July 20 is the 201st day of the year (202nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 164 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events
- 70 – First Jewish–Roman War: Siege of Jerusalem – Titus, son of emperor Vespasian, storms the Fortress of Antonia north of the Temple Mount. The Roman army is drawn into street fights with the Zealots.
- 911 – Rollo lays siege to Chartres.
- 1304 – Wars of Scottish Independence: Fall of Stirling Castle – King Edward I of England takes the stronghold using the War Wolf.
- 1402 – Ottoman-Timurid Wars: Battle of Ankara – Timur, ruler of Timurid Empire, defeats forces of the Ottoman Empire sultan Bayezid I.
- 1738 – Canadian explorer Pierre Gaultier de Varennes et de La Vérendrye reaches the western shore of Lake Michigan.
- 1799 – Tekle Giyorgis I begins his first of five reigns as Emperor of Ethiopia.
- 1807 – Nicéphore Niépce is awarded a patent by Napoleon for the Pyréolophore, the world's first internal combustion engine, after it successfully powered a boat upstream on the river Saône in France.
- 1810 – Citizens of Bogotá, New Granada declare independence from Spain.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Peachtree Creek – Near Atlanta, Georgia, Confederate forces led by General John Bell Hood unsuccessfully attack Union troops under General William T. Sherman.
- 1866 – Austro-Prussian War: Battle of Lissa – The Austrian Navy , led by Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, defeats the Italian Navy near the island of Vis in the Adriatic Sea.
- 1871 – British Columbia joins the confederation of Canada.
- 1885 – The Football Association legalizes professionalism in association football under pressure from the British Football Association.
- 1903 – The Ford Motor Company ships its first car.
- 1917 – World War I: The Corfu Declaration, which leads to the creation of the post-war Kingdom of Yugoslavia, is signed by the Yugoslav Committee and Kingdom of Serbia.
- 1922 – The League of Nations awards mandates of Togoland to France and Tanganyika to the United Kingdom.
- 1932 – In Washington, D.C., police fire tear gas on World War I veterans, part of the Bonus Expeditionary Force, who attempt to march to the White House.
- 1934 – Labor unrest in the U.S.: as police in Minneapolis fire upon striking truck drivers, during the Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934, killing two and wounding sixty-seven.
- 1934 – 1934 West Coast waterfront strike: In Seattle, Washington, police fire tear gas on and club 2,000 striking longshoremen. The governor of Oregon calls out the National Guard to break a strike on the Portland docks.
- 1935 – Switzerland: A Royal Dutch Airlines plane en route from Milan to Frankfurt crashes into a Swiss mountain, killing thirteen.
- 1936 – The Montreux Convention is signed in Switzerland, authorizing Turkey to fortify the Dardanelles and Bosphorus but guaranteeing free passage to ships of all nations in peacetime.
- 1938 – The United States Department of Justice files suit in New York, New York against the motion picture industry charging violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act in regards to the studio system. The case would eventually result in a break-up of the industry in 1948.
- 1940 – Denmark leaves the League of Nations.
- 1940 – California opens its first freeway, the Arroyo Seco Parkway.
- 1941 – Soviet leader Joseph Stalin consolidates the Commissariats of Home Affairs and National Security to form the NKVD and names Lavrenti Beria its chief.
- 1944 – World War II: Adolf Hitler survives an assassination attempt led by German Army Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg.
- 1949 – Israel and Syria sign a truce to end their nineteen-month war.
- 1950 – Cold War: In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Harry Gold pleads guilty to spying for the Soviet Union by passing secrets from atomic scientist Klaus Fuchs.
- 1951 – King Abdullah I of Jordan is assassinated by a Palestinian while attending Friday prayers in Jerusalem.
- 1954 – Germany: Otto John, head of West Germany's secret service, defects to East Germany.
- 1960 – Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) elects Sirimavo Bandaranaike Prime Minister, the world's first elected female head of government.
- 1960 – The Polaris missile is successfully launched from a submarine, the USS George Washington, for the first time.
