July 14Birthdays & History

On this day: July 14 in history

Oldest first. Tap a year to see it on the World Chronicle timeline.

1. 982King Otto II and his Frankish army are defeated by the Muslim army of al-Qasim at Cape Colonna, Southern Italy.Europe
2. 1223Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father, Philip II.Europe
3. 1420Battle of Vítkov Hill, decisive victory of Czech Hussite forces commanded by Jan Žižka against Crusade army led by Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.Europe
4. 1430Joan of Arc, taken by the Burgundians in May, is handed over to Pierre Cauchon, the bishop of Beauvais.Europe
5. 1456John Hunyadi and his forces defeat the Ottoman fleet on the Danube, allowing them to reinforce and supply the besieged city of Belgrade.Middle EastEurope
6. 1596Anglo-Spanish War: English and Dutch troops sack the Spanish city of Cádiz before leaving the next day.Europe
7. 1769An expedition led by Gaspar de Portolá leaves its base in San Diego and sets out to find the Port of Monterey (now Monterey, California).North America
8. 1771Foundation of the Mission San Antonio de Padua in modern California by the Franciscan friar Junípero Serra.North America
9. 1789Storming of the Bastille in Paris. This event escalates the widespread discontent into the French Revolution. Bastille Day is still celebrated annually in France.Europe
10. 1790Inaugural Fête de la Fédération is held to celebrate the unity of the French people and the national reconciliation.Europe
11. 1791Beginning of Priestley Riots (to 17 July) in Birmingham targeting Joseph Priestley as a supporter of the French Revolution.Europe
12. 1798The Sedition Act of 1798 becomes law in the United States making it a federal crime to write, publish, or utter false or malicious statements about the United States government.North America
13. 1808The Finnish War: the Battle of Lapua is fought.Europe
14. 1853Opening of the first major US world's fair, the Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations in New York City.North America
15. 1865The first ascent of the Matterhorn is completed by Edward Whymper and his party, four of whom die on the descent.Europe
16. 1874The Chicago Fire of 1874 burns down 47 acres of the city, destroying 812 buildings, killing 20, and resulting in the fire insurance industry demanding municipal reforms from Chicago's city council.North America
17. 1881American outlaw Billy the Kid is shot and killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett in the Maxwell House at Fort Sumner, New Mexico.North AmericaLatin America
18. 1900Armies of the Eight-Nation Alliance capture Tientsin during the Boxer Rebellion.Asia
19. 1902Peruvian explorer and farmer Agustín Lizárraga discovers Machu Picchu, the "Lost City of the Incas".Latin America
20. 1902The Campanile in St Mark's Square, Venice collapses, also demolishing the loggetta.Europe
21. 1911Harry Atwood, an exhibition pilot for the Wright brothers, is greeted by president William Howard Taft after he lands his aeroplane on the South Lawn of the White House, having flown from Boston.North America
22. 1915Beginning of the McMahon–Hussein Correspondence between Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca and the British official Henry McMahon concerning the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire.Middle EastEurope
23. 1916World War I: Battle of Delville Wood begins as an action within the Battle of the Somme, lasting until 3 September 1916.Europe
24. 1933In a decree called the Gleichschaltung, Adolf Hitler abolishes all German political parties except the Nazis.Europe
25. 1933Nazi eugenics programme begins with the proclamation of the Law for the Prevention of Hereditarily Diseased Offspring requiring the compulsory sterilization of any citizen who suffers from alleged genetic disorders.Europe
26. 1942In the Wardha session of Congress, the "Quit India" resolution is approved, authorising Mahatma Gandhi to campaign for India's independence from Britain.North AmericaAsiaEurope
27. 1943In Diamond, Missouri, the George Washington Carver National Monument becomes the first United States National Monument in honor of an African American.North AmericaAfrica
28. 1948Palmiro Togliatti, leader of the Italian Communist Party, is shot and wounded near the Italian Parliament.Europe
29. 1950Korean War: beginning of the Battle of Taejon.Asia
30. 1951Ferrari take their first Formula One grand prix victory at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.Europe
31. 1957Rawya Ateya takes her seat in the National Assembly of Egypt, thereby becoming the first female parliamentarian in the Arab world.Middle East
32. 1958In the 14 July Revolution in Iraq, the monarchy is overthrown by popular forces led by Abd al-Karim Qasim, who becomes the nation's new leader.Middle East
33. 1960Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 1-11 ditches off Polillo Island in the Philippines, killing one person and injuring 44.Asia
34. 1960Jane Goodall arrives at the Gombe Stream Reserve in present-day Tanzania to begin her study of chimpanzees in the wild.Africa
35. 1965Mariner 4 flyby of Mars takes the first close-up photos of another planet. The photographs take approximately six hours to be transmitted back to Earth.Europe
36. 1983Mario Bros. is released in Japan, beginning the popular Super Mario Bros franchise.Asia
37. 2001Australian criminal Bradley John Murdoch murders British tourist Peter Falconio and abducts his girlfriend in the Northern Territory.OceaniaEurope
38. 2001Rus Flight 9633 crashes during takeoff from Chkalovsky Airport, killing all 10 people on board.Asia
39. 2002French president Jacques Chirac escapes an assassination attempt from Maxime Brunerie during a Bastille Day parade at Champs-Élysées.Europe
40. 2013Dedication of the statue of Rachel Carson, a sculpture of the environmentalist, in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.North America
41. 2015NASA's New Horizons probe performs the first flyby of Pluto, and thus completes the initial survey of the Solar System.North America
42. 2016A man ploughs a truck into a Bastille Day celebration in Nice, France, killing 86 people and injuring another 434 before being shot by police.Europe
43. 2019A GippsAero GA8 Airvan crashes in Umeå, Sweden, killing all nine aboard.Europe

Source: Wikipedia "July 14" / CC BY-SA 4.0