July 23 - This Day in History

 

Once again, it should be reiterated, that this does not pretend to be a very extensive history of what happened on this day (nor is it the most original - the links can be found down below). If you know something that I am missing, by all means, shoot me an email or leave a comment, and let me know!

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

Arabs gained control of most of Palestine from the Byzantine Empire on this date in history in 636. Crusaders attacked Damascus on this day in 1148. The first lighthouse in the United States was authorized for construction on this day. Napoleon captured Alexandria, Egypt. Ulysses S. Grant died on this day. The Austro-Hungarian Empire issued an ultimatum to Serbia, in the major action that would eventually snowball to the outbreak of the Great War, or World War I. This was the anniversary of the German bombing of London, and later, of Hitler's Directive #45 - to occupy Stalingrad - an order that the German Army was not able to fulfill, and that would prove to be the major turning point of the war against the Germans. This was an important, if shameful, day in the history of Marshal Henri Pétain, who was sent to trial on this date for treason in 1945, and later died on this same date in 1951. A bloodless coup by the military precipitated a revolution in Egypt. South African union leader Billy Nair was arrested on this day in 1990, while reform was allegedly underway in South Africa.

Here's a more detailed look at events that transpired on this date throughout history:

• Arabs gained control of most of Palestine from the Byzantine Empire on this date in history in 636. 

• 685 - John V begins his reign as Catholic Pope. 

• Also on this day in 1148, Crusaders attacked Damascus in Syria. 

• Frederik II crowns himself Roman Catholic king on this day in 1215. 

• On this day in 1253, Jews were expelled from Vienne, France, by order of Pope Innocent III. 

• It was on this day in 1298 that the Rindfleisch Persecutions took place, when a Jewish community in Wurzburg Germany, was massacred. 

• The Battle of Shrewsbury, fought between the Percys against King Henry IV, took place on this day in 1403. 

• On this day in 1431, G Cesarini opened the Counsel of Basel (Ferrara/Florence). 

• The Battle at Gavere, where Philip the Good defeated the Gentse rebellion, took place on this day in 1453. 

• In 1532, Karel I & the evangelical monarchy signed the Peace of Neurenberg on this date. 

• On this day in 1540, the Ottoman Empire recognized Janos Sigismund Zapolyai as vassal-king of Hungary. 

• The Battle at Grevelingen took place o this day in 1558, when General and Earl Lamoraal van Egmont defeated France on this day. 

• 1572 - Willem van Oranges troops occupy Roermond on the Spanjaarden 

• 1594 - Groningen surrenders to earl Mauritius/Willem Louis

• Caravaggio's first public commission for paintings fell on this day in 1599. 

• On this day in 1632, three hundred colonists left Dieppe, France, heading for New France (Canada). 

• On this day in 1645, Aleksei Mihailovitch Romanov succeeded his father Michael as Czar of Russia. 

• Four British ships arrived at Boston on this day in 1664 to force the Dutch out of New York. 

• The first lighthouse in the United States was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts, on this day in 1715. 

 

Benjamin Franklin National Memorial in the rotunda of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, PA. This statue was sculpted by James Earle Fraser between 1932 and 1938, and it was dedicated in 1938.

Altered picture that I took of the Benjamin Franklin Memorial in Philadelphia some years ago. 

• In 1726 on this day, Benjamin Franklin sailed back to Philadelphia. 

• Charles Stuart, the Younger, landed at Eriskay Island, Hebrides, on this day in 1745.

• In 1764 on this day, James Otis published views on taxation without representation. 

• The Prussians conquered Mayence on this day in 1793. 

• Roger Sherman, one of the Founding Fathers, died on this day in 1793:

July 23, 1793: Connecticut Patriot Roger Sherman dies

On this day in 1793, Roger Sherman, a Connecticut Patriot and member of the Committee of Five selected to draft the Declaration of Independence, dies of typhoid in New Haven, Connecticut, at age 72. Sherman alone among the Patriots of the American Revolution signed all four documents gradually assigning sovereignty to the new United States: the Continental Association of 1774, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution. Thomas Jefferson credited Sherman with having never said a foolish thing in his life.  

Although Sherman was a self-educated shoemaker, raised on the western frontier of Massachusetts, he would eventually distinguish himself as a surveyor and astronomer; join the Bar of Litchfield, Connecticut; and serve as both a professor of religion and treasurer of Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut. He served in numerous elective and judicial offices, including in the Second Continental Congress, in the Connecticut General Assembly, and as justice of the peace, justice of the Superior Court of Connecticut and a representative in the first United States Congress. Sherman was the mayor of New Haven and a member of the United States Senate at the time of his death. Sherman was as prolific in his personal life as he was in his political career. He had seven children with his first wife, Elizabeth Hartwell, and eight more with his second wife, Rebecca Minot Prescott.  

