Events

Up to 1900 
 1054  Siward, Earl of Northumbria invades Scotland and defeats Macbeth, somewhere North of the Firth of Forth.
 1202  Georgian-Seljuk Wars: At the Battle of Basian, the Kingdom of Georgia defeats the Sultanate of Rum.
 1214  Battle of Bouvines: Philip II of France decisively defeats Imperial, English and Flemish armies.
 1299  According to Edward Gibbon, Osman I invades the territory of Nicomedia for the first time, usually considered to be the founding date of the Ottoman State.
 1302  Battle of Bopheus: Ottoman victory over the Byzantines, opening up Bahynia for Turkish conquest.
 1549  Jesuit priest Francis Xavier's ship reaches Japan.
 1663  The English Parliament passes the Second Navigation Act, requiring that all goods bound for American colonies have to be sent in English ships from English ports.
 1689  The Jacobite Army defeats Government forces in the Battle of Killiecrankie.
 1694  A Royal Charter is granted to the Bank of England.
 1778  American Revolution: First Battle of Usant - British and French fleets fight to a stand-off.
 1789  The United States Department of Foreign Affairs is founded, later being renamed the United States Department of State.
 1793  Maximilien Robespierre takes control of the 'Committee of Public Safety'.
 1794  Maximilien Robespierre is arrested after encouraging the execution of more than 17,000 'Enemies of the Revolution'.
 1830  The July Revolution in France against King Charles II of France.
 1862  Sailing from San Francisco to Panama City, the SS Golden Gate catches fire and sinks off Manzanillo, Mexico.
 1865  Welsh settlers arrive in Chubut, Argentina.
 1866  The first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable is successfully completed, from Valentia Island, Ireland to Heart's Content, Newfoundland.
 1880  Second Anglo-Afghan War: Battle of Maiwand - Afghan forces led by Mohammad Ayub Khan defeats a British Army.
 1890  Vincent van Gogh is believed to have shot himself, leading to his death two days later.
 1900  Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany makes a speech comparing the Germans to the Huns. The word 'Huns' has often been used as an offensive word to describe Germans ever since.

1901  2000 
 1919  The Chicago Race Riot breaks out after an incident on the South Side. Subsequent rioting leads to 38 deaths.
 1921  University of Toronto researchers, led by Frederick Banting, prove that the hormone insulation regulates blood sugar.
 1924  The 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris come to an end.
 1929  The Third Geneva Convention, on dealing with prisoners of war, is signed by 53 nations.
 1940  Bugs Bunny makes his debut (first appearance) on television.
 1941  World War II: Japanese troops occupy French Indochina, in what is now Vietnam.
 1942  World War II: Allied forces successfully halt a final Axis advance into Egypt.
 1945  Clement Attlee becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
 1953  The Korean War ends.
 1955  The Allied occupation of Austria officially ends.
 1976  Former Prime Minister of Japan Kakuei Tanaka is arrested on suspicion of violating foreign exchange and foreign trade laws.
 1983  At Weikada High Security Prison in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 18 Tamil prisoners are massacred by Sinhalese prisoners.
 1990  Belarus declares independence.
 1990  The Jamaat al-Muslimeen group attempts a coup d'état in Trinidad and Tobago.
 1995  The Korean War Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, DC.
 1996  A bomb explodes at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, US, killing 1 person. Eric Rudolph carried out the attack.
 1997  Jan Ullrich becomes the first German to win the Tour de France.
 1997  About 50 people are killed in the Si Zerrouk massacre in Algeria.

From 2001 
 2002  In New Zealand's election, Helen Clark's Labor Party Government is reelected.
 2002  The world's worst ever air show disaster occurs in Lviv, Ukraine, as a Sukhoi Su-27 fighter crashes, killing 85 people.
 2005  NASA suspends Space Shuttle flights, just a day after the Discovery launch, as, during it, part of the foam insulation sheds from the fuel tank. Repairs are performed on space walks and the Shuttle lands safely on August 9.
 2006  The Federal Republic of Germany is deemed guilty in the loss of Bashkirian 2937 and DHL Flight 611, because it is illegal to outsource flight surveillance.
 2007  Two news helicopters, from TV Stations KNXV and KTVK collide over Phoenix, Arizona, while covering a police chase.
 2012  The 2012 Summer Olympics in London begin.
 2013  Between 65 and 100 people are estimated to have been killed in clashes between the military, and supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsi in Cairo, Egypt.
 2018  The longest-lasting total lunar eclipse of the 21st century is seen in many parts of the world; coincidentally, it occurs at the same time as Mars' closest approach to Earth in 15 years.

