July 4

July 4 is the 185th day of the year (186th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 180 days remaining until the end of the year.
The Aphelion, the point in the year when the Earth is farthest from the Sun, occurs around this date.

Events

• 362 BC – Battle of Mantinea: The Thebans, led by Epaminondas, defeated the Spartans.
• 414 – Emperor Theodosius II, age 13, yields power to his older sister Aelia Pulcheria, who reigned as regent and proclaimed herself empress (Augusta) of the Eastern Roman Empire.
• 836 – Pactum Sicardi, a peace treaty between the Principality of Benevento and the Duchy of Naples, is signed.
• 993 – Ulrich of Augsburg is canonized as a saint.
• 1054 – A supernova is seen by Chinese, Arab and possibly Amerindian observers near the star Zeta Tauri. For several months it remains bright enough to be seen during the day. Its remnants form the Crab Nebula.
• 1120 – Jordan II of Capua is anointed as prince after his infant nephew's death.
• 1187 – The Crusades: Battle of Hattin: Saladin defeats Guy of Lusignan, King of Jerusalem.
• 1253 – Battle of West-Capelle: John I of Avesnes defeats Guy of Dampierre.
• 1359 – Francesco II Ordelaffi of Forlì surrenders to the Papal commander Gil de Albornoz.
• 1456 – Ottoman wars in Europe: The Siege of Nándorfeqhérvár (Belgrade) begins.
• 1534 – Christian III is elected King of Denmark and Norway in the town of Rye.
• 1610 – The Battle of Klushino is fought between forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Russia during the Polish-Muscovite War.
• 1634 – The city of Trois-Rivières is founded in New France (now Quebec, Canada).
• 1744 – The Treaty of Lancaster, in which the Iroquois cedes lands between the Allegheny Mountains and the Ohio River to the British colonies, was signed in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
• 1754 – French and Indian War: George Washington surrenders Fort Necessity to French Capt. Louis Coulon de Villiers.
• 1774 – Orangetown Resolutions are adopted in the Province of New York, one of many protests against the British Parliament's Coercive Acts
• 1776 – American Revolution: The United States Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress.
  

  The United States declared its independence in 1776.
• 1778 – American Revolutionary War: American forces under George Clark capture Kaskaskia during the Illinois campaign.
• 1802 – At West Point, New York, the United States Military Academy opens.
• 1803 – The Louisiana Purchase is announced to the American people.
• 1817 – In Rome, New York, construction on the Erie Canal begins.
• 1826 – Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States, dies the same day as John Adams, second president of the United States, on the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the United States Declaration of Independence.
• 1827 – Slavery is abolished in New York State.
• 1831 – Samuel Francis Smith writes My Country, 'Tis of Thee for the Boston, Massachusetts July 4 festivities.
• 1837 – Grand Junction Railway, the world's first long-distance railway, opens between Birmingham and Liverpool.
• 1838 – The Iowa Territory is organized.
• 1855 – In Brooklyn, New York City, the first edition of Walt Whitman's book of poems, Leaves of Grass, is published.
• 1862 – Lewis Carroll tells Alice Liddell a story that would grow into Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequels.
• 1863 – American Civil War: Siege of Vicksburg: Vicksburg, Mississippi surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant after 47 days of siege. One hundred fifty miles up the Mississippi River, a Confederate Army was repulsed at the Battle of Helena, Arkansas.
• 1863 – American Civil War: The Army of Northern Virginia withdrew from the battlefield after losing the Battle of Gettysburg, signalling an end to the Southern invasion of the North.
• 1865 – Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is published.
• 1878 – Thoroughbred horses Ten Broeck and Mollie McCarty run a match race, recalled in the song Molly and Tenbrooks.
• 1879 – Anglo-Zulu War: The Zululand capital of Ulundi is captured by British troops and burned to the ground, ending the war and forcing King Cetshwayo to flee.
• 1881 – In Alabama, the Tuskegee Institute opens.
• 1886 – The people of France offer the Statue of Liberty to the people of the United States.