Sherman was buried near the Yale campus. He is remembered with a statue at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia and a street named in his honor in Madison, Wisconsin.

French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte

• Napoleon captured Alexandria, Egypt, on this day in 1798. 

• Robert Emmett led a rebellion in Dublin, Ireland, on this day in 1803. 

• The Battle of Mogilev between Czar Alexander I of Russia and Napoleon Bonaparte's Grande Armée of the Republic of France took place on this day in 1812 in the early stages of Napolean's invasion of Russia. 

• 1827 - The first swimming school in the U.S. opened in Boston, MA. 

• It was on this day in 1829 that William Burt patented the typographer, which was essentially the first typewriter. 

• 1833 - Cornerstones are laid for the construction of the Kirtland Temple in Kirtland, Ohio.

British Botanist Charles Darwin

• On this day in 1834 the HMS Beagle, which of course was part of the journey where young Charles Darwin would develop his theories on the evolution of species, anchored in Bay of Valparaiso in Chile. 

• The Union Act was passed by British Parliament on this day in 1840, uniting Upper & Lower Canada. 

On this day in 1848, the Battle of Custoza in  the Italian War of Independence began. 

1850 - 17th Postmaster General: Nathan K Hall of NY takes office

In 1851 on this day, the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux was signed between Sioux Indians and the United States. 

1852 - 1st interment in US National Cemetery at Presidio

The Jewish Disabilities Removal Act was passed by the British Parliament on this day in 1858. 

1863 - Alexandra Park opens in North London

A statue in Flemington, New Jersey, honoring veterans of the American Civil War.

• In 1864 on this day during the American Civil War, the Battle of Woodstock, Virginia took place. 

Painting of Napoleon III, which hangs in the Napoleon III Apartment in the Louvre Museum, Paris, France. 

• On this day in 1870, Emperor Napoleon III appointed the Empress Eugenie as Regent of France. 

Aires de Ornelas e Vasconcelos was appointed as the Archbishop of the Portuguese colonial enclave of Goa.on this day in 1874. 

The first telephone & telegraph line in Hawaii completed on this day in 1877. 

1877 - The first municipal railroad passenger service began in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

On this day in 1880, the first commercial hydroelectric power planet was started in Grand Rapids, Michigan. 

Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United States, died on this day in 1885 at Mount McGregor, N.Y., at the age of 63. 

1886 - Steve Brodie, a New York saloonkeeper, claimed to have made a daredevil plunge from the Brooklyn Bridge into the East River.  

1888 - John Boyd Dunlop, applies to patent pneumatic tire

On this day in 1900, the Pan-African Congress met in London. 

In 1903 on this day, the Ford Motor Company sold it's first Model A car. 

Here's a good one for these hot summer days: the ice cream cone was invented by Charles E. Menches on this day in 1904 during the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, Missouri. 

There were pogroms against Jews in Odessa on this day in 1906. 

On this day in 1913, Arabs attacked the Jewish community of Rechovot in Palestine. 

• On this day in 1914, shortly after the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand by a Serbian assassin, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia. This was one of the major actions that ultimately led to the outbreak of World War I. 

July 23, 1914: Austria-Hungary issues ultimatum to Serbia     

At six o'clock in the evening on July 23, 1914, nearly one month after the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife by a young Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Bosnia, Baron Giesl von Gieslingen, ambassador of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to Serbia, delivers an ultimatum to the Serbian foreign ministry. 

Acting with the full support of its allies in Berlin, Austria-Hungary had determined in the aftermath of Franz Ferdinand's assassination to pursue a hard-line policy towards Serbia. Their plan, developed in coordination with the German foreign office, was to force a military conflict that would, Vienna hoped, end quickly and decisively with a crushing Austrian victory before the rest of Europe—namely, Serbia's powerful ally, Russia—had time to react. As the German ambassador to Vienna reported to his government on July 14, the [note] to Serbia is being composed so that the possibility of its being accepted is practically excluded.  

