Historical Events
- Jul 1 French frigate Medusa wrecked; basis of Géricault's painting "Raft of the Medusa"
The Raft of the Medusa
Jul 2 French frigate "La Méduse" runs aground under incompetent leadership of Viscount of Chaumareys, 400 passengers evacuated. 150 men, 1 woman are left on "la Machine," a poorly provisioned raft. 13 days later only 15 survivors remain, inspires Théodore Géricault's painting "The Raft of the Medusa"
- Jul 8 Frost in Waltham, Massachusetts during "year without a summer"
Event of Interest
Jul 9 Argentina declares independence from Spain at the Congress of Tucumán
- Jul 17 "L'Argus" accidentally discovers raft holding survivors from wrecked French frigate "Méduse." After 13 days at sea only 15 of 151 remain, the rest having been cannibalised, murdered, or committed suicide. This event was made famous by Théodore Géricault’s painting "The Raft of the Medusa"
- Jul 19 Survivors of French frigate Medusa rescued off Senegal after 17 days
- Jul 27 US troops destroy Fort Apalachicola, a Seminole fort, to punish Indians for harboring runaway slaves
Famous Birthdays
- Jul 4 Hiram Walker, American entrepreneur and founder of the Hiram Walker and Sons Ltd. distillery, born in East Douglas, Massachusetts (d. 1899)
- Jul 7 Isaac Fitzgerald Shepard, American General (Union Army), born in Natick, Massachusetts on (d. 1889)
- Jul 11 French-Andries Durlet, Belgian sculptor and architect, born in Antwerp, Belgium (d. 1867)
- Jul 13 Gustav Freytag, German writer and playwright (Debit and Credit), born in Kreuzburg, Silesia (d. 1895)
- Jul 14 Arthur de Gobineau, French philosopher (d. 1882)
- Jul 20 William Bowman, English anatomist, born in Nantwich, Cheshire (d. 1892)
- Jul 21 Paul Julius Baron von Reuter, German-born founder of Reuters news service, born in Kassel (d. 1899)
- Jul 23 Charlotte Saunders Cushman, American actress (Lady MacBeth), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1876)
- Jul 24 Józef Michał Poniatowski [Giuseppe Michele Luci], Poilsh-Italian-French nobleman, diplomat, operatic tenor, and composer, born in Rome, Papal States (d. 1873)
- Jul 25 Christian Bernhard Tauchnitz, German publisher (T Edition), born in Unterkaka, Meineweh, Germany (d. 1895)
- Jul 31 George Henry Thomas, American Major General (Union Army), born in Newsoms, Virginia (d. 1870)
- Jul 31 Lydia Moss Bradley, American bank president, philanthropist, and college founder (Bradley Polytechnic Institute), born in Vevay, Indiana (d. 1908)
Famous Deaths
- Jul 3 Dorothy Jordan, Irish-English actress, courtesan, mistress of future King William IV of the United Kingdom, dies at 65
- Jul 6 Philipp Meissner, German composer, dies at 67
- Jul 7 Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Irish playwright (The Rivals, The School for Scandal) and Whig MP, dies at 64
- Jul 14 Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela freedom fighter, dies at 66
- Jul 20 Gavrila Romanovich Derzhavin, Russian poet (b. 1743)
- Jul 23 Elizabeth Hamilton, British author (Cats: A Celebration), dies at 68
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