July 2nd. TODAY IN HISTORY

July 2 is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 182 days remaining until the end of the year.

This day is the midpoint of a common year because there are 182 days before and 182 days after (median of the year) in common years, and 183 before and 182 after in leap years. The exact time in the middle of the year is at noon, or 12:00 p.m. In the UK and other countries that use "Summer Time" the actual exact time of the midpoint in a common year is at 1:00 p.m. this is when 182 days and 12 hours have elapsed and there are 182 days and 12 hours remaining. This is due to Summer Time having advanced the time by one hour. It falls on the same day of the week as New Year's Day in common years.


437 – Emperor Valentinian III, begins his reign over the Western Roman Empire. His mother Galla Placidia ends her regency, but continues to exercise political influence at the court in Rome.

626 – Li Shimin, the future Emperor Taizong of Tang, Emperor of China, ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng in the Xuanwu Gate Incident.

706 – In China, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang inters the bodies of relatives in the Qianling Mausoleum, located on Mount Liang outside Chang'an.

963 – The imperial army proclaims Nicephorus Phocas Emperor of the Romans on the plains outside Cappadocian Caesarea.

1298 – The Battle of Göllheim is fought between Albert I of Habsburg and Adolf of Nassau-Weilburg.

1494 – The Treaty of Tordesillas is ratified by Spain.

1555 – The Ottoman Admiral Turgut Reis sacks the Italian city of Paola.

1561 – Menas, Emperor of Ethiopia, defeats a revolt in Emfraz.

1582 – Battle of Yamazaki: Toyotomi Hideyoshi defeats Akechi Mitsuhide.

1613 – The first English expedition from Massachusetts against Acadia led by Samuel Argall takes place.

1644 – English Civil War: Battle of Marston Moor.

1679 – Europeans first visit Minnesota and see headwaters of Mississippi in an expedition led by Daniel Greysolon de Du Luth.

1698 – Thomas Savery patents the first steam engine.

1776 – The Continental Congress adopts a resolution severing ties with the Kingdom of Great Britain although the wording of the formal Declaration of Independence is not approved until July 4.

1777 – Vermont becomes the first American territory to abolish slavery.

1823 – Bahia Independence Day: the end of Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia.

1839 – Twenty miles off the coast of Cuba, 53 rebelling African slaves led by Joseph Cinqué take over the slave ship Amistad.

1853 – The Russian Army crossed the Pruth river into the Danubian Principalities, Moldavia and Wallachia—providing the spark that set off the Crimean War.

1871 – Victor Emmanuel II of Italy enters Rome after having conquered it from the Papal States.

1881 – Charles J. Guiteau shoots and fatally wounds U.S. President James Garfield, who eventually dies from an infection on September 19.

1890 – The U.S. Congress passes the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

1897 – Italian scientist Guglielmo Marconi obtains a patent for radio in London.

1900 – The first Zeppelin flight takes place on Lake Constance near Friedrichshafen, Germany.

1917 – The East St. Louis Riots end.

1934 – The Night of the Long Knives ends with the death of Ernst Röhm.

1937 – Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan are last heard from over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to make the first equatorial round-the-world flight.

1940 – Indian independence leader Subhas Chandra Bose is arrested and detained in Calcutta.

1950 – The Golden Pavilion at Kinkaku-ji in Kyoto, Japan burns down.

1962 – The first Wal-Mart store opens for business in Rogers, Arkansas.

1964 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964 meant to prohibit segregation in public places.

1966 – The French military explodes a nuclear test bomb codenamed Aldébaran in Mururoa, their first nuclear test in the Pacific.

1976 – Fall of the Republic of Vietnam; Communist North Vietnam declares their union to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

1986 – Rodrigo Rojas and Carmen Gloria Quintana where burnt alive during a street demonstration against the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet in Chile.

1993 – 37 participants in an Alevi cultural and literary festival are killed when a mob of demonstrators set fire to their hotel in Sivas during a violent protest.

2000 – Vicente Fox Quesada is elected the first President of México from an opposition party, the Partido Acción Nacional, after more than 70 years of
continuous rule by the Partido Revolucionario Institucional.

2001 – The AbioCor self contained artificial heart is first implanted.

2002 – Steve Fossett becomes the first person to fly solo around the world nonstop in a balloon.

2010 – The South Kivu tank truck explosion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo kills at least 230 people.

