July 26th in History

1469 - Wars of the Roses: the Battle of Edgecote Moor pitting the forces of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick against those of Edward IV of England takes place.

1533 - Atahualpa, the 13th and last Emperor of the Incas, dies by strangulation at the hands of Francisco Pizarro's Spanish conquistadors. His death marks the end of 300 years of Inca civilization.

1745 - The first recorded women's cricket match takes place near Guildford, England.

1788 - New York ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 11th state of the United States.

1847 - Liberia declares independence.

1882 - The Republic of Stellaland is founded in Southern Africa.

1936 - The Axis powers decide to intervene in the Spanish Civil War.

1941 - World War II: in response to the Japanese occupation of French Indochina, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the seizure of all Japanese assets in the United States.

1945 - The Labour Party wins the United Kingdom general election of July 5 by a landslide, removing Winston Churchill from power.

1945 - The Potsdam Declaration is signed in Potsdam, Germany.

1951 - Walt Disney's 13th animated film, Alice in Wonderland, premieres in London, England, United Kingdom.

1953 - Fidel Castro leads an unsuccessful attack on the Moncada Barracks, thus beginning the Cuban Revolution. The movement took the name of the date: 26th of July Movement

1965 - Full independence is granted to the Maldives.

2005 - Mumbai, India receives 99.5cm of rain (39.17 inches) within 24 hours, bringing the city to a halt for over 2 days.

2009 - The militant Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram attacks a police station in Bauchi, leading to reprisals by the Nigeria Police Force and four days of violence across multiple cities.

Famous Birthdays

1678 - Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor

1802 - Mariano Arista, 42nd President of Mexico

1909 - Vivian Vance, actress

1928 - Francesco Cossiga, 8th President of Italy

1929 - Joe Jackson, manager, father of the Jackson family

1942 - Vladimír Mečiar, 1st Prime Minister of Slovakia

1943 - Mick Jagger, singer-songwriter, producer, and actor

1955 - Asif Ali Zardari, 11th President of Pakistan

1968 - Olivia Williams, actress

1979 - Mageina Tovah, actress

1985 - Matt Riddlehoover, actor, director, and producer

1993 - Elizabeth Gillies, actress and singer

1996 - Tatjana Vorobjova, tennis player