July 18
is the 199th day (200th in
leap years) of the year in the
Gregorian Calendar, with 166 days remaining.
*
390 BC -
Roman-
Gaulish Wars:
Battle of the Allia - A
Roman army is defeated by raiding
Gauls, leading to the subsequent sacking of
Rome.
*
64 -
Great fire of Rome: A fire begins to burn in the merchant area of
Rome and soon burns completely out of control while
Emperor Nero reportedly plays his
lyre and sings while watching the blaze from a safe distance.
*
1195 -
Battle of Alarcos, great victory of
Almohad ruler
Abu Yusuf Ya'qub al-Mansur over the
Castilian King
Alfonso VIII.
*
1536 - The authority of the
Pope is declared void in
England.
*
1830 -
Uruguay adopts its first
constitution.
*
1857 -
Louis Faidherbe,
French governor of
Senegal, arrives to relieve
French forces at
Kayes, effectively ending
El Hajj Umar Tall's war on the
French.
*
1861 -
American Civil War: Skirmish at
Blackburn's Ford prior to first battle of
Bull Run (1st Battle of Manassas).
*
1863 - American Civil War:
Battle of Fort Wagner/Morris Island - The first formal
African American military unit, the
54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, unsuccessfully assaults
Confederate-held
Battery Wagner but their valiant fighting still proves the worth of
African American soldiers during the war.
*
1872 -
Britain introduces voting by
secret ballot.
*
1873 -
Oscar II of
Sweden-Norway is crowned king of
Norway in
Trondheim.
*
1898 -
Marie and
Pierre Curie announce the discovery of a new element and proposed to call it
polonium.
*
1914 - The U.S. Congress forms the
Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps, this gives definite status to aircraft within the
U.S. Army for the first time.
*
1925 -
Adolf Hitler publishes his personal manifesto
Mein Kampf.
*
1932 - The
United States and
Canada signed a treaty to develop the
Saint Lawrence Seaway.
*
1936 -
Spanish Civil War: The rebellion reaches peninsular
Spain and conquers
Galicia, west
Castile, west
Andalucia and
Aragon.
*
1938 -
Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan arrives in
Ireland.
*
1940 -
Democratic National Convention,
Chicago:
President Franklin D. Roosevelt is nominated for an unprecedented third term in office.
*
1942 -
World War II: The
Germans test fly the
Messerschmitt Me-262 using only its
jets for the first time.
*
1944 -
World War II:
Hideki Tojo resigns as
Prime Minister of
Japan due to numerous setbacks in the war effort.
*
1947 -
President Harry S. Truman signs the
Presidential Succession Act into law which places the
Speaker of the House and the
Senate President Pro Tempore next in the line of succession after the
United States Vice President.
*
1965 -
Zond 3 launched.
*
1966 -
Gemini 10 launched.
*
1968 -
Vietnam War: The two-day
Honolulu Conference begins in
Honolulu, Hawaii between
US President Lyndon B. Johnson and
South Vietnamese
President Nguyen Van Thieu.
*1968 -
Intel incorporated.
*
1969 - After a party on
Chappaquiddick Island,
Senator Ted Kennedy from
Massachusetts drives an
Oldsmobile off a wooden bridge into a tide-swept pond and his passenger,
Mary Jo Kopechne, dies.
*1969 -
Apollo 11 makes preparations for landing on the
Moon.
*
1976 -
Gymnast Nadia Comaneci, age 14, scores first ever perfect 10 at the
Olympics.
*
1977 -
Vietnam joins the
United Nations.
*
1982 - 268
campesinos ("
countryside people") are slain in the
Plan de Sánchez massacre in
Ríos Montt's
Guatemala.
*
1984 - The first
Culver's opens in
Sauk City, Wisconsin.
*
1984 -
McDonald's massacre in
San Ysidro, California: In a fast-food restaurant,
James Oliver Huberty opens fire, killing 21 people and injuring 19 others before being shot dead by police.
*
1986 - A
tornado is broadcast live on
KARE television in
Minnesota when the station's
helicopter pilot makes a chance encounter.
*
1989 -
Rebecca Schaeffer is shot by a crazed fan, prompting
California to pass
America's first anti-stalking law in
1990.
*
1992 - The ten victims of the
La Cantuta massacre disappeared from their university in
Lima.
*1992 - '
The Late Show (Australian TV series)', starring the
D-Generation debuts on
ABC.
*
1994 - In
Buenos Aires, an explosion destroys a building housing several
Jewish organizations killing 85 and injuring many more.
*1994 - A court upholds
NBA salary cap and draft rights.
*
1995 - On the
Caribbean island of
Montserrat, the
Soufriere Hills volcano erupts. Over the course of several years, it devastates the island, destroying the capital and forcing most of the population to flee.
