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Historical Events on this Day in History

Events in History for Thursday 31st July 2014

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Events 1 - 192 of 192
30 BC - Battle of Alexandria: Mark Antony achieves a minor victory over Octavian's forces, but most of his army subsequently deserts, leading to his suicide.
432 - St Sixtus III begins his reign as Catholic Pope
768 - [Philip] begins & ends his reign as Catholic Pope
781 - The oldest recorded eruption of Mt. Fuji (Traditional Japanese date: July 6, 781).
1291 - Egyptian Mamelukken occupies Akko, crusaders driven out of Palestine
1423 - Hundred Years' War: Battle of Cravant - the French army is defeated at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne.
1451 - Jacques Cœur is arrested by order of Charles VII of France.
1498 - Christopher Columbus on his third voyage discovers the island of Trinidad
1620 - Pilgrim Fathers depart Leiden for England before heading to America
1653 - Fronde-leaders surrender in Bordeaux
1655 - Russo-Polish War (1654-1667): the Russian army enters the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vilnius, which it holds for six years.

Explorer of the New World Christopher Columbus 1658 - Aurangzeb appoints himself Mongol emperor
1664 - Pierre Corneille's "Othon" premieres in Paris
1667 - Peace of Breda: 2nd English war-Suriname vs New-Netherlands ends
1703 - Daniel Defoe is placed in a pillory for the crime of seditious libel after publishing a politically satirical pamphlet, but is pelted with flowers.
1718 - Battle at Cape Passaro: English fleet destroys Spanish
1737 - Prince Frederick of Wales escapes English court
1741 - Charles Albert of Bavaria invades Upper Austria and Bohemia.
1751 - Fire in Stockholm destroys 1,000 houses
1771 - Paul Potters "Great ossendrift" sold for Ÿ9050 in Amsterdam

Novelist Daniel Defoe 1777 - Marquis de Lafayette, 19, made major-general of Continental Army
1790 - 1st US patent granted, to Samuel Hopkins for a potash process
1792 - Cornerstone laid for 1st US government building: US Mint in Philaelphia
1794 - All Jacobijnse clubs together in Haarlem
1809 - 1st practical US railroad track (wooden, for horse-drawn cars), Phila
1813 - British invade Plattsburgh NY
1849 - Benjamin Chambers patents breech loading cannon
1852 - Hottest July in Netherlands since at least 1783 (68.4°F (20.2°C) avg)
1855 - Hottest July in Stockholm since at least 1756 (21.4°C avg)
1856 - Christchurch, New Zealand, is chartered as a city.
1861 - 9,300 mm rainfall in July in Cherrapunji, Assam: world record

US President & Union General Ulysses S. Grant 1864 - Ulysses S. Grant is named General of Volunteers
1865 - The first narrow gauge mainline railway in the world opens at Grandchester, Australia.
1874 - Patrick Francis Healy, SJ, inaugurated as pres of Georgetown U
1876 - US Coast Guard officers' training school established (New Bedford MA)
1879 - The first cable connection between South Africa and Europe is laid by the British electrical engineer Charles Tilston Bright as part of his project to link the British Empire with growing telecommunications technologies
1893 - Henry Perky patents shredded wheat
1899 - Albert Trott hits Monty Noble over the Pavilion at Lord's
1900 - Boer Generals Prinsloo & Roux surrender in Brandwater Basin
1901 - Abraham Kuyper becomes premier of Netherlands
1905 - Matumbi rebellion at Samanga German East Africa
1909 - Bill Burns has no-hitter broken up with 2 outs in 9th
1910 - Chic Cub King Cole no-hits St Louis, 4-0 in a 7 inning game
1910 - Clement van Maasdijk gives flying demonstration
1911 - Hungarian education is only taught in German
1912 - RBC soccer team forms in Roosendaal
1912 - US government prohibits movies & photos of prize fights (censorship)
1914 - German Emperor Wilhelm II threatens war, orders Russia to demobilize
1914 - Oil discovered in Lake of Maracaibo
1917 - 3rd battle of Ypres begins
1919 - Germany accepts Weimar Constitution
1922 - 18-year-old Ralph Samuelson rides world's 1st water skis (Minn)
1922 - General strike in Italy against fascist violence
1923 - Belgian Chamber discusses bilinguality at Ghent University
1925 - Last allied occupying troops leave Ruhrgebied
1925 - Unemployment Insurance Act passed in Britain
1928 - 1st woman to win a track and field olympic gold medal, Halina Konopacka of Poland
1929 - Aristide Briand becomes premier of France

