June 26th archived daily history

Today June 26th in history click read more below to view detail events, deaths, births, Holidays and observances, and video clips in hisotry. Please comments, last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009

Events
363 – Roman Emperor Julian is killed during the retreat from the Sassanid Empire. General Jovian is proclaimed Emperor by the troops on the battlefield.
1284 – the legendary Pied Piper leads 130 youths out of Hamelin, Germany
1409 – Western Schism: the Roman Catholic church is led into a double schism as Petros Philargos is crowned Pope Alexander V after the Council of Pisa, joining Pope Gregory XII in Rome and Pope Benedict XII in Avignon.
1483 – Richard III is crowned king of England.
1541 – Francisco Pizarro is assassinated in Lima by the son of his former companion and later antagonist, Diego Almagro the younger. Almagro is later caught and executed.
1718 – Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich of Russia, Peter the Great s son, mysteriously dies after being sentenced to death by his father for plotting against him.
1723 – After a lasting siege and bombardment by cannons, Baku surrenders to the Russians.
1848 – End of the June Days Uprising in Paris.
1857 – The first investiture of the Victoria Cross in Hyde Park, London.
1870 – The Christian holiday of Christmas is declared a federal holiday in the United States.
1917 – the first U.S. troops arrive in France to fight alongside Britain, France, Italy, and Russia against Germany, and Austria-Hungary in World War I.
1918 – World War I, Western Front: Battle for Belleau Wood – Allied Forces under John J. Pershing and James Harbord defeat Imperial German Forces under Wilhelm, German Crown Prince.
1924 – American occupying forces leave the Dominican Republic.
1927 – The Cyclone roller coaster opens on Coney Island
1934 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Federal Credit Union Act, which establishes credit unions.
1936 – Initial flight of the Focke-Wulf Fw 61, the first practical helicopter.
1940 – World War II: under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Soviet Union presents an ultimatum to Romania requiring it to cede Bessarabia and the northern part of Bukovina.
1945 – The United Nations Charter is signed in San Francisco.
1948 – The Western allies begin an airlift to Berlin after the Soviet Union blockades West Berlin.
1948 – William Shockley filed the original patent for the grown junction transistor, the first bipolar junction transistor.
1959 – The Saint Lawrence Seaway opens, opening North America s Great Lakes to ocean-going ships.
1960 – The former British Protectorate of Somaliland British Somaliland gains its independence.
1960 – Madagascar achieved independence from France.
1963 – John F. Kennedy speaks the famous words Ich bin ein Berliner on a visit to West Berlin.
1973 – On Plesetsk Cosmodrome 9 people are killed in an explosion of a Cosmos 3-M rocket.
1974 – The Universal Product Code is scanned for the first time to sell a package of Wrigley s chewing gum at the Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio
1975 – Indira Gandhi establishes emergency rule in India.
1975 – Two FBI agents and a member of the American Indian Movement are killed in a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota; Leonard Peltier is later convicted of the murders in a controversial trial.
1976 – The CN Tower, the world s tallest free-standing structure on land, is opened to general public.
1977 – The Yorkshire Ripper kills 16 year old shop assistant Jayne MacDonald in Leeds, changing public perception of the killer as she was the first victim who was not a prostitute.
1978 – Air Canada Flight 189 to Toronto overruns the runway and crashes into the Etobicoke Creek ravine. Two of 107 passengers on board perish.
1991 – Ten-Day War- the Yugoslav people s army begins the Ten-Day War in Slovenia.
1993 – The U.S. launches a missile attack targeting Baghdad intelligence headquarters in retaliation for a thwarted assassination attempt against former President George H.W. Bush in April in Kuwait.
1995 – Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani deposes his father Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar, in a bloodless coup.
1996 – Irish Journalist Veronica Guerin is shot in her car while in traffic in the outskirts of Dublin
1997 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules that the Communications Decency Act violates the First Amendment
2003 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Lawrence v. Texas that gender-based sodomy laws are unconstitutional.
2008 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in District of Columbia v. Heller that the ban on handguns in the District of Columbia is unconstitutional.

