July 27

Events

Pre-1600

*1054 – Siward, Earl of Northumbria, invades Scotland and defeats Macbeth, King of Scotland, somewhere north of the Firth of Forth. This is known as the Battle of Dunsinane.
*1189 – Friedrich Barbarossa arrives at Niš, the capital of Serbian King Stefan Nemanja, during the Third Crusade.
* 1202 – Georgian–Seljuk wars: At the Battle of Basian the Kingdom of Georgia defeats the Sultanate of Rum.
* 1214 – Battle of Bouvines: Philip II of France decisively defeats Imperial, English and Flemish armies, effectively ending John of England's Angevin Empire.
* 1299 – According to Edward Gibbon, Osman I invades the territory of Nicomedia for the first time, usually considered to be the founding day of the Ottoman state.
* 1302 – Battle of Bapheus: Decisive Ottoman victory over the Byzantines opening up Bithynia for Turkish conquest.
* 1549 – The Jesuit priest Francis Xavier's ship reaches Japan.

1601–1900

*1663 – The English Parliament passes the second Navigation Act requiring that all goods bound for the American colonies have to be sent in English ships from English ports. After the Acts of Union 1707, Scotland would be included in the Act.
*1689 – Glorious Revolution: The Battle of Killiecrankie is a victory for the Jacobites.
* 1694 – A Royal charter is granted to the Bank of England.
* 1714 – The Great Northern War: The first significant victory of the Russian Navy in the naval battle of Gangut against the Swedish Navy near the Hanko Peninsula.
*1775 – Founding of the U.S. Army Medical Department: The Second Continental Congress passes legislation establishing "an hospital for an army consisting of 20,000 men."
*1778 – American Revolution: First Battle of Ushant: British and French fleets fight to a standoff.
*1789 – The first U.S. federal government agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, is established (it will be later renamed Department of State).
*1794 – French Revolution: Maximilien Robespierre is arrested after encouraging the execution of more than 17,000 "enemies of the Revolution".
* 1816 – Seminole Wars: The Battle of Negro Fort ends when a hot shot cannonball fired by US Navy Gunboat No. 154 explodes the fort's Powder Magazine, killing approximately 275. It is considered the deadliest single cannon shot in US history.
*1857 – Indian Rebellion: Sixty-eight men hold out for eight days against a force of 2,500 to 3,000 mutinying sepoys and 8,000 irregular forces.
*1865 – Welsh settlers arrive at Chubut in Argentina.
*1866 – The first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable is successfully completed, stretching from Valentia Island, Ireland, to Heart's Content, Newfoundland.
*1880 – Second Anglo-Afghan War: Battle of Maiwand: Afghan forces led by Mohammad Ayub Khan defeat the British Army in battle near Maiwand, Afghanistan.
*1890 – Vincent van Gogh shoots himself and dies two days later.
*1900 – Kaiser Wilhelm II makes a speech comparing Germans to Huns; for years afterwards, "Hun" would be a disparaging name for Germans.

