685 – John V begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1812 – Battle of Mogilev: first significant fighting during Napoleon’s invasion of Russia results in minor French victory
1877 – First telephone and telegraph line in Hawaii is completed
1904 – Ice cream cone is created during the St. Louis World’s Fair, reputedly first by Charles E. Menches
1917 – Cleveland Metropolitan Park District established in Greater Cleveland, Ohio
1929 – The Fascist government in Italy bans the use of foreign words
1965 – The Beatles’ single “Help” is released in the UK
2024 – Hottest day on Earth: average global temperature of 17.15°C (62.87°F) surpasses record set the previous day, according to EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service
Author: gil7
Famous Deaths for 23rd July 2025
1816 – Elizabeth Hamilton, British author (Cats: A Celebration), dies at 68
1875 – Isaac Singer, American inventor of the first practical home sewing machine, dies at 63
1927 – William Ashley, English economic historian (The Economic Organisation of England), dies at 67
1930 – Glenn Curtiss, American aviation pioneer and airplane builder, dies at 52
1946 – James Maxton, Scottish politician, Leader of the Independent Labour Party, dies at 61
1977 – René de Vos, Dutch actor and composer (Jij Bent Mijn Leven), dies at 79
1998 – John Hopkins, English TV, film and stage writer (Z-Cars), dies at 67
2003 – James E. Davis, New York City councilman (murdered) (b. 1962)
2005 – Myron Floren, American accordionist (The Lawrence Welk Show), dies at 85
2008 – Kurt Furgler, Swiss politician, President of the Confederation (1977, 1981 and 1985), dies at 84
Today in History for 23rd July 2025
Historical Events
1777 – King Louis XVI of France and his Foreign Minister clandestinely agree to supply the United States with munitions during the American Revolution
1777 – Polish military leader Casimir Pulaski arrives in Marblehead, Massachusetts, to volunteer in the Continental Army cavalry
1858 – Jewish Disabilities Removal Act passes in British Parliament
1870 – Emperor Napoleon III appoints Empress Eugénie de Montijo as Regent of France
2015 – Supreme Court rejects Bill Cosby’s petition against a civil case of his alleged sexual assault of 15-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1974
Famous Birthdays
1825 – Richard Hol, Dutch composer, organist and conductor, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1904)
1921 – Peter Twiss, British test pilot (breaking the World Air Speed Record and being the first person to exceed 1,000 mph in flight), born in Lindfield, Sussex (d. 2011)
1950 – Kaity Tong, Chinese-American news anchor (WPIX), born in Qingdao, China
1979 – Perro Aguayo, Jr., Mexican professional wrestler (CMLL), born in Mexico City (d. 2015)
1986 – Reece Ritchie, English actor (The Outpost), born in Lowestoft, England
Famous Deaths
1932 – Alberto Santos-Dumont, Brazilian balloonist, airship builder, and aviator (1st plane flight in Europe), dies by suicide at 59
1948 – D.W. Griffith, American film director and producer (Birth of a Nation, Intolerance), dies of a cerebral hemorrhage at 73
1964 – Jan de Vries, Dutch scholar of Germanic linguistics and Germanic mythology, dies at 74
1996 – Hamilton Fish IV, American politician (Rep-R-NY, 1969-95), dies at 70
2011 – Amy Winehouse, British singer-songwriter (“Stronger Than Me”; “Rehab”), dies from alcohol poisoning at 27
Famous Deaths for 22nd July 2025
1461 – Charles VII, King of France (1422-61) who drove the English out from Northern France, dies at 58
1676 – Clement X [Emilio Altieri], Italian Pope (1670-76), dies at 86
1852 – Auguste Marmont, French marshal, dies at 77
1909 – D v Liliencron, writer, dies at 65
1929 – Édouard Empain, Belgian railway builder (Paris Metro; Heliopolis), dies at 76
