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- 1097 - Battle of Dorylaeum: Crusaders under Bohemond of Taranto defeat a Turkish army under Qilich Arslan I.
- 1690 - Battle of the Boyne as reckoned under Julian calendar.
- 1863 - American Civil War: the Battle of Gettysburg begins.
- 1881 - General Order 70, the culmination of the Cardwell–Childers reforms of the British Army's organisation, came into effect.
- 1916 - First day on the Somme: On the first day of the Battle of the Somme 20,000 soldiers of the British Army are killed and 40,000 wounded.
- 1942 - First Battle of El Alamein
- 1298 - The Battle of Göllheim is fought between Albert I of Habsburg and Adolf of Nassau-Weilburg.
- 1644 - English Civil War: Battle of Marston Moor.
- 1853 - The Russian Army invades Turkey, beginning the Crimean War.
- 1863 - American Civil War: Second day of the Battle of Gettysburg.
- 324 - Battle of Adrianople: Constantine the Great defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium
- 533 - Battle of Ad Decimum: Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals near Carthage.
- 1250 - Louis IX of France is captured by Baibars's Mamluk army at the Battle of Fariskur while he is in Egypt conducting the Seventh Crusade; he later has to ransom himself.
- 1778 - Prussia declares war on Austria.
- 1866 - Austro-Prussian War is decided at the Battle of Königgrätz, resulting in Prussia taking over as the prominent German nation from Austria.
- 1962 - The Algerian War of Independence against the French ends.
- 1187 - Saladin defeats Guy of Lusignan, King of Jerusalem, at the Battle of Hattin.
- 1802 - At West Point, New York, the United States Military Academy opens.
- 1859 - Austro-Sardinian War: The Battle of Magenta.
- 1863 - American Civil War: Battle of Vicksburg - Vicksburg, Mississippi surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant after 47 days of siege.
- 1770 - Battle of Chesma between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire.
- 1814 - War of 1812: Battle of Chippawa - American Major General Jacob Brown defeats British General Phineas Riall at Chippawa, Ontario.
- 1833 - Admiral Charles Napier defeats the navy of the Portuguese usurper Dom Miguel at the third Battle of Cape St. Vincent.
- 1940 - World War II: The United Kingdom and the Vichy France government break off diplomatic relations.
- 1941 - World War II: German troops reach the Dnieper River.
- 1950 - Korean War: Task Force Smith - First clash between American and North Korean forces.
- 1495 - Charles VIII fights in the Battle of Fornovo against the Holy League, ending his attempted conquest of Italy.
- 1630 - Thirty Years' War: 4,000 Swedish troops under Gustavus Adolphus land in Pomerania, Germany.
- 1777 - American Revolutionary War: At the Siege of Fort Ticonderoga, bombardment by British artillery under General Sir John Burgoyne forces American retreat from Fort Ticonderoga, New York.
- 1801 - Battle of Algeciras: The French navy defeats the British Royal Navy.
- 1917 - World War I: Arabian troops led by Lawrence of Arabia and Auda ibu Tayi capture Aqaba from the Turks during the Arab Revolt.
- 1543 - French troops invade Luxembourg.
- 1777 - American Revolutionary War: Battle of Hubbardton
- 1807 - Napoleonic Wars: Peace of Tilsit between France, Prussia and Russia ends the War of the Fourth Coalition.
- 1846 - Mexican–American War: American troops occupy Monterey and Yerba Buena, thus beginning the United States annexation of California.
- 1937 - Second Sino-Japanese War: Battle of Lugou Bridge - Japanese forces invade Beijing, China.
- 1941 - World War II: American forces land in Iceland to forestall an invasion by Germany.
- 1283 - Battle of Malta
- 1709 - Battle of Poltava: Peter I of Russia defeats Charles XII of Sweden at Poltava.
- 1758 - French and Indian War: Battle of Carillon - 4,000 French troops hold off frontal assault by 16,000 British troops at Fort Carillon (Ticonderoga).
- 1760 - French and Indian War: Battle of Restigouche - British defeat French forces in the last naval battle in New France.
- 1755 - French and Indian War: Braddock Expedition - British troops and colonial militiamen are ambushed and suffer a devastating defeat by French] and Native American forces.
- 1790 - Russo-Swedish War: Second Battle of Svensksund - In the Baltic Sea, the Swedish Navy captures one third of the Russian fleet.
- 1943 - World War II: Operation Husky - Allied forces perform an amphibious invasion of Sicily.
- 1944 - World War II: Battle of Normandy - British and Canadian forces capture Caen, France.
- 48 BC - Battle of Dyrrhachium: Julius Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia.
