)
*1928 – Anita Brookner, English novelist and art historian (d. 2016)
* 1928 – Bella Davidovich, Soviet-American pianist
* 1928 – Robert Sheckley, American author and screenwriter (d. 2005)
* 1928 – Jim Rathmann, American race car driver (d. 2011)
* 1928 – Dave Treen, American lawyer and politician, 51st Governor of Louisiana (d. 2009)
* 1928 – Andrzej Zawada, Polish mountaineer and author (d. 2000)
*1929 – Charles Ray Hatcher, American serial killer (d. 1984)
* 1929 – Sheri S. Tepper, American author and poet (d. 2016)
* 1929 – Gaby Tanguy, French swimmer (d. 1981)
*1930 – Guy Béart, Egyptian-French singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
* 1930 – Michael Bilirakis, American lawyer and politician
* 1930 – Bert Rechichar, American football defensive back and kicker (d. 2019)
*1931 – Fergus Gordon Kerr, Scottish Roman Catholic priest of the English Dominican Province
* 1931 – Norm Sherry, American baseball player, manager, and coach (d. 2021)
*1932 – John Chilton, English trumpet player and composer (d. 2016)
* 1932 – Max McGee, American football player and sportscaster (d. 2007)
* 1932 – Dick Thornburgh, American lawyer and politician, 76th United States Attorney General (d. 2020)
*1933 – Julian A. Brodsky, American businessman
* 1934 – Denise LaSalle, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2018)
*1934 – Tomás Eloy Martínez, Argentine journalist (d. 2010)
* 1934 – Katherine D. Ortega, 38th Treasurer of the United States
* 1934 – Donald M. Payne, American educator and politician (d. 2012)
*1935 – Carl Epting Mundy Jr., American general (d. 2014)
* 1935 – Lynn Wyatt, American socialite and philanthropist
*1936 – Yasuo Fukuda, Japanese politician, 91st Prime Minister of Japan
* 1936 – Buddy Merrill, American guitarist (d. 2021)
* 1936 – Jerry Norman, American sinologist and linguist (d. 2012)
* 1936 – Venkataraman Subramanya, Indian-Australian cricketer
*1937 – Richard Bryan, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Nevada
* 1937 – John Daly, English director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2008)
*1938 – Cynthia Enloe, American author and academic
* 1938 – Tony Jackson, English singer and bass player (d. 2003)
*1939 – William Bell, American singer-songwriter
* 1939 – Ali Khamenei, Iranian cleric and politician, 2nd Supreme Leader of Iran
* 1939 – Lido Vieri, Italian football manager and football player
* 1939 – Ruth Perry, president of Liberia (d. 2017)
* 1939 – Shringar Nagaraj, Indian actor and producer (d. 2013)
* 1939 – Corin Redgrave, English actor and activist (d. 2010)
* 1939 – Mariele Ventre, Italian singer and conductor (d. 1995)
*1941 – Desmond Dekker, Jamaican singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
* 1941 – Dag Solstad, Norwegian author and playwright
* 1941 – Hans Wiegel, Dutch journalist and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands
* 1941 – Sir George Young, 6th Baronet, English banker and politician, Secretary of State for Transport
*1942 – Margaret Court, Australian tennis player and minister
*1943 – Reinaldo Arenas, Cuban-American author, poet, and playwright (d. 1990)
* 1943 – Vernon Bogdanor, English political scientist and academic
* 1943 – Jimmy Johnson, American football player and coach
*1944 – Angharad Rees, English-Welsh actress and jewellery designer (d. 2012)
*1946 – Louise Fréchette, Canadian civil servant and diplomat, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
*1947 – Don Burke, Australian television host and producer
* 1947 – Alexis Herman, American businesswoman and politician, 23rd United States Secretary of Labor
* 1947 – Assata Shakur, American-Cuban criminal and activist
*1948 – Rubén Blades, Panamanian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
* 1948 – Lars Lagerbäck, Swedish footballer and manager
* 1948 – Kevin McKenzie, South African cricketer
* 1948 – Pinchas Zukerman, Israeli violinist and conductor
*1950 – Pierre Paradis, Canadian lawyer and politician
* 1950 – Dennis Priestley, English darts player
* 1950 – Frances Spalding, English historian and academic
* 1950 – Tom Terrell, American journalist and photographer (d. 2007)
*1951 – Jean-Luc Mongrain, Canadian journalist
* 1951 – Che Rosli, Malaysian politician
*1952 – Stewart Copeland, American drummer and songwriter
* 1952 – Marc Esposito, French director and screenwriter
* 1952 – Ken McEwan, South African cricketer
*1953 – Douglas J. Feith, American lawyer and politician, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
*1955 – Susan Wheeler, American poet and academic
* 1955 – Saw Swee Leong, Malaysian badminton player
*1956 – Tony Kushner, American playwright and screenwriter
*1957 – Faye Grant, American actress
* 1957 – Alexandra Marinina, Ukrainian-Russian colonel and author
*1958 – Mick Cornett, American politician
* 1958 – Michael Flatley, American-Irish dancer and choreographer
*1959 – Gary Anderson, South African-American football player
* 1959 – James MacMillan, Scottish composer and conductor
* 1959 – Jürgen Ligi, Estonian economist and politician, 25th Estonian Minister of Defence
*1960 – Terry Pendleton, American baseball player and coach
*1962 – Grigory Leps, Russian singer-songwriter
*1963 – Phoebe Cates, American actress
* 1963 – Srečko Katanec, Slovenian footballer and coach
* 1963 – Mikael Pernfors, Swedish tennis player
*1964 – Phil Hellmuth, American poker player
* 1964 – Miguel Induráin, Spanish cyclist
*1965 – Michel Desjoyeaux, French sailor
* 1965 – Claude Lemieux, Canadian ice hockey player
*1966 – Jyrki Lumme, Finnish ice hockey player
*1967 – Will Ferrell, American actor, comedian, and producer
*1968 – Dhanraj Pillay, Indian field hockey player and manager
* 1968 – Barry Sanders, American football player
* 1968 – Larry Sanger, American philosopher and businessman, co-founded Wikipedia and Citizendium
* 1968 – Michael Searle, Australian rugby league player and businessman
* 1968 – Robert Sherman, American songwriter and businessman
* 1968 – Olga Souza, Brazilian singer and dancer
*1969 – Kathryn Harby-Williams, Australian netball player and sportscaster
*1970 – Raimonds Miglinieks, Latvian basketball player and coach
* 1970 – Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thai director, producer, and screenwriter
*1971 – Corey Feldman, American actor
* 1971 – Ed Kowalczyk

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