721 years ago, on the 5th of August 1305, William Wallace was captured by the English. He was later transported to London and executed. The First War of Scottish Independence, in which Wallace played an important role, would be won by the Scottish in 1328. #otd #history 🗃️

721 years ago, on the 5th of August 1305, William Wallace was captured by the English. He was later transported to London and executed. The First War of Scottish Independence, in which Wallace played an important role, would be won by the Scottish in 1328. #otd #history 🗃️

42 years ago, on the 4th of August, the West Aftrican country of Upper Volta changed it's name to Burkina Faso, following a presidential decree by Thomas Sankara. Sankara had come to power through a 1983 coup d'état and was murdered in another coup in 1987. #otd #history 🗃️

679 years ago, on the 3rd of August 1347, the French city of Calais surrendered to the English. The city remained an important trading port for the English until it was recaptured by the French in 1558, over 200 years later. #otd #history 🗃️

2363 years ago, on the 2nd of August 338 BCE, Philip II of Macedonia defeated Athens and Thebes in the Battle of Chaeronea, establishing Macedonian hegemony in Greece. Phillip then was voted as strategos for a Hellenic war on the Persian Empire. #otd #history 🗃️

61 years ago, on the 1st of August 1965, Frank Herbert's Dune was first published as a novel after a serialized run. The publisher, Chilton Books, was mainly known for printing auto repair manuals. Initial sales were poor. Critics reviewed it negatively due to the story being atypical. #otd 🗃️

323 years ago, on the 21st of July 1703, Daniel Defoe was placed in a pillory as part of a punishment for seditious libel. Defoe had written a pamphlet satirizing Tory publications in which they attached Dissenters. He was then pelted with flowers. #otd #history 🗃️ (painting from 1862)

1264 years ago, on the 30th of July 762, Abbasid Caliph Al-Mansur comissioned the construction of Baghdad in a location that had previously been inhabited during the Neo-Assyrian period. According to Modelski, it was the most populous city in the world between 900 and 1200 CE. #otd #history 🗃️

2612 years ago, on the 29th of July 587 BCE, Jerusalem was sacked by the Neo-Babylonian Empire led by Nebuchadnezzar II. An almost legendary cataclysmic event in multiple religions, there is archeological proof for the event and its (approximate) dating. #otd #history 🗃️

112 years ago, on the 28th of July 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, formally starting the first world war. A diplomatic solution to the fallout after the murder of Frans Ferdinand was not reached as Serbia had rejected some of the terms in an Austrian ultimatum. #otd #history 🗃️

136 years ago, on the 27th of July 1890, Vincent van Gogh shot himself in a wheat field outside of Auvers-sur-Oise. He managed to walk back to town to be treated by two doctors yet died two days later in the presence of his brother, Theo. (translation in alt text) #otd #history 🗃️

842 years ago, on the 26th of July 1184, over sixty local nobles died after falling into a latrine cesspit. They were attending a Hofftag called by King Henry VI (pictured). The rot of wooden support beams and the weight of the nobles caused the floor above the cesspit to collapse. #otd #history 🗃️

1108 years ago, on the 25th of July 918, Wang Geon became king of Goryeo, founding the Goryeo Dynasty after which Korea is named. Wang Geon unified the Later Three Kingdoms in the year 936. #otd #history 🗃️

539 years ago, on the 24th of July 1487, a Leeuwarden tavernkeeper illegally sold beer from Haarlem. The city had previously banned the sale of foreign beer to protect tax income. The incident led to thousands storming the city hall and the laws being repealed. #otd #history 🗃️

123 years ago, on the 23rd of July 1903, Chicago dentist Ernest Pfennig bought the first ever Ford Model A. The car cost around 900 dollars (32.5k today). The Ford Motor company launched another Model A in 1928. The 2 cylinder engine boasted 8 brake horse power. #otd #history 🗃️

80 years ago, on the 22nd of July 1946, Zionist paramilitary group Irgun killed 91 people in an attack on the King David Hotel in Jerusalem. The Irgun leader at the time, Menachem Begin, was prime minister of Israel from 1977 to 1983. #otd #history 🗃️

2381 years ago, on the 21st of July 356 BCE, the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus was burned down in an act of arson. The arsonist sought fame at any cost, thus the Ephesians forbade anyone from mentioning his name. (This is, of course, more story than fact.) #otd #history 🗃️

57 years ago, on the 20th of July 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the moon, as part of the Apollo 11 mission. The last time humans were on the moon was in 1972. #otd #history 🗃️

178 years ago, on the 19th of July 1848, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and a group of local Quakers organized the first women's rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York. They discussed "the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman". #otd #history 🗃️

1962 years ago, on the evening of the 18th of July 64, fire broke out near the Circus Maximus in Rome. The fire would rage for six days and destroy nearly three quarters of the city. Nero blamed the Christians leading to their persecution. (18th century painting by Hubert Robert) #otd #history 🗃️

205 years ago, on the 17th of July 1821, the United States took possession of Florida from the Spanish after the Adams-Onis Treaty which was signed in 1819. The treaty also included a 5 million settlement by the US of claims against the Spanish government. #otd #history 🗃️

This is exactly what Agamemnon looked like entering Troy in Christopher Nolan's adaptation of The Odyssey.

365 years ago, on the 16th of July 1661, the first European banknotes were issued by Stockholms Banco. At some point the bank did not hold enough coin to counterbalance the amount of notes in circulation leading to the bank’s founder to be banished and fined for mismanagement. #otd #history

615 years ago, on the 15th of July 1410, a Polish-Lithuanian defeated the Teutonic Order in the Battle of Grunwald. The battle is highly romanticized due to its scale and the relatively few reliable contemporary sources.. #otd #history 🗃️

237 years ago, on the 14th of July 1789, a group of insurgents stormed the Bastille prison in Paris. At the time, the prison only held 7 prisoners and was already scheduled for demolition. Over 100 people died. The revolutionaries seized dozens of barrels of gunpowder. #otd #history 🗃️

233 years ago, on the 13th of July 1793, French revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat was killed by political rival Charlotte Corday. Marat died after being stabbed in the chest while in his bath. Corday had managed to enter Marat’s house by pretending to hold important information. #otd #history 🗃️

336 years ago, on the 12th of July 1690, William III defeated the deposed Catholic King James II in the Battle of the Boyne. James II fled to France, ending his attempt to regain the British crown. #otd #history 🗃️

621 years ago, on the 11th of July 1405, Ming Admiral Zheng He departed on the first of his 7 voyages. The fleet consisted of 317 ships holding close to 28.000 crewmen. #otd #history 🗃️

972 years ago, on the 10th of July 1054, Chinese Song dynasty, Arab and possibly Amerindian observers witnessed the SN 1054 supernova. It could be seen for several months and it’s remnants are now the Crab Nebula. Chaco Canyon petroglyphs in New Mexico may represent SN 1054. #otd #history 🗃️