Baseball Player Lou Gehrig 1930 - Lou Gehrig grand slams as Yanks beat Red Sox 14-13
1932 - 27th Davis Cup: France beats USA in Paris (3-2)
1932 - Cleveland Municipal Stadium opens-Phila A's beat Indians 1-0
1932 - George Washington quarter goes into circulation
1932 - German Election (NSDAP gets 37.3%)
1934 - 29th Davis Cup: Great Britain beats USA in Wimbledon (4-1)
1934 - St Louis Cards defeat Cin Reds 8-6 in 18 innings, pitchers Dizzy Dean & Tony Freitos go the distant
1935 - 3rd Dutch government of Colijn sworn in
1936 - Tokyo Japan is awarded the 1940 Olympics (later cancelled)
1937 - Politburo enables Operative Order 00447: execute 193,000 Russians
1938 - NY Yanks suspend Jake Powell, after he said on Chicago radio he'd "hit every colored person in Chicago over head with a club"
1938 - Archaeologists discover engraved gold and silver plates from King Darius in Persepolis.
1940 - 38 U boats sinks this month (196,000 ton)
1940 - Riechskommissar Seyss-Inquart bans homosexuals
1941 - U boats sink 21 allied ships this month: 94,000 ton
1942 - German SS gases 1,000 Jews in Minsk, Belorussia
1942 - U-boats sank 96 allied ships this month: 476,000 ton
1943 - Transport nr 58 departs with French Jews to nazi Germany
1944 - Last deportation train out Mechelen departs to Auschwitz
1944 - Transport nr 77 departs with French Jews to nazi-Germany
1944 - US troops occupy Sansapor, New-Guinea
1945 - Pierre Laval, the fugitive former leader of Vichy France, surrenders to Allied soldiers in Austria.
1948 - "Brigadoon" closes at Ziegfeld Theater NYC after 581 performances
1948 - US President Harry Truman dedicates Idlewild Field (now Kennedy Airport), NY
1949 - Lightning strikes a baseball field in Fla, kills SS & 3rd baseman
1951 - Japan Airlines is established.
1953 - Dept of Health, Education & Welfare created
1954 - Mil Braves' Joe Adcock sets record of 18 total bases (4 hrs, 1 double)
1954 - First ascent of K2, by an Italian expedition led by Ardito Desio.
1955 - Beverly Hanson wins LPGA Battle Creek Golf Open
1955 - KRNT (now KCCI) TV channel 8 in Des Moines, IA (CBS) 1st broadcast
1955 - WHIS (now WVVA) TV channel 6 in Bluefield, WV (NBC) 1st broadcast
1956 - Laker takes 10-53 in Australia's 2nd innings, 19-90 for match
1958 - Anti-Chinese uprising in Tibet
1959 - 1st exhibit of bongos at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo opens
1960 - Elijah Muhammad, leader of Nation of Islam, calls for a black state
1960 - KSOO (now KSFY) TV channel 13 in Sioux Falls, SD (NBC) 1st broadcast
1960 - Patty Berg wins LPGA American Women's Golf Open
1961 - 31st All Star Baseball Game: 1-1 tie ends by rain at Fenway, Boston
1961 - Israel welcomes its 1,000,000th immigrant
1962 - Federation of Malaysia forms
1962 - Statham is Test cricket's leading wkt-taker (229), beating Lindwall
1963 - Arturo Illia elected president of Argentina
1963 - Cleve ties record of 4 consecutive HRS (Held, Ramos, Francona, Brown)
1963 - Indians' Woodie Held, Pedro Ramos, Tito Francona, & Larry Brown hit consecutive home runs in one inning (vs California Angels)
1964 - Al Parker glides 644 miles without a motor
1964 - Rolling Stone concert in Ireland halts after 12 minutes due to riot
1964 - US Ranger 7 takes 4,316 pictures before crashing on Moon
1965 - Cigarette advertsing banned on British TV