According to the terms of the ultimatum delivered on July 23, the Serbian government would have to accept an Austro-Hungarian inquiry into the assassination, notwithstanding its claim that it was already conducting its own internal investigation. Serbia was also to suppress all anti-Austrian propaganda and to take steps to root out and eliminate terrorist organizations within its borders—one such organization, the Black Hand, was believed to have aided and abetted the archduke's killer, Gavrilo Princip, and his cohorts, providing weapons and safe passage from Belgrade to Sarajevo. The Dual Monarchy demanded an answer to the note within 48 hours—by that time, however, anticipating Serbian defiance, Gieslingen had already packed his bags and prepared to leave the embassy.  

While the world waited for Serbia's response, Germany worked diplomatically to contain the effects of the ultimatum, but none of the other great powers, with reason, were inclined to see Austria-Hungary, with its relatively weak military, as acting alone. By 1914, the battle lines had been drawn in Europe: if Germany stood with Austria-Hungary against Serbia (and by extension, Russia) then Russia's allies, France and Britain, would be likely to step into the fray as well.  

The British cabinet, just after receiving the news of the Austrian note to Serbia, held a meeting in London, one that had previously been devoted to discussing Ireland's desire for independence. This note, as Winston Churchill famously wrote, was clearly an ultimatum, but it was an ultimatum such as had never been penned in modern times. As the reading proceeded it seemed absolutely impossible that any State in the world could accept it, or that any acceptance, however abject, would satisfy the aggressor. The parishes of Fermanagh and Tyrone faded back into the mists and squalls of Ireland, and a strange light beganto fall upon the map of Europe.  

On receipt of the ultimatum, Serbia at once appealed to Russia, whose council of ministers met on July 24 to determine a course of action. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Sazonov voiced his belief that Germany was using the crisis over the archduke's death as a pretext for starting a preventive war to defend its interests in the region. Defying Austro-German expectations that Russia would back down in the case of such a conflict, the council agreed to order four military districts to prepare for mobilization.  

Meanwhile, in Belgrade on the afternoon of July 25, convinced that Austria-Hungary was preparing for a fight, Serbian Prime Minister Nicola Pasic ordered the Serbian army to mobilize. Pasic himself delivered the Serbian answer to the ultimatum to Gieslingen at the Austrian embassy, just before the 6 p.m. deadline. Serbia's response effectively accepted all terms of the ultimatum but one: it would not accept Austria-Hungary's participation in any internal inquiry, stating that this would be a violation of the Constitution and of the law of criminal procedure. This response did much to appeal Pasic and his country to international observers of the conflict; to Vienna, however, it made little difference. Gieslingen, bags packed and car waiting to drive him to the railroad station, broke the Dual Monarchy's diplomatic relations with Serbia and left to catch his train. Three days later, on July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, beginning the First World War.  

1917 - Cleveland Metropolitan Park District established

Flag of Kenya

• British East Africa was renamed Kenya on this day in 1920 & became a British crown colony. 

• The Chinese Communist Party formed on this day in 1921 under Henk Sneevliet. 

• 1926 - Belgian NMBS/SNCFB forms

• On this day in 1926 in France, the government of Poincaré was formed. 

• In 1929 on this day, the Fascist government of Italy banned the use of foreign words. 

• In 1930 on this day, an earthquake struck in Ariano Italy, with 1,500 ultimately killed. 

• 1931 - Ashmore & Cartier Is in Indian Ocean transferred to Australia 

• 1931 - France announces they can't afford to send a team to 1932 LA olympics 

• 1935 - Airplane crashes into the Empire State Building 

• 1936 - Anthony M Kennedy, Sacramento CA, Supreme Court Justice 

• 1937 - Isolation of pituitary hormone announced (Yale University)

• In science new, on this day in 1937, the isolation of pituitary hormone was announced at Yale University. 

• This was a busy day during World War II in 1942. This marks the anniversary of the German bombing of London during an all night "Blitz" air raid by German bombers. On this same day, the Germans conquered Rostow. Also on this day in 1942, Hitler's Directive #45, also known as Operation Edelweiss, an order for German troops to occupy Stalingrad, was issued. Ultimately, however, the German Army was not able to satisfy this order by Hitler, and that would prove to be the major turning point of the war against the Germans. Finally on this day in 1942, the Treblinka Concentration Camp was destroyed. 

This say is the anniversary of Battle of Koersk in 1943, when Soviets forces defeated Nazi Germany defeat (6,000 tanks). On that same day, the US 45th Infantry division occupied the north coast of Termini. 

• On this day in 1944, the Conference of Bretton Woods was signed; and the IMF operations began. This day in history was a busy one in 1944 during World War II. The Soviet Army marched into Lublin, Poland. 

• Also on this day in 1944, American forces invaded Japanese-held Tinian in the Pacific, and occupied Pisa, Italy in Europe. 