- 1410 - Battle of Grunwald: allied forces of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeat the army of the Teutonic Order.
- 1778 - American Revolution: Louis XVI of France declares war on the Kingdom of Great Britain.
- 1951 - Korean War: At Kaesong, armistice negotiations begin.
- 1302 - Battle of the Golden Spurs (Guldensporenslag in Dutch) - a coalition around the Flemish cities defeats the king of France's knightly army.
- 1798 - The United States Marine Corps is re-established after they had been disbanded after the American Revolutionary War.
- 1573 - Spanish forces under the Duke of Alva capture Haarlem after a seven month siege.
- 1812 - War of 1812: The United States invades Canada at Windsor, Ontario.
- 1862 - Medal of Honor authorized by the United States Congress.
- 1943 - World War II: Battle of Prokhorovka - German and Soviet forces engage in largest tank engagement of all time.
- 982 - Otto II is defeated in Calabria by the Saracens, Pandulf II of Salerno and Landulf IV of Benevento killed in battle.
- 1174 - William the Lion of Scotland, a key rebel in the Revolt of 1173–74, is captured at Alnwick by forces loyal to Henry II of England.
- 1558 - Battle of Gravelines: In France, Spanish forces led by Lamoral, Count of Egmont defeat the French forces of Marshal Paul de Thermes at Gravelines.
- 1573 - Eighty Years' War: The Siege of Haarlem ends after seven months.
- 1643 - English Civil War: Battle of Roundway Down - In England, Lord Henry Wilmot, 1st Earl of Rochester, commanding the Royalist forces, wins a crushing victory over the Parliamentarian Sir William Waller.
- 1941 - World War II: Montenegrins start the first popular uprising in Europe against the Axis Powers (Crnogorski ustanak).
- 982 - King Otto II and his Frankish army are defeated by the Muslim army of al-Qasim at Cape Colonna, Southern Italy.
- 1420 - Battle of Vítkov Hill, decisive victory of Czech Hussite forces commanded by Jan Žižka against Crusade army led by Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.
- 1430 - Joan of Arc, taken by the Burgundians in May, is handed over to Pierre Cauchon, the bishop of Beauvais.
- 1596 - Anglo-Spanish War: English and Dutch troops sack the Spanish city of Cádiz before leaving the next day.
- 1900 - Boxer Rebellion: Armies of the Eight-Nation Alliance capture Tientsin.
- 1950 - Korean War: beginning of the Battle of Taejon.
- 1240 - A Novgorodian army led by Alexander Nevsky defeats the Swedes in the Battle of the Neva.
- 1410 - Battle of Grunwald, allied forces of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeat the army of the Teutonic Order.
- 1862 - American Civil War: Confederates break naval blockade of Vicksburg, Mississippi.
- 1918 - World War I: Second Battle of the Marne - The battle begins near the River Marne with a German attack.
- 1958 - In Lebanon, 5,000 United States Marines land in the capital Beirut in order to provide military support to the pro-Western government there.
- 1779 - American Revolutionary War: United States forces led by General Anthony Wayne capture Stony Point, New York from British troops.
- 1862 - American Civil War: David G. Farragut becomes the first United States Navy rear admiral.
- 1945 - Manhattan Project: The Atomic Age begins when the United States successfully detonates a nuclear weapon in the Trinity nuclear test at Alamogordo, New Mexico.
- 1203 - Fourth Crusade captures Constantinople by assault; the Byzantine emperor Alexios III Angelos flees from his capital into exile.
- 1453 - Hundred Years' War: The French under Jean Bureau utterly defeat the English under the Earl of Shrewsbury, who is killed in the Battle of Castillon at Gascony
- 1815 - Napoleonic Wars: In France, Napoleon surrenders at Rochefort, Charente-Maritime to British forces.
- 1898 - Spanish–American War: Battle of Santiago de Cuba - Troops under United States General William R. Shafter take the city of Santiago de Cuba from the Spanish.
- 1945 - World War II: Potsdam Conference - The three main Allied leaders begin their final summit of the war. The conferences ends on 2 August.
- 1962 - Nuclear testing: The "Small Boy" test shot Little Feller I becomes the last atmospheric test detonation at the Nevada Test Site.
- 390 BC - Battle of the Allia: A Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, leading to the subsequent sacking of Rome.
- 1195 - Battle of Alarcos, great victory of Almohad ruler Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur over the Castilian King Alfonso VIII
- 1863 - American Civil War: The first formal African American military unit, the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, unsuccessfully assaults Confederate-held Fort Wagner but their valiant fighting proves the worth of African American soldiers.
