From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
June 26 is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 188 days remaining until the end of the year.
[edit] Events
- 221 – Roman Emperor Elagabalus adopts his cousin Alexander Severus as his heir and receives the title of Caesar.
- 363 – Roman Emperor Julian is killed during the retreat from the Sassanid Empire. General Jovian is proclaimed Emperor by the troops on the battlefield.
- 1284 – the legendary Pied Piper leads 130 children out of Hamelin, Germany
- 1409 – Western Schism: the Roman Catholic church is led into a double schism as Petros Philargos is crowned Pope Alexander V after the Council of Pisa, joining Pope Gregory XII in Rome and Pope Benedict XII in Avignon.
- 1541 – Francisco Pizarro is assassinated in Lima by the son of his former companion and later antagonist, Diego Almagro the younger. Almagro is later caught and executed.
- 1718 – Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich of Russia, Peter the Great's son, mysteriously dies after being sentenced to death by his father for plotting against him.
- 1723 – After a siege and bombardment by cannon, Baku surrenders to the Russians.
- 1848 – End of the June Days Uprising in Paris.
- 1857 – The first investiture of the Victoria Cross in Hyde Park, London.
- 1870 – The Christian holiday of Christmas is declared a federal holiday in the United States.
- 1886 – Henri Moissan isolated elemental Fluorine for the first time.
- 1907 – The 1907 Tiflis bank robbery took place in Yerevan Square, now Freedom Square, Tbilisi.
- 1909 – The Science Museum in London comes into existence as an independent entity.
- 1917 – The first U.S. troops arrive in France to fight alongside Britain and France against Germany in World War I.
- 1918 – World War I, Western Front: Battle for Belleau Wood – Allied Forces under John J. Pershing and James Harbord defeat Imperial German Forces under Wilhelm, German Crown Prince.
- 1924 – American occupying forces leave the Dominican Republic.
- 1927 – The Cyclone roller coaster opens on Coney Island.
- 1934 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Federal Credit Union Act, which establishes credit unions.
- 1936 – Initial flight of the Focke-Wulf Fw 61, the first practical helicopter.
- 1940 – World War II: under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Soviet Union presents an ultimatum to Romania requiring it to cede Bessarabia and the northern part of Bukovina.
- 1941 – World War II: Soviet planes bomb Kassa, Hungary (now Košice, Slovakia), giving Hungary the impetus to declare war the next day.
- 1942 – The first flight of the Grumman F6F Hellcat.
- 1945 – The United Nations Charter is signed in San Francisco.
- 1948 – The Western allies begin an airlift to Berlin after the Soviet Union blockades West Berlin.
- 1948 – William Shockley files the original patent for the grown junction transistor, the first bipolar junction transistor.
- 1948 – Shirley Jackson's short story The Lottery is published in The New Yorker magazine.
- 1952 – The Pan-Malayan Labour Party is founded in Malaya, as a union of statewise labour parties.
- 1953 – Lavrentiy Beria,head of MVD, is arrested by Nikita Khrushchev and other members of the Politburo.
- 1955 – The South African Congress Alliance adopts the Freedom Charter at the Congress of the People in Kliptown.
- 1959 – The Saint Lawrence Seaway opens, opening North America's Great Lakes to ocean-going ships.
- 1960 – The former British Protectorate of British Somaliland gains its independence as Somaliland.
- 1960 – Madagascar gains its independence from France.
- 1973 – At Plesetsk Cosmodrome 9 people are killed in an explosion of a Cosmos 3-M rocket.
- 1974 – The Universal Product Code is scanned for the first time to sell a package of Wrigley's chewing gum at the Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio
- 1975 – Two FBI agents and a member of the American Indian Movement are killed in a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota; Leonard Peltier is later convicted of the murders in a controversial trial.
- 1977 – The Yorkshire Ripper kills 16 year old shop assistant Jayne MacDonald in Leeds, changing public perception of the killer as she is the first victim who is not a prostitute.
- 1978 – Air Canada Flight 189 to Toronto overruns the runway and crashes into the Etobicoke Creek ravine. Two of 107 passengers on board perish.
- 1991 – Ten-Day War: the Yugoslav people's army begins the Ten-Day War in Slovenia.
- 1995 – Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani deposes his father Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar, in a bloodless coup.
- 1996 – Irish Journalist Veronica Guerin is shot in her car while in traffic in the outskirts of Dublin
- 1997 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules that the Communications Decency Act violates the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.
- 2003 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Lawrence v. Texas that gender-based sodomy laws are unconstitutional.