- 1961 – French military forces break the Tunisian siege of Bizerte.
- 1964 – Vietnam War: Viet Cong forces attack the capital of Dinh Tuong Province, Cai Be, killing 11 South Vietnamese military personnel and 40 civilians (30 of which are children).
- 1968 – The first Special Olympics is held.
- 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11 successfully makes the first manned landing on the Moon in the Sea of Tranquility. Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the Moon almost 7 hours later. (US Time)
- 1969 – A cease fire is announced between Honduras and El Salvador, 6 days after the beginning of the "Football War".
- 1974 – Turkish occupation of Cyprus: Forces from Turkey invade Cyprus after a coup d'etat, organised by the dictator of Greece, against president Makarios.
- 1976 – The American Viking 1 lander successfully lands on Mars.
- 1977 – Johnstown, Pennsylvania is hit by a flash flood that kills eighty and causes $350 million in damage.
- 1977 – The Central Intelligence Agency releases documents under the Freedom of Information Act revealing it had engaged in mind control experiments.
- 1980 – The United Nations Security Council votes 14-0 that member states should not recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
- 1982 – Hyde Park and Regents Park bombings: The Provisional IRA detonates two bombs in Hyde Park and Regents Park in central London, killing eight soldiers, wounding forty-seven people, and leading to the deaths of seven horses.
- 1985 – The government of Aruba passes legislation to secede from the Netherlands Antilles.
- 1989 – Burma's ruling junta puts opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest.
- 1992 – Václav Havel resigns as president of Czechoslovakia.
- 1997 – The fully restored USS Constitution (aka Old Ironsides) celebrates her 200th birthday by setting sail for the first time in 116 years.
- 1999 – Falun Gong is banned in China, and a large scale crackdown of the practice is launched.
- 2012 – A gunman opens fire at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and injuring 58.
Births
- 356 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (d. 323 BC)
- 810 – Muhammad al-Bukhari, Muslim scholar (d. 870)
- 1304 – Petrarch, Italian scholar and poet (d. 1374)
- 1537 – Arnaud d'Ossat, French diplomat and writer (d. 1604)
- 1620 – Nikolaes Heinsius the Elder, Dutch scholar and poet (d. 1681)
- 1754 – Destutt de Tracy, French philosopher (d. 1836)
- 1757 – Garsevan Chavchavadze, Georgian diplomat and politician (d. 1811)
- 1762 – Jakob Haibel, Austrian composer, tenor, and choirmaster (d. 1826)
- 1774 – Auguste Marmont, French marshal (d. 1852)
- 1797 – Paweł Edmund Strzelecki, Polish explorer and geologist (d. 1873)
- 1804 – Richard Owen, English biologist (d. 1892)
- 1822 – Gregor Mendel, German scientist (d. 1884)
- 1838 – Augustin Daly, American playwright (d. 1899)
- 1838 – George Otto Trevelyan, English statesman and biographer (d. 1928)
- 1847 – Max Liebermann, German painter (d. 1935)
- 1849 – Robert Anderson Van Wyck, American politician, 91st Mayor of New York City (d. 1918)
- 1852 – Theo Heemskerk, Dutch lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 1932)
- 1858 – Ivan Vucetic, Croatian anthropologist (d. 1925)
- 1864 – Erik Axel Karlfeldt, Swedish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1931)
- 1868 – Miron Cristea, Hungarian-Romanian cleric and politician, 1st Patriarch of All Romania (d. 1939)
- 1873 – Alberto Santos-Dumont, Brazilian aviator (d. 1932)