Births

• 419 – Valentinian III, Roman Emperor (d. 455)
• 1262 – Arthur II, Duke of Brittany (d. 1312)
• 1363 – Maria, Queen of Sicily and Duchess of Athens (d. 1401)
• 1489 – Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1556)
• 1492 – Elizabeth Tudor, English princess (d. 1495)
• 1647 – Daniel Finch, 2nd Earl of Nottingham, English privy councilor (d. 1730)
• 1665 – Samuel Penhallow, English-born American colonist and historian (d. 1726)
• 1667 – Pietro Ottoboni, Italian cardinal (d. 1740)
• 1698 – Francesco III d'Este, Duke of Modena (d. 1780)
• 1714 – Christoph Willibald Gluck, German composer (d. 1787)
• 1724 – Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, German poet (d. 1803)
• 1819 – Charles-Louis Hanon, French composer (d. 1900)
• 1820 – George Law Curry, American newspaper publisher and 5th and 7th Governor of the Oregon Territory (d. 1878)
• 1821 – Charles Tupper, 6th Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1915)
• 1849 – Maria Theresa of Austria-Este, Czech-born Queen consort of Bavaria (d. 1919)
• 1862 – William Henry Bragg, English physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1942)
• 1865 – Lily Braun, German writer (d. 1916)
• 1876 – Wilhelm Cuno, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1933)
• 1877 – Hermann Hesse, German-born writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1962)
• 1881 – Royal H. Weller, American politician (d. 1929)
• 1884 – Alfons Maria Jakob, German neurologist (d. 1931)
• 1893 – Ralph Hancock, Welsh garden designer (Rockefeller Center) (d. 1950)
• 1896 – Lydia Mei, Estonian painter (d. 1965)
• 1900 – Tyrone Guthrie, English actor (d. 1971)
• 1903 – Alec Douglas-Home, 66th Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1995)
• 1903 – King Olav V of Norway (d. 1991)
• 1904 – René Lacoste, French tennis player and businessman (d. 1996)
• 1906 – Hans Bethe, German-born nuclear physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2005)
• 1906 – Christos Tsaganeas, Greek actor (d. 1976)
• 1908 – Thurgood Marshall, American Supreme Court Justice (d. 1993)
• 1914 – Frederick Fennell, American conductor (d. 2004)
• 1914 – Mário Schenberg, Brazilian physicist (d. 1990)
• 1915 – Arthur Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, Italy-born British peer
• 1916 – Ken Curtis, American actor and singer (d. 1991)
• 1916 – Hans-Ulrich Rudel, German combat pilot, the highest-decorated German soldier of WWII (d. 1982)
• 1917 – Murry Wilson, American songwriter and record producer (The Beach Boys) (d. 1973)
• 1918 – Wibo, Dutch cartoonist (d. 2005)
• 1919 – Jean Craighead George, American writer (d. 2012)
• 1923 – Wisława Szymborska, Polish poet, Nobel laureate (d. 2012)
• 1925 – Medgar Evers, American civil rights activist (d. 1963)
• 1925 – Patrice Lumumba, 1st democratically elected Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (d. 1961)
• 1926 – Octavian Paler, Romanian writer and journalist (d. 2007)
• 1927 – Brock Peters, American actor (d. 2005)
• 1929 – Imelda Marcos, Filipino First Lady, wife of Ferdinand Marcos
• 1929 – John A. Cade, American politician
• 1930 – Carlos Menem, Argentine politician, 50th President of Argentina
• 1932 – Dave Thomas, American fast food entrepreneur (Wendy's) (d. 2002)
• 1933 – Kenny Wharram, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1934 – Tom Springfield, British singer and songwriter (The Springfields)
• 1937 – Polly Holliday, American actress
• 1937 – Richard Petty, American race car driver
• 1939 – John H. Sununu, White House Chief of Staff under George HW Bush
• 1939 – Alexandros Panagoulis, Greek politician and poet
• 1939 – Paul Williams, American singer (The Temptations) (d. 1973)
• 1940 – Kenneth Clarke, British politician
• 1941 – Stéphane Venne, French-Canadian songwriter
• 1942 – Vicente Fox, Mexican politician, 35th President of Mexico
• 1943 – Walter Godefroot, Belgian cyclist
• 1946 – Richard Axel, American neuroscientist, Nobel laureate
• 1946 – Ron Silver, American actor (d. 2009)
• 1947 – Larry David, American television producer
• 1948 – Saul Rubinek, Canadian actor
• 1948 – Gene McFadden, American songwriter (d. 2006)
• 1949 – Roy Bittan, American keyboardist (E Street Band)
