July 12: Battle of the Boyne Day - Manhattanhenge

July 12 is the 193rd day of the year (194th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 172 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

1191 - Saladin's garrison surrenders, ending the two-year siege of Acre. Conrad of Montferrat, who has negotiated the surrender, raises the banners of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and of the Third Crusade leaders Richard I of England, Philip II of France, and Leopold V of Austria on the city's walls and towers.
1543 - King Henry VIII of England marries his sixth and last wife, Catherine Parr at Hampton Court Palace.
1580 - Ostrog Bible, the first printed Bible in a Slavic language, is published.
1641 - A Treaty of Offensive and Defensive Alliance is signed by Portugal and the Dutch Republic. The treaty had no effect in the Portuguese colonies (Brazil and Angola) that were under Dutch rule since it wasn't respected by both parties.
1690 - Battle of the Boyne (Gregorian calendar) - The armies of William III defeat those of the former James II.
1691 - Battle of Aughrim (Julian calendar) - The decisive victory of William's forces in Ireland.
1790 - The Civil Constitution of the Clergy is passed in France by the National Assembly.
1804 - Former United States Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton dies after being shot in a duel.
1806 - Sixteen German imperial states leave the Holy Roman Empire and form the Confederation of the Rhine.
1812 - War of 1812: The United States invades Canada at Windsor, Ontario.
1862 - Medal of Honor authorized by the United States Congress.
1917 - The Bisbee Deportation occurs as vigilantes kidnap and deport nearly 1,300 striking miners and others from Bisbee, Arizona.
1918 - Japanese Imperial Navy battle ship Kawachi blew up at Shunan, western Honshu, Japan, killing at least 621.
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.
1943 - World War II: Battle of Prokhorovka - German and Soviet forces engage in largest tank engagement of all time.
1960 - Orlyonok, the main Young Pioneer camp of the Russian SFSR, is founded.
1973 - A fire destroys the entire 6th floor of the National Personnel Records Center of the United States.
1975 - São Tomé and Príncipe declare independence from Portugal.
1979 - The island nation of Kiribati declares independence from Great Britain.
2006 - Hezbollah initiates Operation True Promise.


Births


100 BC - Julius Caesar, Roman military and political leader (d. 44 BC) (born either July 12 or July 13)
1394 - Ashikaga Yoshinori, Japanese shogun (d. 1441)
1596 - Tsar Michael I of Russia (d. 1645)
1675 - Evaristo Abaco, Italian composer (d. 1742)
1730 - Josiah Wedgwood, English potter (d. 1795)
1803 - Peter Chanel, French priest and saint (d. 1841)
1807 - Thomas Hawksley, English civil engineer (d. 1893)
1817 - Henry David Thoreau, American writer and philosopher (d. 1862)
1824 - Eugène Boudin, French painter (d. 1898)
1828 - Nikolai Chernyshevsky, Russian philosopher (d. 1889)
1849 - Sir William Osler, Canadian physician and author (d. 1919)
1850 - Otto Schoetensack, German anthropologist (d. 1912)
1852 - Hipólito Yrigoyen, President of Argentina (d. 1933)
1854 - George Eastman, American inventor (d. 1932)
1863 - Albert Calmette, French physician (d. 1933)
1863 - Paul Karl Ludwig Drude, German physicist (d. 1906)
1864 - George Washington Carver, American botanist (d. 1943)
1868 - Stefan George, German poet (d. 1933)
1870 - Louis II of Monaco (d. 1949)
1876 - Max Jacob, French poet (d. 1944)
1880 - Tod Browning, American film director (d. 1962)
1884 - Amedeo Modigliani, Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1920)
1886 - Jean Hersholt, Danish film director and actor (d. 1956)
1892 - Bruno Schulz, Polish writer and painter (d. 1942)
1895 - Kirsten Flagstad, Norwegian soprano (d. 1962)
1895 - Buckminster Fuller, American architect (d. 1983)
1895 - Oscar Hammerstein II, American lyricist (d. 1960)
1904 - Pablo Neruda, Chilean poet, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
1908 - Milton Berle, American comedian (d. 2002)
1909 - Curly Joe DeRita, American actor and comedian (d. 1993)
1909 - Fritz Leonhardt, German civil engineer (d. 1999)
1913 - Willis Lamb, American physicist, Nobel laureate
1917 - Andrew Wyeth, American artist
1920 - Pierre Berton, Canadian journalist and writer (d. 2004)
1920 - Beah Richards, American actress (d. 2000)
1921 - Bob Fillion, French Canadian ice hockey player
1922 - Mark Hatfield, U.S. Senator from Oregon
1925 - Roger Bonham Smith, former chairman and CEO of General Motors (d. 2007)
1928 - Elias James Corey, American chemist, Nobel laureate
1930 - Gordon Pinsent, Canadian actor, director, and writer
1932 - Otis Davis, American runner
1933 - Donald E. Westlake, American author
1934 - Van Cliburn, American pianist
1937 - Bill Cosby, American comedian and actor
1937 - Lionel Jospin, Prime Minister of France 1997-2002
1937 - Michel Louvain, French Canadian singer
1938 - Ron Fairly, American baseball player
1938 - Wieger Mensonides, Dutch swimmer
1941 - Benny Parsons, American NASCAR driver (d. 2007)
1941 - Joseph Whipp, American actor
1942 - Billy Smith, Australian rugby league footballer
1943 - Christine McVie, British singer, musician, and songwriter (Fleetwood Mac)
1943 - Paul Silas, American basketball player and head coach
1943 - Walter Murch, American film editor
1945 - Leopoldo Mastelloni, Italian actor
1947 - Gareth Edwards, Welsh rugby union footballer
1947 - Richard C. McCarty, American professor of psychology
1948 - Ben Burtt, American sound designer
1948 - Walter Egan, American singer
1948 - Richard Simmons, American fitness trainer
1948 - Jay Thomas, American actor
1949 - Rick Hendrick, American NASCAR team owner, and car dealer.
1950 - Eric Carr, American drummer (Kiss) (d. 1991)
1950 - Gilles Meloche, Canadian ice hockey player
1951 - Brian Grazer, American film producer
1951 - Cheryl Ladd, American actress
1951 - Sylvia Sass, Hungarian soprano
1951 - Jamey Sheridan, American actor
1952 - Philip Taylor Kramer, Bass Guitar Player (d. 1995)
1952 - Voja Antonić, Serbian inventor and writer
1954 - Wolfgang Dremmler, German footballer
1956 - Sandi Patty, American singer
1956 - Mario Soto, Dominican baseball player
1957 - Richard Douglas Husband, American astronaut (d. 2003)
1960 - Corynne Charby, French model, actress and singer
1962 - Julio César Chávez, Mexican boxer
1962 - Dan Murphy, American guitarist (Soul Asylum)
1962 - Dean Wilkins, English football manager
1964 - Tim Gane, English musician (Stereolab, McCarthy)
1964 - Gaby Roslin, English television presenter
1967 - Richard Herring, English comedian
1967 - John Petrucci, American guitar player (Dream Theater)
1967 - Bruny Surin, Canadian athlete
1968 - Catherine Plewinski, French swimmer
1969 - Jesse Pintado, American guitarist (Napalm Death) (d. 2006)
1970 - Brian Lee Byung-Hun, South Korean actor
1970 - Juba Kalamka, American artist/activist
1971 - Kristi Yamaguchi, American figure skater
1972 - Travis Best, American basketball player
1972 - Brett Reed, American musician (Rancid)
1972 - Jake Wood, English actor
1973 - Magoo, American rapper
1973 - Christian Vieri, Italian footballer
1974 - Sharon den Adel, Dutch singer (Within Temptation)
1974 - Stelios Giannakopoulos, Greek footballer
1974 - Gregory Helms, American professional wrestler
1975 - Cheyenne Jackson, American actor and singer
1976 - Dan Boyle, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 - Anna Friel, British actress
1976 - Tracie Spencer, American singer and songwriter
1977 - Neil Harris, English footballer
1977 - Steve Howey, American actor
1977 - Brock Lesnar, American professional wrestler
1978 - Topher Grace, American actor
1978 - Michelle Rodriguez, American actress
1978 - Claire Chitham, New Zealand actress
1979 - Nikos Barlos, Greek basketball player
1980 - Johanna Klum, German TV presenter
1981 - Adrienne Camp, South African singer/songwriter
1982 - Antonio Cassano, Italian footballer
1983 - Megumi Kawamura, Japanese volleyballer
1984 - Gareth Gates, British singer
1984 - Michael McGovern, Northern Irish footballer
1985 - Luiz Ejlli, Albanian singer
1985 - Natasha Poly, Russian supermodel
1986 - JP Pietersen, South African rugby union footballer
1986 - Krystal Forscutt, Australian model/reality TV contestant
1988 - Melissa O'Neil, Canadian singer
1991 - Erik Per Sullivan, American actorDeaths
783 - Bertrada of Laon, wife of Pippin III (b. 720)
1441 - Ashikaga Yoshinori, Japanese shogun (b. 1394)
1536 - Erasmus, Dutch writer and philosopher
1584 - Steven Borough, English explorer (b. 1525)
1664 - Stefano della Bella, Italian printmaker (b. 1610)
1682 - Jean Picard, French astronomer (b. 1620)
1693 - John Ashby, English admiral
1712 - Richard Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland (b. 1626)
1742 - Evaristo Abaco, Italian composer (b. 1675)
1749 - Charles de la Boische, Marquis de Beauharnois, Governor of New France
1773 - Johann Joachim Quantz, German flutist and composer (b. 1697)
1804 - Alexander Hamilton, 1st United States Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1755)
1845 - Henrik Wergeland, Norwegian author (b. 1808)
1849 - Dolley Madison, 4th First Lady Of The United States (b. 1768)
1910 - Charles Stewart Rolls, British engineer and aviator (b. 1887)
1918 - Dragutin Lerman, Croatian explorer (b. 1864)
1926 - Gertrude Bell, English archaeologist, writer, spy, and administrator (b. 1868)
1931 - Nathan Söderblom, Swedish archbishop, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1866)
1934 - Ole Evinrude, Norwegian-American inventor and industrialist (b. 1877)
1935 - Alfred Dreyfus, French military officer (b. 1859)
1944 - Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., American general, received Medal of Honor (b. 1887)
1945 - Wolfram von Richthofen, German field marshal (b. 1895)
1945 - Boris Galerkin, Russian mathematician (b. 1871)
1947 - Jimmie Lunceford, American saxophonist and bandleader (b. 1902)
1949 - Douglas Hyde, first President of Ireland (b. 1860)
1950 - Elsie de Wolfe, American socialite and interior decorator (b. 1865)
1961 - Mazo de la Roche, Canadian author (b. 1879)
1962 - Roger Wolfe Kahn, American band leader (b. 1907)
1971 - Yvon Robert, French Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1914)
1973 - Lon Chaney, Jr., American actor (b. 1906)
1979 - Minnie Riperton, American soul singer (b. 1947)
1983 - Chris Wood, British musician, played with Traffic, (b. 1944)
1990 - João Saldanha, Brazilian journalist and football manager (b. 1917)
1993 - Dan Eldon, British photojournalist (b. 1970)
1993 - Davey Allison, American NASCAR driver (b. 1961)
1996 - John Chancellor, American television journalist (b. 1927)
1996 - Jonathan Melvoin, American musician and keyboardist (The Smashing Pumpkins) (b. 1961)
1998 - Serge Lemoyne, French Canadian artist (b. 1941)
1998 - Jimmy Driftwood, American folk songwriter and musician (b. 1907)
1999 - Bill Owen, British actor (b. 1914)
2000 - Charles Merritt, Canadian Army officer and recipient of the Victoria Cross during World War II (b. 1908)
2003 - Benny Carter, American musician (b. 1907)
2004 - Betty Oliphant, co-founder of National Ballet of Canada (b. 1918)
2005 - Lord John King, Baron King of Wartnaby, Chief executive of British Airways since its privitisation (b. 1917)
2007 - Stan Zemanek, Australian radio personality (b.1947)
2007 - Mr. Butch, Iconic Boston street figure (b. 1951)
2007 - Robert Burås, Norwegian guitar player (b. 1975)




Holidays and Observances

Feast of the Apostles (Coptic Orthodox Church)
Northern Ireland - Battle of the Boyne Day (also known as Orangemen's Day or the Twelfth, see Irish calendar).
São Tomé and Príncipe - Independence Day.
Saints Hermagoras and Fortunatus,
Saint John Gualbert, abbot, confessor common
Saints Nabor and Felix, martyrs common
Saint Viventiolus, bishop of Lyon, confessor Lyon
Saint Jason
Manhattanhenge