Births

Up to 1900 
1452  Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan (d. 1508)
1667  Johann Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (d. 1748)
1733  Jeremiah Dixon, English surveyor and astronomer (d. 1779)
1734  Princess Sophie of France (d. 1782)
1740  Jeanne Baret, French naturalist (d. 1803)
1768  Joseph Anton Koch, Austrian painter (d. 1839)
1768  Charlotte Corday, French aristocrat who killed Jean-Paul Marat (d. 1793)
1773  Jacob Aall, Norwegian politician and historian (d. 1844)
1773  Princess Luisa of Naples and Sicily (d. 1802)
1781  Mauro Giuliani, Italian composer (d. 1828)
1784  Denis Davydov, Russian general and poet (d. 1839)
1824  Alexandre Dumas, fils, French writer (d. 1895)
1833  Thomas George Bonney, geologist (d. 1923)
1834  Miguel Grau Seminario, Peruvian national hero (d. 1879)
1835  Giosuè Carducci, Italian writer (d. 1907)
1848  Lorand Eotvos, Hungarian physicist (d. 1919)
1851  Guillermo Billinghurst, President of Peru (d. 1915)
1851  Hannah Primrose, Countess of Rosebery, British noblewoman (d. 1890)
1853  Vladimir Korolenko, Russian writer (d. 1921)
1854  Takahashi Korekiyo, 20th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1936)
1857  José Celso Barbosa, Puerto Rican political leader (d. 1921)
1857  Augusta Stowe-Gullen, Canadian physician and feminist (d. 1943)
1857  E. A. Wallis Budge, English Egyptologist and philologist (d. 1934)
1866  Antonio José de Almeida, Portuguese politician (d. 1929)
1867  Enrique Granados, Spanish composer (d. 1916)
1870  Hilaire Belloc, English writer (d. 1953)
1877  Ernst von Dohnanyi, Hungarian composer and conductor (d. 1960)
1878  Iwane Matsui, Japanese general (d. 1948)
1879  Jack Laviolette, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1960)
1880  Joe Tinker, American baseball player (d. 1948)
1881  Hans Fischer, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1945)
1882  Geoffrey de Havilland, British aircraft designer (d. 1965)
1886  Ernst May, German architect (d. 1970)
1896  Robert George, Scottish-born 24th Governor of South Australia (d. 1967)
1896  Henri Longchambon, French politician (d. 1969)
1900  Knud, Hereditary Prince of Denmark (d. 1976)

1901  1950 
1903  Michail Stasinopoulos, Greek politician (d. 2002) 
1903  Nikolai Cherkasov, actor (d. 1966)
1904  Lyudmila Rudenko, Russian chess player (d. 1986)
1905  Leo Durocher, American Baseball Hall of Famer (d. 1991)
1906  Jerzy Giedroyc, Polish writer and activist (d. 2000)
1907  Gregory Vlastos, American philosopher (d. 1991)
1908  Joseph Mitchell, American writer (d. 1996)
1910  Julien Gracq, French writer (d. 2007)
1910  Lupita Tovar, Mexican actress (d. 2017)
1915  Mario Del Monaco, Italian tenor (d. 1982)
1916  Elizabeth Hardwick, novelist (d. 2007)
1916  Keenan Wynn, American character actor (d. 1986)
1916  Amha Selassie, Crown Prince of Ethiopia (d. 1997)
1917  Bourvil, French actor (d. 1970)
1918  Leonard Rose, American cellist (d. 1984)
1919  Jack Goody, English social anthropologist (d. 2015)
1922  Norman Lear, American television writer and producer
1923  Masutatsu Oyama, founder of Kyokushin marshal art (d. 1994)
1924  Vincent Canby, movie critic  (d. 2000)
1927  Heinz Wewers, German footballer (d. 2008)
1927  John Seigenthaler, American journalist and academic (d. 2014)
1927  Guy Carawan, American folk musician (d. 2015)
1928  Karl Mai, German footballer (d. 1993)
1928  Joe Kittinger, American pilot
1929  Jean Baudrillard, French philosopher (d. 2007)
1930  Shirley Williams, British politician
1931  Jerry Van Dyke, American actor (d. 2018)
1931  Khieu Samphan, Cambodian politician
1937  Don Galloway, American actor (d. 2009)
1938  Isabelle Aubret, French singer
1938  Gary Gygax, American game creator (d. 2008)
1939  Michael Longley, Northern Irish poet
1939  William Eggleston, American photographer
1940  Pina Bausch, German dancer and choreographer (d. 2009)
1940  Gary Kurtz, American film producer (d. 2018)
1942  John Pleshette, American actor, director and screenwriter
1942  Dennis Ralston, American tennis player
1943  Jeremy Greenstock, English diplomat
1943  John Button, English racing driver (d. 2014)
1944  Tony Capstick, English comedian (d. 2003)
1944  Bobbie Gentry, American singer-songwriter
1944  Jean-Marie Leblanc, French cyclist
1944  Barbara Thompson, British musician and composer
1948  Peggy Fleming, American figure skater
1948  Hans Rosling, Swedish physician, academic, statistician and public speaker (d. 2017)
1949  André Dupont, Canadian ice hockey player
1949  Rory MacDonald, Scottish musician (Runrig)
1949  Maureen McGovern, American singer and Broadway actress
1949  Maury Chaykin, American-Canadian actor (d. 2010)

1951  1975 
1951  Roseanna Cunningham, Scottish politician
1951  Eduardo Gómez, Spanish actor and comedian (d. 2019)
1952  Roxanne Hart, American actress
1954  Peter L. Allen, actor and musician
1954  Philippe Alliot, French racing driver
1957  Bill Engvall, American comedian
1957  Allan Simmons, English Scrabble player
1958  Christopher Dean, English figure skater
1958  Barbara Rudnik, German actress (d. 2009)
1959  Siobhan Redmond, Scottish actress
1960  Conway Savage, Australian rock singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2018)
1960  Emily Thornberry, English politician
1960  Jo Durie, English tennis player
1961  Daniel C. Burbank, American astronaut
1962  Tony Leung, Chinese actor
1963  Donnie Yen, Chinese-Hong Kong actor, director, producer and martial artist
1965  José Luis Chilavert, Paraguayan footballer
1965  Trifon Ivanov, Bulgarian footballer (d. 2016) 
1967  Juliana Hatfield, musician
1967  Monique Sluyter, Dutch model
1967  Kellie Waymire, actress (d. 2003)
1968  Cliff Curtis, New Zealand actor
1969  Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Italian actress
1969  Triple H, American professional wrestler
1969  Jonty Rhodes, South African cricketer
1972  Jill Arrington, American sports reporter
1972  Maya Rudolph, American actress, singer and screenwriter
1972  Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, Malaysian surgeon and astronaut
1973  Abe Cunningham, American drummer (Deftones)
1974  Eason Chan, Hong Kong pop singer
1975  Alessandro Pistone, Italian footballer
1975  Shea Hillenbrand, American baseball player
1975  Alex Rodriguez, American baseball player

From 1976 
1976  Fernando Ricksen, Dutch footballer (d. 2019)
1977  Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, British actor
1977  Björn Dreyer, German footballer
1979  Sidney Govou, French footballer
1979  Shannon Moore, American professional wrestler
1980  Nick Nemeth, American professional wrestler
1983  Goran Pandev, Macedonian footballer
1983  Lorik Cana, Albanian footballer
1984  Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Japanese baseball player
1984  Arynne Sherouse, American writer, actor, and singer
1984  Iekeliene Stange, Dutch model
1985  Matteo Pratichetti, Italian rugby player
1986  DeMarre Carroll, American basketball player
1986  Ryan Flaherty, American baseball player
1987  Marek Hamsik, Slovakian footballer
1987  Jordan Hill, American basketball player
1989  Charlotte Arnold, Canadian actress
1989  Mohamed Bangura, Sierra Leonean footballer
1990  Indiana Evans, Australian actress
1990  Nick Hogan, American reality TV personality
1990  Cheyenne Kimball, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1991  Rena Matsui, Japanese singer (AKB48)
1993  Jordan Spieth, American golfer
1994  Winnie Harlow, Canadian model

Deaths

Up to 1900 
 432  Pope Celestine I
 916  Clement of Ohrid, Slavic archbishop and scholar (b. 840)
 1101  Conrad II of Italy (b. 1074)
 1276  King James I of Aragon (b. 1208)
 1365  Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria (b. 1339)
 1382  Joanna I of Naples (b. 1326)
 1656  Salomo Glassius, German theologian (b. 1593)
 1675  Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne, French general (b. 1611)
 1759  Pierre Louis Maupertuis, French mathematician (b. 1698)
 1770  Robert Dinwiddie, British colonial Governor of Virginia (b. 1693)
 1841  Mikhail Lermontov, Russian writer, poet and painter (b. 1814)
 1844  John Dalton, English physicist and chemist (b. 1776)
 1863  William Lowndes Yancey, American journalist and politician (b. 1813)
 1873  Fyodor Tyutchev, Russian poet (b. 1803)
 1883  Montgomery Blair, American politician (b. 1813)

