July 18

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July 18 is the 199th day of the year (200th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 166 days remaining until the end of the year.

1 Events
2 Births
3 Deaths
4 Holidays and observances
5 External links

Events

390 BC - Roman-Gaulish Wars: Battle of the Allia - A Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, leading to the subsequent sacking of Rome.
64 - Great fire of Rome: A fire begins to burn in the merchant area of Rome and soon burns completely out of control while Emperor Nero reportedly plays his lyre and sings while watching the blaze from a safe distance.
1334 - The bishop of Florence blesses the first foundational stone laid for the new campanile (bell tower) of the Florence Cathedral, designed by the artist Giotto di Bondone.
1656 - Polish-Lithuanian forces clashes with Sweden and its Brandenburg allies in the start of what is to be known as The Battle of Warsaw which ends in a decisive Swedish victory.
1857 - Louis Faidherbe, French governor of Senegal, arrives to relieve French forces at Kayes, effectively ending El Hajj Umar Tall's war on the French.
1863 - American Civil War: Battle of Fort Wagner/Morris Island - The first formal African American military unit, the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, unsuccessfully assaults Confederate-held Battery Wagner but their valiant fighting still proves the worth of African American soldiers during the war.
1914 - The U.S. Congress forms the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps, this gives definite status to aircraft within the U.S. Army for the first time.
1925 - Adolf Hitler publishes his personal manifesto Mein Kampf.
1942 - World War II: The Germans test fly the Messerschmitt Me-262 using only its jets for the first time.
1944 - World War II: Hideki Tojo resigns as Prime Minister of Japan due to numerous setbacks in the war effort.
1965 - Zond 3 launched.
1966 - Gemini 10 launched.
1969 - After a party on Chappaquiddick Island, Senator Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts drives an Oldsmobile off a wooden bridge into a tide-swept pond and his passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne, dies.
1972 - Staines air disaster - 118 killed as plane crashes 2 minutes after take off from London Heathrow Airport
1982 - 268 campesinos ("peasants" or "country people") are slain in the Plan de Sánchez massacre in Ríos Montt's Guatemala.
1984 - McDonald's massacre in San Ysidro, California: In a fast-food restaurant, James Oliver Huberty opens fire, killing 21 people and injuring 19 others before being shot dead by police.
1986 - A tornado is broadcast live on KARE television in Minnesota when the station's helicopter pilot makes a chance encounter.
1992 - The ten victims of the La Cantuta massacre disappeared from their university in Lima.
1995 - On the Caribbean island of Montserrat, the Soufriere Hills volcano erupts. Over the course of several years, it devastates the island, destroying the capital and forcing most of the population to flee.
1996 - Storms provoke severe flooding on the Saguenay River, beginning one of Québec's costliest natural disasters ever.

Births

1501 - Isabella of Burgundy, wife of Christian II of Denmark (d. 1526)
1504 - Heinrich Bullinger, Swiss religious reformer (d. 1575)
1552 - Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1612)
1634 - Johannes Camphuys, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1695)
1635 - Robert Hooke, English scientist (d. 1703)
1670 - Giovanni Bononcini, Italian composer (d. 1747)
1718 - Saverio Bettinelli, Italian writer (d. 1808)
1720 - Gilbert White, English ornithologist (d. 1793)
1797 - Immanuel Hermann Fichte, German philosopher (d. 1879)
1811 - William Makepeace Thackeray, English author (d. 1863)
1818 - Louis De Geer, 1st Swedish Prime Minister (d. 1896)
1821 - Pauline Garcia-Viardot, French mezzo-soprano and composer (d. 1910)
1837 - Vasil Levski, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1873)
1845 - Tristan Corbière, French poet (d. 1875)
1848 - W. G. Grace, English cricketer (d. 1915)
1850 - Rose Hartwick Thorpe, American poet (d. 1939)
1853 - Hendrik Lorentz, Dutch physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1928)
1862 - Nikolai Nikolaevich Yudenich, Russian general (d. 1933)
1864 - Phillip Snowden, British politician (d. 1937)
1867 - Margaret Brown, American activist, philanthropist, and RMS Titanic passenger (d. 1932)
1871 - Sada Yacco, Japanese stage actress (d. 1946)
1881 - Larry McLean, baseball player (d. 1921)
1884 - Alberto di Jorio, former head of the Vatican Bank and secretary of the 1958 conclave (d. 1979)
1887 - Vidkun Quisling, Norwegian soldier, politician and convicted traitor (d. 1945)
1890 - Frank Forde, 15th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1983)
1892 - Arthur Friedenreich, Brazilian football player (d. 1969)
1895 - George Machine Gun Kelly, American gangster (d. 1954)
1897 - E. A. D. Eldridge, British racing driver (d. 1935)
1900 - Nathalie Sarraute, French writer (d. 1999)
1902 - Jessamyn West, American writer (d. 1984)
1903 - Chill Wills, American actor (d. 1978)
1906 - S. I. Hayakawa, American semanticist and politician (d. 1992)
1906 - Clifford Odets, American writer (d. 1963)
1908 - Lupe Vélez, Mexican actress (d. 1944)
1909 - Andrei Gromyko, Soviet diplomat and President (d. 1989)
1909 - Mohammed Daoud Khan, President of Afghanistan (d. 1978)
1909 - Harriet Nelson, American singer and actress (d. 1994)
1911 - Hume Cronyn, Canadian actor (d. 2003)
1913 - Red Skelton, American actor and comedian (d. 1997)
1914 - Gino Bartali, Italian cyclist (d. 2000)
1916 - Johnny Hopp, baseball player (d. 2003)
1917 - Henri Salvador, French singer (d. 2008)
1918 - Nelson Mandela, President of South Africa, Nobel Peace Prize laureate
1920 - Eric Brandon, British racing driver (d. 1982)
1921 - John Glenn, American astronaut and politician
1922 - Thomas Kuhn, American philosopher (d. 1996)
1923 - Jerome H. Lemelson, American inventor (d. 1997)
1924 - Inge Sørensen, Danish swimmer
1925 - Shirley Strickland, Australian athlete (d. 2004)
1926 - Robert Sloman, writer (d. 2005)
1927 - Kurt Masur, Silesian-born conductor
1929 - Dick Button, American figure skater
1929 - Screamin' Jay Hawkins, American singer (d. 2000)
1930 - Burt Kwouk, English actor
1933 - Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Russian poet
1933 - Syd Mead, American industrial and conceptual designer
1933 - Jean Yanne, French film actor and director (d. 2003)
1934 - Darlene Conley, American actress (d. 2007)
1934 - Roger Reynolds, American composer and teacher
1935 - Jayendra Saraswathi, Hindu religious leader
1936 - Ted Harris, Canadian ice hockey player
1937 - Roald Hoffman, Polish-born chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
1937 - Hunter S. Thompson, American journalist and author (d. 2005)
1938 - Paul Verhoeven, Dutch film director
1938 - Ian Stewart, Scottish pianist (d. 1985)
1939 - Dion DiMucci, American singer
1939 - Brian Auger, British musician
1939 - Edward Gramlich, American economics professor (d. 2007)
1939 - Jerry Moore, American football coach
1940 - James Brolin, American actor
1940 - Joe Torre, American baseball player and manager
1941 - Frank Farian, German music producer
1941 - Lonnie Mack, American guitarist and singer
1941 - Martha Reeves, American singer
1942 - Adolf Ogi, Swiss politician
1942 - Bobby Susser, American songwriter and record producer
1942 - Giacinto Facchetti, Italian footballer (d. 2006)
1946 - Leo Madder, Belgian actor
1947 - Steve Forbes, American entrepreneur and politician
1947 - Steven W. Mahoney, Canadian politician
1948 - Hartmut Michel, German chemist, Nobel laureate
1950 - Jerome Barkum, American football player
1950 - Sir Richard Branson, British entrepreneur
1950 - Jack Layton, Canadian politician
1950 - Kostas Eleftherakis, Greek footballer
1951 - Elio Di Rupo, Belgian politician
1954 - Ricky Skaggs, American country/bluegrass musician
1955 - Bernd Fasching, Austrian painter and sculptor
1956 - Razor Shines, American baseball player, manager and coach
1957 - Nick Faldo, English golfer
1960 - Anne-Marie Johnson, American actress
1961 - Elizabeth McGovern, American-born actress
1962 - Lee Arenberg, American actor
1962 - Jack Irons, American drummer
1963 - Martín Torrijos Espino, President of Panama
1963 - Mike Greenwell, baseball player
1963 - Al Snow, American professional wrestler
1964 - Wendy Williams, radio host
1966 - Lori Alan, American actress
1967 - Vin Diesel, American actor
1969 - Masanori Murakawa, Japanese professional wrestler
1971 - Penny Hardaway, American basketball player
1974 - Alan Morrison, British poet
1975 - Torii Hunter, baseball player
1975 - Daron Malakian, American guitarist
1976 - Elsa Pataky, Spanish actress
1977 - Dylan Lane, American television host
1977 - Alfian bin Sa'at, Singaporean writer, poet and playwright
1978 - Shane Horgan, Irish rugby player
1978 - Ben Sheets, American baseball player
1978 - Mélissa Theuriau, French newscaster
1978 - Verónica Romeo, Spanish singer
1979 - Rick Baxter, American politician
1979 - Deion Branch, football player
1979 - Jared Hess, American film director and screenwriter
1979 - Joey Mercury, American professional wrestler
1979 - Jermaine Paul, American musician
1980 - Kristen Bell, American actress
1982 - Priyanka Chopra, Indian actress and beauty queen
1982 - Ryan Cabrera, American musician and TV host
1985 - Chace Crawford, American actor
1998 - Nixzmary Brown, American murder victim (d. 2006)