July 5Birthdays & History

On this day: July 5 in history

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

1. 328The official opening of Constantine's Bridge built over the Danube between Sucidava (Corabia, Romania) and Oescus (Gigen, Bulgaria) by the Roman architect Theophilus Patricius.Europe
2. 1294Election of pope Celestine V following the death of pope Nicholas IV two years prior.Europe
3. 1316The Burgundian and Majorcan claimants of the Principality of Achaea meet in the Battle of Manolada.Europe
4. 1413Mehmed Çelebi and his army defeat the army of his brother Musa Çelebi in the battle of Çamurlu. Musa is captured and executed.EuropeMiddle East
5. 1584The Maronite College is established in Rome.Europe
6. 1594Portuguese forces under the command of Pedro Lopes de Sousa begin an unsuccessful invasion of the Kingdom of Kandy during the Campaign of Danture in Sri Lanka.EuropeAsia
7. 1610John Guy sets sail from Bristol with 39 other colonists for Newfoundland.North America
8. 1643The battle of Landsdowne results in severe losses for both the Royalist and Parliamentarian forces.Europe
9. 1687Isaac Newton publishes Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica.Europe
10. 1770The Battle of Chesma between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire begins, resulting in one of the worst naval defeats of the Ottomans since Lepanto.EuropeMiddle East
11. 1775The Second Continental Congress adopts the Olive Branch Petition.North America
12. 1803The Convention of Artlenburg is signed, leading to the French occupation of the Electorate of Hanover (which had been ruled by the British king).Europe
13. 1807In Buenos Aires the local militias repel the British soldiers within the Second English Invasion.Latin AmericaEurope
14. 1809The Battle of Wagram between the French and Austrian Empires begins.Europe
15. 1811The Venezuelan Declaration of Independence is adopted by a congress of the provinces.Latin America
16. 1813War of 1812: Three weeks of British raids on Fort Schlosser, Black Rock and Plattsburgh, New York commence.EuropeNorth America
17. 1814War of 1812: Battle of Chippawa: American Major General Jacob Brown defeats British General Phineas Riall at Chippawa, Ontario.North AmericaEurope
18. 1830After inflicting a series of defeats on Algerian forces, the French army under the Comte de Bourmont captures Algier.AfricaEurope
19. 1833Lê Văn Khôi along with 27 soldiers stage a mutiny taking over the Phiên An citadel, developing into the Lê Văn Khôi revolt against Emperor Minh Mạng.Asia
20. 1833Admiral Charles Napier vanquishes the navy of the Portuguese usurper Dom Miguel at the third Battle of Cape St. Vincent.Europe
21. 1841Thomas Cook organises the first package excursion, from Leicester to Loughborough.Europe
22. 1852Abolitionist Frederick Douglass delivers his "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" speech at a meeting organized by the Rochester Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, New York.North America
23. 1859The United States discovers and claims Midway Atoll.North America
24. 1865The United States Secret Service begins operation.North America
25. 1884Germany takes possession of Cameroon.EuropeAfrica
26. 1915The Liberty Bell leaves Philadelphia by special train on its way to the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. This is the last trip outside Philadelphia that the custodians of the bell intend to permit.North AmericaLatin America
27. 1934"Bloody Thursday": The police open fire on striking longshoremen in San Francisco.North America
28. 1935The National Labor Relations Act, which governs labor relations in the United States, is signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.North America
29. 1940World War II: Foreign relations of Vichy France are severed with the United Kingdom.Europe
30. 1941World War II: Operation Barbarossa: German troops reach the Dnieper river.Europe
31. 1943World War II: An Allied invasion fleet sails for Sicily (Operation Husky, July 10, 1943).Europe
32. 1943World War II: German forces begin a massive offensive against the Soviet Union at the Battle of Kursk, also known as Operation Citadel.Europe
33. 1945The United Kingdom holds its first general election in 10 years, which would be won by Clement Attlee's Labour Party.Europe
34. 1946Micheline Bernardini models the first modern bikini at a swimming pool in Paris.Europe
35. 1948National Health Service Acts create the national public health system in the United Kingdom.Europe
36. 1950Korean War: Task Force Smith: American and North Korean forces first clash, in the Battle of Osan.AsiaNorth America
37. 1950The Knesset of Israel passes the Law of Return which grants all Jews the right to immigrate to the Land of Israel.Middle East
38. 1954The BBC broadcasts its first daily television news bulletin.Europe
39. 1954Elvis Presley records his first single, "That's All Right", at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee.North America
40. 1962The official independence of Algeria is proclaimed after an eight-year-long war with France.AfricaEurope
41. 1970Air Canada Flight 621 crashes in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, killing all 109 people on board.North America
42. 1971The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 years, is formally certified by President Richard Nixon.North America
43. 1973A boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE) in Kingman, Arizona, following a fire that broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank, kills eleven firefighters.North America
44. 1973Juvénal Habyarimana seizes power over Rwanda in a coup d'état.Africa
45. 1975Cape Verde gains its independence from Portugal.AfricaEurope
46. 1975Arthur Ashe becomes the first black man to win the Wimbledon singles title.Europe
47. 1977The Pakistan Armed Forces under Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq seize power in Operation Fair Play and begin 11 years of martial law. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, is overthrown.Asia
48. 1980Swedish tennis player Björn Borg wins his fifth Wimbledon final and becomes the first male tennis player to win the championships five times in a row (1976–1980).Europe
49. 1984The United States Supreme Court gives its United States v. Leon decision providing a good-faith exception from the Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule against use of evidence obtained through defective warrants in criminal trials.North America
50. 1987Sri Lankan Civil War: The LTTE uses suicide attacks on the Sri Lankan Army for the first time. The Black Tigers are born and, in the following years, will continue to kill with the tactic.Asia
51. 1989Iran–Contra affair: Oliver North is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gerhard A. Gesell to a three-year suspended prison term, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours community service. His convictions are later overturned.Middle EastNorth America
52. 1994Jeff Bezos founds Amazon.North America
53. 1995Armenia adopts its constitution, four years after its independence from the Soviet Union.Europe
54. 1996Dolly the sheep becomes the first mammal cloned from an adult cell.Europe
55. 1997Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP A. Thangathurai is shot dead at Sri Shanmuga Hindu Ladies College in Trincomalee.Asia
56. 1999U.S. President Bill Clinton imposes trade and economic sanctions against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.North AmericaAsia
57. 2003The World Health Organization announces that the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak has been contained.World
58. 2004The first direct Indonesian presidential election is held.Asia
59. 2006North Korea tests four short-range missiles, one medium-range missile and a long-range Taepodong-2. The long-range Taepodong-2 reportedly fails in mid-air over the Sea of Japan.AsiaAsia
60. 2009The Staffordshire Horde, the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever discovered in Britain, is found near the village of Hammerwich, near Lichfield, Staffordshire.Europe
61. 2009A series of violent riots break out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China.Asia
62. 2012The Shard in London is inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft).Europe
63. 2016The Juno space probe arrives at Jupiter and begins a 20-month survey of the planet.World
64. 2022British government ministers Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak resign from the second Johnson ministry, beginning the July 2022 United Kingdom government crisis.Europe
65. 2023The last Ariane 5 rocket is launched, carrying the Heinrich Hertz and Syracuse 4B satellites.World
66. 2024Keir Starmer is appointed Prime Minister by Charles III, becoming the first Labour prime minister since Gordon Brown in 2010 and the first one to win a general election since Tony Blair at the 2005 general election.Europe

Source: Wikipedia "July 5" / CC BY-SA 4.0