- 2006 – Mari Alkatiri, the first Prime Minister of East Timor, resigns after weeks of political unrest.
- 2008 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in District of Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects an individual right, and that the District of Columbia handgun ban is unconstitutional.
[edit] Births
- 1575 – Anne Catherine of Brandenburg, queen of Denmark and Norway (d. 1612)
- 1681 – Hedwig Sophia, duchess of Holstein-Gottorp, Swedish writer (d. 1708)
- 1689 – Edward Holyoke, American academic (d. 1769)
- 1694 – Georg Brandt, Swedish chemist and mineralogist (d. 1768)
- 1702 – Philip Doddridge, English religious leader (d. 1751)
- 1703 – Thomas Clap, American academic (d. 1767)
- 1730 – Charles Messier, French astronomer (d. 1817)
- 1798 – Wolfgang Menzel, German writer (d. 1873)
- 1817 – Branwell Bronte, British painter and poet (d. 1848)
- 1819 – Abner Doubleday, American Major General (d. 1893)
- 1821 – Bartolomé Mitre, Argentine historian and politician (d. 1906)
- 1824 – William Thomson, Irish-born physicist (d. 1907)
- 1835 – Thomas W. Knox, American author (d. 1896)
- 1839 – Sam Watkins, American Confederate soldier and author (d. 1901)
- 1854 – Robert Laird Borden, Canadian politician (d. 1937)
- 1865 – Bernard Berenson, American art historian (d. 1959)
- 1866 – George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, English financier of Egyptian excavations (d. 1923)
- 1869 – Martin Andersen Nexø, Danish writer (d. 1954)
- 1880 – Natalia, Princess Brassova (d. 1952)
- 1881 – Ya'akov Cohen, Israeli poet (d. 1960)
- 1892 – Pearl S. Buck, American writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
- 1895 – George Hainsworth, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1950)
- 1898 – Willy Messerschmitt, German aircraft designer (d. 1978)
- 1898 – Chesty Puller, American military officer (d. 1971)
- 1899 – Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia (d. 1918)
- 1901 – Stuart Symington, American politician (d. 1988)
- 1902 – Hugues Cuénod, Swiss Tenor (d. 2010)
- 1904 – Frank Scott Hogg, Canadian astronomer (d. 1951)
- 1904 – Peter Lorre, Hungarian actor (d. 1964)
- 1906 – Alberto Rabagliati, Italian singer (d. 1974)
- 1906 – Viktor Schreckengost, American industrial designer (d. 2008)
- 1907 – Debs Garms, American baseball player (d. 1984)
- 1909 – Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley's manager (d. 1997)
- 1909 – Wolfgang Reitherman, American animator (d. 1985)
- 1911 – Babe Didrikson Zaharias, American athlete (d. 1956)
- 1913 – Aimé Césaire, French Martinican poet and politician (d. 2008)
- 1913 – Maurice Wilkes, British computer scientist (d. 2010)
- 1914 – Kathryn Johnston, American police shooting victim (d. 2006)
- 1914 – Laurie Lee, British writer (d. 1997)
- 1915 – Paul Castellano, American organized crime figure (d. 1985)
- 1915 – Charlotte Zolotow, American author
- 1916 – Virginia Satir, American psychotherapist and author (d. 1988)
- 1916 – Giuseppe Taddei, Italian opera singer (d. 2010)
- 1919 – Richard Neustadt, American political historian (d. 2003)
- 1921 – Violette Szabo, French WWII secret agent (d. 1945)
- 1922 – Eleanor Parker, American actress
- 1923 – Barbara Graham, American murderer (d. 1955)
- 1924 – Kostas Axelos, Greek philosopher (d. 2010)
- 1925 – Pavel Belyayev, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 1970)
- 1927 – Robert Kroetsch, Canadian author (d. 2011)
- 1928 – Jacob Druckman, American composer (d. 1996)
- 1928 – Yoshiro Nakamatsu, Japanese inventor
- 1929 – Milton Glaser, American designer
- 1931 – Colin Wilson, British writer
- 1933 – Claudio Abbado, Italian conductor
- 1933 – Gene Green, American baseball player (d. 1981)
- 1934 – Jeremy Wolfenden, British journalist (d. 1965)
- 1934 – Dave Grusin, American jazz pianist
- 1936 – Robert Maclennan, British politician
- 1936 – Jean-Claude Turcotte, Cardinal Archbishop of Montreal
- 1937 – Sombat Metanee, Thai film actor