• 1886 – The first scheduled Canadian transcontinental train arrives in Port Moody, British Columbia.
• 1887 – The founder of Pakistan, Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, joins Sindh-Madrasa-tul-Islam, Karachi.
• 1892 – Western Samoa changes the International Date Line, so that year it had 367 days, with two occurrences of Monday, July 4.
• 1894 – The short-lived Republic of Hawaii is proclaimed by Sanford B. Dole.
• 1903 – Philippine–American War officially is concluded.
• 1903 – Dorothy Levitt is reported as the first English woman to compete in a 'motor race'.
• 1910 – African-American boxer Jack Johnson knocks out white boxer Jim Jeffries in a heavyweight boxing match, sparking race riots across the United States.
• 1911 – A massive heat wave strikes the northeastern United States, killing 380 people in eleven days and breaking temperature records in several cities.
• 1913 – President Woodrow Wilson addresses American Civil War veterans at the Great Reunion of 1913.
• 1914 – The funeral of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie takes place in Vienna, six days after their assassinations in Sarajevo.
• 1918 – Ottoman sultan Mehmed VI ascended to the throne.
• 1918 – World War I: The Battle of Hamel, a successful attack by the Australian Corps against German positions near the town of Le Hamel on the Western Front.
• 1918 – Bolsheviks killed Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and his family (Julian calendar date).
• 1926 – Knoebels Amusement Resort is opened in Elysburg, Pennsylvania.
• 1927 – The Lockheed Vega first flew.
• 1934 – Leo Szilard patented the chain-reaction design for the atomic bomb.
• 1939 – Lou Gehrig, recently diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, informs a crowd at Yankee Stadium that he considered himself "The luckiest man on the face of the earth", then announces his retirement from major league baseball.
• 1939 – Huỳnh Phú Sổ founds Hòa Hảo Buddhism.
• 1941 – Nazi troops massacre Polish scientists and writers in the captured Ukrainian city of Lviv.
• 1941 – World War II, the Burning of the Riga synagogues: the Great Choral Synagogue in German occupied Riga was burned with 300 Jews locked in the basement.
• 1942 – World War II: the 250 day Siege of Sevastopol in the Crimea ends when the city falls to Axis forces.
• 1943 – World War II: The Battle of Kursk, the largest full-scale battle in history and the world's largest tank battle, begins in Prokhorovka village.
• 1943 – World War II: In Gibraltar, a Royal Air Force B-24 Liberator bomber crashes into the sea in an apparent accident moments after takeoff, killing sixteen passengers on board; only the pilot survives.
• 1946 – After 381 years of near-continuous colonial rule by various powers, the Philippines attains full independence from the United States.
• 1947 – The "Indian Independence Bill" is presented before the British House of Commons, proposing the independence of the Provinces of British India into two sovereign countries: India and Pakistan.
• 1950 – Radio Free Europe first broadcasts.
• 1951 – A court in Czechoslovakia sentences American journalist William N. Oatis to ten years in prison on charges of espionage.
• 1951 – William Shockley announced the invention of the junction transistor.
• 1960 – Due to the post-Independence Day admission of Hawaii as the 50th U.S. state on August 21, 1959, the 50-star flag of the United States debuts in Philadelphia, almost ten and a half months later (see Flag Act).
• 1966 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Freedom of Information Act into United States law. The act went into effect the next year.
• 1976 – Israeli commandos raid Entebbe airport in Uganda, rescuing all but four of the passengers and crew of an Air France jetliner seized by Palestinian terrorists.
• 1977 – The George Jackson Brigade plants a bomb at the main power substation for the Washington state capitol in Olympia, in solidarity with a prison strike at the Walla Walla State Penitentiary Intensive Security Unit
• 1982 – Four Iranian diplomats are abducted by Lebanese militia in Lebanon.
• 1987 – In France, former Gestapo chief Klaus Barbie (a.k.a. the "Butcher of Lyon") is convicted of crimes against humanity and sentenced to life imprisonment.
• 1994 – Rwandan Genocide: Kigali, the Rwandan capital, is captured by the Rwandan Patriotic Front, ending the genocide in the city.