*
1996 - Storms provoke severe
flooding on the
Saguenay River in
Quebec, beginning one of
Canada's costliest
natural disasters ever.
*1996 - In an event very similar to the
Oklahoma tornado that would occur three years later, an
F5 tornado hit the town of
Oakfield, Wisconsin.
*
1997 - 8000 low-caste
Indians riot in
Mumbai (
Bombay) following a funeral for 10 children who had been killed by police.
*
1998 - A 23-foot
tidal wave kills nearly 3,000 people in
Papua New Guinea.
*
1999 -
David Cone of the
New York Yankees pitches the 16th
perfect game in baseball history against the
Expos at
Yankee Stadium.
*
2001 - In
Baltimore, Maryland, a 60-car train derails in a tunnel, sparking a fire that lasts days and virtually shuts down downtown
Baltimore.
*
2003 -
Kobe Bryant is charged with sexually assaulting a 19-year old woman.
*
2006 -
2006 Israel-Lebanon-Hezbollah conflict:
Israeli Air Force strikes on
Lebanon kill 40 people.
*
2006 - The
French Kicks release their third LP,
Two Thousand.
*
1013 -
Hermannus Contractus, learned monk (d.
1054)
*
1501 -
Isabella of Burgundy, wife of
Christian II of Denmark (d.
1526)
*
1504 -
Heinrich Bullinger, Swiss religious reformer (d.
1575)
*
1552 -
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (d.
1612)
*
1634 -
Johannes Camphuys, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d.
1695)
*
1635 -
Robert Hooke, English scientist (d.
1703)
*
1670 -
Giovanni Bononcini, Italian composer (d.
1747)
*
1718 -
Saverio Bettinelli, Italian writer (d.
1808)
*
1720 -
Gilbert White, English ornithologist (d.
1793)
*
1797 -
Immanuel Hermann Fichte, German philosopher (d.
1879)
*
1811 -
William Makepeace Thackeray, English author (d.
1863)
*
1821 -
Pauline Garcia-Viardot, French mezzo-soprano and composer (d.
1910)
*
1837 -
Vasil Levski, Bulgarian revolutionary (d.
1873)
*
1845 -
Tristan Corbière, French poet (d.
1875)
*
1848 -
William Gilbert Grace, English cricketer (d.
1915)
*
1853 -
Hendrik Lorentz, Dutch physicist,
Nobel Prize laureate (d.
1928)
*
1862 -
Nikolai Nikolaevich Yudenich, Russian general (d.
1933)
*
1867 -
Margaret Brown,The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Titanic survivor (d.
1932)
*
1864 -
Phillip Snowden, British politician (d.
1937)
*
1881 -
Larry McLean, baseball player (d.
1921)
*
1887 -
Vidkun Quisling, Norwegian politician and traitor (d.
1945)
*
1890 -
Frank Forde, 15th
Prime Minister of Australia (d.
1983)
*
1892 -
Arthur Friedenreich, Brazilian football player (d.
1969)
*
1894 -
Isaac Babel, Ukrainian writer (d.
1940)
*
1900 -
Nathalie Sarraute, French writer (d.
1999)
*
1902 -
Jessamyn West, American writer (d.
1984)
* 1902 -
Chill Wills, American actor (d.
1978)
*
1906 -
S. I. Hayakawa, American semanticist and politician (d.
1992)
* 1906 -
Clifford Odets, American writer (d.
1963)
*
1909 -
Andrei Gromyko, Soviet diplomat and President (d.
1989)
* 1909 -
Mohammed Daoud Khan,
President of Afghanistan (d.
1978)
*
1911 -
Hume Cronyn, Canadian actor (d.
2003)
*
1913 -
Red Skelton, American actor and comedian (d.
1997)
*
1914 -
Gino Bartali, Italian cyclist (d.
2000)
*
1916 -
Johnny Hopp, baseball player (d.
2003)
*
1917 -
Henri Salvador, French singer
*
1918 -
Nelson Mandela,
President of South Africa,
Nobel Peace Prize laureate
*
1921 -
John Glenn,
Mercury Seven astronaut and
United States Senator from Ohio*
1922 -
Thomas Kuhn, American philosopher (d.
1996)
*
1923 -
Jerome H. Lemelson, American inventor (d.
1997)
*
1925 -
Shirley Strickland, Australian athlete
*
1927 -
Kurt Masur, Silesian-born conductor
*
1929 -
Dick Button, American figure skater
* 1929 -
Screamin' Jay Hawkins, American singer (d.
2000)
*
1930 -
Burt Kwouk,
English actor
*
1933 -
Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Russian poet
*
1935 -
Jayendra Saraswathi, Hindu religious leader
*
1937 -
Roald Hoffman, Polish-born chemist,
Nobel Prize laureate
* 1937 -
Hunter S. Thompson, American journalist and author (d.
