20th of July

Over the centuries, we have had some of the greatest successes and failures known to man.  Today is no exception, and here are a few examples:

356 BC - Alexander the Great, the Greek king of Macedonia and conqueror of Persia is born.

1304 - Wars of Scottish Independence, Fall of Stirling Castle taken by King Edward I of England accomplished with assistance from the Warwolf - the largest Trebuchet ever built.

1704 - The first Pilgrim child born in the new world (officially aboard the Mayflower), Peregrine White, dies at the age of 84.

1807 - Nicephore Niepce is awarded a patent by Napoleon Bonaparte.  It was issued for the Pyreolophore, the world's first internal combustion engine.

1810 - The citizens of Bogota, New Granada declare total independence from Spain.

1822 - Gregor Mendel, German scientist and father of modern genetics is born.

1864 - The Battle of Peachtree Creek occurs near Atlanta, Georgia pitting Confederate General John Bell Hood unsuccesfully attacking a position held by Union General William T. Sherman during the American Civil War.

1881 - The great Native American chief Sitting Bull, surrenders to the U.S. Army, gaining amnesty for himself and his followers.

1903 - The Ford Motor Company ships its first car.

1917 - During World War I, the Corfu Declaration which essentially leads to the creation of the post-war Kingdom of Yugoslavia, signed into effect by the Yugoslav Committee and Kingdom of Serbia.

1919 - Sir Edmund Hillary, New Zealand mountaineer famous for being the first climber to reach the peak of Mount Everest at 29,029 feet was born.

1923 - Jose Doroteo Arango Arambula, more commonly known as Pancho Villa, was a Mexican Revolutionary general who died on this day.

1932 - In Washington, D.C., police decide to fire tear gas into a crowd of World War I veterans.  The troops are part of the "Bonus Army" marching to the White House.

1944 - Adolf Hitler survives an assassination attempt led by a small percentage of German Resistance forces, and claims Wehrmacht Colonel Claus Von Stauffenberg as its leader.

1950 - During the Cold War, in a Philadelphia court Harry Gold pleads guilty to spying for the Soviet Union and was stealing secrets from the atomic scientist Klaus Fuchs.

1960 - The famed Polaris missile is successfully launched from the submarine USS George Washington.

1964 - During the Vietnam War, Viet Cong forces decide to attack the capital of Dinh Tuong Province, Cai Be, killing eleven South Vietnamese military personnel and forty civilians.

1969 - Apollo 11 successfully lands a man on the moon, Neil Armstrong takes his first steps and speaks some of the most quotable lines in American history.

1976 - famed martial artist and actor Bruce Lee passes away at the age of 32.

1976 - Hank Aaron hits his 755th home run, the final home run of his career.

1977 - Another flood hits Johnstown, Pennsylvania killing 84 people and causing millions of dollars in damages. 

These are only a few years that I decided to focus on, many other important aspects occurred in the time periods before the starting date, in between some of the years, and even after my last posted event.  This is the first post to this blog, and as I progress I will decide what course this page will take.  I hope you enjoyed reading and gaining knowledge at the same time.  Keep the history alive!