• 1997 – NASA's Pathfinder space probe lands on the surface of Mars.
• 1998 – Japan launches the Nozomi probe to Mars, joining the United States and Russia as a space exploring nation.
• 2004 – The cornerstone of the Freedom Tower is laid on the site of the World Trade Center in New York City.
• 2005 – The Deep Impact collider hits the comet Tempel 1.
• 2009 – The Statue of Liberty's crown reopens to the public after eight years of closure due to security concerns following the September 11 attacks.
• 2012 – The discovery of particles consistent with the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider is announced at CERN.
• 2013 – The Death of Hung Chung-chiu: A Republic of China Army corporal dies under suspicious circumstances while serving a detention sentence during his enlisted service.

Births

• 68 – Salonina Matidia, Roman daughter of Ulpia Marciana (d. 119)
• 1330 – Ashikaga Yoshiakira, Japanese shogun (d. 1367)
• 1546 – Murad III, Ottoman sultan (d. 1595)
• 1694 – Louis-Claude Daquin, French organist and composer (d. 1772)
• 1715 – Christian Fürchtegott Gellert, German poet and academic (d. 1769)
• 1719 – Michel-Jean Sedaine, French playwright (d. 1797)
• 1790 – George Everest, Welsh surveyor and geographer (d. 1866)
• 1799 – Oscar I of Sweden (d. 1859)
• 1804 – Nathaniel Hawthorne, American author (d. 1864)
• 1807 – Giuseppe Garibaldi, Italian general and politician (d. 1882)
• 1816 – Hiram Walker, American businessman, founded Canadian club whiskey (d. 1899)
• 1826 – Stephen Foster, American songwriter (d. 1864)
• 1845 – Thomas John Barnardo, Irish philanthropist and humanitarian (d. 1905)
• 1847 – James Anthony Bailey, American circus ringmaster, co-founded Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (d. 1906)
• 1854 – Victor Babeș, Romanian physician and biologist (d. 1926)
• 1854 – Bill Tilghman, American police officer (d. 1924)
• 1867 – Stephen Mather, American businessman (d. 1930)
• 1868 – Henrietta Swan Leavitt, American astronomer and academic (d. 1921)
• 1868 – Johannes van Dijk, Dutch rower (d. 1938)
• 1872 – Calvin Coolidge, American lawyer and politician, 30th President of the United States (d. 1933)
• 1874 – John McPhee, Australian politician, 27th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1952)
• 1881 – Ulysses S. Grant III, American general (d. 1968)
• 1882 – Louis B. Mayer, Belarusian-American film producer, founded the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (d. 1957)
• 1883 – Rube Goldberg, American sculptor, cartoonist, and engineer (d. 1970)
• 1887 – Pio Pion, Italian businessman (d. 1965)
• 1888 – Henry Armetta, Italian-American actor and singer (d. 1945)
• 1895 – Irving Caesar, American songwriter and composer (d. 1996)
• 1896 – Mao Dun, Chinese journalist, author, and critic (d. 1981)
• 1897 – Alluri Sita Rama Raju, Indian activist (d. 1924)
• 1898 – Pilar Barbosa, Puerto Rican historian and activist (d. 1997)
• 1898 – Gertrude Lawrence, English-American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 1952)
• 1898 – Gertrude Weaver, American super-centenarian (d. 2015)
• 1902 – Meyer Lansky, Belarusian-American gangster (d. 1983)
• 1902 – George Murphy, American actor and politician (d. 1992)
• 1903 – Flor Peeters, Belgian organist, composer, and educator (d. 1986)
• 1904 – Angela Baddeley, English actress (d. 1976)
• 1905 – Irving Johnson, American sailor and author (d. 1991)
• 1905 – Lionel Trilling, American author, critic, and educator (d. 1975)
• 1907 – John Anderson, American discus thrower (d. 1948)
• 1910 – Robert K. Merton, American sociologist and scholar (d. 2003)
• 1910 – Gloria Stuart, American actress and singer (d. 2010)