- 1876 – Otto Blumenthal, German mathematician (d. 1944)
- 1889 – John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, Scottish broadcasting executive (d. 1971)
- 1890 – George II of Greece (d. 1947)
- 1893 – George Llewelyn Davies, English soldier (d. 1915)
- 1895 – László Moholy-Nagy, Hungarian painter, photographer, and sculptor (d. 1946)
- 1896 – Eunice Sanborn, American super-centenarian (d. 2011)
- 1897 – Tadeus Reichstein, Polish chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1996)
- 1900 – Maurice Leyland, English cricketer (d. 1967)
- 1901 – Heinie Manush, American baseball player (d. 1971)
- 1902 – Jimmy Kennedy, Irish composer (d. 1984)
- 1909 – Jean Focas, Greek-French astronomer (d. 1969)
- 1909 – Eric Rowan, South African cricketer (d. 1993)
- 1910 – Vilém Tauský, Czech conductor and composer (d. 2004)
- 1911 – Baqa Jilani, Indian cricketer (d. 1941)
- 1911 – José Zabala-Santos, Filipino cartoonist (d. 1985)
- 1912 – George Johnston, Australian journalist and novelist (d. 1970)
- 1914 – Charilaos Florakis, Greek politician (d. 2005)
- 1914 – Ersilio Tonini, Italian cardinal
- 1918 – Cindy Walker, American singer-songwriter and dancer (d. 2006)
- 1919 – Edmund Hillary, New Zealand mountaineer and explorer (d. 2008)
- 1920 – Elliot Richardson, American politician (d. 1999)
- 1922 – Alan Stephenson Boyd, American lawyer and politician
- 1923 – Stanisław Albinowski, Polish economist and journalist (d. 2005)
- 1924 – Thomas Berger, American novelist
- 1924 – Mort Garson, Canadian composer (d. 2008)
- 1925 – Jacques Delors, French economist and politician
- 1925 – Frantz Fanon, Indian psychiatrist and writer (d. 1961)
- 1926 – Lola Albright, American actress and singer
- 1926 – Patricia Cutts, English actress (d. 1974)
- 1927 – Michael Gielen, Austrian conductor and composer
- 1928 – Peter Ind, English bassist and producer
- 1929 – Mike Ilitch, American businessman, co-founded Little Caesars
- 1929 – Rajendra Kumar, Indian actor (d. 1999)
- 1930 – Giannis Agouris, Greek writer and journalist (d. 2006)
- 1930 – Chuck Daly, American basketball coach (d. 2009)
- 1930 – Sally Ann Howes, English-American singer and actress
- 1931 – Tony Marsh, English race car driver (d. 2009)
- 1932 – Ove Verner Hansen, Danish actor
- 1932 – Nam June Paik, South Korean-American artist (d. 2006)
- 1932 – Otto Schily, German politician
- 1933 – Buddy Knox, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1999)
- 1933 – Cormac McCarthy, American author
- 1933 – Rex Williams, English snooker player
- 1934 – Uwe Johnson, German writer (d. 1984)
- 1934 – Doug Padgett, English cricketer
- 1934 – Aliki Vougiouklaki, Greek actress (d. 1996)
- 1935 – Ted Rogers, English comedian (d. 2001)
- 1936 – Barbara Mikulski, American politician
- 1937 – Ken Ogata, Japanese actor (d. 2008)
- 1938 – Roger Hunt, English footballer
- 1938 – Tony Oliva, Cuban baseball player
- 1938 – Diana Rigg, English actress
- 1938 – Natalie Wood, American actress (d. 1981)
- 1939 – Judy Chicago, American artist and writer
- 1941 – Periklis Korovesis, Greek author and journalist
- 1941 – Kurt Raab, German actor (d. 1988)
- 1942 – Ron Bowden, Australian politician
- 1942 – Pete Hamilton, American singer-songwriter
- 1943 – Chris Amon, New Zealand race car driver
- 1943 – Adrian Păunescu, Romanian poet, journalist, and politician (d. 2010)
- 1943 – Wendy Richard, English actress (d. 2009)
- 1944 – Olivier de Kersauson, French sailor
- 1945 – Kim Carnes, American singer-songwriter and musician
