626 – Incident at Xuanwu Gate: in fear of assassination, Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng
1776 – Continental Congress resolves “these United Colonies are and of right ought to be Free and Independent States”
1823 – Bahia Independence Day: the end of Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia
1932 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt coined the term “New Deal” in his acceptance speech for the Democratic presidential nomination.
1964 – US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act into law
1979 – The United States first issued the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin, making Anthony the first woman to be depicted on U.S. currency.
1990 – 1,426 pilgrims trampled to death after a panic in a tunnel in Mecca, Saudi Arabia
Births & Deaths: 1923 – Polish poet Wisława Szymborska—who rejected Socialist Realism to pen intelligent and empathetic verse that explored philosophical and moral issues, for which she won the 1996 Nobel Prize for Literature—was born.
Sport: 1989 – American jockey Steve Cauthen wins Irish Derby on Old Vic to become the first rider in history to sweep the world’s 4 major Derbies (Kentucky, Epsom, French, Irish)
Music: 2005 – 10 Live 8 concerts held around the world organised by Bob Geldof to raise awareness of poverty
TV & Film: 1928 – The Jenkins Television Corporation (owned by Charles Jenkins) goes on air with W3XK, the first television broadcasting station in the USA