1901–present

*1917 – World War I: The Allies reach the Yser Canal at the Battle of Passchendaele.
*1919 – The Chicago Race Riot erupts after a racial incident occurred on a South Side beach, leading to 38 fatalities and 537 injuries over a five-day period.
*1921 – Researchers at the University of Toronto, led by biochemist Frederick Banting, prove that the hormone insulin regulates blood sugar.
*1929 – The Geneva Convention of 1929, dealing with treatment of prisoners-of-war, is signed by 53 nations.
*1940 – The animated short '' A Wild Hare'' is released, introducing the character of Bugs Bunny.
*1942 – World War II: Allied forces successfully halt the final Axis advance into Egypt.
*1947 – In Vatican City, Rome, canonization of Catherine Labouré, the saint whose apparitions of the Virgin Mary originated the worldwide diffusion of the Miraculous Medal.
*1949 – Initial flight of the de Havilland Comet, the first jet-powered airliner.
*1953 – Cessation of hostilities is achieved in the Korean War when the United States, China, and North Korea sign an armistice agreement. Syngman Rhee, President of South Korea, refuses to sign but pledges to observe the armistice.
* 1955 – The Austrian State Treaty restores Austrian sovereignty.
* 1955 – El Al Flight 402 is shot down by two fighter jets after straying into Bulgarian air space. All 58 people on board are killed.
*1959 – The Continental League is announced as baseball's "third major league" in the United States.
*1963 – The Puijo observation tower is opened to the general public at Puijo Hill in Kuopio, Finland.
*1964 – Vietnam War: Five thousand more American military advisers are sent to South Vietnam bringing the total number of United States forces in Vietnam to 21,000.
*1974 – Watergate scandal: The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee votes 27 to 11 to recommend the first article of impeachment (for obstruction of justice) against President Richard Nixon.
*1975 – Mayor of Jaffna and former MP Alfred Duraiappah is shot dead.
*1981 – While landing at Chihuahua International Airport, Aeromexico Flight 230 overshoots the runway. Thirty-two of the 66 passengers and crew on board the DC-9 are killed.
*1983 – Black July: Eighteen Tamil political prisoners at the Welikada high security prison in Colombo are massacred by Sinhalese prisoners, the second such massacre in two days.
*1989 – While attempting to land at Tripoli International Airport in Libya, Korean Air Flight 803 crashes just short of the runway. Seventy-five of the 199 passengers and crew and four people on the ground are killed, in the second accident involving a DC-10 in less than two weeks, the first being United Airlines Flight 232.
*1990 – The Supreme Soviet of the Belarusian Soviet Republic declares independence of Belarus from the Soviet Union. Until 1996 the day is celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus; after a referendum held that year the celebration of independence is moved to June 3.
* 1990 – The Jamaat al Muslimeen attempt a ''coup d'état'' in Trinidad and Tobago.
*1995 – The Korean War Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C.
*1996 – In Atlanta, United States, a pipe bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Summer Olympics.
*1997 – About 50 people are killed in the Si Zerrouk massacre in Algeria.
*2002 – Ukraine airshow disaster: A Sukhoi Su-27 fighter crashes during an air show at Lviv, Ukraine killing 77 and injuring more than 500 others, making it the deadliest air show disaster in history.
*2005 – After an incident during STS-114, NASA grounds the Space Shuttle, pending an investigation of the continuing problem with the shedding of foam insulation from the external fuel tank.
*2015 – At least seven people are killed and many injured after gunmen attack an Indian police station in Punjab.

Births

Pre-1600

* 774 – Kūkai, Japanese Buddhist monk, founder of Esoteric (Shingon) Buddhism (died 835)
* 1452 – Ludovico Sforza, Italian son of Francesco I Sforza (died 1508)
* 1452 – Lucrezia Crivelli, mistress of Ludovico Sforza (died 1508)
* 1502 – Francesco Corteccia, Italian composer (died 1571)
* 1578 – Frances Howard, Duchess of Richmond (died 1639)

1601–1900

*1612 – Murad IV, Ottoman Sultan (died 1640)
*1625 – Edward Montagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich (died 1672)
* 1667 – Johann Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician and academic (died 1748)
* 1733 – Jeremiah Dixon, English surveyor and astronomer (died 1779)
* 1740 – Jeanne Baré, French explorer (died 1803)
*1741 – François-Hippolyte Barthélémon, French-English violinist and composer (died 1808)
*1752 – Samuel Smith, American general and politician (died 1839)
*1768 – Charlotte Corday, French assassin of Jean-Paul Marat (died 1793)
* 1768 – Joseph Anton Koch, Austrian painter (died 1839)
*1773 – Jacob Aall, Norwegian economist and politician (died 1844)
*1777 – Thomas Campbell, Scottish-French poet and academic (died 1844)
* 1777 – Henry Trevor, 21st Baron Dacre, English general (died 1853)
*1781 – Mauro Giuliani, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1828)
* 1784 – Denis Davydov, Russian general and poet (died 1839)
*1812 – Thomas Lanier Clingman, American general and politician (died 1897)
*1818 – Agostino Roscelli, Italian priest and saint (died 1902)
*1824 – Alexandre Dumas, fils, French novelist and playwright (died 1895)
*1833 – Thomas George Bonney, English geologist, mountaineer, and academic (died 1923)
*1834 – Miguel Grau Seminario, Peruvian admiral (died 1879)
*1835 – Giosuè Carducci, Italian poet and educator, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1907)
*1848 – Loránd Eötvös, Hungarian physicist and politician, Minister of Education of Hungary (died 1919)
* 1848 – Friedrich Ernst Dorn, German physicist (died 1916)
*1853 – Vladimir Korolenko, Ukrainian journalist, author, and activist (died 1921)
* 1853 – Elizabeth Plankinton, American philanthropist (died 1923)
*1854 – Takahashi Korekiyo, Japanese accountant and politician, 20th Prime Minister of Japan (died 1936)
*1857 – José Celso Barbosa, Puerto Rican physician, sociologist, and politician (died 1921)
* 1857 – Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge, English Egyptologist, Orientalist, and philologist (died 1934)
*1858 – George Lyon, Canadian golfer and cricketer (died 1938)
*1866 – António José de Almeida, Portuguese physician and politician, 6th President of Portugal (died 1929)
*1867 – Enrique Granados, Spanish pianist and composer (died 1916)
*1870 – Hilaire Belloc, French-born British writer and historian (died 1953)
*1872 – Stanislav Binički, Serbian composer, conductor, and pedagogue. (died 1942)
*1879 – Francesco Gaeta, Italian poet (died 1927)
*1877 – Ernő Dohnányi, Hungarian pianist, composer, and conductor (died 1960)
* 1881 – Hans Fischer, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1945)
* 1882 – Geoffrey de Havilland, English pilot and engineer, founded the de Havilland Aircraft Company (died 1965)
*1886 – Ernst May, German architect and urban planner (died 1970)
*1889 – Vera Karalli, Russian ballerina, choreographer, and actress (died 1972)
*1890 – Benjamin Miessner, American radio engineer and inventor (died 1976)
* 1890 – Armas Taipale, Finnish discus thrower and shot putter (died 1976)
* 1891 – Jacob van der Hoeden, Dutch-Israeli veterinarian and academic (died 1968)
* 1893 – Ugo Agostoni, Italian cyclist (died 1941)
*1894 – Mientje Kling, Dutch actress (died 1966)
*1896 – Robert George, Scottish air marshal and politician, 24th Governor of South Australia (died 1967)
* 1896 – Henri Longchambon, French lawyer and politician (died 1969)
*1899 – Percy Hornibrook, Australian cricketer (died 1976)