- 1945 – Larry Craig, American politician
- 1945 – Harrison Ellenshaw, American special effects artist
- 1945 – John Lodge, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (The Moody Blues)
- 1945 – Johnny Loughrey, Irish singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
- 1945 – Bo Rein, American football player and coach (d. 1980)
- 1946 – Randal Kleiser, American director
- 1947 – Gerd Binnig, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1947 – Carlos Santana, Mexican-American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Santana)
- 1948 – Muse Watson, American actor
- 1950 – Tantoo Cardinal, Canadian actress
- 1950 – Naseeruddin Shah, Indian actor
- 1951 – Jeff Rawle, English actor
- 1952 – Keiko Matsuzaka, Japanese actress
- 1953 – Dave Evans, Australian singer (AC/DC and Rabbit)
- 1953 – Thomas Friedman, American journalist
- 1953 – Marcia Hines, American-Australian singer and actress
- 1953 – Dan Shaughnessy, American writer
- 1954 – Moira Harris, American actress
- 1954 – Jay Jay French, American guitarist (Twisted Sister)
- 1954 – Larry Levan, American DJ and producer (d. 1992)
- 1955 – Jem Finer, English musician and composer (The Pogues)
- 1956 – Paul Cook, English drummer (Sex Pistols, The Professionals, Chiefs of Relief, and Man Raze)
- 1956 – Michael Gordon, American composer
- 1956 – Ryo Ishibashi, Japanese actor
- 1956 – Jim Prentice, Canadian politician
- 1957 – Donna Dixon, American actress
- 1958 – Peter Fraßmann, German footballer
- 1958 – Mick MacNeil, Scottish keyboard player and composer (Simple Minds)
- 1958 – Billy Mays, American advertising salesman (d. 2009)
- 1959 – Radney Foster, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Foster & Lloyd)
- 1960 – Claudio Langes, Italian race car driver
- 1960 – Prvoslav Vujčić, Serbian writer
- 1961 – Óscar Elías Biscet, Cuban doctor and activist, founder of the Lawton Foundation
- 1962 – Carlos Alazraqui, American actor and comedian
- 1962 – Giovanna Amati, Italian race car driver
- 1962 – Lee Harris, English drummer (Talk Talk and .O.rang)
- 1963 – Frank Whaley, American actor
- 1964 – Chris Cornell, American singer-songwriter and musician (Soundgarden, Audioslave, and Temple of the Dog)
- 1964 – Terri Irwin, American-Australian naturalist and author
- 1964 – Kool G Rap, American rapper and producer (Juice Crew)
- 1964 – Bernd Schneider, German race car driver
- 1964 – Dean Winters, American actor
- 1965 – Jess Walter, American author
- 1966 – Anton du Beke, English dancer
- 1966 – Stone Gossard, American singer-songwriter and musician (Pearl Jam, Mother Love Bone, Brad, Temple of the Dog, and Green River)
- 1966 – Agot Isidro, Filipino actress
- 1966 – Enrique Peña Nieto, Mexican politician
- 1967 – Reed Diamond, American actor
- 1967 – Courtney Taylor-Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Dandy Warhols)
- 1968 – Jimmy Carson, American ice hockey player
- 1968 – Michael Park, American actor
- 1968 – Julian Rhind-Tutt, English actor
- 1968 – Carlos Saldanha, Brazilian director
- 1969 – Josh Holloway, American actor
- 1969 – Kreso Kovacec, German footballer
- 1969 – Giovanni Lombardi, Italian cyclist
- 1969 – Tobi Vail, American singer, musician, and activist (Bikini Kill, The Go Team, The Frumpies, Some Velvet Sidewalk, and The Old Haunts)
- 1971 – Ed Giddins, English cricketer
- 1971 – Charles Johnson, American baseball player
- 1971 – Sandra Oh, Canadian actress
- 1971 – DJ Screw, American rapper and DJ (Screwed Up Click) (d. 2000)
- 1972 – Vitamin C, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
- 1972 – Jozef Stümpel, Slovak ice hockey player
- 1972 – Erik Ullenhag, Swedish jurist and politician
- 1973 – Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway
- 1973 – Omar Epps, American actor
- 1973 – Peter Forsberg, Swedish ice hockey player
- 1973 – Nixon McLean, Indian cricketer
- 1973 – Claudio Reyna, American soccer player
- 1973 – Mads Rieper, Danish footballer
- 1974 – Phofo, American composer
- 1974 – Bengie Molina, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1974 – Simon Rex, American actor and model
- 1975 – Ray Allen, American basketball player
- 1975 – Judy Greer, American actress
- 1975 – Erik Hagen, Norwegian footballer
- 1975 – Birgitta Ohlsson, Swedish politician
- 1975 – Atiq-uz-Zaman, Pakistani cricketer
- 1975 – El Zorro, Mexican wrestler
- 1976 – Erica Hill, American journalist
- 1976 – Debashish Mohanty, Indian cricketer
- 1976 – Andrew Stockdale, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Wolfmother)
- 1976 – Alex Yoong, Malaysian race car driver
- 1977 – Kiki Musampa, Congolese footballer
- 1977 – Alessandro Santos,Brazilian-Japanese footballer
- 1978 – Pavel Datsyuk, Russian ice hockey player
- 1978 – Charlie Korsmo, American actor
- 1978 – Tamsyn Manou, Australian athlete
- 1978 – Will Solomon, American basketball player
- 1978 – Elliott Yamin, American singer-songwriter
- 1979 – Claudine Barretto, Filipino actress
- 1979 – Miklós Fehér, Hungarian footballer (d. 2004)
- 1979 – David Ortega, Spanish swimmer
- 1980 – Gisele Bündchen, Brazilian model and actress
- 1981 – Damien Delaney, Irish footballer
- 1981 – Thorsten Engelmann, German rower
- 1982 – Percy Daggs III, American actor
- 1984 – Alexi Casilla, Dominican baseball player
- 1984 – Matt Gilroy, American ice hockey player
- 1985 – Solenn Heussaff, French-Filipino actress, singer, and fashion designer
- 1985 – John Francis Daley, American actor
- 1985 – David Mundy, Australian footballer
- 1985 – Anastasia Perraki, Greek model
- 1988 – Julianne Hough, American singer-songwriter, actress, and dancer
- 1988 – Stephen Strasburg, American baseball player
- 1989 – Witwisit Hirunwongkul, Thai actor
- 1989 – Cristian Pasquato, Italian footballer
- 1991 – William Tomlin, English actor
- 1997 – Billi Bruno, American actress
- 1999 – Princess Alexandra of Hanover
Deaths
- 985 – Antipope Boniface VII (b. 930)
- 1031 – Robert II of France (b. 972)
- 1156 – Emperor Toba of Japan (b. 1103)
- 1160 – Peter Lombard, French theologian (b. 1096)
- 1320 – Oshin, King of Armenia (b. 1282)
- 1351 – Margareta Ebner, German nun (b. 1291)
- 1387 – Robert IV of Artois, Count of Eu (b. 1356)
- 1398 – Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March (b. 1374)
- 1453 – Enguerrand de Monstrelet, French chronicler (b. 1400)
- 1454 – John II of Castile (b. 1405)
- 1524 – Claude of France (b. 1499)
- 1616 – Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, Irish soldier (b. 1550)
- 1704 – Peregrine White, English-American farmer and soldier (b. 1620)
- 1752 – Johann Christoph Pepusch, German composer (b. 1667)
- 1816 – Gavrila Derzhavin, Russian poet (b. 1743)
- 1866 – Bernhard Riemann, German mathematician (b. 1826)
- 1897 – Jean Ingelow, English poet (b. 1820)
- 1901 – William Cosmo Monkhouse, English poet and critic (b. 1840)
- 1903 – Pope Leo XIII (b. 1810)
- 1908 – Demetrius Vikelas, Greek author (b. 1835)
- 1908 – Karl Bernhard Zoeppritz, German geophysicist (b. 1881)
- 1922 – Andrey Markov, Russian mathematician (b. 1856)
- 1923 – Pancho Villa, Mexican general (b. 1878)
- 1926 – Felix Dzerzhinsky, Soviet politician (b. 1877)
- 1927 – Ferdinand of Romania (b. 1865)
- 1928 – Kostas Karyotakis, Greek poet (b. 1896)
- 1932 – René Bazin, French novelist (b. 1853)
- 1937 – Guglielmo Marconi, Italian physicist and inventor, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1874)
- 1941 – Lew Fields, American actor, comedian, and producer (b. 1867)
- 1944 – Ludwig Beck, German general, part of 20 July plot (b. 1880)
- 1944 – Mildred Harris, American actress (b. 1901)
- 1945 – Paul Valéry, French author and poet (b. 1871)
- 1951 – Abdullah I of Jordan (b. 1882)
- 1951 – William, German Crown Prince (b. 1882)
- 1953 – Dumarsais Estimé, Haitian politician, 33rd President of Haiti (b. 1900)
- 1953 – Jan Struther, English author (b. 1901)
- 1955 – Calouste Gulbenkian, Armenian businessman and philanthropist (b. 1869)
- 1956 – James Alexander Calder, Canadian politician (b. 1868)
- 1959 – William D. Leahy, American admiral (b. 1875)
- 1969 – Roy Hamilton, American singer (b. 1929)
- 1970 – Iain Macleod, English politician (b. 1913)
- 1972 – Geeta Dutt, Indian singer (b. 1930)
- 1973 – Bruce Lee, American actor and martial artist (b. 1940)
- 1973 – Robert Smithson, American artist (b. 1938)
- 1976 – Joseph Rochefort, American navy officer and cryptanalyst (b. 1900)
- 1977 – Gary Kellgren, American music producer, co-founded Record Plant (b. 1939)
- 1981 – Kostas Choumis, Greek-Romanian footballer (b. 1913)
- 1982 – Okot p'Bitek, Ugandan poet (b. 1931)
- 1983 – Frank Reynolds, American journalist (b. 1923)
- 1987 – Richard Egan, American actor (b. 1921)
- 1989 – Forrest H. Anderson, American politician and judge, 17th Governor of Montana (b. 1913)
- 1990 – Herbert Turner Jenkins, American police chief (b. 1907)
- 1993 – Vince Foster, American lawyer, Deputy White House Counsel (b. 1945)
- 1998 – June Byers, American wrestler (b. 1922)
- 1999 – Sandra Gould, American actress (b. 1916)
- 2000 – Gregory Hill American writer (b. 1941)
- 2001 – Carlo Giuliani, Italian activist (b. 1978)
- 2003 – Nicolas Freeling, English writer (b. 1927)
- 2004 – Lala Mara, Fijian politician (b. 1931)
- 2004 – Scott Andrew Mink, American convicted murderer (b. 1963)
- 2005 – James Doohan, Canadian actor (b. 1920)
- 2005 – Finn Gustavsen, Norwegian politician (b. 1926)
- 2005 – Kayo Hatta, American director (b. 1958)
- 2006 – Ted Grant, South African-English theorist, writer, and activist (b. 1913)
- 2006 – Gérard Oury, French director and producer (b. 1919)
- 2007 – Tammy Faye Messner, American talk show host, singer, and author (b. 1942)
- 2008 – Artie Traum, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1943)
- 2009 – Ria Brieffies, Dutch singer (Dolly Dots) (b. 1957)
- 2009 – Mark Rosenzweig, American psychologist (b. 1922)
- 2011 – Lucian Freud, German-English painter (b. 1922)
- 2012 – Alastair Burnet, English journalist and broadcaster (b. 1928)
- 2012 – Andrew Davidson, 2nd Viscount Davidson, English politician (b. 1928)
- 2012 – Jack Davis, American hurdler (b. 1930)
- 2012 – Hisham Ikhtiyar, Syrian military officer (b. 1941)
- 2012 – Sherman Pendergarst, American mixed martial artist (b. 1966)
- 2012 – José Hermano Saraiva, Portuguese historian and jurist (b. 1919)
- 2012 – Simon Ward, English actor (b. 1941)
Holidays and observances
External links
Months and days of the year
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