• 1911 – Bruce Hamilton, Australian public servant (d. 1989)
• 1911 – Mitch Miller, American singer and producer (d. 2010)
• 1912 – Said Akl, Lebanese poet, playwright, and linguist (d. 2014)
• 1912 – Viviane Romance, French actress and producer (d. 1991)
• 1916 – Iva Toguri D'Aquino, American typist and broadcaster (d. 2006)
• 1917 – Manolete, Spanish bullfighter (d. 1947)
• 1918 – Eppie Lederer, American journalist (d. 2002)
• 1918 – Johnnie Parsons, American race car driver (d. 1984)
• 1918 – Pauline Phillips, American journalist and radio host, created Dear Abby (d. 2013)
• 1918 – Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV of Tonga (d. 2006)
• 1920 – Norm Drucker, American basketball player and referee
• 1920 – Leona Helmsley, American businesswoman (d. 2007)
• 1920 – Fritz Wilde, German footballer and manager (d. 1977)
• 1921 – Gérard Debreu, French economist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2004)
• 1921 – Metropolitan Mikhail of Asyut (d. 2014)
• 1921 – Philip Rose, American actor, playwright, and producer (d. 2011)
• 1921 – Tibor Varga, Hungarian violinist and conductor (d. 2003)
• 1923 – Rudolf Friedrich, Swiss lawyer and politician (d. 2013)
• 1924 – Eva Marie Saint, American actress and producer
• 1926 – Alfredo Di Stéfano, Argentinian-Spanish footballer and coach (d. 2014)
• 1927 – Gina Lollobrigida, Italian actress and photographer
• 1927 – Neil Simon, American playwright and screenwriter
• 1928 – Giampiero Boniperti, Italian footballer and politician
• 1928 – Shan Ratnam, Sri Lankan physician and academic (d. 2001)
• 1929 – Al Davis, American football player, coach, and manager (d. 2011)
• 1930 – Frunzik Mkrtchyan, Armenian actor (d. 1993)
• 1930 – George Steinbrenner, American businessman (d. 2010)
• 1930 – Yuri Tyukalov, Russian rower
• 1931 – Stephen Boyd, Irish-American actor (d. 1977)
• 1931 – Sébastien Japrisot, French author, director, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
• 1932 – Aurèle Vandendriessche, Belgian runner
• 1934 – Yvonne B. Miller, American politician (d. 2012)
• 1934 – Colin Welland, English actor and screenwriter
• 1935 – Paul Scoon, Grenadian politician, 2nd Governor-General of Grenada (d. 2013)
• 1936 – Zdzisława Donat, Polish soprano
• 1937 – Thomas Nagel, American philosopher and educator
• 1937 – Queen Sonja of Norway
• 1937 – Richard Rhodes, American journalist and historian
• 1938 – Steven Rose, English biologist and academic
• 1938 – Bill Withers, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1940 – Pat Stapleton, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1941 – Sam Farr, American politician
• 1941 – Sergio Oliva, Cuban-American bodybuilder (d. 2012)
• 1941 – Tomaž Šalamun, Croatian-Slovenian poet and academic (d. 2014)
• 1941 – Pavel Sedláček, Czech singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1942 – Hal Lanier, American baseball player, coach, and manager
• 1942 – Stefan Meller, French-Polish politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland (d. 2008)
• 1942 – Prince Michael of Kent
• 1943 – Conny Bauer, German trombonist
• 1943 – Adam Hart-Davis, English historian, author, and photographer
• 1943 – Geraldo Rivera, American lawyer, journalist, and author
• 1943 – Alan Wilson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Canned Heat) (d. 1970)
• 1944 – Jaimy Gordon, American author and academic
• 1944 – Ray Meagher, Australian actor
• 1945 – Andre Spitzer, Romanian-Israeli fencer and coach (d. 1972)
• 1946 – Margaret Delisle, Canadian politician
• 1946 – Ron Kovic, American author and activist