1979 – Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer (Budapest Honvéd), dies at 49
1980 – Fred Kaps [Abram Bongers], Dutch magician (ISM World Champion 1950, 1955 and 1961), dies of cancer at 54
1982 – Sonny Stitt [Edward Hammond Boatner Jr], American jazz saxophonist (Blows the Blues), dies of cancer at 58
1998 – Hermann Prey, German bass-baritone, dies at 69
2004 – Sacha Distel, French singer (“Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head” cover), dies at 71
Historical Events for 22nd July 2025
1298 – English defeat the Scots at the Battle of Falkirk
1632 – Foundation laid in Madrid for Buen Retiro Palace for King Philip IV
1923 – 17th Tour de France won by Henri Pelissier of France
1926 – 108°F (42°C), Troy, NY (state record)
1954 – US Virgin Islands adopt constitution (Revised Organic Act)
1984 – 22nd Federation Cup Women’s Tennis, São Paulo, Brazil: Czech pair Hana Mandlíková and Helena Suková beat Australians Elizabeth Sayers and Wendy Turnbull 6-2, 6-2 for a 2-1 victory
1997 – “One Piece,” world’s best-selling manga and comic series, written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda, first appears serialized in “Weekly Shōnen Jump” in Japan
2014 – European Union claims that Israel “has the right to defend itself,” but says civilian casualties in Gaza are unacceptable
2019 – India’s lunar mission, Chandrayaan-2 successfully takes off from Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota aiming to be fourth nation to soft-land on the moon
2022 – Droupadi Murmu is the first tribal politician to be elected President of India (head of state, without executive powers)
Today in History for 22nd July 2025
Historical Events
259 – Saint Dionysius elected as Pope, succeeding Sixtus II
1950 – Frank Worrell completes 261 v England at Trent Bridge
1950 – King Leopold returns to Belgium after 6 years in exile
1960 – Cuba nationalizes all US-owned sugar factories
1991 – Jeffrey Dahmer confesses to killing 17 men in 1978
Famous Birthdays
1844 – William Archibald Spooner, English Oxford Don and reverend and inventor (spoonerisms), born in London, England (d. 1930)
1878 – Lucien Febvre, French historian (Un destin: Martin Luther), born in Nancy, France (d. 1956)
1882 – Edward Hopper, American painter (Nighthawks, House by the Railroad), born in Upper Nyack, New York (d. 1967)
1967 – Rhys Ifans [Evans], Welsh actor (Notting Hill; The Replacements; Enduring Love), and rock singer (The Peth), born in Haverfordwest, Wales
1972 – Colin Ferguson, Canadian actor known for “Eureka”, born in Montreal, Quebec
Famous Deaths
1794 – Jean-Benjamin de La Borde, French composer, dies at 59
1826 – Giuseppe Piazzi, Italian astronomer (found 1st asteroid-Ceres), dies at 80
1864 – William H. T. Walker, American Major General (Confederate Army), killed in action at 47 during the Atlanta Campaign
2005 – Eugene Record American songwriter and singer (The Chi-Lites) (b. 1940)
2008 – Joe Beck, American session and jazz guitarist (Don Sebesky; Gil Evans; Gato Barbieri; Esther Phillips), and bandleader, dies of lung cancer at 62
Famous Deaths for 21st July 2025
1855 – Per Daniel Amadeus Atterbom, Swedish romantic poet (Blommorna (The Flowers), Lycksalighetens Ö (The Island of Bliss)) and historian (Svenska Siare och Skalder), dies at 65
1928 – Ellen Alice Terry, British Shakespearean actress and director (Imperial Theatre), dies at 81
1950 – Albert Riemenschneider, American pianist, educator, musicologist, and founder of America’a oldest Bach Festival, dies at 71
1957 – Rockley Wilson, English cricket spin bowler (1 Test, 3 wickets; Cambridge University, Yorkshire CCC), dies at 78
1970 – Bob Kalsu, American NFL football player, 1968 (Buffalo Bills), and US Army officer, killed in action in Vietnam at 25
1982 – Dave Garroway, American TV host (Today Show, 1951-61), dies of self-inflicted gunshot wound at 69
1984 – Michael Osborne, American rock guitarist and vocalist (Axe), dies at 34
1990 – Rich Vogler, American auto racer (most combined wins in USAC history [171]), dies in a race crash at 39
2003 – John Davies, New Zealand sports executive (President NZOC 2000-03) and athlete (Olympic bronze 1500m 1964), dies of melanoma at 65
2022 – Jim Lynch, American College Football HOF linebacker (Notre Dame; AFL–NFL World C’ship Game 1970; Kansas City Chiefs), dies at 76
Historical Events for 21st July 2025
230 – St Pontianus begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1545 – The first landing of French troops onto the coast of the Isle of Wight during the French invasion
1588 – First engagement between the English fleet and the Spanish Armada off the Eddystone Rocks
1913 – The Egyptian government announces a new constitutional system and electoral law
1940 – VARA-management accepts Rost of Tonningens demands
1962 – 160 civil right activists jailed after demonstration in Albany, Georgia
1970 – Libya orders confiscation of all Jewish property
1972 – Two passenger trains collide head-on killing 76 (Seville, Spain)
1977 – Sanjiva Reddy is elected sixth President of India unopposed
2015 – On This Day changes its domain name and brand from HistoryOrb.com to OnThisDay.com
Today in History for 21st July 2025
Historical Events
1941 – 200 Jewish Torahs are burned in Ukraine
1952 – “The Quiet Man” film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara is released in the UK
1964 – Race riots in Singapore between Chinese and Malay groups, 23 killed, 454 injured
1973 – France performs nuclear test at Mururoa Atoll in the Pacific
1991 – British Open Men’s Golf, Royal Birkdale GC: Australian 1-2 with Ian Baker-Finch winning his only major championship, 2 strokes ahead of runner-up Mike Harwood
Famous Birthdays
1810 – Henri V. Regnault, French physicist and chemist, born in Aachen (d. 1878)
1909 – Iorwerth Eiddon Stephen Edwards, English Egyptologist, born in London (d. 1996)
1920 – Constant [Nieuwenhuys], Dutch painter (Uprising of Homo Ludens), and sculptor, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 2005)
1926 – Rahimuddin Khan, Pakistani general and Governor of Balochistan (1978-84), born in Qaimganj, British India (d. 2022)
1989 – Rory Culkin, American actor (Signs), born in New York City
Famous Deaths
1910 – Johan Peter Selmer, Norwegian composer, dies at 66
1970 – Mikhail Gerasimov, Russian anthropologist and sculptor (b. 1907)
1986 – Virginia Hewitt, American actress (Carol-Space Patrol), dies of cancer at 60
2010 – Ralph Houk, American baseball catcher, coach, manager and executive (World Series champion 1947, 52-53, coach, 58; mgr 1961-62; NY Yankees), dies at 90
2022 – Uwe Seeler, German soccer striker (72 caps West Germany; Hamburger SV 476 games, 404 goals), dies at 85
Famous Deaths for 20th July 2025
1156 – Toba, 74th Emperor of Japan (1107-23), dies at 53
1201 – Agnes of France, Queen of France, dies [or 7/18]
1454 – John II of Castile, King of Castile and León (1406-54), dies at 49
1524 – Claude of France, Duchess of Brittany and wife of Francis I of France, dies at 24
1937 – Guglielmo Marconi, Italian inventor and electrical engineer who pioneered work on long distance radio transmission (Nobel 1909), dies of a heart attack at 63
1944 – Friedrich Olbricht, German general (July 20th plotter), executed
1944 – Arthur J Treadwell, English mayor of Stoke Newington, dies at about 71
1983 – Frank Reynolds, American news anchor (ABC Evening News, 1968-70; World New Tonight, 1977-83), dies at 59
1997 – Linda Stirling, college prof/B movie actress (Pretender), dies at 75
2007 – Bill Flemming, American journalist and sportscaster (ABC’s Wide World of Sports), dies at 80