1945 - The first passenger train observation car was placed in service by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. 

• On this day in 1945, the former World War I hero turned disgraced French collaborationist dictator of the Vichy government Marshal Henri Pétain went on trial. He would be given a life sentence. Interestingly, Pétain also died on this day in 1951 at the age of 95 and regarded as a disgrace (a bit more on this shortly). 

On this day in 1946, Menachem Begins opposition group bombed King David Hotel. 

1947 - 1st (US Navy) air squadron of jets, Quonset Point, RI

Image of Henri Philippe Bénoni Omer Joseph Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), better known as Marshal Pétain, who was regarded as a hero after commanding the French Army during World War I, but later disgraced himself as the head of the collaborationist Vichy France regime, which he was the leader of from 1940 to 1944, during the German occupation of France of World War II.

• On this day in 1951 Marshal Henri Pétain, the former World War I hero turned disgraced French collaborationist dictator during the dark days of the Vichy occupation regime, died in Île d'Yeu, France, at the age of 95.

July 23, 1951: Petain, leader of the Vichy government, dies

On this day in 1951, General Henri-Philippe Petain, French national hero of World War I, who was convicted of collaboration with the German occupiers of his country during World War II and sentenced to life in prison, dies. He is 95.  

A graduate of Saint-Cyr Military Academy, Petain served as a second lieutenant in the Alpine regiment, where he developed a reputation for camaraderie with the average foot soldier. He then went on to a controversial teaching career at the War College, where he propounded theories that were in direct conflict with commonly held ideas, especially his contention that a strong defense was the key to victory, not the "always be on the attack" strategy common to the French military at the time.  

During World War I, General Petain distinguished himself at the Battle of Verdun, during which he successfully repulsed German attacks on the fortress city. He was an inspiration to his troops and successfully squelched near mutinies within the army after disastrous offensives led by General Robert-Georges Nivelle. Petain regained the confidence—and loyalty—of those soldiers when he was named Nivelle's successor, improving their living conditions and initiating open communication between command and troops.  

After the outbreak of World War II, Petain was named vice premier by Premier Paul Reynaud. As Germany began to overrun more French territory, the French Cabinet became desperate. Reynaud continued to hold out hope, refusing to ask for an armistice, especially now that France had received assurance from Britain that the two would fight as one, and that Britain would continue to fight the Germans even if France were completely overtaken. But others in the government were despondent and wanted to sue for peace. Reynaud resigned in protest. Petain then formed a new government and asked the Germans for an armistice—in effect, surrendering. The man who had become a legendary war hero for successfully fighting off a German attack on French soil was now surrendering to Hitler.  

In the city of Vichy, the French Senate and Chamber of Deputies conferred on the 84-year-old general the title of "Chief of State," making him a virtual dictator—although one controlled by Berlin. Petain believed that he could negotiate a better deal for his country—for example, obtaining the release of prisoners of war—by cooperating, or, as some would say, appeasing, the Germans.  

When Paris was finally liberated by General Charles de Gaulle in 1944, Petain fled to Germany. He was brought back after the war to stand trial for his double-dealing ways. He was sentenced to death, which was then commuted to life in solitary confinement. He died at 95 in a prison fortress. Ironically, the man responsible for saving his life was De Gaulle. He and Petain had fought in the same unit in World War I. Petain's bravery during that world war had not been forgotten.

There was a bloodless coup in Egypt on this day in 1952, as revolution broke out in Egypt, with the military taking power. The next year, the monarchy was overthrown and abolished, with the day turning into a holiday (National Day). For the first time since the days of pharaohs, Egypt was again ruled by Egyptians. Egyptian military officers led by Gamal Abdel Nasser overthrew King Farouk I. General Neguib seized power, Monarchy overthrown in Egypt (Natl Day). 

1954 - A law is passed that states that "The Secretary of the Navy is authorized to repair, equip, and restore the United States Ship Constitution, as far as may be practicable, to her original appearance, but not for active service, and thereafter to maintain the United States Ship Constitution at Boston, Massachusetts." 

On this day in 1956, the Bell X-2 rocket plane set a new world aircraft speed record of 3,050 kph. 

Also on this day in 1956, the Loi Cadre was passed by the French Republic in order to govern French overseas territory affairs. 

In 1958 on this day, the first four women were named to peerage in the House of Lords in the United Kingdom. 

In 1958 on this day, the submarine Nautilus took off from Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, with orders to conduct "Operation Sunshine." This mission made this the first vessel to cross the North Pole by ship. The Nautilus achieved the goal on August 3, 1958. 

