July 26
Overview
Holidays & Observances
Christianfeast day:
Andrew of Phú Yên, Anne(Western Christianity), Bartolomea Capitanio, BlessedMaria Pierina, Joachim(Western Christianity), Paraskevi of Rome(Eastern Orthodox Church), Venera, July 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Feast day honoring multiple Christian saints on July 26 in Western and Eastern traditions.
Emancipation Day(Barbados)
National holiday in Barbados marking the abolition of slavery on July 26, 1834.
Day of the National Rebellion(Cuba)
Cuban observance marking the 1953 attack on Moncada Barracks, the symbolic start of the Cuban Revolution.
Esperanto Day
Day celebrating the international language Esperanto and its creator, Ludwig Zamenhof.
Independence Day (Liberia), celebrates the independence ofLiberiafrom theAmerican Colonization Societyin 1847.
National holiday in Liberia marking independence from the American Colonization Society in 1847.
Independence Day (Maldives), celebrates the independence ofMaldivesfrom the United Kingdom in 1965.
National holiday marking the Maldives’ independence from the United Kingdom in 1965.
Kargil Victory DayorKargil Vijay Diwas(India)
Indian observance honoring victory over Pakistani forces in the 1999 Kargil conflict.
Andrew of Phú Yên
Feast day honoring Saint Andrew of Phú Yên, a 17th-century Vietnamese martyr.
Anne(Western Christianity)
Feast day of Saint Anne, mother of the Virgin Mary, celebrated in Western Christian traditions.
Events
First Fitna: In the Battle of Siffin, troops led by Ali ibn Abu Talib clash with those led by Muawiyah I.
In 657, during the First Fitna, Ali ibn Abi Talib's forces clashed with those of Muawiyah I at the Battle of Siffin, marking a key conflict in early Islamic history.
Battle of Pliska: Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros I is killed and his heir Staurakios is seriously wounded.
In 811, at the Battle of Pliska, Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros I was killed and his heir Staurakios gravely wounded by advancing Bulgar forces.
Rout of an alliance of Christian troops from Navarre and Léon against the Muslims at the Battle of Valdejunquera.
In 920, Christian forces from Navarre and León were decisively routed by Muslim armies at the Battle of Valdejunquera, underscoring al-Andalus's military strength.
The Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII is recognized King of the Romans by Pope Clement V.
Pope Clement V recognized Henry VII of Luxembourg as King of the Romans in 1309, strengthening his claim to imperial authority.
The Emperor Krishnadevaraya ascends to the throne, marking the beginning of the regeneration of the Vijayanagara Empire.
In 1509, Krishnadevaraya ascended the throne, inaugurating a golden age of military success and cultural flourishing in the Vijayanagara Empire.
Francisco Pizarro González, Spanish conquistador, is appointed governor of Peru.
On July 26, 1529, Francisco Pizarro was appointed governor of Peru, solidifying Spanish control over the former Inca Empire.
Francis Drake, the English explorer, discovers a "fair and good" bay on the coast of the Pacific Northwest (probably Oregon or Washington).
In 1579, Francis Drake sighted a "fair and good" bay on the Pacific Northwest coast during his circumnavigation, signaling England's Pacific ambitions.
Plakkaat van Verlatinghe (Act of Abjuration): The northern Low Countries declare their independence from the Spanish king, Philip II.
In 1581, the Plakkaat van Verlatinghe legally declared the northern Low Countries' independence from King Philip II of Spain.
During the Bavarian Rummel the rural population of Tyrol drove the Bavarian Prince-Elector Maximilian II Emanuel out of North Tyrol with a victory at the Pontlatzer Bridge and thus prevented the Bavarian Army, which was allied with France, from marching as planned on Vienna during the War of the Spanish Succession.
In 1703, Tyrolean militia triumphed over Bavarian forces at the Pontlatzer Bridge, safeguarding Vienna during the War of the Spanish Succession.
Births
Stanislaus of Szczepanów
Stanislaus of Szczepanów was a medieval Polish bishop who challenged royal authority and became one of Poland’s most venerated saints.
Isabel le Despenser
Isabel le Despenser was an English noblewoman who held the title of Countess of Worcester during the early 15th century.
Christian Egenolff
Christian Egenolff was a pioneering German printer whose workshop in Frankfurt became renowned for its high-quality illustrated books.
Joseph I
Joseph I was Holy Roman Emperor from 1705 to 1711, known for his administrative reforms and role in the War of the Spanish Succession.
Lorenz Christoph Mizler
Lorenz Christoph Mizler was a German polymath whose work spanned medicine, mathematics, and the history of science during the Enlightenment.
George Clinton
George Clinton was an American general in the Revolutionary War and served as the fourth Vice President of the United States.
John Field
John Field was an Irish composer and pianist who invented the nocturne and influenced the Romantic era of piano music.
Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart
Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart was the youngest son of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart who pursued his own career as a pianist, composer, and conductor.
George Catlin
George Catlin was an American painter and writer who traveled across the West to document Native American cultures through art and prose.
Deaths
Cheng of Jin
Cheng of Jin was the fourth emperor of the Eastern Jin dynasty in ancient China, known for his gentle nature and rule under powerful regents.
Nikephoros I
Nikephoros I was a Byzantine emperor from 802 to 811, acclaimed for his financial reforms and military campaigns against the Bulgars.
Li Hanzhi
Li Hanzhi was a late Tang dynasty warlord who governed the Heyang region and defended it against rival factions.
Motoyoshi
Motoyoshi was a Heian-period nobleman and celebrated waka poet whose works were featured in early imperial anthologies.
Fujiwara no Kaneie
Fujiwara no Kaneie was a dominant Heian-era statesman and regent whose policies solidified the Fujiwara clan's power at court.
Kōmyō
Emperor Kōmyō was a Northern Court ruler during Japan’s Nanboku-cho period, installed by the Ashikaga shogunate.
Cecily Neville
Cecily Neville was an English noblewoman who held the title Duchess of Warwick and managed significant estates during the Wars of the Roses era.
Paul II
Pope Paul II was head of the Catholic Church from 1464 to 1471, known for his patronage of Renaissance humanism and the arts.
Atahualpa
Atahualpa was the last sovereign emperor of the Inca Empire, famously captured and executed by Spanish conquistadors.