Events

• 1314 – King Haakon V of Norway moves the capital from Bergen to Oslo.
• 1795 – War of the First Coalition: The British capture Trincomalee (present-day Sri Lanka) from the Dutch in order to keep it out of French hands (refer to French Revolutionary Wars).
• 1798 – Irish Rebellion: Irish rebels, with French assistance, establish the short-lived Republic of Connacht.
• 1813 – Peninsular War: Spanish troops repel a French attack in the Battle of San Marcial (refer to Napoleonic Wars).
• 1864 – During the American Civil War Union forces led by General William T. Sherman launch an assault on Atlanta.
• 1907 – Russia and the United Kingdom sign the Anglo-Russian Convention, by which the UK recognizes Russian pre-eminence in northern Persia, while Russia recognizes British pre-eminence in southeastern Persia and Afghanistan.
  • Both powers pledge not to interfere in Tibet.
• 1918 – World War I: Start of the Battle of Mont Saint-Quentin, a successful assault by the Australian Corps during the Hundred Days Offensive.
• 1920 – Polish-Soviet War: A decisive Polish victory in the Battle of Komarów.
• 1935 – In an attempt to stay out of the growing tensions concerning Germany and Japan, the United States passes the first of its Neutrality Acts.
• 1939 – Nazi Germany mounts a false flag attack on the Gleiwitz radio station, creating an excuse to attack Poland the following day, thus starting World War II in Europe.
• 1941 – World War II: Serbian paramilitary forces defeat Germans in the Battle of Loznica.
• 1943 – USS Harmon, the first US Navy ship to be named after a black person, is commissioned.
• 1949 – The retreat of the Democratic Army of Greece into Albania after its defeat on Gramos mountain marks the end of the Greek Civil War.
• 1957 – The Federation of Malaya (now Malaysia) gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
• 1962 – Trinidad and Tobago becomes independent.
• 1963 – Crown Colony of North Borneo (now Sabah) achieves self governance.
• 1986 – The Soviet passenger liner Admiral Nakhimov sinks in the Black Sea after colliding with the bulk carrier Pyotr Vasev, killing 423.
• 1991 – Kyrgyzstan declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
• 1993 – Russia completes removing its troops from Lithuania.
• 1994 – Russia completes removing its troops from Estonia.
• 1996 – Saddam Hussein’s troops seized Irbil after the Kurdish Masoud Barzani appealed for help to defeat his Kurdish rival PUK.
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Kyrgyzstan from the Soviet Union in 1991.
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Malaya from the United Kingdom in 1957.
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Trinidad and Tobago from the United Kingdom in 1962.
• North Borneo Self-government Day (Sabah, Borneo).

People (Births)

• 1721 – George Hervey, 2nd Earl of Bristol, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1775).
• 1802 – Husein Gradaščević, Ottoman general (d. 1834).
• 1878 – Frank Jarvis, American sprinter and lawyer (d. 1933).
• 1894 – Albert Facey, Australian soldier and author (d. 1982).
• 1896 – Brian Edmund Baker, English Air Marshal (d. 1979).
• 1902 – Géza Révész, Hungarian general and politician, Hungarian Minister of Defence (d. 1977).
• 1907 – Ramon Magsaysay, Filipino captain, engineer, and politician, 7th President of the Philippines (d. 1957).
• 1943 – Leonid Ivashov, Russian general.
• 1949 – Richard Gere, American actor and producer (well-known for his role in An Officer and a Gentleman, 1982).
• 1955 – Edwin Moses, American hurdler.
• 1978 – Ido Pariente, Israeli mixed martial artist and trainer.
• 1979 – Mark Johnston, Canadian swimmer.
• 1982 – Ian Crocker, American swimmer.
• 1982 – Lien Huyghebaert, Belgian sprinter.
• 1984 – Matti Breschel, Danish cyclist.

People (Deaths)

• 1372 – Ralph de Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford, English soldier (b. 1301).
• 1811 – Louis Antoine de Bougainville, French admiral and explorer (b. 1729).
• 1814 – Arthur Phillip, English admiral and politician, 1st Governor of New South Wales (b. 1738).
• 1817 – Sir John Duckworth, 1st Baronet, English admiral and politician, 39th Commodore Governor of Newfoundland (b. 1747).
• 1818 – Robert Calder, Scottish admiral (b. 1745).
• 1924 – Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian soldier (b. 1881).
• 1927 – Andranik, Armenian general (b. 1865).
• 1973 – John Ford, American actor, director, producer, screenwriter, and US Navy Admiral (b. 1894).
• 1974 – William Pershing Benedict, American soldier and pilot (b. 1918).
• 1991 – Cliff Lumsdon, Canadian swimmer and coach (b. 1931).
• 2007 – Jean Jacques Paradis, Canadian general (b. 1928).
• 2010 – Laurent Fignon, French cyclist (b. 1960).
• 2012 – Joe Lewis, American martial artist and actor (b. 1944).
• 2012 – Sergey Sokolov, Russian commander and politician, 6th Minister of Defence for The Soviet Union (b. 1911).