• On this day in 1959, American Vice-President Richard Nixon began his visit of the USSR. 

• It was on this day in 1962 that the International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos is signed. 

1962 - The "Telstar" communications satellite sent the first live TV broadcast to Europe.  

1962 - The International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos is signed.

• On this day in 1964, the Egyptian munition ship "Star of Alexandria" exploded at dockside in Bone, Algeria, killing 100 and injuring 160 more, with $20 million of damage. 

        

    

The Beatles released the album "Help" in the UK on this day in 1965. Also in Beatles news, the Cavern Club in Liverpool reopened on this day in 1966. 

• It was on this day in 1966 that Napoleon XIV released "They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha! Ha!" 

• There was a major race riot in Detroit on this day in 1967, with 43 dying and over 2,000 injured, and with 442 fires overall. 

On this day in 1968 came the first hijacking by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)  of an El Al plane. 

In 1968 on this day, there was a race riot in Cleveland, with 11 overall killed, including three police officers. 

• On this day in 1970, Qaboos ibn Sa'id became the Sultan of Oman after overthrowing his father, Sa'id ibn Taimur. 

In 1972 on this day, the U.S. launched Landsat 1 (ERTS-1), which proved to be the first Earth-resources satellite. 

On this day in 1973, an Ozark AL plane knocked out of air by lightning, St Louis-36 die. 

1973 - Qaboos bin Said Al Said, becomes Sultan & Prime Minister of Oman

• On this day in 1973, President Richard Nixon refused to release Watergate tapes of conversations in the White House relevant to the Watergate investigation. 

• In 1974 on this day, the Greek military dictatorship collapsed. 

In 1976 on this day, Wings released "Let 'em In." 

1977 - Washington jury convicts 12 Hanafi Moslems on hostage charges

The Israeli government rejected Sadat's call for return of 2 Sinai areas on this day in 1978, 

On this day in  1980, Billy Carter (American President Jimmy Carter's brother) admitted to being paid by Libya. 

American President Jimmy Carter

• In 1980 on this day, President Jimmy Carter designated the River of No Return Wilderness Area. 

Also on this day in 1980, the Soyuz 37 ferried a couple of cosmonauts (ione was Vietnamese) to Salyut 6. 

In 1982 on this day, the FCC approved AM stereo radio, KTSA San Antonio goes stereo. 

On this day in 1982, the International Whaling Commission voted for a total ban on commercial whaling, which began in 1985. 

1983 - Gimli Glider: Air Canada Flight 143 runs out of fuel and makes a deadstick landing at Gimli, Manitoba.

In 1986 on this day, King Hassan II met with Israeli premier Simon Peres. 

On this day in 1989, perhaps foreshadowing things to come, FOX-TV topped ABC, NBC & CBS for the first time (America's Most Wanted). 

Flag of South Africa during the apartheid era

In South Africa, worker's union leader Billy Nair was arrested on this day in 1990, even though that country was supposed to be in the process of reform after President FW DeKlerk had announced that apartheid had failed and would be terminated earlier in the year. 

Flag of Ethiopia

The Lion of Judah Emblem of the Ethiopian Empire

On this day in 1992 was the funeral for Ethiopia's Emperor Haile Selassie, [Ras Tafari Makonnen]. 

On this day in 1993, there was a crash of a B737 crash at Yinchuan, China, with at least 66 killed. 

In 1994 on this day, Space shuttle STS-65: Columbia 17, landed after a record of 14 days 55 minutes. 

On this day in  1995, the Hale-Bopp comet was discovered by Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp. It became visible to the naked eye one year later. 

Serbian Slobodan Milosevic was sworn in as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia on this day in 1997. 

On this day in 1998, American scientists at the University of Hawaii turned out more than 50 "carbon-copy" mice, with a cloning technique. 

Crown Prince Mohammed Ben Al-Hassan was crowned King Mohammed VI of Morocco on the death of his father on this day in 1999. 

Also on this day in 1999, ANA Flight 61 was hijacked in Tokyo, Japan. 

Three bombs exploded in the Naama Bay area of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on this day in 2005, killing 88 people. 

Cape Verde joined the World Trade Organization on this day in 2008, becoming its 153rd member of the global organization. 

On this day in 2012, there were a series of attacks across Iraq, ultimately killing 103 people.

The following links are to web sites that were used to complete this blog entry:

http://www.historyorb.com/today/events.php

http://on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/jul23.htm

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory