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Births on July 5

Sarah Siddons
1755Jul, 5

Sarah Siddons

Sarah Siddons, English actress (d. 1831)
Sarah Siddons (née Kemble; 5 July 1755 – 8 June 1831) was a Welsh actress, the best-known tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified".She was the elder sister of John Philip Kemble, Charles Kemble, Stephen Kemble, Ann Hatton, and Elizabeth Whitlock, and the aunt of Fanny Kemble. She was most famous for her portrayal of the Shakespearean character, Lady Macbeth, a character she made her own, as well as for fainting at the sight of the Elgin Marbles in London.The Sarah Siddons Society, founded in 1952, continues to present the Sarah Siddons Award annually in Chicago to a distinguished actress.

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Events on 1755

  • 15Apr

    A Dictionary of the English Language

    Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language is published in London.
  • 9Jul

    Battle of the Monongahela

    The Braddock Expedition is soundly defeated by a smaller French and Native American force in its attempt to capture Fort Duquesne in what is now downtown Pittsburgh.
  • 25Jul

    Expulsion of the Acadians

    British governor Charles Lawrence and the Nova Scotia Council order the deportation of the Acadians.
  • 10Aug

    Expulsion of the Acadians

    Under the orders of Charles Lawrence, the British Army begins to forcibly deport the Acadians from Nova Scotia to the Thirteen Colonies.
  • 1Nov

    1755 Lisbon earthquake

    In Portugal, Lisbon is totally devastated by a massive earthquake and tsunami, killing between 60,000 and 90,000 people.