July 12 is the 193rd day (194th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 172 days remaining.

Events

1500-1599

• 1573 - Spanish forces under the Duke of Alva capture Haarlem after a seven month siege.

1600-1899

• 1690 - William of Orange's army wins the Battle of the Boyne as reckoned under Gregorian calendar.
• 1759 - British cannon start firing on French at Quebec, from Lévis, Quebec.
• 1812 - Americans invade Canada at Windsor, Ontario.
• 1862 - Medal of Honor authorized by the US Congress.

1900-1999

• 1932 - Lambeth Bridge, London, opened by King George V of the United Kingdom
• 1932 - Hedley Verity establishes a first-class record by taking all ten wickets for only ten runs against Nottinghamshire on a pitch affected by a storm.
• 1933 - Congress passes the first federal minimum wage law in the United States: 33 cents per hour.
• 1943 - The largest tank engagement ever takes place, part of the Battle of Kursk
• 1950 - René Pleven becomes Prime Minister of France
• 1960 - Orlyonok, the main Young Pioneer camp of the Russian SFSR, is founded
• 1967 - Four days of race riots begin in Newark, New Jersey that will claim the lives of 27 people.
• 1973 - The 1973 National Archives Fire destroys the entire 6th floor of the National Personnel Records Center
• 1975 - São Tomé and Príncipe declare independence
• 1979 - The island nation of Kiribati declares independence
• 1993 - A magnitude 7.8 earthquake off the shore of Hokkaido, Japan launches a devastating tsunami, killing 202 on the small island of Okushiri
• 1998 - KDE 1.0 released.

2000-2099

• 2002 - Gay rights: The Superior Court of Ontario orders Ontario to recognize same-sex marriages.
• 2004 - Pedro Santana Lopes is officially appointed Prime Minister of Portugal.

Births

100 BC-AD 1899

• 100 BC - Gaius Julius Caesar, soldier and politician
• 1394 - Ashikaga Yoshinori, Ashikaga shogun (d. 1441)
• 1468 - Juan del Encina , poet and composer
• 1730 - Josiah Wedgwood, English potter (d. 1795)
• 1807 - Thomas Hawksley, civil engineer (d. 1893)
• 1817 - Henry David Thoreau, writer, Transcendentalist philosopher (d. 1862)
• 1819 - Charles Kingsley, writer
• 1849 - Sir William Osler, physician, author, professor of medicine (d. 1919)
• 1850 - Otto Schoetensack, German anthropologist (d. 1912)
• 1852 - Hipólito Yrigoyen, President of Argentina (d. 1933).
• 1854 - George Eastman, American inventor of the Kodak camera (d. 1932)
• 1855 - Edward 'Ned' Hanlan , world champion rower (d. 1908)
• 1861 - George Washington Carver, botanist who discovered many uses for peanuts
• 1868 - Stefan George, German poet (d. 1933)
• 1870 - Louis II of Monaco (d. 1949)
• 1876 - Max Jacob, French poet (d. 1944)
• 1880 - Tod Browning, film director (d. 1962)
• 1884 - Amedeo Modigliani, painter and sculptor (d. 1920)
• 1886 - Jean Hersholt, film director, actor (d. 1956)
• 1892 - Bruno Schulz, Polish writer and painter (d. 1942)
• 1892 - Harry Piel , actor, film director and producer (d. 1963)
• 1895 - Kirstin Flagstad, Norwegian soprano (d. 1962)
• 1895 - R. Buckminster Fuller, American architect (d. 1983)
• 1895 - Oscar Hammerstein II, American lyricist

1900-1999

• 1902 - Günther Anders , philosopher and writer (d. 1992)
• 1904 - Deng Xiaoping, Chinese politician and leader (d. 1997)
• 1904 - Pablo Neruda, Chilean poet, Nobel Prize for literature (d. 1973)
• 1908 - Milton Berle, comedian (d. 2002)
• 1909 - Joe DeRita (a.k.a. "Curly Joe"), actor, comedian; member of the Three Stooges (d. 1993)
• 1917 - Andrew Wyeth,artist
• 1920 - Beah Richards, actress (d. 2000)
• 1920 - Pierre Berton, journalist, writer (d. 2004)
• 1922 - Mark Hatfield, former US Senator from Oregon
• 1930 - Gordon Pinsent, actor, director, writer
• 1932 - Otis Davis, American runner
• 1933 - Donald E. Westlake, author
• 1934 - Van Cliburn, American pianist
• 1937 - Bill Cosby, comedian, actor
• 1937 - Lionel Jospin, Prime Minister of France
• 1943 - Christine McVie, rock singer
• 1947 - Gareth Edwards, former rugby player
• 1948 - Richard Simmons, fitness trainer
• 1948 - Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, musician (d. 1997)
• 1964 - Gaby Roslin, TV presenter
• 1967 - Richard Herring, comedian
• 1971 - Kristi Yamaguchi, figure skater
• 1976 - Anna Friel, British actress
• 1977 - Brock Lesnar, former professional wrestler
• 1984 - Gareth Gates, British singer
• 1986 - Chris Ansette , British actor
• 1991 - Erik Per Sullivan, actor (Malcolm in the Middle)

Deaths

700-1899

• 783 - Bertrada, wife of Pippin III (b. 720)
• 1441 - Ashikaga Yoshinori, Ashikaga shogun (b. 1394)
• 1536 - Erasmus of Rotterdam, Dutch writer and philosopher
• 1845 - Henrik Wergeland, Norwegian author

1900-1999

• 1918 - Dragutin Lerman, Croat Africa explorer (b. 1864)
• 1919 - Charles Rock , actor
• 1921 - Ralph Herz , actor
• 1923 - Harry Lonsdale , actor
• 1926 - Gertrude Bell, archaeologist, writer, spy and administrator known as the "Uncrowned Queen of Iraq"
• 1931 - Nathan Söderblom, Swedish Nobel Peace Prize laureate
• 1935 - Alfred Dreyfus, French military officer
• 1949 - Douglas Hyde, first President of Ireland (b. 1860)
• 1950 - Elsie De Wolfe , aka Lady Mendl, actress & interior decorator (b. 1865)
• 1962 - Roger Wolfe Kahn, band leader (b. 1907)
• 1988 - Josh Logan , film director, writer
• 1996 - John Chancellor, news anchor (NBC Nightly News) (b. 1927)
• 1996 - Jonathan Melvoin, musician and touring keyboardist for The Smashing Pumpkins (b. 1961)
• 1999 - Bill Owen, British actor (b. 1914)

2000-2099

• 2003 - Benny Carter, musician

Holidays and observances

• Kiribati - Independence Day
• Mongolia - Naadam Holiday (2nd day)
• Northern Ireland - Battle of the Boyne Day (see Irish calendar).
• São Tomé and Príncipe - Independence Day
• Sunset and sunrise occur along Manhattan's street grid centerline

External links

• BBC: On This Day

July 11 - July 13 - June 12 - August 12 -- listing of all days