- 1914 - United States Army Signal Corps is formed, giving definite status to its air service for the first time.
- 1942 - World War II: The Germans test fly the Messerschmitt Me 262 using only its jets for the first time.
- 1333 - Battle of Halidon Hill: the final battle of the Wars of Scottish Independence.
- 1544 - Sieges of Boulogne begin.
- 1862 - American Civil War: Morgan's Raid - At Buffington Island in Ohio, Confederate General John Hunt Morgan's raid into the north is mostly thwarted when a large group of his men are captured while trying to escape across the Ohio River.
- 1870 - Franco-Prussian War: France declares war on Prussia.
- 1916: World War I: Battle of Fromelles
- 1940 - World War II: Battle of Cape Spada between the Royal Navy and the Regia Marina; the Italian light cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni sinks, with 121 casualties.
- 1304 - Edward I of England takes the last rebel stronghold in the Wars of Scottish Independence, Stirling Castle.
- 1402 - Battle of Ankara. Timur, ruler of Timurid Empire, defeated forces of the Ottoman Empire sultan Bayezid I.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Peachtree Creek - Near Atlanta, Confederate forces led by John Bell Hood unsuccessfully attack United States Army troops under William T. Sherman.
- 1866 - Austro-Prussian War: Battle of Lissa - The Austrian navy, led by Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, defeats the Italian navy near the island of Vis.
- 1918 - World War I: German troops cross the Marne.
- 1942 - World War II: Red Army troops take bridgeheads over the Don River near Voronezh.
- 1942 - World War II: The first unit of the Women's Army Corps begins training in Des Moines, Iowa.
- 1943 - World War II: American and Canadian troops conquer Enna on Sicily.
- 1944 - World War II: Adolf Hitler survives an assassination attempt (known as the 20 July plot) led by German Army Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg.
- 1298 - Battle of Falkirk: King Edward I of England defeats Scottish rebels led by William Wallace.
- 1403 - Battle of Shrewsbury: King Henry IV of England defeats rebels to the north of the county town of Shropshire, England.
- 1568 - Battle of Jemmingen: Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba defeats Louis of Nassau
- 1718 - Treaty of Passarowitz between the Ottoman Empire, Austria and the Republic of Venice is signed.
- 1774 - Russia and the Ottoman Empire sign the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca ending the Russo-Turkish War (1768–74).
- 1861 - American Civil War: First Battle of Bull Run - At Manassas Junction, Virginia, the first major battle of the war begins (Confederate victory).
- 1944 - World War II: American troops land on Guam
- 1298 - Battle of Falkirk - Edward I (Longshanks) of England and his longbowmen defeat William Wallace and his Scottish schiltrons outside the town.
- 1456 - Siege of Belgrade - John Hunyadi, Regent of Kingdom of Hungary defeats Mehmet II of Ottoman Empire
- 1499 - Battle of Dornach - The Swiss decisively defeat the Imperial army of Emperor Maximilian I.
- 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: War of the Third Coalition - inconclusive battle of Cape Finisterre fought between a combined French and Spanish fleets under Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve of Spain and a British fleet under Admiral Robert Calder.
- 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: Peninsular War - Battle of Salamanca - British forces led by Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) defeat French troops near Salamanca, Spain.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Atlanta - Outside of Atlanta, Confederate John Bell Hood leads an unsuccessful attack on United States troops under William T. Sherman on Bald Hill.
- 1862 - American Civil War: Henry W. Halleck takes command of the Union Army.
- 1914 - Austria-Hungary issues an ultimatum to Serbia allowing the Austrians to find out who killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand. When Serbia denies Austria-Hungary their demands World War I is sparked on 28 July 1914
- 1916: World War I: Battle of Pozieres begins
- 2003 - Operation Warrior Sweep is the first major military deployment of the Afghan National Army.
- 1132 - Battle of Nocera between Ranulf II of Alife and Roger II of Sicily.
- 1411 - Battle of Harlaw, one of the bloodiest battles on Scottish soil.
- 1814 - War of 1812: Phineas Riall advances toward Niagara to halt Jacob Brown's American invaders.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Second Battle of Kernstown - Confederate Jubal Early defeats United States troops led by George Crook in an effort to keep Yankees out of the Shenandoah Valley.
- 1929 - The Kellogg–Briand Pact, renouncing war as an instrument of foreign policy, goes into effect (it was signed in Paris on 27 August 1928 by most leading world powers).
- 1943 - World War II: Operation Gomorrah begins: British and Canadian aeroplanes bomb Hamburg by night, those of the Americans by day. By the end of the operation in November, 9,000 tons of explosives will have killed more than 30,000 people and destroyed 280,000 buildings.