Musician and Beatle John Lennon 1966 - Alabamans burn Beatle products due to John Lennon's anti-Jesus remark
1967 - Rolling Stone Mick Jagger & Keith Richards end 1 month jail sentence
1968 - Beatles close Apple Boutique, giving clothes away for free
1969 - KWIH TV channel 44 in Winona, MN (IND) begins broadcasting
1969 - Mariner 6 flies past Mars
1969 - National Guard mobilizes in racial disturbances in Baton Rouge, La
1970 - 37th NFL Chicago All Star Game: Kansas City 24, All Stars 3 (69,940)
1970 - Chet Huntley retires from NBC, ends "Huntley-Brinkley Report"
1970 - Black Tot Day: the last day of the officially sanctioned rum ration in the Royal Navy.
1971 - Apollo 15 astronauts take 6½ hour electric car ride on Moon
1971 - Deventer Soccer team Go Ahead Eagles forms
1972 - Dick Allen is 7th to hit 2 inside-the-park homers in a game
1972 - Thomas Eagleton withdraws as Democratic VP candidate
1973 - ABA Virginia Squires trade Julius Erving to NY Nets
1973 - Delta Airlines DC-9 crashes in fog at Logan Airport, Boston, killing all but one of 89 aboard. Lone survivor dies 6 months later
1973 - Frank Hayes scores 106 on Test Cricket debut v WI as England lose
1976 - Seychelles Independence (Independence day)
1976 - Waldemar Cierpinski runs Olympic marathon (2:09:55.0)
1977 - Debbie Austin wins LPGA Pocono Northeast Golf Classic
1977 - E Henry Knoche, ends term as deputy director of CIA
1977 - John F Blake promoted from acting to deputy director of CIA
1978 - Gunman shoots his way into Iraqi Embassy in Paris
1978 - NY Yanks now 7½ out of 1st, picked up 7 games in previous 2 weeks
1978 - Pete Rose ties NL record hitting streak at 44
1979 - "But Never Jam Today" opens at Longacre Theater NYC for 7 performances
1980 - John Phillips of Mamas & Papas is arrested on drug charges
1980 - Rangers snap Orioles pitcher Steve Stone's 14-game winning streak
1980 - Soyuz 37 crew returns to Earth aboard Soyuz 36
1980 - USSR performs nuclear Test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1981 - 42 day old, 2nd major league baseball strike ends
1981 - Arnette Hubbard installed as 1st woman president of Natl Bar Association
1982 - 46 kids & 7 adults die as 2 buses & several cars collide in France
1982 - Car/bus collision near Beaune, France, 53 die
1982 - Finland, Italy, Germany, Austria & France form American European Football Federation (AEFF)
1982 - USSR performs nuclear Test
1983 - 38th US Women's Open Golf Championship won by Jan Stephenson
1983 - B Robinson, J Marichal, G Kell, & W Alston inducted into Hall of Fame
1983 - Dutch July avg temp is 20.1°C; warmest July since 1852
1984 - Leeza Gibbon's 1st appearance on Entertainment Tonight
1984 - US men's gymnastics team won team gold medal at LA Summer Olympics
1984 - Venz commandos terminate hijacking of an aircraft, 2 killed
1987 - "Living Daylights" premieres in US
1987 - Battle between Iranian pilgrims & Saudi-Arabian troops, 402 killed
1987 - Eddie Murray hits his 300th HR
1987 - Guns & Roses song "Appetite for Destruction" is released
1987 - Oriole Eddie Murray hits his 299th & 300th career home runs
