On This Day - What Happened On July 13 | Britannica

Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos A Britannica Newsletter Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors. SIGN UP ADD TO YOUR INBOX Thanks for signing up for Today in History. Your first newsletter will arrive soon! By clicking "Add To Your Inbox"tapping "Sign Up" you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Home On This Day TODAY IN HISTORY July 13 What Happened On Your Bday? Go to Today's Date

Featured Event

1793 French revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat assassinated On this day in 1793, Jean-Paul Marat, a leader of the radical Montagnard faction during the French Revolution, was stabbed to death in his bath by Charlotte Corday, a young Girondin supporter who was subsequently guillotined. How much do you know about French history? World History Archive/age fotostock

Featured Biography

Wole Soyinka Nigerian author bornJuly 13, 1934 (age 91)Abeokuta, NigeriaVernon L. Smith 1950 Ma Ying-jeou president of Taiwan 1942 Harrison Ford American actor 1940 Patrick Stewart British actor 1935 Jack Kemp American politician and football player 1821 Nathan Bedford Forrest Confederate general See All Biographies On This Day

More Events On This Day

2024 Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, survived an assassination attempt after a gunman opened fire during a campaign event in Pennsylvania; the former U.S. president suffered a wound to his ear.© Jabin Botsford—The Washington Post/Getty Images 2017 Chinese writer and human rights activist Liu Xiaobo, who advocated for democratic reforms and was the first Chinese citizen to be awarded (2010) the Nobel Peace Prize, died at age 61. Take our quiz about the Nobel PrizeVOA 2016 Theresa May, the Conservative Party leader, became the second woman prime minister of the United Kingdom, replacing David Cameron, who resigned after the country voted to leave the European Union. Test your knowledge of British culture and politicsUK Home Office (CC BY 2.0) 2010 American businessman George Steinbrenner—who, while principal owner of the New York Yankees, became one of the most controversial personalities in major league baseball—died at age 80. How much do you know about baseball?Mediapunch/Shutterstock.com 2007 The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced plans to address colony collapse disorder, which had been first reported several months earlier. A disorder affecting honeybees, it represented a serious threat to American agriculture. Learn why bees, along with wasps and ants, are one of the most ecologically important animal groups on Earth© G.A. Maclean/Oxford Scientific Films 1985 The benefit concert Live Aid was held simultaneously at Wembley Stadium in London and JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, the event drew an estimated 1.5 billion television viewers and raised millions of dollars for famine relief in Ethiopia. Take our music quizTrinity Mirror/Mirrorpix/Alamy 1942 American actor Harrison Ford, who was perhaps best known for playing charismatic rogues in the Star Wars and Indiana Jones film franchises, was born. Test your knowledge of actors and acting© 1989 Lucasfilm with Paramount Pictures Corporation 1939 Backed by trumpeter Harry James, American singer Frank Sinatra recorded his first single, From the Bottom of My Heart. How much do you know about Frank Sinatra?Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (LC-GLB13-0779) 1878 The Treaty of Berlin was signed—replacing the Treaty of San Stefano, which had ended the last of the Russo-Turkish wars. 1861 General George B. McClellan and Union troops defeated Confederate forces in northwestern Virginia, an area that subsequently became West Virginia. Take our quiz about American Civil War battlesU.S. Signal Corps/National Archives, Washington, D.C. 1832 Henry Rowe Schoolcraft identified the source of the Mississippi River as Lake Itasca in Minnesota. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about rivers© Peter Hawkins/Danita Delimont/stock.adobe.com 1787 The U.S. Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which laid the basis for the government of the Northwest Territory and for the admission of its constituent parts as states of the union. Test your knowledge of early AmericaEncyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 1713 Spain and Britain signed one of the treaties of Utrecht, this one giving Gibraltar and Minorca to Britain. How much do you know about European history? SIGN UP FOR History's Biggest Headlines Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors. SIGN UP Thanks for signing up for Today in History. Your first newsletter will arrive soon! SIGN UP By clicking "Sign Up" you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.