2005)
*
1938 -
Paul Verhoeven, Dutch
film director*
1939 -
Brian Auger, British musician
*
1940 -
James Brolin, American actor
* 1940 -
Joe Torre, baseball player and manager
*
1941 -
Martha Reeves, American singer
*
1942 -
Adolf Ogi, member of the Swiss Federal Council
*
1947 -
Steve Forbes, American entrepreneur and politician
* 1947 -
Steven W. Mahoney, Canadian politician
*
1948 -
Hartmut Michel, German chemist,
Nobel Prize laureate
*
1950 - Sir
Richard Branson, British entrepreneur
* 1950 -
Jack Layton, Canadian politician
*
1951 -
Elio Di Rupo, Belgian politician
*
1954 -
Ricky Skaggs, American country/bluegrass musician
*
1957 -
Nick Faldo, English Golfer
*
1960 -
Anne-Marie Johnson, American actress
*
1961 -
Elizabeth McGovern, American-born actress
*
1962 -
Jack Irons, American drummer
Pearl Jam,
Red Hot Chili Peppers*
1963 -
Martín Torrijos Espino,
President of Panama* 1963 -
Mike Greenwell, baseball player
* 1963 -
Al Snow, American professional wrestler
*
1967 -
Vin Diesel, American actor
*
1969 -
Masanori Murakawa, Japanese professional wrestler
*
1975 -
Torii Hunter, baseball player
* 1975 -
Daron Malakian, American guitarist (
System of a Down)
*
1978 -
Ben Sheets, baseball player
*
1979 -
Joey Mercury, American professional wrestler
*
1980 -
Kristen Bell, American actress
*
1982 -
Priyanka Chopra, Indian actress and Miss World 2000
* 1982 -
Ryan Cabrera, American musician and TV host
*
1100 -
Godfrey of Bouillon, French crusader
*
1488 -
Alvise Cadamosto, Italian explorer (b.
1432)
*
1591 -
Jacobus Gallus, Slovenian composer (b.
1550)
*
1608 -
Joachim Friedrich, Elector of Brandenburg (b.
1546)
*
1610 -
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, Italian artist (b.
1573)
*
1623 - Pope
Gregory XV (b.
1554)
*
1639 -
Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar, German general (b.
1604)
*
1665 -
Stefan Czarniecki, Polish general (b.
1599)
*
1695 -
Johannes Camphuys, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (b.
1634)
*
1698 -
Johann Heinrich Heidegger, Swiss theologian (b.
1633)
*
1721 -
Antoine Watteau, French painter (b.
1684)
*
1730 -
François de Neufville, duc de Villeroi, French soldier (b.
1644)
*
1792 -
John Paul Jones, American naval commander (b.
1747)
*
1817 -
Jane Austen, English novelist (b.
1775)
*
1863 -
Robert Gould Shaw, American military officer (b.
1837)
*
1872 -
Benito Juárez,
President of Mexico (b.
1806)
*
1884 -
Ferdinand von Hochstetter, Austrian geologist (b.
1829)
*
1892 -
Thomas Cook, English travel agent (b.
1808)
*
1918 -
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fyodorovna (b.
1864)
*
1937 -
Julian Bell, British poet, killed in the
Spanish Civil War (b.
1908)
*
1944 -
Thomas Sturge Moore, English poet, author and artist (b.
1870)
*
1949 -
Vítězslav Novák, Czech composer (b.
1870)
*
1952 -
Paul Saintenoy, Belgian architect (b.
1862)
*
1953 -
Lucy Booth, the fifth daughter of
William and
Catherine Booth (b.
1868)
*
1963 -
Jack Solomon, restauranteur, co-founder
Gallagher's Steak House (b.
1896)
*
1968 -
Corneille Heymans, Belgian physiologist,
Nobel Prize laureate (b.
1892)
*
1985 -
Shahnawaz Bhutto, son of
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
*
1988 -
Nico, German-born model and singer (b.
1938)
*
1989 -
Donnie Moore, baseball player (suicide) (b.
1954)
*
1990 -
Yoon Boseon,
President of South Korea (b.
1897)
* 1990 -
Karl Menninger, American psychiatrist, (b.
1896)
*
1995 -
Fabio Casartelli, Italian cyclist (b.
1970)
*
2001 -
James Hatfield, American author (b.
1958)
* 2001 -
Fabio Taglioni, Italian automotive engineer (b.
1920)
*
2002 -
Victor Emery, British theoretical physicist (b.
1933)
*
2004 -
Paul Foot, British journalist (b.
1937)
*
2005 -
William Westmoreland, U.S. Army general (b.
1914)
*
Uruguay -
Constitution Day.
*
BBC: On This Day*
The New York Times: On This Day*
On This Day in Canada*
Epic Idiot: On This DayJuly 17 -
July 19 -
June 18 -
August 18 --
listing of all days
