July 8 in History

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Historical Events on July 8

1099

Some 15,000 starving Christian soldiers begin the siege of Jerusalem by marching in a religious procession around the city as its Muslim defenders watch.
1283

Roger of Lauria, commanding the Aragonese fleet defeats an Angevin fleet sent to put down a rebellion on Malta.
1497

Vasco da Gama sets sail on the first direct European voyage to India.
1579

Our Lady of Kazan, a holy icon of the Russian Orthodox Church, is discovered underground in the city of Kazan, Tatarstan.
1592

Imjin War: At the Battle of Hansan Island, the Korean Navy, led by Yi Sun-sin, Yi Eok-gi, and Won Gyun, decisively defeats the Japanese Navy, led by Wakisaka Yasuharu.
1663

Charles II of England grants John Clarke a Royal charter to Rhode Island.
1709

Peter I of Russia defeats Charles XII of Sweden at the Battle of Poltava, thus effectively ending Sweden's status as a major power in Europe.
1716

The Battle of Dynekilen forces Sweden to abandon its invasion of Norway.
1730

An estimated magnitude 8.7 earthquake causes a tsunami that damages more than 1,000 km (620 mi) of Chile's coastline.
1758

French forces hold Fort Carillon against the British at Ticonderoga, New York.
1760

British forces defeat French forces in the last naval battle in New France.
1775

The Olive Branch Petition is signed by the Continental Congress of the Thirteen Colonies of North America.
1776

Church bells (possibly including the Liberty Bell) are rung after John Nixon delivers the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence of the United States.
1808

Joseph Bonaparte approves the Bayonne Statute, a royal charter intended as the basis for his rule as king of Spain.
1822

Chippewas turn over a huge tract of land in Ontario to the United Kingdom.
1853

The Perry Expedition arrives in Edo Bay with a treaty requesting trade.
1859

King Charles XV & IV accedes to the throne of Sweden-Norway.
1864

Ikedaya Incident: The Choshu Han shishi's planned Shinsengumi sabotage on Kyoto, Japan at Ikedaya.
1874

The Mounties begin their March West.
1876

White supremacists kill five Black Republicans in Hamburg, South Carolina.
1879

Sailing ship USS Jeannette departs San Francisco carrying an ill-fated expedition to the North Pole.
1889

The first issue of The Wall Street Journal is published.
1892

St. John's, Newfoundland is devastated in the Great Fire of 1892.
1898

The death of crime boss Soapy Smith, killed in the Shootout on Juneau Wharf, releases Skagway, Alaska from his iron grip.
1912

Henrique Mitchell de Paiva Couceiro leads an unsuccessful royalist attack against the First Portuguese Republic in Chaves.
1932

The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches its lowest level of the Great Depression, closing at 41.22.
1933

The first rugby union test match between the Wallabies of Australia and the Springboks of South Africa is played at Newlands Stadium in Cape Town.
1937

Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan sign the Treaty of Saadabad.
1947

Reports are broadcast that a UFO crash landed in Roswell, New Mexico in what became known as the Roswell UFO incident.
1948

The United States Air Force accepts its first female recruits into a program called Women in the Air Force (WAF).
1960

Francis Gary Powers is charged with espionage resulting from his flight over the Soviet Union.
1962

Ne Win besieges and dynamites the Rangoon University Student Union building to crush the Student Movement.
1966

King Mwambutsa IV Bangiriceng of Burundi is deposed by his son Prince Charles Ndizi.
1968

The Chrysler wildcat strike begins in Detroit, Michigan.
1970

Richard Nixon delivers a special congressional message enunciating Native American self-determination as official US Indian policy, leading to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975.
1972

Israeli Mossad assassinate Palestinian writer Ghassan Kanafani.
1980

The inaugural 1980 State of Origin game is won by Queensland who defeat New South Wales 20-10 at Lang Park.
1982

Assassination attempt against Iraqi president Saddam Hussein in Dujail.
1988

The Island Express train travelling from Bangalore to Kanyakumari derails on the Peruman bridge and falls into Ashtamudi Lake, killing 105 passengers and injuring over 200 more.
1994

Kim Jong-il begins to assume supreme leadership of North Korea upon the death of his father, Kim Il-sung.
2011

Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched in the final mission of the U.S. Space Shuttle program.
2014

Israel launches an offensive on Gaza amid rising tensions following the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers.

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