- 1937 – Robert Coleman Richardson, American physicist, Nobel laureate
- 1938 – Gerald North, American climatologist
- 1938 – Billy Davis, Jr., American singer (The 5th Dimension)
- 1941 – Yves Beauchemin, Canadian novelist
- 1942 – Gilberto Gil, Brazilian singer and Minister of Culture
- 1942 – James J. Dillon, American professional wrestling manager
- 1943 – John Beasley, American actor
- 1943 – Georgie Fame, British singer
- 1943 – Warren Farrell, American author
- 1945 – Malachi York, Nuwaubian leader
- 1951 – Pamela Bellwood, American actress
- 1951 – Gary Gilmour, Australian cricketer
- 1953 – Robert Davi, American actor
- 1954 – Steve Barton, American actor (d. 2001)
- 1955 – Mick Jones, British guitarist (The Clash, Big Audio Dynamite)
- 1955 – Dick Mol, Dutch paleonthologist
- 1955 – Gedde Watanabe, American actor
- 1956 – Chris Isaak, American singer
- 1957 – Patty Smyth, American singer (Scandal)
- 1957 – Philippe Couillard, Quebec neurosurgeon and politician
- 1959 – Mark McKinney, Canadian actor
- 1960 – Zachary Breaux, American jazz guitarist (d. 1997)
- 1961 – Greg LeMond, American cyclist
- 1961 – Terri Nunn, American singer (Berlin)
- 1962 – Jerome Kersey, American basketball player
- 1962 – Preston A. Whitmore II, American screenwriter and film director
- 1963 – Richard Garfield, American game designer
- 1963 – Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky, Russian businessman
- 1963 – Mark McClellan, American government official
- 1963 – Harriet Wheeler, British singer (The Sundays)
- 1964 – Tommi Mäkinen, Finnish rally driver
- 1966 – Minaguchi Yuko, Japanese voice actress
- 1966 – Jürgen Reil, American drummer (Kreator)
- 1966 – Dany Boon, French director, actor and writer
- 1967 – Todd Pletcher, American horse trainer
- 1968 – Paolo Maldini, Italian footballer
- 1968 – Shannon Sharpe, American football player
- 1969 – Colin Greenwood, British musician
- 1969 – Ingrid Lempereur, Belgian swimmer
- 1969 – Mike Myers, American baseball player
- 1970 – Paul Thomas Anderson, American filmmaker
- 1970 – Irv Gotti, American record producer
- 1970 – Sean Hayes, American actor
- 1970 – Matt Letscher, American actor
- 1970 – Chris O'Donnell, American actor
- 1970 – Nick Offerman, American actor
- 1971 – Max Biaggi, Italian motorcycle racer
- 1972 – Garou, Canadian singer
- 1972 – Jai Taurima, Australian long jumper
- 1973 – Gretchen Wilson, American singer
- 1973 – Rebecca Budig, American actress
- 1973 – Jussi Sydänmaa, Finnish musician (Lordi)
- 1974 – Jeff Frankenstein, American musician (Newsboys)
- 1974 – Derek Jeter, American baseball player
- 1974 – Jason Kendall, American baseball player
- 1974 – Nicole Saba, Lebanese singer
- 1974 – Matt Striker, American professional wrestler
- 1975 – Chris Armstrong, Canadian hockey player
- 1975 – Jonah Sorrentino, American hip hop artist
- 1975 – Terry Skiverton, English football player
- 1976 – Ed Jovanovski, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1976 – Paweł Małaszyński, Polish actor
- 1976 – Chad Pennington, American football player
- 1977 – Mark Jindrak, American professional wrestler
- 1977 – Florian Kehrmann, German handball player
- 1977 – Kubo Tite, Japanese cartoonist
- 1977 – Quincy Lewis, American basketball player
- 1979 – Wálter Herrmann, Argentinian basketball player
- 1979 – Ryo Fukuda, Japanese racing driver
- 1979 – Ryan Tedder, American musician
- 1979 – Brandi Burkhardt, American actress and beauty pageant contestant
- 1980 – Jason Schwartzman, American actor
- 1980 – Michael Vick, American football player
- 1980 – Chris Shelton, American baseball player
- 1980 – Sinik, French singer and rapper
- 1980 – Hamílton, naturalized Togolese footballer
- 1981 – Damien Sargue, French singer
- 1983 – Vinícius, Brazilian footballer
- 1983 – Felipe Melo, Brazilian footballer
- 1984 – Elijah Dukes, American baseball player
- 1984 – Raymond Felton, American basketball player
- 1984 – Deron Williams, American basketball player
- 1984 – Jose Juan Barea, American basketball player