Births
1575 – Anne Catherine of Brandenburg, queen of Denmark and Norway (d. 1612)
1681 – Hedwig Sophia, duchess of Holstein-Gottorp, Swedish writer (d. 1708)
1689 – Edward Holyoke, American academic (d. 1769)
1694 – Georg Brandt, Swedish chemist and mineralogist (d. 1768)
1702 – Philip Doddridge, English religious leader (d. 1751)
1703 – Thomas Clap, American academic (d. 1767)
1730 – Charles Messier, French Astronomer (d. 1817)
1817 – Branwell Bronte, British painter and poet (d. 1848)
1819 – Abner Doubleday, American Major General (d. 1893)
1824 – Lord Kelvin, Irish-born physicist (d. 1907)
1835 – Thomas W. Knox, American author (d. 1896)
1838 – Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Bengali Novelist (d. 1894)
1854 – Robert Laird Borden, Canadian politician (d. 1937)
1865 – Bernard Berenson, American art historian (d. 1959)
1866 – George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, English financier of Egyptian excavations (d. 1923)
1869 – Martin Andersen Nexø, Danish writer (d. 1954)
1880 – Natalia, Princess Brassova (d. 1952)
1892 – Pearl S. Buck, American writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
1895 – George Hainsworth, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1950)
1898 – Willy Messerschmitt, German aircraft designer (d. 1978)
1898 – Chesty Puller, the most decorated Marine in history (d. 1971)
1899 – Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia (d. 1918)
1902 – Hugues Cuénod, Swiss Tenor
1904 – Frank Scott Hogg, Canadian astronomer (d. 1951)
1904 – Peter Lorre, Hungarian-born actor (d. 1964)
1906 – Alberto Rabagliati, Italian singer (d. 1974)
1906 – Viktor Schreckengost, American industrial designer (d. 2008)
1907 – Debs Garms, American baseball player (d. 1984)
1908 – Salvador Allende, Former President of Chile (1970-1973) (d. 1973)
1909 – Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley s manager (d. 1997)
1911 – Babe Didrikson Zaharias, American athlete (d. 1956)
1913 – Aimé Césaire, French Martinican poet and politician (d. 2008)
1914 – Kathryn Johnston, US victim of police shooting (d. 2006)
1914 – Laurie Lee, British writer (d. 1997)
1915 – Paul Castellano, American mafia boss (d. 1985)
1915 – Charlotte Zolotow, American author
1919 – Richard Neustadt, American political historian (d. 2003)
1921 – Violette Szabo, French WWII secret agent (d. 1945)
1922 – Eleanor Parker, American actress
1923 – Barbara Graham, American murderer (d. 1955)
1924 – Costas Axelos, Greek philosopher
1925 – Pavel Belyayev, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 1970)
1928 – Jacob Druckman, American composer (d. 1996)
1928 – Yoshiro Nakamatsu, Japanese inventor
1929 – Milton Glaser, American Designer
1933 – Claudio Abbado, Italian conductor
1933 – Gene Green, American baseball player (d. 1981)
1934 – Jeremy Wolfenden, British journalist (d. 1965)
1934 – Dave Grusin, American jazz pianist
1936 – Robert Maclennan, British politician
1936 – Jean-Claude Cardinal Turcotte, Archbishop of Montreal
1937 – Sombat Metanee, Thai film actor
1937 – Robert Coleman Richardson, American physicist, Nobel laureate
1938 – Gerald North, American climatologist
1940 – Billy Davis, Jr., American singer (The Fifth Dimension)
1941 – Yves Beauchemin, Canadian novelist
1942 – Gilberto Gil, Brazilian singer and Minister of Culture
1942 – James J. Dillon, American professional wrestling manager
1943 – John Beasley, American actor
1943 – Georgie Fame, British singer
1945 – Malachi York, Nuwaubian leader
1951 – Gary Gilmour, Australian cricketer
1953 – Robert Davi, American actor
1954 – Steve Barton, American actor (d. 2001)
1955 – Mick Jones, British guitarist (The Clash, Big Audio Dynamite)
1956 – Chris Isaak, American singer
1957 – Patty Smyth, American singer (Scandal)
1957 – Philippe Couillard, Quebec neurosurgeon and politician
1959 – Mark McKinney, Canadian actor
1960 – Zachary Breaux, American jazz guitarist
1961 – Greg LeMond, American cyclist
1961 – Terri Nunn, American singer (Berlin)
1962 – Preston A. Whitmore II, American screenwriter and film director
1963 – Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky, Russian businessman
1963 – Richard Garfield, American game designer
1966 – Minaguchi Yuko, japanese voice actress
1967 – Todd Pletcher, American horse trainer
1968 – Paolo Maldini, Italian footballer
1968 – Shannon Sharpe, American football player
1969 – Colin Greenwood, British musician (Radiohead)
1969 – Ingrid Lempereur, Belgian swimmer
1969 – Mike Myers, American baseball player
1970 – Paul Thomas Anderson, American filmmaker
1970 – Irv Gotti, American record producer
1970 – Sean Hayes, American actor
1970 – Matt Letscher, American actor
1970 – Chris O Donnell, American actor
1970 – Nick Offerman, American actor
1971 – Max Biaggi, Italian motorcycle racer
1972 – Garou, Canadian singer
1972 – Jai Taurima, Australian long jumper
1973 – Gretchen Wilson, American singer
1973 – Pawel Malaszynski, Polish actor
1973 – Jussi Sydänmaa, Finnish musician (Lordi)
1974 – Matt Striker, American professional wrestler
1974 – Derek Jeter, American baseball player
1974 – Jeff Frankenstein, American musician (Newsboys)
1974 – Jason Kendall, American baseball player
1974 – Nicole Saba, Lebanese singer
1975 – Jonah Sorrentino, American hip hop artist
1975 – Terry Skiverton, English football player
1976 – Ed Jovanovski, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 – Chad Pennington, American football player
1976 – Joe Landon, American pornographic actor
1977 – Kubo Tite, Japanese cartoonist
1977 – Mark Jindrak,American Professional Wrestler
1978 – Alexandra, French singer, L5 s singer
1979 – Wálter Herrmann, Argentinian basketball player
1979 – Andy O Brien, English footballer
1979 – Ryo Fukuda, Japanese racing driver
1979 – Ryan Tedder, American Musician
1980 – Jason Schwartzman, American actor
1980 – Michael Vick, American football player
1980 – Chris Shelton, American baseball player
1980 – Sinik, French singer and rapper
1984 – Elijah Dukes, American baseball player
1984 – Raymond Felton, American basketball player
1984 – Deron Williams, American basketball player
1984 – Jose Juan Barea, American basketball player
1984 – Gabrielle Walcott, winner of Miss Trinidad & Tobago World 2008
1985 – Urgyen Trinley Dorje, Tibetan spiritual leader
1986 – Casey Desmond, American singer
1987 – Carlos Iaconelli, Brazilian racing driver
1987 – Samir Nasri, French footballer
1992 – Jennette McCurdy, American actress
2005 – Princess Alexia of the Netherlands