• 1946 – Michael Milken, American businessman and philanthropist
• 1948 – René Arnoux, French race car driver
• 1948 – Tommy Körberg, Swedish singer and actor
• 1950 – Philip Craven, English sports administrator
• 1950 – David Jensen, Canadian-English radio host
• 1951 – Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, American lawyer and politician, 6th Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
• 1951 – Vladimir Tismăneanu, Romanian-American political scientist, sociologist, and academic
• 1952 – Álvaro Uribe, Colombian lawyer and politician, 39th President of Colombia
• 1952 – John Waite, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Babys and Bad English)
• 1953 – Francis Maude, English politician, Minister for the Cabinet Office
• 1954 – Jim Beattie, American baseball player, coach, and manager
• 1957 – Rein Lang, Estonian politician and diplomat, 25th Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs
• 1957 – Chulabhorn Walailak Thai princess
• 1958 – Steve Hartman, American sportscaster
• 1958 – Kirk Pengilly, Australian singer and guitarist (INXS)
• 1959 – Victoria Abril, Spanish actress and singer
• 1960 – Sid Eudy, American wrestler and actor
• 1960 – Roland Ratzenberger, Austrian race car driver (d. 1994)
• 1960 – Mark Steel, English comedian, actor, and author
• 1960 – Barry Windham, American wrestler
• 1961 – Richard Garriott, English-American video game designer, created the Ultima series
• 1962 – Neil Morrissey, English actor and singer
• 1962 – Pam Shriver, American tennis player and sportscaster
• 1963 – Henri Leconte, French tennis player
• 1963 – Ute Lemper, German singer and actress
• 1963 – Laureano Márquez, Spanish-Venezuelan political scientist and journalist
• 1963 – William Ramallo, Bolivian footballer and coach
• 1963 – Michael Sweet, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Stryper and Boston)
• 1964 – Cle Kooiman, American soccer player and manager
• 1964 – Elie Saab, Lebanese fashion designer
• 1964 – Mark Slaughter, American singer-songwriter and producer (Slaughter and Vinnie Vincent Invasion)
• 1965 – Harvey Grant, American basketball player and coach
• 1966 – Minas Hantzidis, German-Greek footballer
• 1967 – Vinny Castilla, Mexican baseball player and manager
• 1968 – Ronni Ancona, Scottish actress, impressionist and screenwriter
• 1970 – Tony Vidmar, Australian footballer and manager
• 1971 – Koko, American gorilla
• 1971 – Ned Zelić, Australian footballer
• 1972 – Nina Badrić, Croatian singer-songwriter
• 1972 – Stephen Giles, Canadian canoe racer
• 1972 – William Goldsmith, American drummer (Sunny Day Real Estate, Foo Fighters, and The Fire Theft)
• 1972 – Mike Knuble, Canadian-American ice hockey player
• 1973 – Gackt, Japanese singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (Malice Mizer and Skin)
• 1973 – Michael Johnson, English-Jamaican footballer and manager
• 1973 – Elton Williams, Caribbean footballer
• 1973 – Anjelika Krylova, Russian ice dancer and coach
• 1973 – Jan Magnussen, Danish race car driver
• 1973 – Tony Popovic, Australian footballer and manager
• 1974 – Jill Craybas, American tennis player
• 1974 – La'Roi Glover, American football player and sportscaster
• 1974 – Adrian Griffin, American basketball player and coach
• 1974 – Vince Spadea, American tennis player
• 1976 – Daijiro Kato, Japanese motorcycle racer (d. 2003)
• 1976 – Yevgeniya Medvedeva, Russian skier
• 1977 – Orri Páll Dýrason, Icelandic drummer (Sigur Rós)
• 1977 – Jonas Kjellgren, Swedish singer, guitarist, and producer (Scar Symmetry, Centinex, Raubtier, and Carnal Forge)
• 1977 – Zoe Naylor, Australian actress, journalist, and producer