- 1984 – Aubrey Plaza, American comedian, writer and actress
- 1984 – Gabrielle Walcott, Trinidad and Tobagoian beauty pageant contestant
- 1985 – Urgyen Trinley Dorje, 17th Karmapa Lama, Tibetan spiritual leader
- 1987 – Carlos Iaconelli, Brazilian racing driver
- 1987 – Samir Nasri, French footballer
- 1988 – Oliver Stang, German footballer
- 1991 – Houssem Chemali, French footballer
- 1991 – Diego Falcinelli, Italian footballer
- 1992 – Jennette McCurdy, American actress and singer
- 1992 – Joel Campbell, Costa Rican footballer
- 1993 – Ariana Grande, American actress and singer
- 2005 – Princess Alexia of the Netherlands
[edit] Deaths
- 363 – Julian the Apostate, Roman Emperor (b. 331)
- 1541 – Francisco Pizarro, Spanish conqueror of Peru
- 1688 – Ralph Cudworth, English philosopher (b. 1617)
- 1784 – Caesar Rodney, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1728)
- 1793 – Gilbert White, English ornithologist (b. 1720)
- 1795 – Johannes Jährig, German linguist (b. 1747)
- 1810 – Joseph-Michel Montgolfier, French inventor (b. 1740)
- 1836 – Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French composer (La Marseillaise) (b. 1760)
- 1856 – Max Stirner, German philosopher (b. 1806)
- 1878 – Mercedes of Orleans, queen of Spain (b. 1860)
- 1918 – Peter Rosegger, Austrian poet (b. 1843)
- 1922 – Albert I, Prince of Monaco (b. 1848)
- 1939 – Ford Madox Ford, English writer (b. 1873)
- 1943 – Karl Landsteiner, Austrian biologist and physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1868)
- 1945 – Emil Hácha, President of Czechoslovakia (b. 1872)
- 1946 – Yōsuke Matsuoka, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan (b. 1880)
- 1946 – Max Kögel, SS officer (b. 1895)
- 1947 – Richard Bedford Bennett, eleventh Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1870)
- 1948 – Lilian Velez, Filipino actress (b. 1924)
- 1949 – Kim Gu, President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (b. 1876)
- 1955 – Engelbert Zaschka, German helicopter pioneer (b. 1895)
- 1956 – Clifford Brown, American jazz trumpeter (b. 1930)
- 1957 – Alfred Döblin, German writer (b. 1878)
- 1958 – George Orton, Canadian athlete (b. 1873)
- 1958 – Andrija Štampar, Croatian physician and United Nations diplomat (b. 1888)
- 1964 – Leo Dandurand, American-born Canadian sports executive (b. 1889)
- 1964 – Gerrit Rietveld, Dutch architect (b. 1888)
- 1967 – Françoise Dorléac, French actress (b. 1942)
- 1975 – Saint Josemaría Escrivá, Spanish Catholic priest (b. 1902)
- 1980 – Miriam Daly, Irish republican activist (b. 1928)
- 1990 – Anni Blomqvist, Finnish novelist (b. 1909)
- 1992 – Herman Rohde, professional wrestler (b. 1921)
- 1993 – William H. Riker, American political scientist (b. 1920)
- 1993 – Roy Campanella, American baseball player (b. 1921)
- 1994 – Jahanara Imam, Bangladeshi writer and activist (b. 1929)
- 1996 – Veronica Guerin, Irish journalist (b. 1958)
- 1997 – Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Hawaiian singer (b. 1959)
- 2001 – Soccer (dog actor) (b. 1988)
- 2002 – Arnold Brown, the 11th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1913)
- 2002 – Jay Berwanger, American football player and first recipient of the Heisman Trophy (b. 1914)
- 2003 – Marc-Vivien Foé, Cameroon footballer (b. 1975)
- 2003 – Denver Randleman, U.S. Army Seargent (b. 1920)
- 2003 – Strom Thurmond, U.S. Senator (b. 1902)
- 2003 – Sir Denis Thatcher MBE, husband of Margaret Thatcher (b. 1915)
- 2004 – Yash Johar, Indian film producer (b. 1929)
- 2004 – Naomi Shemer, Israeli singer and song-writer (b. 1930)
- 2005 – Richard Whiteley, British television game show host (b. 1943)
- 2006 – Tommy Wonder, Dutch magician (b. 1953)
- 2007 – Liz Claiborne, Belgian-born American fashion designer (b. 1929)
- 2007 – Joey Sadler, All Black rugby player (b. 1914)
- 2010 – Sergio Vega, Mexican Banda singer (b.1969)
- 2010 – Algirdas Brazauskas, President of Lithuania (b. 1932)
[edit] Holidays and observances
[edit] External links
