A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on July 17th.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On July 17, 1791, hero of the American Revolution, the Marquis de Lafayette, Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier (you can see why he is usually just called “Lafayette”) led the French National Guard against a riotous mob of around 10,000 angry French revolutionaries, gunning down about 50 of the rebels in the action. On July 17, 1917, King George V…

A Brief History On July 17, 1998, a conference of international delegates under the auspices of the United Nations adopted The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, a treaty to provide a permanent international venue to prosecute war crimes and related crimes. Digging Deeper Some countries refused to endorse the treaty, and others that initially agreed, withdrew their support or failed to ratify the treaty.  Countries that signed the treaty but later withdrew their signatures include the United States and Russia, while China and India did not sign in the first place. Without the largest and most powerful countries…

A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on July 16th.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On July 16, 1439, the Parliament of King Henry VI of England issued a proclamation banning kissing. On July 16, 1862, David Farragut was appointed a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy, the first officer to hold that rank. On July 16, 1862, we commemorate the birthday of a significant African-American woman, Ida Wells (who first developed statistics on lynching in…

A Brief History On July 16, 1956, the last “Big Top” circus produced by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus ended its run in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and all subsequent circus productions would be held in arenas instead of the giant tents. Digging Deeper PT Barnum’s “Greatest Show on Earth” had merged with The Cooper and Bailey Circus in 1881, then was bought by the Ringling Brothers in 1907. The two circuses operated separately until 1919. In 1944, the circus suffered a tragedy when the Big Top caught on fire in Hartford, Connecticut, resulting in 167 deaths, though this fire…

A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on July 15th.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On July 15, 1799, French soldiers in Egypt discovered The Rosetta Stone, which is inscribed with three versions of a decree issued at Memphis, Egypt in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. On July 15, 1815, Emperor Napoleon I of the French surrendered to the British aboard the HMS Bellerophon. On July 15, 1815, Emperor…