Today in History July 22

1456 – Ottoman wars in Europe: Siege of Belgrade: John Hunyadi, Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary, defeats Mehmet II of the Ottoman Empire

1587 – Roanoke Colony: A second group of English settlers arrives on Roanoke Island off North Carolina to re-establish the deserted colony.

1598 – Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice, is entered on the Stationers’ Register. By decree of Queen Elizabeth, the Stationers’ Register licensed printed works, giving the Crown tight control over all published material.

1686 – Albany, New York is formally chartered as a municipality by Governor Thomas Dongan.

1793 – Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Pacific Ocean becoming the first recorded human to complete a transcontinental crossing of North America.

1802 – Emperor Gia Long conquers Hanoi and unified Viet Nam, which had experienced centuries of feudal warfare.

1893 – Katharine Lee Bates writes “America the Beautiful” after admiring the view from the top of Pikes Peak near Colorado Springs, Colorado.

1894 – The first ever motor race is held in France between the cities of Paris and Rouen. The fastest finisher was the Comte Jules-Albert de Dion, but the ‘official’ victory was awarded to Albert Lemaоtre driving his 3 hp petrol engined Peugeot.

1916 – Preparedness Day Bombing: In San Francisco, a bomb explodes on Market Street during a parade, killing ten and injuring 40.

1933 – Aviator Wiley Post returns to Floyd Bennett Field in New York City, completing the first solo flight around the world in seven days, 18 hours and 49 minutes.

1942 – The United States government begins compulsory civilian gasoline rationing due to the wartime demands.

1942 – The Holocaust in Poland: The systematic deportation of Jews from the Warsaw ghetto begins.

1946 – King David Hotel bombing: A Zionist underground organization, the Irgun, bombs the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, site of the civil administration and military headquarters for Mandatory Palestine, resulting in 91 deaths.

1962 – Mariner program: Mariner 1 spacecraft flies erratically several minutes after launch and has to be destroyed.

1990 – Greg LeMond, an American road racing cyclist, wins his third Tour de France after leading the majority of the race. It was LeMond’s second consecutive Tour de France victory.

1992 – Near Medellin, Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar escapes from his luxury prison fearing extradition to the United States.

2003 – Members of 101st Airborne of the United States, aided by Special Forces, attack a compound in Iraq, killing Saddam Hussein’s sons Uday and Qusay, along with Mustapha Hussein, Qusay’s 14-year-old son, and a bodyguard.

1210 – Joan of England, Queen of Scotland (d. 1238)

1755 – Gaspard de Prony, French mathematician and engineer (d. 1839)

1784 – Friedrich Bessel, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1846)

1882 – Edward Hopper, American painter and etcher (d. 1967)

1932 – Oscar de la Renta, Dominican-American fashion designer (d. 2014)

1940 – Alex Trebek, Canadian-American game show host and producer

1955 – Willem Dafoe, American actor

1461 – Charles VII of France (b. 1403)

1832 – Napoleon II, French emperor (b. 1811)

1869 – John A. Roebling, German-American engineer, designed the Brooklyn Bridge (b. 1806)

1967 – Carl Sandburg, American poet and historian (b. 1878)