July 15 has witnessed religious milestones, political upheavals, and technological marvels.
After a five-week siege, soldiers of the First Crusade breached the walls of Jerusalem and captured the holy city. The conquest was accompanied by widespread slaughter and established the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.
French soldiers in Napoleon's army discovered the Rosetta Stone near the town of Rashid in Egypt. The stone, inscribed with the same text in three scripts, provided the key to deciphering ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.
The Dutch Golden Age master was born in Leiden. His innovative use of light and shadow, emotional depth, and masterful self-portraits made him one of the greatest visual artists in Western art history.
The social networking service Twitter was publicly launched, allowing users to post short 140-character messages called 'tweets.' It transformed global communication, journalism, and political discourse.
American Apollo and Soviet Soyuz spacecraft docked in orbit, marking the first international human spaceflight. The historic handshake in space symbolized a thaw in Cold War tensions.
James Scott, Duke of Monmouth, was beheaded for leading a failed rebellion against King James II. The executioner infamously required five blows of the axe to complete the gruesome task.
Elements of the Turkish military attempted to overthrow President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government. The coup failed after civilians took to the streets, but it led to massive purges across Turkish society.