- 1965 - Vietnam War: Four F-4C Phantoms escorting a bombing raid at Kang Chi are the targets of antiaircraft missiles in the first such attack against American planes in the war. One is shot down and the other three sustain damage.
- 864 - Edict of Pistres of Charles the Bald orders defensive measures against the Vikings
- 1261 - The city of Constantinople is recaptured by Nicaean forces under the command of Michael VIII Palaiologos, thus re-establishing the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantines also succeed in capturing Thessalonica and the rest of the Latin Empire.
- 1722 - Three Years' War begins along Maine and Massachusetts border.
- 1758 - French and Indian War: The island battery at Fortress Louisbourg in Nova Scotia is silenced and all French warships are destroyed or taken.
- 1759 - French and Indian War: In Canada, British forces capture Fort Niagara from French, who subsequently abandon Fort Rouillé.
- 1797 - Horatio Nelson loses more than 300 men and his right arm during the failed conquest attempt of Tenerife Island (Spain).
- 1799 - At Aboukir in Egypt, Napoleon I of France defeats 10,000 Ottomans under Mustafa Pasha.
- 1814 - War of 1812: Battle of Lundy's Lane - Reinforcements arrive near Niagara Falls for General Riall's British and Canadian force, and bloody, all-night battle with Jacob Brown's Americans commences at 18.00; Americans retreat to Fort Erie.
- 1944 - World War II: Operation Spring - One of the bloodiest days for Canadians during the war: 18,444 casualties, including 5,021 killed.
- 657 - Battle of Siffin.
- 811 - Battle of Pliska; Byzantine emperor Nikephoros I is slain, his heir Staurakios is seriously wounded.
- 1469 - Battle of Edgecote Moor.
- 1861 - American Civil War: George McClellan assumes command of the Army of the Potomac following a disastrous defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run.
- 1863 - American Civil War: Morgan's Raid ends - At Salineville, Ohio, Confederate cavalry leader John Hunt Morgan and 360 of his volunteers are captured by Union forces.
- 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.
- 1214 - Battle of Bouvines: In France, Philip II of France defeats John of England.
- 1714 - The first important victory of the Russian Navy - the Battle of Gangut.
- 1778 - American Revolution: First Battle of Ushant - British and French fleets fight to a standoff.
- 1880 - British army defeated at Battle of Maiwand in Afghanistan.
- 1953 - Korean War ends: The United States, People's Republic of China, and North Korea, sign an armistice agreement. Syngman Rhee, president of South Korea, refuses to sign but pledges to observe the armistice.
- 1809 - Napoleonic wars: Sir Arthur Wellesley's British, Portuguese and Spanish army defeats a much larger French force under Joseph Bonaparte at the Battle of Talavera.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Ezra Church begins - Confederate troops make a third unsuccessful attempt to drive Union forces from Atlanta, Georgia.
- 1914 - World War I begins: Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia after it failed to meet the conditions of an ultimatum it set following the killing of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria by a Serbian assassin. This event leads to the outbreak of war.
- 1942 - World War II: USSR leader Joseph Stalin issues Order No. 227 in response to alarming German advances into Russia. Under the order all those who retreat or otherwise leave their positions without orders to do so will be immediately killed.
- 1965 - Vietnam War: US President Lyndon B. Johnson announces his order to increase the number of United States troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000.
- 1014 - Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat on the Bulgarian army, but his subsequent savage treatment of 15,000 prisoners reportedly causes Tsar Samuel of Bulgaria to die of shock.
- 1030 - King Olaf II fights and dies in the Battle of Stiklestad, trying to regain his Norwegian throne from the Danes.
- 1588 - Battle of Gravelines: The Spanish Armada is defeated by an English naval force under command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake off the coast of Gravelines, France.
- 1693 - War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen - France wins a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands.
- 1940 - Beginning of the Blitz - air attack by Germany on Great Britain.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of the Crater - Union forces attempt to break Confederate lines by exploding a large bomb under their trenches.
- 1945 - World War II: A Japanese submarine sinks the USS Indianapolis, killing 883 seamen in the worst single loss in the history of the United States Navy.
- 1969 - Vietnam War: US President Richard M. Nixon makes an unscheduled visit to South Vietnam and meets with President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu and with US military commanders.
- 1970 - Black Tot Day: last day of the officially sanctioned rum ration in the Royal Navy.
- 1423 - Hundred Years' War: Battle of Cravant - The French army is defeated at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne.
- 1667 - Treaty of Breda ends the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
- 1917 - Third Battle of Ypres begins in Flanders.
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