Deaths
363 – Julian the Apostate, Roman Emperor (b. 331)
1291 – Eleanor of Provence, wife of Henry III of England
1541 – Francisco Pizarro, Spanish conqueror of Peru
1688 – Ralph Cudworth, English philosopher (b. 1617)
1784 – Caesar Rodney, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1728)
1793 – Gilbert White, English ornithologist (b. 1720)
1810 – Joseph Michel Montgolfier, French inventor (b. 1740)
1836 – Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French composer (La Marseillaise) (b. 1760)
1878 – Mercedes of Orleans, queen of Spain (b. 1860)
1918 – Peter Rosegger, Austrian poet and Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1843)
1922 – Albert I, Prince of Monaco (b. 1848)
1939 – Ford Madox Ford, English writer (b. 1873)
1943 – Karl Landsteiner, Austrian biologist and physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1868)
1945 – Emil Hácha, President of Czechoslovakia (b. 1872)
1946 – Yosuke Matsuoka, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan (b. 1880)
1946 – Max Kögel, SS officer (b. 1895)
1947 – Richard Bedford Bennett, eleventh Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1870)
1948 – Lilian Velez, Filipino actress (b. 1924)
1949 – Kim Gu, President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (b. 1876)
1956 – Clifford Brown, American jazz trumpeter (b. 1930)
1957 – Alfred Döblin, German writer (b. 1878)
1958 – George Orton, Canadian athlete (b. 1873)
1958 – Andrija Štampar, Croatian physician and United Nations diplomat (b. 1888)
1964 – Leo Dandurand, American-born Canadian sports executive (b. 1889)
1964 – Gerrit Rietveld, Dutch architect (b. 1888)
1967 – Françoise Dorléac, French actress (b. 1942)
1975 – St. Josemaría Escrivá, Spanish Catholic priest (b. 1902)
1990 – Anni Blomqvist, Finnish novelist (b. 1909)
1992 – Herman Rohde, professional wrestler (b. 1921)
1993 – William H. Riker, American political scientist (b. 1920)
1993 – Roy Campanella, American baseball player (b. 1921)
1994 – Jahanara Imam, Bangladeshi writer and activist (b. 1929)
1996 – Veronica Guerin, Irish journalist (b. 1958)
1997 – Israel Kamakawiwo ole, Hawaiian singer (b. 1959)
2001 – Soccer (dog actor) (b. 1988)
2002 – Arnold Brown, the 11th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1913)
2002 – Jay Berwanger, American football player (b. 1914)
2003 – Marc-Vivien Foé, Cameroon footballer (b. 1975)
2003 – Denver Randleman, U.S. Army Seargent (b. 1920)
2003 – Strom Thurmond, U.S. Senator (b. 1902)
2003 – Sir Dennis Thatcher MBE, husband of Margaret Thatcher (b. 1915)
2004 – Yash Johar, Indian film producer (b. 1929)
2004 – Naomi Shemer, Israeli singer and song-writer (b. 1930)
2005 – Richard Whiteley, British television game show host (b. 1943)
2006 – Tommy Wonder, Dutch magician (b. 1953)
2007 – Liz Claiborne, Belgian-born American fashion designer (b. 1929)
2007 – Joey Sadler, All Black rugby player (b. 1914)
2007 – Natasja Saad, Danish Reggae singer (b. 1974)

Holidays and observances
International Day in Support of Torture Victims
International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking
Madagascar: Independence Day
Thailand: Sunthorn Phu Day
Romania: Flag Day
Mar Abhai
Anthelm of Belley
Saints John and Paul
Saint Josemaría Escrivá (d. 1975)
St. Vigilius of Trent