✦ DateLore

On This Day · The 186th day of the year

July 5

A look at July 5 through the almanac — historic events, famous birthdays including Hedi Slimane and Georges Pompidou, and the day's notable deaths and observances.

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Events

10 notable moments
  1. 2012

    The Shard

    The Shard in London is inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft).

    Skyscraper in London, England
  2. 2009

    July 2009 Ürümqi riots

    A series of violent riots break out in Ürümqi, the capital city of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China.

    Protest events in Xinjiang,
  3. 2006

    North Korea

    North Korea tests four short-range missiles, one medium-range missile and a long-range Taepodong-2. The long-range Taepodong-2 reportedly fails in mid-air over the Sea of Japan.

    Country in East Asia
  4. 1995

    Armenia

    Armenia adopts its constitution, four years after its independence from the Soviet Union.

    Country in West Asia
  5. 1973

    Juvénal Habyarimana

    Juvénal Habyarimana seizes power over Rwanda in a coup d'état.

    President of Rwanda from
  6. 1954

    Elvis Presley

    Elvis Presley records his first single, "That's All Right", at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee.

    American singer and actor
  7. 1950

    Korean War

    Korean War: Task Force Smith: American and North Korean forces first clash, in the Battle of Osan.

    1950–1953 conflict in Korean
  8. 1945

    United Kingdom

    The United Kingdom holds its first general election in 10 years, which would be won by Clement Attlee's Labour Party.

    Country in northwestern Europe
  9. 1940

    World War II

    World War II: Foreign relations of Vichy France are severed with the United Kingdom.

    1939–1945 global conflict
  10. 1841

    Thomas Cook

    Thomas Cook organises the first package excursion, from Leicester to Loughborough.

    English businessman (1808–1892)
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Famous birthday twins

Born on July 5

Hedi Slimane

b. 1968

French fashion designer and photographer

Georges Pompidou

b. 1911

French banker and politician, 19th President of France

Ernst Mayr

b. 1904

German-American biologist and ornithologist

Gianfranco Zola

b. 1966

Italian footballer and coach

Willem Drees

b. 1886

Dutch politician and historian, Prime Minister of the Netherlands

Caryn Navy

b. 1953

American mathematician and computer scientist

Cecil Rhodes

b. 1853

English-South African businessman and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Cape Colony

Viktor Kulikov

b. 1921

Russian marshal

Deaths

  • 2024Vic Seixas, American tennis player
  • 1969Wilhelm Backhaus, German pianist and educator
  • 1969Walter Gropius, German architect, designed the John F. Kennedy Federal Building and Werkbund Exhibition
  • 1945John Curtin, Australian journalist and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Australia
  • 1927Albrecht Kossel, German physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1920Max Klinger, German painter and sculptor

Holidays & observances

  • —Bloody Thursday (International Longshore and Warehouse Union)
  • —Christian feast day: Anthony Maria Zaccaria, priest (died 1539)
  • —Christian feast day: Cyril and Methodius (a public holiday in Czech Republic and Slovakia)
  • —Christian feast day: Wexford Martyrs (Roman Catholic Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Zoe of Rome (Roman Catholic Church)
  • —Christian feast day: July 5 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • —Fifth of July (New York), historic celebration of the abolition of slavery in New York in 1827.
  • —Independence Day (Algeria), celebrating the independence of Algeria from France in 1962.

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