1901–present

* 1902 – Yaroslav Halan, Ukrainian playwright and publicist (died 1949)
*1903 – Nikolay Cherkasov, Russian actor (died 1966)
* 1903 – Michail Stasinopoulos, Greek jurist and politician, President of Greece (died 2002)
* 1903 – Mārtiņš Zīverts, Latvian playwright (died 1990)
*1904 – Lyudmila Rudenko, Soviet chess player (died 1986)
*1905 – Leo Durocher, American baseball player and manager (died 1991)
*1906 – Jerzy Giedroyc, Polish author and activist (died 2000)
* 1906 – Herbert Jasper, Canadian psychologist and neurologist (died 1999)
*1907 – Ross Alexander, American stage and film actor (died 1937)
* 1907 – Carl McClellan Hill, American educator and academic administrator (died 1995)
* 1907 – Irene Fischer, Austrian-American geodesist and mathematician (died 2009)
*1908 – Joseph Mitchell, American journalist and author (died 1996)
*1910 – Julien Gracq, French author and critic (died 2007)
* 1910 – Lupita Tovar, Mexican-American actress (died 2016)
*1911 – Rayner Heppenstall, English author and poet (died 1981)
*1912 – Vernon Elliott, English bassoon player, composer, and conductor (died 1996)
*1913 – George L. Street III, American captain, Medal of Honor recipient (died 2000)
*1914 – August Sang, Estonian poet and translator (died 1969)
*1915 – Mario Del Monaco, Italian tenor (died 1982)
* 1915 – Josef Priller, German colonel and pilot (died 1961)
*1916 – Elizabeth Hardwick, American literary critic, novelist, and short story writer (died 2007)
* 1916 – Skippy Williams, American saxophonist and arranger (died 1994)
* 1916 – Keenan Wynn, American actor (died 1986)
*1918 – Leonard Rose, American cellist and educator (died 1984)
*1920 – Henry D. "Homer" Haynes, American comedian and musician (died 1971)
*1921 – Garry Davis, American pilot and activist, created the World Passport (died 2013)
* 1921 – Émile Genest, Canadian-American actor (died 2003)
*1922 – Adolfo Celi, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (died 1986)
* 1922 – Norman Lear, American screenwriter and producer (died 2023)
*1923 – Mas Oyama, South Korean-Japanese martial artist (died 1994)
*1924 – Vincent Canby, American historian and critic (died 2000)
* 1924 – Otar Taktakishvili, Georgian composer and conductor (died 1989)
*1927 – Guy Carawan, American singer and musicologist (died 2015)
* 1927 – Pierre Granier-Deferre, French director and screenwriter (died 2007)
* 1927 – Mel Hunter, American illustrator (died 2004)
* 1927 – Will Jordan, American comedian and actor (died 2018)
* 1927 – C. Rajadurai, Sri Lankan journalist and politician, 1st Mayor of Batticaloa
* 1927 – John Seigenthaler, American journalist and academic (died 2014)
*1928 – Joseph Kittinger, American colonel and pilot (died 2022)
*1929 – Jean Baudrillard, French sociologist and philosopher (died 2007)
* 1929 – Harvey Fuqua, American singer-songwriter and producer (died 2010)
* 1929 – Jack Higgins, English author and academic (died 2022)
* 1929 – Marc Wilkinson, French-Australian composer and conductor (died 2022)
*1930 – Joy Whitby, English director, producer, and screenwriter
* 1930 – Shirley Williams, English academic and politician, Secretary of State for Education (died 2021)
*1931 – Khieu Samphan, Cambodian academic and politician, 28th Prime Minister of Cambodia
* 1931 – Jerry Van Dyke, American actor (died 2018)
*1932 – Forest Able, American basketball player
* 1932 – Diane Webber, American model, dancer and actress (died 2008)
*1933 – Nick Reynolds, American singer and bongo player (died 2008)
* 1933 – Ted Whitten, Australian football player and journalist (died 1995)
*1935 – Hillar Kärner, Estonian chess player (died 2017)
* 1935 – Billy McCullough, Northern Irish footballer
*1936 – J. Robert Hooper, American businessman and politician (died 2008)