• 1977 – Jed Madela, Filipino singer
• 1978 – Vicky Kaya, Greek model and actress
• 1978 – Émile Mpenza, Belgian footballer
• 1978 – Becki Newton, American actress
• 1978 – Marcos Daniel, Brazilian tennis player
• 1978 – Andrea Gabriel, American actress
• 1978 – Stephen McNally, English singer-songwriter (BBMak)
• 1978 – Katia Zygouli, Greek model and actress
• 1979 – Siim Kabrits, Estonian politician
• 1979 – Josh McCown, American football player
• 1979 – Renny Vega, Venezuelan footballer
• 1979 – Dumas, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1979 – Kevin Thoms, American actor
• 1979 – Mark Twitchell, Canadian murderer
• 1980 – Carrie Keagan, American television host and actrees
• 1980 – Max Elliott Slade, American actor
• 1980 – Kwame Steede, Bermudan footballer
• 1981 – Dedé, Angolan footballer
• 1981 – Tahar Rahim, French actor
• 1981 – Will Smith, American football player
• 1981 – Adérito Waldemar Alves Carvalho, Angolan footballer
• 1981 – Francisco Cruceta, Dominican baseball player
• 1981 – Brock Berlin, American football player
• 1982 – Hannah Harper, American porn actress and director
• 1982 – Michael Sorrentino, American model and author
• 1983 – Melanie Fiona, Canadian singer-songwriter (X-Quisite)
• 1983 – Isabeli Fontana, Brazilian model and actress
• 1983 – Ben Jorgensen, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Armor for Sleep)
• 1983 – Andrew Mrotek, American drummer (The Academy Is...)
• 1983 – Amantle Montsho, Botswana sprinter
• 1983 – Miguel Ángel Muñoz, Spanish actor and singer
• 1983 – Miguel Pinto, Chilean footballer
• 1983 – Mattia Serafini, Italian footballer
• 1984 – Jin Akanishi, Japanese singer-songwriter and actor (KAT-TUN and Lands)
• 1984 – Gina Glocksen, American singer
• 1984 – Miguel Santos Soares, Timorese footballer
• 1985 – Rinalds Sirsniņš, Latvian basketball player
• 1985 – Kane Tenace, Australian footballer
• 1986 – Takahisa Masuda, Japanese singer and actor (NEWS and Tegomass)
• 1986 – Fanny Valette, French actress
• 1986 – Nguyen Ngoc Duy, Vietnamese footballer
• 1986 – Mía Taveras, Dominican model and actress
• 1987 – Wude Ayalew, Ethiopian runner
• 1987 – Guram Kashia, Georgian footballer
• 1988 – Angelique Boyer, French-Mexican actress and singer
• 1988 – Jada Stevens, American porn actress
• 1989 – Benjamin Büchel, English footballer
• 1989 – Yoon Doo-joon, South Korean singer, dancer, and actor (Beast)
• 1989 – Rodgers Kola, Zambian footballer
• 1990 – Jake Gardiner, American ice hockey player
• 1990 – David Kross, German actor
• 1990 – Kelsi Crain, American model
• 1990 – Alyssa Miller, American model
• 1990 – Richard Mpong, Ghanaian footballer
• 1990 – Ihar Yasinski, Belarusian footballer
• 1990 – Naoki Yamada, Japanese footballer
• 1991 – Ak Hafiy Tajuddin Rositi, Bruneian runner
• 1992 – Basim, Danish singer-songwriter
• 1992 – Nick Hissom, English model and singer
• 1993 – Tom Barkhuizen, English footballer
• 1997 – Jason Spevack, Canadian actor
• 1999 – Moa Kikuchi, Japanese singer and model (Babymetal and Sakura Gakuin)

Deaths

• 673 – Ecgberht of Kent
• 907 – Luitpold, Margrave of Bavaria
• 943 – Taejo of Goryeo (b. 877)
• 965 – Pope Benedict V
• 973 – Ulrich of Augsburg, German bishop (b. 890)
• 1187 – Raynald of Châtillon, French knight (b. 1125)
• 1541 – Pedro de Alvarado, Spanish general and explorer (b. 1495)
• 1546 – Hayreddin Barbarossa, Greek-Turkish admiral (b. 1478)
• 1551 – Gregory Cromwell, 1st Baron Cromwell, English politician (b. 1514)
• 1603 – Philippe de Monte, Flemish composer (b. 1521)
• 1623 – William Byrd, English composer (b. 1540)
• 1641 – Pedro Teixeira, Portuguese explorer