1901  2000 
 1917  Emil Theodor Kocher, Swiss doctor, won the 1909 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1841)
 1924  Ferruccio Busoni, Italian pianist (b. 1866)
 1946  Gertrude Stein, American writer and publicist (b. 1874)
 1948  Joe Tinker, American baseball player (b. 1880)
 1962  Richard Herrmann, German footballer (b. 1923)
 1962  James H. Kindelberger, American aerospace pioneer (b. 1895)
 1970  António de Oliveira Salazar, President of Portugal (b. 1889)
 1971  Charlie Tully, Northern Irish footballer (b. 1924)
 1978  Bob Heffron, Premier of New South Wales (b. 1890)
 1978  Willem van Otterloo, Dutch conductor and composer (b. 1907)
 1980  Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran (b. 1919)
 1985  Smoky Joe Wood, American baseball player (b. 1889)
 1987  Travis Jackson, American baseball player, coach and manager (b. 1903)
 1988  Frank Zamboni, American inventor (b. 1901)
 1990  Elizabeth Allan, British actress (b. 1908)
 1991  Gino Colaussi, Italian footballer (b. 1914)
 1995  Miklos Rozsa, Hungarian-American composer (b. 1907)
 1995  Melih Esenbel, Turkish politician (b. 1915)
 1999  Aleksandr Danilovich Aleksandrov, Russian mathematician (b. 1912)

From 2001 
 2001  Leon Wilkeson, American guitarist (Lynyrd Skynyrd) (b. 1952)
 2003  Bob Hope, English-American comedian (b. 1903)
 2008  Horst Stein, German conductor (b. 1928)
 2010  Maury Chaykin, American-Canadian actor (b. 1949)
 2011  Agota Kristof, Hungarian writer (b. 1935)
 2012  Jack Taylor, English football referee (b. 1930)
 2012  Geoffrey Hughes, English actor (b. 1944)
 2012  Norman Alden, American actor (b. 1924)
 2012  R. G. Armstrong, American actor (b. 1917)
 2012  Tony Martin, American singer (b. 1913)
 2012  Russ Mayberry, Scottish-American television director (b. 1926)
 2013  Lindy Boggs, American politician (b. 1916)
 2013  Jon Leyne, British journalist (b. 1958)
 2014  Francesco Marchisano, Italian cardinal (b. 1929)
 2014  Kyozan Joshu Sasaki, Japanese-American Rinzai Zen teacher (b. 1907)
 2014  Paul Schell, 50th Mayor of Seattle (b. 1937)
 2014  George Freese, American baseball player (b. 1926)
 2015  A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Indian scientist and politician, 11th President of India (b. 1931)
 2015  Samuel Pisar, Polish-born American lawyer and author (b. 1929)
 2016  Einojuhani Rautavaara, Finnish composer (b. 1928)
 2016  Jack Davis, American artist (b. 1924)
 2016  Richard Thompson, American cartoonist (b. 1957)
 2016  James Alan McPherson, American writer (b. 1943)
 2016  Jerry Doyle, American actor, broadcaster and political commentator (b. 1956)
 2016  Piet de Jong, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (b. 1915)
 2017  D. L. Menard, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1932)
 2017  Ovidio Messa, Bolivian footballer (b. 1952)
 2017  Sam Shepard, American playwright and actor (b. 1943)
 2017  Marty Sklar, American businessman (b. 1934)
 2017  Magnus Böcker, Swedish businessman (b. 1961)
 2018  Michael P. DeLong, United States Marine Corps Lieutenant General (b. 1945) 
 2018  Marco Aurelio Denegri, Peruvian sexologist and television presenter (b. 1938)
 2018  Bernard Hepton, English actor (b. 1925)
 2018  Vladimir Voinovich, Russian novelist and journalist (b. 1932)
 2018  Gervase Markham, British computer programmer (b. 1978)
 2018  Enrique Verástegui, Peruvian poet, physicist and philosopher (b. 1950)
 2019  Carlos Cruz-Diez, Venezuelan artist (b. 1923)
 2019  Humphrey Mijnals, Surinamese-Dutch footballer (b. 1930)
 2019  Mike Roarke, American baseball player (b. 1930)
 2019  John Robert Schrieffer, American physicist (b. 1931)

Observances 
 National Sleepy Head Day (Finland)
 Victory Day (North Korea)
 José Celso Barbosa Day (Puerto Rico)

Days of the year