• 1949 – Greg Brown, American folk singer
• 1949 – Robert Paquette, French-Canadian singer and songwriter
• 1949 – Hanno Pöschl, Austrian actor
• 1951 – Elisabeth Brooks, Canadian actress (d. 1997)
• 1951 – Michele Santoro, Italian TV journalist
• 1952 – Johnny Colla, American guitarist and saxophonist (Huey Lewis and the News)
• 1953 – Tony Armas, Venezuelan baseball player
• 1953 – Mark Hart, American multi-instrumentalist (Crowded House, Supertramp)
• 1954 – Pete Briquette, Irish bassist (The Boomtown Rats)
• 1955 – Andrew Divoff, Venezuelan actor
• 1955 – Kevin Michael Grace, Canadian journalist
• 1956 – Jerry Hall, American actress
• 1957 – Bret "The Hitman" Hart, Canadian pro wrestler
• 1957 – Purvis Short, American basketball player
• 1958 – Dang Thai Son, Vietnamese classical pianist
• 1958 – Thomas Bickerton, American Methodist bishop
• 1959 – Mike Hallett, English snooker player
• 1960 – Terry Rossio, American screenwriter
• 1961 – Michael Lindsay, American voice actor
• 1961 – Samy Naceri, French actor
• 1963 – Mark Kermode, British film critic
• 1964 – José Canseco, Cuban-born American baseball player
• 1964 – Ozzie Canseco, Cuban-born American baseball player
• 1964 – Joe Magrane, American baseball player
• 1964 – Hisakatsu Oya, Japanese professional wrestler
• 1964 – Charles Robinson, American wrestling referee
• 1964 – Alan Tait, Scotland rugby player
• 1964 – Andrea Yates, American murderer
• 1965 – Norbert Röttgen, German politician
• 1969 – Matthew Cox, American convicted felon
• 1969 – Tim Rodber, England rugby player
• 1970 – Yancy Butler, American actress
• 1970 – Colin Edwin, Australian bassist (Porcupine Tree)
• 1970 – Scotty 2 Hotty, American professional wrestler
• 1970 – Monie Love, English rapper
• 1970 – Steve Morrow, Irish footballer
• 1971 – Troy Brown, American football player
• 1971 – Evelyn Lau, Canadian poet and novelist
• 1971 – Bryan Redpath, Scottish rugby player
• 1972 – Darren Shan, Irish children's author
• 1973 – Peter Kay, British comedian
• 1974 – Sean Casey, American baseball player
• 1974 – Tim Christensen, Danish singer and multi-instrumentalist (Dizzy Mizz Lizzy)
• 1974 – Rocky Gray, American drummer and guitarist (Evanescence, Living Sacrifice)
• 1974 – Matthew Reilly, Australian author
• 1974 – Moon So-ri, South Korean actress
• 1975 – Éric Dazé, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1975 – Erik Ohlsson, Swedish guitarist (Millencolin)
• 1975 – Stefan Terblanche, South African rugby player
• 1976 – Krisztián Lisztes, Hungarian footballer
• 1976 – Tomáš Vokoun, Czech ice hockey player
• 1978 – Julie Night, American pornographic actress
• 1978 – Jüri Ratas, Estonian politician
• 1978 – Owain Yeoman, Welsh Actor
• 1979 – Ahmed al-Ghamdi, Saudi hijacker of United Airlines Flight 175 (d. 2001)
• 1979 – Diana Gurtskaya, Georgian singer
• 1979 – Sam Hornish, Jr., American race car driver
• 1979 – Joe Thornton, Canadian hockey player
• 1980 – Nicole Briscoe, American beauty queen and sports commentator
• 1980 – Nyjer Morgan, American baseball player
• 1981 – Nathan Ellington, English soccer player
• 1981 – Alex Koroknay-Palicz, American youth rights activist
• 1981 – Angel Pagán, Puerto Rican baseball player
• 1981 – Carlos Rogers, American football player
• 1981 – Aaron Voros, Canadian hockey player
• 1983 – Michelle Branch, American singer (The Wreckers)
• 1983 – Sammy J, Australian comedian
• 1984 – Vanessa Lee Chester, American actress
• 1984 – Thomas Kortegaard, Danish footballer
• 1984 – Johnny Weir, American figure skater
• 1985 – Rhett Bomar, American football player
• 1985 – Corey Bringas, American actor
• 1985 – Chad Henne, American football player
• 1985 – Ashley Tisdale, American actress and singer
• 1985 – Jurgen Roelandts, Belgian cyclist
• 1986 – Brett Cecil, American baseball player
• 1986 – Lindsay Lohan, American actress
• 1987 – Ruslana Korshunova, Kazakh model (d. 2008)
• 1987 – Esteban Granero, Spanish footballer
• 1988 – Lee Chung-Yong, South Korean footballer
• 1989 – Alex Morgan, American soccer player
• 1989 – Dev, American singer and recording artist
• 1990 – Danny Rose, English footballer
• 1992 – Madison Chock, American ice dancer

Deaths

• 862 – Swithun, Anglo-Saxon Bishop of Winchester (b. 789)
• 1298 – King Adolf of Germany (b. 1220)
• 1504 – Prince Stephen III of Moldavia ("Ştefan cel Mare") (b. 1434)
• 1566 – Nostradamus, French astrologer (b. 1503)
• 1582 – Akechi Mitsuhide, Japanese samurai (b. 1528)
• 1591 – Vincenzo Galilei, Italian composer (b. 1520)
• 1621 – Thomas Harriot, English astronomer
• 1656 – François-Marie, comte de Broglie, Italian-born French commander (b. 1611)
• 1674 – Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (b. 1614)
• 1743 – Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington, 2nd Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1673)
• 1746 – Thomas Baker, English antiquarian (b. 1656)
• 1778 – Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Swiss philosopher (b. 1712)
• 1778 – Bathsheba Spooner, American murderer (b. 1746)
• 1822 – Denmark Vesey, St. Thomas-born American freed slave who planned a revolt, hanged (b. c. 1767)
• 1833 – Gervasio Antonio de Posadas, Argentine politician (b. 1757)
• 1843 – Samuel Hahnemann, German physician (b. 1755)
• 1850 – Robert Peel, British politician, 28th and 30th Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1788)
• 1857 – Carlo Pisacane, Italian patriot (b. 1818)
• 1903 – Ed Delahanty, American Hall of Fame baseball player (b. 1867)
• 1912 – Tom Richardson, English cricketer (b. 1870)
• 1914 – Joseph Chamberlain, British politician and businessman, father of Neville Chamberlain (b. 1836)
• 1915 – Porfirio Díaz, Mexican general and politician, 19th, 21st and 23rd President of Mexico (b. 1830)
• 1920 – William Louis Marshall, American general and engineer (b. 1846)
• 1926 – Émile Coué, French psychologist (b. 1857)
• 1929 – Gladys Brockwell, American actress (b. 1893)
• 1932 – King Manuel II of Portugal (b. 1889)
• 1934 – Ernst Röhm, German Nazi official (b. 1887)
• 1955 – Edward Lawson, Scottish soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1873)
• 1961 – Ernest Hemingway, American writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1899)
• 1964 – Edward Glenn "Fireball" Roberts, American race car driver (b. 1929)
• 1966 – Jan Brzechwa, Polish poet (b. 1900)
• 1969 – Michael DiBiase, American pro wrestler (b. 1923)
• 1972 – Joseph Fielding Smith, American religious figure, 10th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1876)
• 1973 – Betty Grable, American actress (b. 1916)
• 1973 – Chick Hafey, American baseball player (b. 1903)
• 1973 – George McBride, American baseball player (b. 1880)
• 1973 – Ferdinand Schörner, German field marshal (b. 1892)
• 1975 – James Robertson Justice, British actor (b. 1907)
• 1977 – Vladimir Nabokov, Russian-born writer (b. 1899)
• 1978 – Aris Alexandrou, Greek novelist, poet and translator (b. 1922)
• 1984 – Paul Dozois, Quebec politician (b. 1908)
• 1985 – David Purley, British Formula 1 driver (b. 1945)
• 1986 – Peanuts Lowrey, American baseball player (b. 1917)
• 1989 – Franklin Schaffner, American film director (b. 1920)
• 1989 – Andrei Gromyko, Soviet politician (b. 1909)
• 1990 – Snooky Lanson, American singer (b. 1914)
• 1991 – Lee Remick, American actress (b. 1935)
• 1992 – Camarón de la Isla, Spanish flamenco singer (b. 1950)
• 1993 – Fred Gwynne, American actor (b. 1926)
• 1994 – Andrés Escobar, Colombian footballer (b. 1967)
• 1995 – Krissy Taylor, American model (b. 1978)
• 1997 – James Stewart, American actor (b. 1908)
• 1999 – Mario Puzo, American writer (b. 1920)
• 2000 – Joey Dunlop, Irish motorcycle racer (b. 1952)
• 2002 – Ray Brown, American jazz bassist (b. 1926)
• 2004 – Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, Portuguese writer (b. 1919)
• 2004 – John Cullen Murphy, American comic strip artist (b. 1919)
• 2004 – Mochtar Lubis, Indonesian journalist and novelist (b. 1922)
• 2005 – Ernest Lehman, American screenwriter (b. 1915)
• 2005 – Norm Prescott, American animation producer (b. 1927)
• 2006 – Jan Murray, American comedian (b. 1916)
• 2007 – Beverly Sills, American operatic soprano (b. 1929)
• 2008 – Natasha Shneider, Russian keyboardist and bassist (Eleven) (b. 1956)
• 2008 – Elizabeth Spriggs, English actress (b. 1929)
• 2010 – Beryl Bainbridge, English author (b. 1932)
• 2011 – Itamar Franco, Brazilian politician (b. 1930)