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1 July – International Reggae Day
1 July 1862 – founding of the Russian State Library in Moscow. It is the fourth largest library in the world. It has 275km of shelves, 17.5 million books, 13 million journals, 350,000 music scores and sound records, 150,000 maps.
1 July 1876 – death of Mikhail Bakunin, Russian revolutionary, founder of collective anarchism. Considered the most influential person in socialist anarchism. Born 30 May 1814.
1 July 1921 – founding of the Communist Party of China.
1 July 1943 – Tokyo City is officially dissolved following its merger with the Tokyo Prefecture. Since then no Japanese city has been named Tokyo. Modern-day Tokyo is not officially a city, instead it is a prefecture consisting of 23 wards, 26 cities, five towns and eight villages.
1 July 1961 – birth of Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales. Died in a car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997.
1 July 1963 – ZIP codes introduced for United States mail.
1 July 1978 – Australia’s Northern Territory is granted self-government.
1 July 2002 – establishment of the International Criminal Court to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war-crimes and the crime of aggression.
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2 July 1839 – Twenty miles off the coast of Cuba, 53 rebelling African slaves led by Joseph Cinqué take over the slave ship, Amistad. The 49 adults and four children had been captured in Sierra Leone and sold into slavery in Cuba. After commandeering the ship, the men demanded the ship’s navigator (Don Montez) to return them home. Montez deceived them and sailed up the USA east coast to Long Island. The USA took custody of the ship and a court-case ensued over the legal status of the slaves. In 1841, in the case of the United States v The Amistad, the US Supreme Court ruled that the slaves had been illegally transported and held as slaves. The Court ordered them to be freed. 35 of them returned to Africa in 1842.
2 July 1900 – the first Zeppelin flight takes place in Germany.
2 July 1937 – Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan are last heard from over the Pacific while attempting an equatorial round-the-world flight. They had run low on fuel while trying to locate Howland Island. While many suspected they had crashed into the ocean, there is strong evidence to indicate that they may have died as castaways after crash-landing on or near to Gardner Island, 400 nautical miles from Howland Island. This is supported by evidence that there were more than 100 radio calls made by Earhart in the four days after the crash, a female skeleton found on the island and a small piece of fuselage that matches that of Earhart’s plane. The remainder of the plane is suspected of being dragged away from the island by the tides and sinking.
2 July 1961 – death of Ernest Hemingway, American author. He wrote books including ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls‘ and ‘Old Man and the Sea‘. Born 21 July 1899.
2 July 1976 – The Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) falls to the Communist North Vietnam, resulting in the formation of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
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3 July 1883 – Birth of Franz Kafka, Austrian novelist, who wrote in German. Two of his books (‘The Trial’ and ‘The Castle’) were published posthumously against his wishes. He wrote of a dehumanised world in which he explored paranoia, isolation, fear and bewilderment, from which the term ‘Kafka-esque’ has been coined. Died 3 June 1924.
3 July 1969 – death of Brian Jones. English guitarist for the Rolling Stones. He was 27. Born 28 February 1942.
3 July 1971 – death of Jim Morrison, lead singer and song writer of the Doors. He was 27. Born 8 December 1943.
3 July 1971 – birth of Julian Assange in Townsville, Queensland, former hacker and computer programmer, publisher, journalist and activist. Co-founder of WikiLeaks, a website on which he published classified military and diplomatic documents. The USA has been investigating Assange since 2010 when he published documents leaked by Chelsea Manning. Facing extradition to Sweden in 2012 on charges of sexual assault, Assange sought and obtained asylum by Ecuador. He has been accommodated in the Ecuadorean embassy in London ever since.
3 July 1988 – An Iranian passenger plane carrying 290 civilians, including 66 children, is shot down by the United States Navy. Iran Air flight 665 was over Iranian territorial waters and had not deviated from its usual flight path. The US Navy had fired surface-to-air missiles from the USS Viciennes at the Airbus A300. The US Navy claimed they had mistaken it for an attacking F-14 Tomcat even though the plane had been issuing identification ‘squawks’s on Mode III for civilian aircraft, not on Mode II which was for military aircraft. The US government ‘expressed regret’, but did not apologise. In 1996 the US government paid the Iranian government USD $131.8 million to settle a court case brought in the International Court of Justice. There was also a payout of $61 million following a claim in the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal. The crew of the Viciennes were awarded medals for their tour of duty in the Persian Gulf, including the Air Warfare Coordinator receiving the Navy Commendation Medal and the Legion of Merit.
3 July 1999 – death of Mark Sandman, US musician, singer, songwriter. Founder of the alternative rock band, Morphine, which blended heavy bass sounds with blues and jazz. Sandman was described as the most under-rated and skilled bass player of his generation. Sandman collapsed and died on stage during a Morphine concert in Latium, Italy. His death was the result of a heart attack and blamed on heavy smoking, stress and extreme heat, in which the temperature on the night was in excess of 38o Celsius. Born 24 September 1952.
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4 July 1776 – United States Independence Day – signing of the Declaration of Independence which gave the United States independence from Great Britain following the American Revolution.
4 July 1943 – birth of Alan Wilson. American guitarist and singer-songwriter for Canned Heat. Died 3 September 1970.
4 July 1991 – Dr Victor Chang, a Chinese-Australian cardiac surgeon is shot dead during a failed extortion attempt. Chang pioneered heart transplants. He was born on 21 November 1936.
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5 July 1937 – The canned meat, Spam (spiced ham) released to market by Hormel Food Corporation.
5 July 1946 – the first bikini goes on sale after its debut at a fashion show in Paris. It was designed by Parisian engineer, Louis Réard. He named it after Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean where the USA had been conducting testing of atomic bombs. Réard hoped that the bikini would have an ‘explosive commercial and cultural reaction’ just like an atomic bomb.
5 July 1989 – Former US Marine and white-house aide, Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North given a three-year suspended sentence, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours of community service after being convicted of ‘accepting an illegal gratuity’, ‘aiding and abetting in the obstruction of a congressional inquiry’ and ordering the destruction of documents during his role in the Iran-Contra affair (a political scandal during the Reagan administration in which the US government was selling weapons via intermediaries to Iran, a nation that was blacklisted from receiving weapons. The profits were channeled through Nicaraguan terrorist groups, the Contras, which were violently opposing Nicaragua’s ruling left-wing Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction).
5 July 1996 – Dolly the sheep becomes the first mammal cloned from an adult cell.
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6 July 1925 – birth of Bill Haley, who arguably had the world’s first ever rock’n’roll song, ‘Rock Around the Clock’. Died 9 February 1981.
6 July 1942 – Anne Frank and her family go into hiding in the ‘Secret Annexe’ above her father’s office in an Amsterdam warehouse.
6 July 1957 – John Lennon and Paul McCartney meet for the first time. Three years later they formed the Beatles.
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7 July 1941 – birth of Bill Oddie, English comedian, star of ‘The Goodies’.
7 July 1953 – After graduating from medical school in June 1953, Dr Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara sets out on a train trip from Argentina to Bolivia and the Andes. His family don’t see him for six years, when he emerged in Havana, fighting for Fidel Castro’s Cuban Revolution. Following the successful overthrow of the government, Che was given key government positions within the Castro regime, including as Minister of Industries to implement agrarian reform.
7 July 1985 – 17 year old Boris Becker becomes the youngest player to win Wimbledon.
7 July 2005 – Four suicide bombers detonate themselves on London’s transport system, killing 56 people and injuring 700.
7 July 2007 – The New 7 Wonders Foundation officially declares a new ‘Seven Wonders of the World’ list:
- The Great Wall of China
- Petra, Jordan (a city carved into rock)
- Christ Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Machu Picchu, Peru
- Chichén Itzá Pyramid, Mexico
- Roman Colisseum, Italy
- Taj Mahal, Indian
The Original Seven Wonders of the World were:
- Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt
- Hanging Gardens of Babylon
- Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
- Statue of Zeus, Olympia, Greece
- Mausoleum of Maussollos at Hallicarnassus
- Colossus of Rhodes
- Lighthouse of Alexandria
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8 July 1822 – death of Percy Bysshe Shelley, English romantic poet, considered to be one the finest lyric poets of all time. Born 4 August 1792.
8 July 1947 – reports are that a UFO crash-landed at Roswell, New Mexico.
8 July 1954 – Military leader, Castillo Armas seizes power of Guatamala in a CIA-backed coup, overthrowing Communist president Jacobo Arbenz Guzman. The coup was part of the CIA’s international anti-communist activities. On request of the CIA, Armas formed the National Committee of Defense Against Communism, which is recognised as Latin America’s first modern death squad, purging the government and trade unions of people with suspected left-wing tendencies. Armas introduced the ‘Preventive Penal Law Against Communism’ which increased penalties for ‘Communist’ activities, such as labor union activities. Armas was assassinated on 26 July 1957 by a palace guard, Romeo Vásquez. It is unknown what Vásquez’s motive was. He was found dead in a suspected suicide a short while later.
8 July 1980 – First State of Origin match played between New South Wales and Queensland at Lang Park (Suncorp Stadium), Brisbane. Queensland won 20-10.
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9 July 1941 – British military cryptologists break the Enigma code which the German Army was using for encrypting messages used for directing ground to air operations. However, a group of Polish cryptologists claim to have assisted in the cracking of Enigma and have been campaigning for recognition of their part in the break-through.
9 July 1946 – birth of Ronald Belford ‘Bon’ Scott, Scottish-born Australian rock musician. Most famous as the lead-singer of legendary hard rock band, AC/DC. Scott died on 19 February 1980, after choking on his own vomit following a heavy drinking session.
9 July 1982 – In the early hours of the morning, 30 year old Irishman, Michael Fagan breaks into Buckhingham Palace and makes his way to Queen Elizabeth II’s bedroom. Reports at the time, claimed that he spent 10 minutes in there talking with the Queen before being arrested, however, Fagan later claimed that the Queen immediately fled the bedroom and summoned security. The incident was the biggest royal security breach of the 20th century.
9 July 2004 – A US Senate Intelligence Committee finds that the CIA misrepresented the threat posed by Iraq, which was used by President George W. Bush in order to justify the 2003 Iraq invasion by the ‘Coalition of the Willing’.
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10 July 1856 – Birth of Nikola Tesla, Serbian American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer and futurist. Inventor of alternating current (A/C) electricity supply. Died 7 January 1943.
10 July 1942 – birth of Ronald James Padavona, otherwise known as Ronny James Dio, heavy metal singer. Dio replaced Ozzy Osbourne as lead singer of Black Sabbath, for two years before leaving after disagreements with other band members. Dio was also associated with Rainbow, Dio, and Elf. Died 16 May 2010.
10 July 1942 – birth of Sixto Rodriguez, elusive American folk musician. Rodriguez recorded two albums, Cold Fact and Coming From Reality, in the early 1970s. Neither album sold well in the USA, however, unknown to Rodriguez, he gained cult status in Australia and South Africa. Rodriguez disappeared into obscurity as legends abounded of his fate, including that he had either shot himself or set fire to himself on stage. In the 1996, two South African fans, Stephen ‘Sugar’ Segerman and Craig Styrdrom, tracked him down in Detroit, breaking the news to him that he was bigger than Elvis and the Rolling Stones in South Africa. Rodriguez flew out to South Africa and performed six concerts. Rodriguez has since played concerts across the globe, including Australia, South Africa, USA, UK. The Oscar-winning documentary, ‘Searching for Sugarman’ is a gritty, intriguing biopic of this story.
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11 July 1833 – Yagan, indigenous Australian warrior of the Noongar people, is killed by a young settler named William Keates. From around 1831, white settlers had taken over so much of the land that the Noongar were denied access to traditional hunting grounds and rivers. In need of food, Yagan led a series of raids on crops and cattle being farmed by the settlers. In the process a number of white settlers were killed. Yagan was declared an outlaw and eventually arrested with other Noongar men. Yagan was sentenced to death but was saved by a settler, Robert Lyon, who argued that Yagan was defending his land from invasion and should therefore be treated as a prisoner of war. Yagan and other Noongar men were exiled to Carnac Island, from which they eventually escaped. More raids to obtain supplies ensued and more settlers were killed. A group of Noongar, including Yagan, were on their way to collect flour rations, when they came across two brothers, William and James Keates who convinced Yagan to stay with them to avoid arrest. William shot Yagan dead and the brothers fled. They were attacked later that day by the Noongar and William was speared to death. James escaped and claimed the reward on Yagan, however, his actions were widely criticised, with Yagan’s killing described by the Perth Gazette as ‘a wild and treacherous act’.
11 July 1977 – Nine years after his assassination, Martin Luther King is posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by United States President Jimmy Carter.
11 July 1979 – US space station, Skylab, ignites on re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, causing debris to rain down on Australia. The space station was unoccupied at the time.
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12 July 1659 – Execution of Guilia Tofana, arguably the most prolific female murderer in history. After developing a contempt for men who mistreated women, Guilia developed a poison that she allegedly used to murder more than 600 men between 1633 and 1651. She is believed to be the daughter of Thofania d’Adamo, who was executed in 1633 for murdering her husband. Guilia detested the low status women had in society and the difficulty they had in securing divorces from abusive husbands. She used the poison to help secure divorces for women by executing their husbands.
12 July 1943 – The Soviet Army commences a counter-offensive in the Battle of Kursk, Russia to combat the German Army’s ‘Operation Citadel’ offensive on the Eastern Front. It was the largest tank battle in history, involving more than 8,000 tanks, 3 million troops, 35,000 guns and mortars, and more than 5,000 aircraft, between both sides. By mid-August, the Soviets had prevailed, driving the Germans out.
12 July 1950 – birth of Eric Carr (Paul Charles Caravello), drummer with Kiss. Died 24 November 1991.
12 July 1962 – Rolling Stones make their first live performance. The concert was at the Marquee Club on London’s Oxford St.
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13 July 1863 – the New York Draft Riots – three days of rioting by opponents of conscription. President Abraham Lincoln had enacted the draft to boost military numbers during the American Civil War. Most opponents were working-class men who resented that the rich could pay $300 to hire a substitute in their place. By the time the rioters were suppressed, there were 120 civilians dead and 2000 injured. Considered to be the worst anti-draft riots in US history.
13 July 1985 – Bob Geldof and Midge Ure organise and stage the Live Aid Concert. The concert was held simultaneously in London, UK, and Philadelphia, USA, to raise money to fight famine in Ethiopia. Similar concerts were performed across the globe in solidarity with Live Aid. The Live Aid concerts were broadcast live to an estimated audience of 1.9 billion people across 150 nations. An estimated £150 million was raised. Some of the world’s biggest musical acts participated, including Elton John, Boomtown Rats, Dire Straits, Mick Jagger, Neil Young, Sting, U2, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Joan Baez, BB King, Paul McCartney, The Who, Black Sabbath, Eric Clapton, Status Quo, Sade, ‘Crosby, Stills & Nash’, George Thorogood, Madonna, Duran Duran, Bob Dylan, and a host of others.
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14 July 1789 – Bastille Day – commemorating the storming of the Bastille, a fortress-prison. Parisians feared being attacked by King Louis XVI following an economic meltdown and subsequent breakdown in communication between the royalty and the Third Estate (representing the common people and which formed the National Guard represented by the colours of red, white and blue). The Bastille represented the brutality of the monarchy, although at the time it was attacked it only held seven prisoners. The storming of the Bastille led to the French Revolution, bringing an end to feudalism and the proclamation of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which was influenced the US President Thomas Jefferson and declared the universal right of freedom for every person.
14 July 1881 – death (?) of William H. Bonney aka Billy ‘The Kid’. American outlaw. Legend has it that he killed 21 men, although historians believe it may have been between 4 and 9 men. He was shot dead by Sheriff Pat Garrett around 14 July 1881. Some conspiracy theorists believe that Bonney did not get shot that day, but that Garrett staged the shooting so that Billy ‘The Kid’ could escape. Born 23 November 1859.
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15 July 1099 – First Crusaders conquer Jerusalem.
15 July 1606 – birth of Rembrandt, famous Dutch painter. Died 4 October 1669.
15 July 1815 – Napoleon surrenders and is eventually exiled on the island of St Helena.
15 July 1904 – death of Anton Chekhov, Russian playwright and short story writer, considered to be among the greatest writers of short fiction in history. One of the seminal figures in the birth of modernism. Chekhov was also a medical doctor. His works include ‘The Bear’, ‘The Cherry Orchard’, ‘The Seagull’, ‘The Lady with the Dog’. Born 29 January 1860.
15 July 2013 – India sends it last telegram, bringing an end to the 163 year old service. Hundreds of people attended the remaining 75 telegram offices to send their final telegrams.
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16 July 622 – The Prophet Mohammad escapes from Mecca and travels to Medina, marking the beginning of both Islam and the Islamic calendar.
16 July 1439 – England bans kissing in an effort to stop the spreading of germs.
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17 July 1774 – Captain James Cook arrives in New Hebrides (now Vanuatu).
17 July 1976 – 25 African countries boycott the opening ceremony of the Montreal Olympics in protest against New Zealand’s sporting links with South Africa.
17 July 1979 – In Nicaragua, Marxist Sandinista rebels overthrow the U.S. sponsored government of President Samoza, who flees to the United States.
17 July 2013 – The Queensland Maroons rugby league team win a record 8 consecutive State of Origin series against the New South Wales Blues.
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18 July – Mandela Day – An internationally recognised day to inspire individuals to take action to help change the world for the better, and in doing so build a global movement for good. Ultimately it seeks to empower communities everywhere. ‘Take Action; Inspire Change; Make Every Day a Mandela Day’. http://www.mandeladay.com/
18 July 64 AD – Great Fire of Rome.
18 July 1918 – birth of Nelson Mandela, South African anti-apartheid revolutionary and politician. Died 5 December 2013.
18 July 1925 – Adolf Hitler publishes Mein Kampf. He wrote the book in prison while serving a sentence for treason. Mein kampf is German for ‘My Struggle’. The book is a rambling read in which Hitler covers many concepts including what he was like as a child and the reasons for collapse of the Second Reich. At its core it expresses Hitler’s view of his plans for Germany and often blames the Jews for many of the ills that had beset Germany, including the rise of Marxism, controlling the economy, weakening the army and bastardising the white race. Throughout the book, Hitler often mentioned that his plans to combat the Jewish influence in Germany was a fulfilment of the Lord’s will.
18 July 1937 – birth of Hunter S. Thompson, American writer and gonzo journalist. Died 20 February 2005.
18 July 1950 – birth of Richard Branson, British entrepreneur.
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19 July 64 AD – Rome’s Circus Maximus destroyed by fire, during the Great Fire of Rome.
19 July 1553 – 15 year old, Lady Jane Grey, the ‘Nine Day Queen’, deposed as Queen of England. On his deathbed, King Edward VI (also 15) named his cousin, Lady Jane, as his successor. She ‘ruled’ for 9 days before being deposed and charged with high treason, as was her husband, Lord Guildford Dudley. They were both executed in February 1554.
19 July 1799 – Rosetta Stone discovered by Napoleon’s expeditionary army in Egypt. The Rosetta Stone enabled the translation of hieroglyphs.
19 July 1940 – Adolf Hitler delivers his ‘Last Appeal to Reason’ speech, declaring his victory and appealing for Great Britain to surrender.
19 July 1947 – assassination of General Aung San, founder of modern day Burma and Burmese Army. Father of Aung San Suu Kyi, Burmese politician, activist and Nobel Peace Prize Recipient. Born 13 February 1915.
19 July 1976 – UK rock group, Deep Purple, breaks up.
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20 July 356 BC – birth of Alexander the Great, Macedonian King. He conquered the Persia Empire, which ruled Asia Minor, The Levant and Syria, Egypt, Assyria and Babylonia. He then invaded India before returning to Persia. He died in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II in Babylon, most likely by poisoning. Died 10 June 323 BC.
20 July 1919 – birth of Edmund Hillary, New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. Hillary and sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first men to reach the summit of Mt Everest. Died 11 January 2008.
20 July 1969 – Apollo 11 becomes the first manned landing on the moon, with Neil Armstrong the first man to walk on the moon, followed by Edwin (Buzz) Aldren Jr. Michael Collins drew the short straw and remained in orbit in order to pick up Armstrong and Aldren later.
20 July 1973 – death of Bruce Lee (born as Lee Jun-fan), martial artist and actor. Born 27 November 1940.
20 July 1976 – birth of Andrew Stockdale, Australian rock musician, leader singer, lead guitarist and founding member of Wolfmother. In 2007, Stockdale and his Wolfmother mates, won ‘Songwriter of the Year’ at the APRA Awards. Stockdale’s vocal style has been described as a cross between Ozzy Osbourne and Robert Plant. Musically, he has been compared with Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi. He grew up in Ashgrove, Brisbane.
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21 July 1542 – Pope Paul III establishes the Inquisition (the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition) to ‘defend the faith’ against reformists, protestants and heretics.
21 July 1899 – birth of Ernest Hemingway, American author. He wrote books including ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls‘ and ‘Old Man and the Sea‘. Died 2 July 1961.
21 July 1970 – Aswan Dam opens in Egypt.
21 July 1973 – USSR launches Mars-4 space probe to photograph Mars.
21 July 1990 – Roger Waters performs a charity concert of the Pink Floyd concept album, ‘The Wall’, on the site where part of the Berlin Wall had stood. Approximately, 450,000 people attended. The stage was 170m long and 25m high. The concert included special guest performances by a large number of high profile artists, including Bruce Springsteen, Van Morrison, Sinead O’Connor, Cyndi Lauper, Joni Mitchell, Bryan Adams and a number of others.
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22 July 1298 – Battle of Falkirk in which the English, led by King Edward VI, defeated the Scots, led by William Wallace. It was part of the First War of Scottish Independence.
22 July 1456 – Siege of Belgrade, or Siege of Nandorfehervar, in which Hungarian troops defeated the Ottoman Turks under the leadership of Sultan Mehmed II. Since 22 July 2011, Hungary celebrates this as their National Memorial Day.
22 July 1933 – Wiley Post completes the world’s first solo flight around the world.
22 July 1946 – Irgun, a militant Zionist group under the leadership of Menachim Begin, bombs Jerusalem’s King David Hotel, which housed the British administrative headquarters for Palestine. The bombing killed 91 people and injured 46.
22 July 1968 – The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) hijacks its first plane, an El-Al Israel Airlines flight travelling from Rome to Tel Aviv, carrying 32 passengers and 10 crew. The plane was diverted to Algiers where 7 crew & 5 Israeli passengers were held hostage for 5 weeks until Israel agreed to exchange imprisoned Palestinian militants.
22 July 1983 – Dick Smith, Australian entrepreneur and adventurer, completes first solo helicopter flight around the world.
22 July 1983 – World’s coldest day recorded at Vostok, Antarctica where the temperature dropped to -89.2oC (128.6oF)
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23 July 1892 – birthday of Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia. Although Selassie was an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian, Rastafarians believe that he is the Messiah returned. Died 27 August 1975.
23 July 1934 – Australian batsman, Donald Bradman, scores 304 against England at Leeds, with 43 fours and 2 sixes. He is the only batsman to ever complete two treble centuries in Test cricket.
23 July 1935 – a B-25 Mitchell bomber carrying three people, crashes into the Empire State Building, New York City, killing 14 people. The accident was caused by heavy fog.
23 July 2011 – death of Amy Winehouse. English singer-songwriter. She was 27. Born 14 September 1983.
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24 July 1567 – Mary, Queen of Scots, forced to abdicate after being accused of adultery and murder. Her 1 year old son becomes King James VI of Scotland, and later King James I, when Scotland and England unify. He also sponsored the Authorised Translation of the bible, which was named after him, the King James Bible.
24 July 1802 – birth of Alexandré Dumas, French author of celebrated works such as ‘Count of Monte Christo‘, ‘The Three Musketeers‘, ‘The Black Tulip‘. Died 5 December 1870.
24 July 1938 – Nescafe, or freeze-dried, coffee invented. Although this wasn’t the invention of instant coffee, but rather the refinement of it. Instant coffee was first invented in 1901 by Satori Kato. In 1906, George Washington (not the former POTUSA who died in 1799) invented the first mass produced instant coffee.
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25 July 1603 – James VI, King of Scotland, is crowned as the first King of Great Britain and becomes James I.
25 July 1834 – death of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, English poet. Born 21 October 1772.
25 July 1946 – the United States conducts first under-water tests of an atomic bomb near Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
25 July 1965 – Bob Dylan booed off stage for using an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival.
25 July 1995 – discovery of minor planet: 43844 Rowling, which was named after author J.K. Rowling in 2006.
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26 July 1875 – birth of Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology. He developed the concepts of extraversion and introversion; archetypes and collective unconscious. Died 6 June 1961.
26 July 1894 – birth of Aldous Huxley, English writer. Most famous for his vision of the future, ‘Brave New World’, as well as his work ‘The Doors of Perception’, based on his use of psychedelic drugs. Jim Morrison named his 60’s psychedelic rock band, ‘The Doors’ after Huxley’s book. Died 22 November 1963.
26 July 1928 – birth of Stanley Kubrick, legendary movie producer. Some of his movies include ‘2001 – A Space Odyssey’, ‘The Shining’, ‘A Clockwork Orange’, ‘Full Metal Jacket’ and ‘Eyes Wide Shut’. Died 7 March 1999.
26 July 1943 – birth of Mick Jagger. English singer-songwriter, founding member of the Rolling Stones.
26 July 1945 – Potsdam Declaration, or ‘Proclamation Defining Terms for Japanese Surrender’ is issued by President Harry S. Truman (U.S.), Prime Minister Winston Churchill (U.K.) and Chairman Chiang Kai-shek (China). The document stated that Japan faced ‘prompt and utter destruction’ if it did not surrender. Japan initially rejected the declaration, resulting in President Truman ordering the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively.
26 July 1952 – death of Eva Perón, first lady of Argentina and second wife of Argentine President, Juan Perón. Her life was immortalised in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, Evita, which included the hit song, ‘Don’t cry for me Argentina’. Born 7 May 1919.
26 July 1953 – Fidel Castro forms the revolutionary organisation, Movimiento 26 de Julio, (‘26th of July Movement‘), or M-26-7, fighting against Cuba’s Batista regime. M-26-7 fails in its attack on Moncado Barracks on 26 July 1953, but eventually succeeds in overthrowing Batista in 1959.
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27 July – National Sleepy-head Day – a celebration in Finland in which the last person still in bed is woken by throwing cold water over them or by throwing them in a lake or river.
27 July 1836 – founding of Adelaide, South Australia.
27 July 1935 – Yangtze River, China, floods kill up to 200,000 people.
27 July 1940 – Bugs Bunny makes his debut in the cartoon, ‘Wild Hare’.
27 July 2012 – XXX Olympiad opens in London.
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28 July 1586 – the humble and versatile potato introduced to the British Isles by Sir Thomas Harriot after it was brought to Europe from the Americas by the Spanish.
28 July 1866 – the United States recognises the metric system as a valid means of measurement.
28 July 1900 – Louis Lassing of Connecticut invents the hamburger.
28 July 1902 – birth of Albert Namatjira, Australian Aboriginal artist. Died 8 August 1959.
28 July 1914 – start of World War I when a Serbian nationalist, Gavrilo Princep, assassinated Austrian Prince Franz Ferdinand. At the time, Europe was comprised of two blocs, the Triple Entente (Britain, France and Russia) and the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy). War escalated as each country came to the other’s aid following military responses to the assassination.
28 July 1928 – IX Olympiad opens in Amsterdam.
28 July 1945 – a United States Air Force B-25 Liberator bomber collides with the Empire State Building in New York at 9.40am. The plane was flying from Bedford Army Air Field to Newark Airport. The pilot asked for clearance to land but was denied because of zero visibility as a result of heavy fog. Rather than turn around, the pilot continued on and became disoriented in the thick fog. The plane smashed into the building between the 78th and 80th floors, killing 14 people, including all on board the plane. One of the plane’s engines flew through the other side of the building, into the next block, falling 900 feet onto the roof of another building, causing a fire that destroyed a penthouse. The other engine and part of the landing gear plummeted down the elevator shaft.
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29 July 1565 – marriage of Mary, Queen of Scots, to her cousin, Lord Darnley.
29 July 1833 – birth of William Wilberforce. English politician, philanthropist and leader of the slave trade abolition movement. In 1785 he became an evangelical Christian, which transformed his life to focus on philanthropy and human rights. For 20 years he pursued the abolition of slavery, eventually culminating in the passage of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act 1807. Died 29 July 1833. Died 24 August 1759.
29 July 1836 – the Arc de Triomphe is inaugurated in Paris.
29 July 1848 – the failed nationalist Tipperary Revolt against English rule, which occurred during the Great Potato Famine in Ireland.
29 July 1860 – birth of Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, Governor of Queensland from 1896 to 1901 and Governor of Bombay from 1903 to 1907. Lamington is credited with commissioning the creation of one of Australia’s most iconic desserts, the lamington. Numerous stories abound regarding the origin of the lamington, but generally Lamington’s chef (French-born Armand Gallad) is believed to have created it when he was ordered to prepare a morning tea for Federation celebrations being held by Lady Lamington. Rumour has it that Gallad cut up some left-over sponge cake, dipped it in chocolate and covered it in coconut. It should be noted that coconut was not a well-known or popular ingredient at that time, but Gallad was aware of it as his wife was from Tahiti, where coconut was a staple ingredient.
29 July 1890 – death of Vincent Van Gogh, Dutch painter. Born 30 March 1853.
29 July 1907 – the Boy Scouts formed in England by Sir Robert Baden-Powell.
29 July 1948 – the XIV Olympiad is opened in London by King George VI. This is the first Olympiad since the XI Olympiad in Berlin in 1936. The XII and XIII Olympiads for 1940 and 1944 respectively, were not held because of World War II.
29 July 1949 – first broadcast by BBC radio.
29 July 1981 – Prince Charles and Lady Dianna Spencer wed in London.
29 July 1989 – Burmese authorities imprison Aung Sun Suu Kyi even though her political party won 59% of votes in the election. She rose to prominence following her role in the ‘8888’ Uprising on 8 August 1988.
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30 July 1626 – earthquake in Naples, Italy, kills 70,000 people.
30 July 1818 – birthday of Emily Bronte, author of the novel, ‘Wuthering Heights‘. Died 19 December 1848.
30 July 1863 – birthday of Henry Ford, American industrialist and car maker. Died 7 April 1947.
30 July 1881 – birth of Smedley Butler, U.S. Marine Corp Major-General. He received 19 medals, five of which were for bravery. He twice received the Medal of Honor. Butler was, at the time of his death, the most decorated Marine in history. Nonetheless, he was an outspoken critic of war and military actions. He wrote a book called ‘War is a Racket’, which exposed the links between the military and industry, in which he stated that business interests directly benefit from warfare. Butler wrote a summary of the book, which stated: ‘War is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives. A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of the people. Only a small ‘inside’ group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few, at the expense of the very many. Out of war a few people make huge fortunes‘. He died on 21 June 1940.
30 July 1898 – W.K. Kellogg invents cornflakes.
30 July 1956 – the United States officially adopts ‘In God We Trust’ as the national motto.
30 July 1958 – birthday of Kate Bush, English singer/songwriter. In 1978, she had a hit song with ‘Wuthering Heights‘, a song about the novel of the same name which was written by Emily Bronte (whose birthday is also today). She followed this up with a number of other hits, including ‘Babooshka‘ and ‘The Man with the Child in His Eyes‘.
30 July 1969 – birthday of Simon Baker, Australian actor. Stars in the TV series, ‘The Mentalist‘.
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31 July 1703 – Daniel Defoe, author of ‘Robinson Crusoe‘, is put in the pillory for committing ‘seditious libel’ after publishing a politically satirical pamphlet entitled ‘The shortest-way with dissenters; Or, proposals for the establishment of the church‘, which was critical of the establishment of the church and the practice of ‘occasional conformity’, in which dissenters could attend church once a year and still qualify as members of the Church of England. Whilst in the pillory, Defoe was pelted with flowers rather than the usual fruit and vegetables.
31 July 1965 – birthday of Joanne (J.K.) Rowling, author of the ‘Harry Potter‘ series. In 2006 a minor planet was named after her: ‘43844 Rowling’.
31 July 2012 – death of Gore Vidal, American author, playwright, essayist and political activist. Born 3 October 1925.