1987 - Rockwell International awarded contract to build a 5th shuttle
1987 - A rare, class F-4 tornado rips through Edmonton, Alberta, killing 27 people and causing $330 million in damage.
1988 - Ayako Okamoto wins LPGA Greater Washington Golf Open
1988 - Jose Canseco is 1st to hit 30 HRs in 1st 3 years
1988 - Last Playboy club closes (Lansing Michigan)
1988 - Miami Dolphins beat SF 49ers 27-21 in London
1988 - Willie Stargell became 200th man inducted in Baseball's Hall of Fame
1988 - 32 people are killed and 1,674 injured when a bridge at the Sultan Abdul Halim ferry terminal collapses in Butterworth, Malaysia.
1989 - Twins trade AL Cy Young Award winner Frank Viola to Mets
1990 - Bosnia-Hercegovina declares independence
1990 - Nolan Ryan becomes 20th major league pitcher to win 300 games
1991 - Russia & US sign long range nuclear weapons reduction pact
1991 - Senate votes to allow women to fly combat aircraft
1991 - The Medininkai Massacre in Lithuania. Soviet OMON attacks Lithuanian customs post in Medininkai, killing 7 officers and severely wounding one other.
1992 - Jeff Rouse swims world record/OR 100m backstroke (53.86 sec)
1992 - Kieren John Perkins swims world record/OR 1500m free style (14:43.4)
1992 - Tamas Darnyi swims world record/Olympics 200m backstroke (1:59.36)
1992 - Thai Airbus crashes into mountain at Kathmandu, 113 die
1992 - Yang Wenyi swims world record/OR 50m freestyle (24.79 sec)
1993 - A's trade Rickey Henderson to Blue Jays
1993 - Allman Bros guitarist Dickey Betts arrested for shoving 2 cops
1993 - Inkatha-arm forces killed 49 ANC-followers in Johannesburg
1993 - Prince Ronald "Ronnie" Mutebi crowned king of Uganda
1994 - 102.7°F (39.3°C) in Pleschen, East-Germany
1994 - 28th Curtis Cup: Draw, 9-9
1994 - Arcen Limburg averages 71.6°F (22.0°C) in July: record
1994 - Helen Alfredss wins LPGA Ping Welch's Golf Championship
1994 - Netherlands' warmest July since 1783 - average 21.4°C
1994 - Phil Rizzuto (Yanks) & Steve Carlton (Phils) enter the Hall of Fame
1994 - Sergei Bubka ploe vaults his 35th world record (6.14 m)
1994 - Stockholm averages 21.5°C; the warmest July since 1855
1994 - UN votes 12-0 (2 abstentions) to authorize use of force against Haiti
1997 - A's trade Mark McGwire to St Louis Cards
1999 - Discovery Program: Lunar Prospector - NASA intentionally crashes the spacecraft into the Moon, thus ending its mission to detect frozen water on the moon's surface.
2002 - Polaroid Corporation is purchased by One Equity Partners, creating a new company that now operates under the Polaroid Corporation name, launching a new era for Polaroid.
2006 - Fidel Castro hands over power temporarily to brother Raúl Castro. This leads to a celebration in Little Havana (La Pequeña Habana in Spanish), Miami, Florida, where many Cuban Americans participated.
2007 - Operation Banner, the presence of the British Army in Northern Ireland, and longest-running British Army operation ever, comes to an end.
2012 - Two car bombs kill 21 people in Baghdad, Iraq
2012 - A second power grid failure in two days leaves 670 million people in India without power

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