• 1648 – Antoine Daniel, French missionary and saint (b. 1601)
• 1742 – Luigi Guido Grandi, Italian monk, mathematician, and engineer (b. 1671)
• 1754 – Philippe Néricault Destouches, French playwright and author (b. 1680)
• 1761 – Samuel Richardson, English author and painter (b. 1689)
• 1780 – Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine (b. 1712)
• 1821 – Richard Cosway, English painter (b. 1742)
• 1826 – John Adams, American politician, 2nd President of the United States (b. 1735)
• 1826 – Thomas Jefferson, American lawyer, architect, and politician, 3rd President of the United States (b. 1743)
• 1831 – James Monroe, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 5th President of the United States (b. 1758)
• 1848 – François-René de Chateaubriand, French historian and politician (b. 1768)
• 1850 – William Kirby, English entomologist and author (b. 1759)
• 1854 – Karl Friedrich Eichhorn, German academic and jurist (b. 1781)
• 1857 – William L. Marcy, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 21st United States Secretary of State (b. 1786)
• 1881 – Johan Vilhelm Snellman, Finnish philosopher and politician (b. 1806)
• 1882 – Joseph Brackett, American composer (b. 1797)
• 1891 – Hannibal Hamlin, American politician, 15th Vice President of the United States (b. 1809)
• 1901 – Johannes Schmidt, German linguist and academic (b. 1843)
• 1902 – Vivekananda, Indian monk and saint (b. 1863)
• 1905 – Élisée Reclus, French geographer and author (b. 1830)
• 1910 – Melville Fuller, American jurist, 8th Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1833)
• 1910 – Giovanni Schiaparelli, Italian astronomer and historian (b. 1835)
• 1916 – Alan Seeger, American soldier poet (b. 1888)
• 1922 – Lothar von Richthofen, German lieutenant and pilot (b. 1894)
• 1926 – Pier Giorgio Frassati, Italian activist and saint (b. 1901)
• 1931 – Prince Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Aosta (b. 1869)
• 1931 – Buddie Petit, American cornet player (b. 1895)
• 1934 – Marie Curie, French-Polish physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1867)
• 1938 – Otto Bauer, Austrian philosopher and politician (b. 1881)
• 1938 – Suzanne Lenglen, French tennis player (b. 1899)
• 1941 – Antoni Łomnicki, Polish mathematician and academic (b. 1881)
• 1943 – Władysław Sikorski, Polish general and politician, 9th Prime Minister of the Second Republic of Poland (b. 1881)
• 1946 – Taffy O'Callaghan, Welsh footballer (b. 1906)
• 1946 – Gerda Steinhoff, German concentration camp overseer (b. 1922)
• 1948 – Monteiro Lobato, Brazilian journalist and author (b. 1882)
• 1949 – François Brandt, Dutch rower (b. 1874)
• 1963 – Bernard Freyberg, 1st Baron Freyberg, New Zealand general and politician, 7th Governor-General of New Zealand (b. 1889)
• 1963 – Pingali Venkayya, Indian activist, designed the Flag of India (b. 1876)
• 1964 – Gaby Morlay, French actress and singer (b. 1893)
• 1964 – Henry (Hank) Sylvern, American organist and composer (b. 1908)
• 1969 – Henri Decoin, French director and screenwriter (b. 1890)
• 1970 – Barnett Newman, American painter (b. 1905)
• 1970 – Harold Stirling Vanderbilt, American sailor and businessman (b. 1884)
• 1971 – August Derleth, American anthologist and author (b. 1909)
• 1971 – Thomas C. Hart, American admiral and politician (b. 1877)
• 1974 – Georgette Heyer, English author (b. 1902)
• 1974 – Haj Amin al-Husseini, Palestinian cleric (b. 1897)
• 1976 – Yonatan Netanyahu, Israeli colonel (b. 1946)
• 1976 – Antoni Słonimski, Polish poet and playwright (b. 1895)
• 1977 – Gersh Budker, Ukrainian physicist and academic (b. 1918)
• 1979 – Lee Wai Tong, Chinese footballer and manager (b. 1905)