*1937 – Anna Dawson, English actress and singer
* 1937 – Don Galloway, American actor (died 2009)
* 1937 – Robert Holmes à Court, South African-Australian businessman and lawyer (died 1990)
*1938 – Pierre Christin, French comics creator and writer (died 2024)
*1938 – Gary Gygax, American game designer, co-created Dungeons & Dragons (died 2008)
*1939 – William Eggleston, American photographer and academic
* 1939 – Michael Longley, Northern Irish poet and academic (died 2025)
* 1939 – Paulo Silvino, Brazilian comedian, composer and actor (died 2017)
*1940 – Pina Bausch, German dancer and choreographer (died 2009)
*1941 – Christian Boesch, Austrian opera singer
* 1941 – Johannes Fritsch, German viola player and composer (died 2010)
*1942 – Édith Butler, Canadian singer-songwriter
* 1942 – Bobbie Gentry, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1942 – John Pleshette, American actor, director, and screenwriter
* 1942 – Dennis Ralston, American tennis player (died 2020)
*1943 – Jeremy Greenstock, English diplomat, British Ambassador to the United Nations
*1944 – Jean-Marie Leblanc, French cyclist and journalist
* 1944 – Barbara Thomson, English saxophonist and composer (died 2022)
*1946 – Peter Reading, English poet and author (died 2011)
*1947 – Kazuyoshi Miura, Japanese businessman (died 2008)
* 1947 – Giora Spiegel, Israeli footballer and coach
* 1947 – Betty Thomas, American actress, director, and producer
*1948 – Peggy Fleming, American figure skater and sportscaster
* 1948 – James Munby, English lawyer and judge
* 1948 – Henny Vrienten, Dutch singer-songwriter and bass player (died 2022)
*1949 – Maury Chaykin, American-Canadian actor (died 2010)
* 1949 – André Dupont, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
* 1949 – Rory MacDonald, Scottish singer-songwriter and bass player
* 1949 – Maureen McGovern, American singer and actress
* 1949 – Robert Rankin, English author and illustrator
*1950 – Simon Jones, English actor
*1951 – Roseanna Cunningham, Scottish lawyer and politician, Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs
* 1951 – Bob Diamond, American-English banker and businessman
* 1951 – Rolf Thung, Dutch tennis player
*1952 – Marvin Barnes, American basketball player (died 2014)
* 1952 – Roxanne Hart, American actress
*1953 – Chung Dong-young, South Korean journalist and politician, 31st South Korean Minister of Unification
* 1953 – Yahoo Serious, Australian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
*1954 – Philippe Alliot, French race car driver and sportscaster
* 1954 – G. S. Bali, Indian lawyer and politician (died 2021)
* 1954 – Mark Stanway, English keyboard player
* 1954 – Ricardo Uceda, Peruvian journalist and author
* 1955 – Cat Bauer, American journalist, author, and playwright
* 1955 – Allan Border, Australian cricketer and coach
* 1955 – John Howell, English journalist and politician
* 1955 – Bobby Rondinelli, American drummer
*1956 – Carol Leifer, American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer
*1957 – Bill Engvall, American comedian, actor, and producer
*1958 – Christopher Dean, English figure skater and choreographer
* 1958 – Kimmo Hakola, Finnish composer
*1959 – Joe DeSa, American baseball player (died 1986)
* 1959 – Hugh Green, American football player
* 1959 – Neil King Jr., American journalist and author (died 2024)
* 1959 – Yiannos Papantoniou, French-Greek economist and politician, Greek Minister of National Defence
*1960 – Jo Durie, English tennis player and sportscaster
* 1960 – Conway Savage, Australian singer-songwriter and keyboard player (died 2018)
* 1960 – Emily Thornberry, English lawyer and politician
*1961 – Ed Orgeron, American football coach
*1962 – Neil Brooks, Australian swimmer
* 1962 – Karl Mueller

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