June 24: Midsummer Day - Inti Raymi in Cusco

June 24 is the 175th day of the year (176th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 190 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces.
1128 - Battle of São Mamede, near Guimarães. Portuguese forces led by Alfonso I defeat his mother D.Teresa and D.Fernão Peres de Trava. After this battle, the future king calls himself "Prince of Portugal", the first step towards "official independence" in 1139, after the Battle of Ourique.
1314 - First War of Scottish Independence: Battle of Bannockburn concludes with a decisive victory of the Scottish forces led by Robert the Bruce. Scotland regains its independence in the aftermath of this battle.
1340 - Hundred Years' War: Battle of Sluys The French fleet was almost totally destroyed by the English Fleet commanded in person by Edward III of England.
1374 - A sudden outbreak of St. John's Dance causes people in the streets of Aachen, Germany, to experience hallucinations and begin to jump and twitch uncontrollably until they collapse from exhaustion.
1441 - Eton College founded.
1497 - John Cabot lands on North America in Newfoundland; first European exploration of the region since the Vikings.
1497 - Cornish traitors Michael An Gof and Thomas Flamank executed at Tyburn, London
1509 - Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon crowned King and Queen of England.
1535 - The Anabaptist state of Münster is conquered and disbanded.
1571 - Miguel Lopez de Legazpi founded Manila, the capital of the Republic of the Philippines.
1597 - The first Dutch voyage to the East Indies reaches Bantam (on Java).
1662 - Dutch attempt but fail to capture Macau.
1664 - The colony of New Jersey is founded.
1692 - Kingston, Jamaica is founded.
1717 - The Grand Lodge of England, the first Freemasonic Grand Lodge (now the United Grand Lodge of England), is founded in London, England.
1793 - First republican constitution in France adopted.
1794 - Bowdoin College is founded.
1812 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon's Grande Armée crosses the Neman River beginning his invasion of Russia.
1813 - Battle of Beaver Dams : A British, and Indian joint force defeat the U.S Army.
1821 - Battle of Carabobo - Battle of Carabobo was the decisive battle in the war of independence of Venezuela from Spain.
1859 - Battle of Solferino: (Battle of the Three Sovereigns). Sardinia and France defeat Austria in Solferino, northern Italy.
1880 - First performance of O Canada, the song that would become the national anthem of Canada, at the Congrès national des Canadiens-Français.
1894 - Marie Francois Sadi Carnot assassinated by Sante Geronimo Caserio.
1901 - First exhibition of Pablo Picasso's work opens.
1902 - King Edward VII of the United Kingdom develops appendicitis, delaying his coronation.
1913 - Greece and Serbia annul their alliance with Bulgaria.
1916 - Mary Pickford becomes first female film star to get million dollar contract.
1916 - Battle of the Somme begins with a week long artillery bombardment on the German Line.
1918 - First airmail service in Canada from Montreal to Toronto.
1928 - With declining business, the Great Gorge and International Railway begins using one-person crews on trolley operations in Canada
1932 - A military coup ends the absolute power of the king of Siam (Thailand).
1938 - A 450 metric ton meteorite strikes the earth in an empty field near Chicora, Pennsylvania.
1940 - France and Italy sign an armistice.
1945 - Moscow Victory Parade
1947 - Kenneth Arnold makes the first widely reported UFO sighting near Mount Rainier, Washington.
1948 - Start of the Berlin Blockade. The Soviet Union makes overland travel between the West with West Berlin impossible.
1949 - The first Television Western, Hopalong Cassidy, is aired on NBC starring William Boyd.
1957 - The U.S. Supreme Court rules that obscenity is not protected by the First Amendment.
1963 - Zanzibar is granted internal self-government by the UK.
1975 - An Eastern Air Lines Boeing 727 crashes at John F. Kennedy Airport, New York. 113 people die.
1981 - What would be the world's longest single-span suspension bridge for 17 years, the Humber Bridge opens, connecting Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
1982 - British Airways Flight 9, sometimes referred to as the Jakarta incident, flew into a cloud of volcanic ash thrown up by the eruption of Mount Galunggung, resulting in the failure of all four engines.
1983 - Space Shuttle program: STS-7 Mission Sally Ride, first female American astronaut, returns to earth.
1985 - STS-51-G Space Shuttle Discovery completed its mission, best remembered for having Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the first Arab and first Muslim in space, as a Payload Specialist.
1993 - Yale computer science professor Dr. David Gelernter loses the sight in one eye, the hearing in one ear, and part of his right hand after receiving a mailbomb from the Unabomber.
1994 - A United States Air Force B-52 aircraft crashes at Fairchild Air Force Base, killing all four members of its crew.
1995 - South Africa defeats New Zealand in the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The 1995 World cup was the first major sporting event in South Africa after Apartheid.
2002 - The Igandu train disaster in Tanzania kills 281, the worst train accident in African history.
2004 - Habib Dodo, the general secretary of the Communist Youth of Côte d'Ivoire is assassinated by pro-government forces.
2004 - In New York, capital punishment was declared unconstitutional.
2007 - The Angora Fire starts near South Lake Tahoe, California destroying 200+ structures in its first 48 hours.

Births

1244 - Henry I of Hesse (d. 1308)
1343 - Jeanne de Valois, Queen of Navarre (d. 1473)
1386 - Giovanni da Capistrano, Italian saint (d. 1456)
1485 - Johannes Bugenhagen, German reformer (d. 1558)
1519 - Theodore Beza, French theologian (d. 1605)
1533 - Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester (d. 1588)
1535 - Joan of Spain, queen consort of Portugal (d. 1573)
1542 - St. John of the Cross, Spanish Carmelite mystic and poet (d. 1591)
1546 - Robert Parsons, English Jesuit priest (d. 1610)
1663 - Jean Baptiste Massillon, French churchman (d. 1742)
1687 - Johann Albrecht Bengel, German scholar (d. 1757)
1694 - Jean-Jacques Burlamaqui, Swiss publicist (d. 1748)
1704 - Jean-Baptiste de Boyer, Marquis d'Argens, French writer (d. 1771)
1774 - François Nicolas Benoît, Baron Haxo, French general (d. 1838)
1777 - John Ross, British naval officer and explorer (d. 1856)
1795 - Ernst Heinrich Weber, German anatomist and physiologist (d. 1878)
1803 - George James Webb, English-born composer (d. 1887)
1804 - Willard Richards, American religious leader (d. 1854)
1811 - John Archibald Campbell, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1889)
1813 - Henry Ward Beecher, American clergyman and reformer (d. 1887)
1825 - Grand Duchess Alexandra Nikolaevna of Russia (d. 1844)
1826 - George Goyder, surveyor-general of South Australia (d. 1898)
1842 - Ambrose Bierce, American author (disappeared 1914)
1850 - Horatio Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener of Khartoum, British field marshal (d. 1916)
1860 - Mercedes of Orleans, queen of Spain (d. 1878)
1882 - Carl Diem, German Olympic official (d. 1962)
1882 - Athanase David, Canadian politician and businessman (d. 1953)
1883 - Victor Franz Hess, Austrian-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1964)
1886 - George Shiels, Northern Irish dramatist (d. 1949)
1888 - Gerrit Rietveld, Dutch architect (d. 1964)
1893 - Roy O. Disney, a founder of the Walt Disney Company (d. 1971)
1895 - Jack Dempsey, American boxer (d. 1983)
1897 - Daniel K. Ludwig, American shipping magnate (d. 1992)
1900 - Wilhelm Cauer, German mathematician (d. 1945)
1901 - Harry Partch, American composer (d. 1974)
1904 - Phil Harris, American singer, songwriter and comedian (d. 1995)
1906 - Pierre Fournier, French cellist (d. 1986)
1906 - Willard Maas, American educator and experimental filmmaker (d. 1971)
1907 - Arseny Tarkovsky, Russian poet (d. 1989)
1908 - Hugo Distler, German composer (d. 1942)
1908 - Guru Gopinath, Indian classical dancer (d 1987)
1908 - Alfons Rebane, Estonian military officer (d. 1976)
1911 - Juan Manuel Fangio, Argentine Formula One driver and five-time World Driving Champion (d. 1995)
1911 - Ernesto Sábato, Argentinian writer
1912 - Brian Johnston, British cricket commentator (d 1994)
1914 - Pearl Witherington CBE, British WW II secret agent (d. 2008)
1915 - Fred Hoyle, British astronomer (d. 2001)
1922 - Tata Giacobetti, Italian singer (Quartetto Cetra)
1924 - Kurt Furgler, member of the Swiss Federal Council
1927 - Martin Lewis Perl, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
1930 - Claude Chabrol, French film director
1930 - William B. Ziff, Jr., American publishing executive (d. 2006)
1931 - Billy Casper, American golfer
1934 - Jean-Pierre Ferland, Québec singer
1935 - Terry Riley, American composer
1938 - Lawrence Block, an acclaimed contemporary American crime writer
1941 - Julia Kristeva, Bulgarian-French philosopher, psychoanalyst, and novelist
1942 - Michele Lee, American actress
1944 - Jeff Beck, English musician (The Yardbirds)
1944 - Arthur Brown, English musician
1944 - John "Charlie" Whitney, English guitarist (Family, Streetwalkers, Axis Point)
1944 - Chris Wood, English musician (d. 1983)
1945 - Colin Blunstone, English musician (The Zombies)
1945 - George Pataki, American politician
1945 - Wayne Cashman, Canadian ice hockey player
1946 - Ellison Onizuka, American astronaut (d. 1986)
1946 - Robert Reich, American politician and political commentator
1946 - David Collenette, Canadian politician
1947 - Peter Weller, American actor
1947 - Mick Fleetwood, English musician (Fleetwood Mac)
1948 - Patrick Moraz, Swiss keyboard player (Yes)
1949 - John Illsley, English bassist (Dire Straits)
1950 - Mercedes Lackey, American author
1950 - Nancy Allen, American actress
1951 - David Rodigan, radio DJ/actor
1952 - Stephen Pusey, British-born artist
1953 - Ivo Lill, Estonian artist
1955 - Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, Guru of Siddha Yoga
1955 - Betsy Randle, American actress
1956 - Joe Penny, English actor
1958 - Jean Charest, Premier of Québec
1958 - John Tortorella, American ice hockey coach
1960 - Trisha Meili, the "Central Park Jogger"
1960 - Karin Pilsäter, Swedish politician
1961 - Dennis Danell, American musician (Social Distortion) (d. 2000)
1961 - Iain Glen, Scottish actor
1961 - Bernie Nicholls, Canadian ice hockey player
1961 - Curt Smith, English musician and songwriter (Tears for Fears)
1963 - Anatoly Borisovich Jurkin, Russian writer
1963 - Preki, Serbian-born American soccer player
1963 - Mike Wieringo, American comic book artist (d. 2007)
1964 - Gary Suter, American ice hockey player
1965 - Uwe Krupp, German ice hockey player
1966 - Hope Sandoval, American singer-songwriter
1966 - Adrienne Shelly, American actress, director and screenwriter (d. 2006)
1967 - Bill Huard, Canadian ice hockey player
1967 - Richard Kruspe-Bernstein, German musician (Rammstein)
1967 - Janez Lapajne, Slovenian film director
1967 - Scott Oden, American writer
1967 - Sherry Stringfield, American actress
1969 - Sissel Kyrkjebø, Norwegian singer
1970 - Glenn Medeiros, American singer
1971 - Christopher Showerman, American actor
1972 - Robbie McEwen, Australian cyclist
1972 - Denis Zvegelj, Slovenian rower
1973 - Alexander Beyer, German actor
1973 - Ji Jin Hee, South Korean actor
1975 - Carla Gallo, American actress
1975 - Marek Malik, Czech ice hockey player
1976 - Louisa Leaman, English author
1976 - Brock Olivo, American football player
1977 - Dimosthenis Dikoudis, Greek basketball player
1978 - Luis García, Spanish footballer
1978 - Pantelis Kafes, Greek footballer
1978 - Shunsuke Nakamura, Japanese footballer
1978 - Ariel Pink, American musician
1978 - Juan Román Riquelme, Argentine footballer
1978 - Erno "Emppu" Vuorinen, Finnish guitarist (Nightwish)
1979 - Petra Němcová, Czechoslovakian-born supermodel
1979 - Craig Shergold, British internet folklore subject
1980 - Cicinho, Brazilian footballer
1980 - Andrew Jones, Australian racing driver
1980 - Minka Kelly, American actress
1982 - Brian Fitzgerald, American writer
1982 - Kevin Nolan, English footballer
1982 - Mark Penney, Canadian film director
1982 - Jarret Stoll, Canadian ice hockey player
1982 - Clint Bajada, Maltese television and radio presenter
1983 - John Lloyd Cruz, Filipino Actor
1984 - J.J. Redick, American basketball player
1985 - Kyle Searles, American actor
1985 - Yukina Shirakawa, Japanese gravure idol
1986 - Stuart Broad, English cricketer
1986 - Phil Hughes, American baseball player
1986 - Solange Knowles, American singer
1987 - Arturo Lupoli, Italian footballer
1987 - Lionel Messi, Argentine footballer

Deaths

803 - Higbald of Lindisfarne
1398 - Hongwu Emperor of China (b. 1328)
1439 - Duke Frederick IV of Austria (b. 1382)
1519 - Lucrezia Borgia, Duchess of Ferrara (b. 1480)
1520 - Hosokawa Sumimoto, Japanese samurai commander (b. 1489)
1604 - Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, Lord Great Chamberlain of England (b. 1550)
1637 - Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc, French astronomer (b. 1580)
1643 - John Hampden, English politician (b. 1595)
1766 - Adrien-Maurice, 3rd duc de Noailles, French soldier (b. 1678)
1778 - Pieter Burmann the Younger, Dutch philologist (b. 1714)
1803 - Matthew Thornton, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1714)
1817 - Thomas McKean, American lawyer and signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1734)
1835 - Andreas Vokos Miaoulis, Greek admiral and politician, commander of Greek naval forces in Greek War of Independence (b. 1769)
1894 - Marie François Sadi Carnot, French statesman (b. 1837)
1908 - Grover Cleveland, President of the United States (heart failure) (b. 1837)
1909 - Sarah Orne Jewett, American writer (b. 1849)
1922 - Walther Rathenau, German Minister of Foreign Affairs (assassinated) (b. 1867)
1935 - Carlos Gardel, Argentine singer (airplane crash) (b. 1890)
1946 - Louise Whitfield Carnegie, American philanthropist (b. 1857)
1947 - Emil Seidel, Mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin (b. 1864)
1968 - Tony Hancock, British comedian (b. 1924)
1977 - André-Gilles Fortin, Canadian politician (b. 1943)
1978 - Robert Charroux, French writer (b. 1909)
1984 - Clarence Campbell, Canadian NHL president (b. 1905)
1987 - Jackie Gleason, American actor and musician (b. 1916)
1991 - Rufino Tamayo, Mexican painter (b. 1899)
1997 - Don Hutson, American athlete (b. 1913)
1997 - Brian Keith, American actor (b. 1921)
2000 - Vera Atkins, Romanian-born British intelligence officer (b. 1908)
2000 - David Tomlinson, English actor (b. 1917)
2002 - Pierre Werner, Prime Minister of Luxembourg (b. 1913)
2003 - Vladimir Garin, Russian actor (b. 1987)
2004 - Ifigeneia Giannopoulou, Greek songwriter (b. 1957)
2005 - Paul Winchell, American voice actor and ventriloquist (b. 1922)
2005 - Hakham Yedidia Shofet, Former chief rabbi of Iran (b. 1908)
2006 - Patsy Ramsey, mother of JonBenét Ramsey (b. 1956)
2007 - Byron Baer, American politician (b. 1929)
2007 - Chris Benoit, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1967)
2007 - Derek Dougan, Northern Irish footballer (b. 1938)
2007 - Natasja Saad, Danish reggae and dancehall artist (b. 1974)

Holidays and Observances

Fête nationale du Québec, also called St-Jean-Baptiste Day
One of the four Irish Quarter days in the Irish Calendar.
Discovery Day in Newfoundland and Labrador (celebrating the 1497 discovery by John Cabot)
Inti Raymi in Cusco
Jāņi - Latvia
Joninės - Lithuania
Battle of Carabobo Day in Venezuela (1821)
Bahá'í Faith - Feast of Rahmat (Mercy) - First day of the sixth month of the Bahá'í calendar
Midsummer Day in England
Roman Catholic Church

Feast of the birth of Saint John the Baptist, patron saint of Québec, Newfoundland and Torino (Turin), brush makers and knife sharpeners; also Festival of San Juan observed in Bolivia and Peru, Jaaniõhtu in Estonia.