• 1980 – Maurice Grevisse, Belgian linguist and author (b. 1895)
• 1982 – Terry Higgins, Welsh AIDS victim (b. 1945)
• 1986 – Flor Peeters, Belgian organist and composer (b. 1903)
• 1986 – Oscar Zariski, Belarusian-American mathematician and academic (b. 1899)
• 1988 – Adrian Adonis, American wrestler (b. 1954)
• 1991 – Victor Chang, Chinese-Australian surgeon (b. 1936)
• 1992 – Astor Piazzolla, Argentinian bandoneon player and composer (b. 1921)
• 1993 – Bona Arsenault, Canadian historian, genealogist, and politician (b. 1903)
• 1995 – Eva Gabor, Hungarian-American actress and singer (b. 1919)
• 1995 – Bob Ross, American painter and television host (b. 1942)
• 1997 – John Zachary Young, English zoologist and neurophysiologist (b. 1907)
• 1999 – Leo Garel, American illustrator (b. 1917)
• 2000 – Gustaw Herling-Grudziński, Polish journalist and author (b. 1919)
• 2001 – V. Appapillai, Sri Lankan physicist and academic (b. 1913)
• 2002 – Gerald Bales, Canadian organist and composer (b. 1919)
• 2002 – Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., American general (b. 1912)
• 2002 – Mansoor Hekmat, Iranian theorist (b. 1951)
• 2003 – André Claveau, French singer (b. 1915)
• 2003 – Barry White, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (b. 1944)
• 2004 – Jean-Marie Auberson, Swiss violinist and conductor (b. 1920)
• 2005 – Bryan Coleman, English actor (b. 1911)
• 2005 – Cliff Goupille, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1915)
• 2007 – Barış Akarsu, Turkish singer, guitarist, and actor (b. 1979)
• 2008 – Thomas M. Disch, American author and poet (b. 1940)
• 2008 – Jesse Helms, American journalist and politician (b. 1921)
• 2008 – Evelyn Keyes, American actress (b. 1916)
• 2008 – Charles Wheeler, German-English journalist (b. 1923)
• 2009 – Brenda Joyce, American actress (b. 1917)
• 2009 – Allen Klein, American businessman and talent agent, founded ABKCO Records (b. 1931)
• 2009 – Steve McNair, American football player (b. 1973)
• 2009 – Lasse Strömstedt, Swedish author and actor (b. 1935)
• 2009 – Jean-Baptiste Tati Loutard, Congolese poet and politician (b. 1938)
• 2010 – Robert Neil Butler, American physician and author (b. 1927)
• 2010 – Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, Iraqi-Lebanese cleric (b. 1935)
• 2011 – Otto von Habsburg, Austrian-Hungarian son of Charles I of Austria (b. 1912)
• 2012 – Hiren Bhattacharyya, Indian poet (b. 1932)
• 2012 – Jimmy Bivins, American boxer (b. 1919)
• 2012 – Jeong Min-hyeong, South Korean footballer (b. 1987)
• 2012 – Eric Sykes, English actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1923)
• 2013 – Jack Crompton, English footballer and manager (b. 1921)
• 2013 – James Fulton, American dermatologist and academic (b. 1940)
• 2013 – Bernie Nolan, Irish singer and actress (The Nolans) (b. 1960)
• 2014 – Giorgio Faletti, Italian author, screenwriter, and actor (b. 1950)
• 2014 – Richard Mellon Scaife, American businessman (b. 1932)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day:
  • Andrew of Crete
  • Bertha of Artois
  • Blessed Catherine Jarrige
  • Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati
  • Oda of Canterbury
  • Ulrich of Augsburg
  • July 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

• Independence Day, celebrates the Declaration of Independence of the United States from Great Britain in 1776. (United States and its dependencies)
• Liberation Day (Rwanda)
• Liberation Day (Northern Mariana Islands)
• Republic Day (Philippines)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to July 4.

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada