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972 - Battle of Cedynia, near Cedynia. Polish forces have had their first documented victory.

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 1143.

1314 - End of the Battle of Bannockburn. Scottish forces led by Robert the Bruce defeat Edward II of England. Scotland regains its independence.

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.

1534 - Jacques Cartier makes the European discovery of Prince Edward Island.

1535 - The Anabaptist state of Münster is conquered and disbanded.

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.

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

Venezuela gains total independence 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 - The IOC decides to hold the Olympic Games every four years.

1894 - Marie Francois Sadi Carnot assassinated by Sante Jeronimo 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.

1913 - Joseph Cook becomes the 6th Prime Minister of Australia.

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).

1940 - France and Italy sign an armistice.

1945 - Moscow Victory Parade

1946 - Georges Bidault becomes Prime Minister of France.

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.

1978 - The first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is held in Australia.

1981 - What would be the world's longest single-span suspension bridge for 17 years, the Humber Bridge opens, connecting Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

1983 - Space Shuttle program: STS-7 Mission Sally Ride, first female American astronaut, returns to earth.

1983 - Yasir Arafat banned from Damascus.

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 - The Third highest grossing animated film The Lion King opens in theaters

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.

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1244 - Henry I of Hesse (d. 1308)

1340 - John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (d. 1399)

1386 - Giovanni da Capistrano, Italian saint (d. 1456)

1485 - Johannes Bugenhagen, German reformer (d. 1558)

1519 - Theodore Beza, French theologian (d. 1605)

1532 - Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, English politician (d. 1588)

1542 - St. John of the Cross, Spanish Carmelite friar 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)

1813 - Henry Ward Beecher, American clergyman and reformer (d. 1887)

1826 - George Goyder, surveyor-general of South Australia (d. 1898)

1842 - Ambrose Bierce, American author

1850 - Horatio Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener of Khartoum, British field marshal (d. 1916)

1882 - Carl Diem, German Olympic official (d. 1962)

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)

1895 - Jack Dempsey, American boxer (d. 1983)

1897 - Daniel K. Ludwig, US 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)

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 race car driver (d. 1995)

1911 - Ernesto Sábato, writer.

1914 - Robert Aickman, English author (d. 1981)

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

1942 - Mick Fleetwood, musician (Fleetwood Mac)

1942 - Michele Lee, American actress

1944 - Jeff Beck, English musician (Yardbirds)

1944 - Arthur Brown, English musician

1944 - John "Charlie" Whitney, English guitarist (Family, Streetwalkers, Axis Point)

1944 - Chris Wood, British musician (d. 1983)

1945 - Colin Blunstone, British musician (The Zombies)

1945 - George Pataki, American politician

1945 - Wayne Cashman, professional ice hockey player

1946 - Ellison Onizuka, American astronaut (d. 1986)

1946 - David Collenette, Canadian politician

1947 - Peter Weller, American actor

1948 - Patrick Moraz, Swiss keyboard player (Yes)

1949 - John Illsley, British bassist (Dire Straits)

1950 - Mercedes Lackey, American author

1950 - Nancy Allen, American actress

1952 - Stephen Pusey, British-born artist

1953 - Ivo Lill, Estonian artist

1953 - Garry Shider, American musician (P Funk)

1955 - Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, Guru of Siddha Yoga

1955 - Betsy Randle, American actress

1956 - Joe Penny, English actor

1958 - Jean Charest, Premier of Québec

1961 - Bernie Nicholls, Canadian ice hockey player

1961 - Curt Smith, musician and songwriter (Tears for Fears)

1963 - Anatoly Borisovich Jurkin, Russian writer

1963 - Mike Wieringo, American comic book artist

1964 - Gary Suter, professional ice hockey player

1967 - Janez Lapajne, Slovenian film director

1967 - Richard Kruspe-Bernstein, German musician (Rammstein)

1969 - Sissel Kyrkjebø, Norwegian singer

1970 - Glenn Medeiros, American singer

1972 - Robbie McEwen, Australian cyclist

1972 - Denis Zvegelj, Slovenian rower

1973 - Alexander Beyer, German actor

1978 - Erno "Emppu" Vuorinen, Finnish guitarist (Nightwish)

1978 - Luis García, Spanish footballer

1978 - Juan Román Riquelme, Argentine footballer

1978 - Shunsuke Nakamura, Japanese footballer

1979 - Craig Shergold, British internet folklore subject

1979 - Petra Němcová, Czechoslovakian supermodel

1980 - Cicinho, Brazilian footballer

1982 - Kevin Nolan, English footballer

1984 - J.J. Redick, American basketball player

1986 - Solange Knowles, American singer

1986 - Philip Hughes, American baseball player

1987 - Lionel Messi, Argentine footballer

1995 - Rachel L. Taylor, American Singer

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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)

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)

1947 - Emil Seidel, Mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin (b. 1864)

1968 - Tony Hancock, British comedian (b. 1924)

1978 - Robert Charroux, French writer (b. 1909)

1984 - Clarence Campbell, NHL president (b. 1905)

1987 - Jackie Gleason, American actor and musician (b. 1916)

1993 - Archie Williams, American athlete (b. 1915)

1997 - Don Hutson, American athlete (b. 1913)

1997 - Brian Keith, American actor (b. 1921)

2000 - Vera Atkins, Romanian-born intelligence officer (b. 1908)

2000 - David Tomlinson, British actor (b. 1917)

2002 - Pierre Werner, Prime Minister of Luxembourg (b. 1913)

2003 - Maynard Jackson, Mayor of Atlanta (b. 1938)

2004 - Ifigeneia Giannopoulou, Greek songwriter (b. 1957)

2005 - Paul Winchell, American voice actor and ventriloquist (b. 1922)

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Fête nationale du Québec, also called St-Jean-Baptiste Day

Original Midsummer's Eve in Finland and Sweden, although the official holiday is now moved to the nearest Friday

One of the four Irish Quarter days in the Irish Calendar.

Discovery Day in Newfoundland and Labrador (celebrating the 1497 discovery by John Cabot)

Day of the Indians in Peru

Battle of Carabobo Day in Venezuela (1821)

Bannockburn Day in Scotland (see 1314 above)

Bahá'í Faith - Feast of Rahmat (Mercy) - First day of the sixth month of the Bahá'í Calendar

Quarter days in England

American Radio Relay League - Field Day 2006

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Liturgical feasts
Roman Catholic Church

Feast of the birth of Saint John the Baptist, patron saint of Québec, brush makers and knife sharpeners; also Festival of San Juan observed in Bolivia and Peru, St. John's Day in Estonia and Sao Joao in Portuguese, especially in Porto
Saint Theodulf
Blessed Ivan