On July 31, 1763, James Kent, first professor of law at Columbia College, Chancellor of New York, and author of a four-volume set of Commentaries on American Law, was born near Brewster, NY. Learn more about James Kent.

On July 31, 1919, the Constitution of the German Reich was signed in Weimar, Germany as the country’s post-empire foundational law. The document set up a full democracy in Germany with a President, Parliament, and independent judiciary. It also made Germany the first nation to give women the right to vote. The so-called Weimar Republic [...]

On July 30, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Medicare bill, which went into effect the following year. Learn more about the history of Medicare.

On July 30, 1898, Otto von Bismark died at age 83 in Germany. Bismark served as Prime Minister of Prussia until German unification in 1873. He then served as the first Chancellor of the German Empire. Bismark is perhaps best remembered for engineering the unification of Germany, but he was also responsible for the creation [...]

On July 29, 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958, creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

On July 29, 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was created as means to promote the use of nuclear power for peaceful purposes. Though established independently by the IAEA Statute, the Agency is still supported in its mission by the UN General Assembly and UN the Security Council. Learn more about the history of [...]

On July 28, 1938, Alberto Fujimori was born in Lima, Peru. Fujimori became President of Peru exactly 62 years later on July 28, 1990 and served until November 22, 2000, when he fled to Japan under a cloud of allegations involving corruption and human-rights violations. Fujimori was widely credited with restoring the Peru’s economy and [...]

On July 28, 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, granting citizenship to former slaves and protecting due process of law and equal protection of laws in the States, was ratified. Learn more about the history of the Fourteenth Amendment.

On July 27, 1953, the Korean War ended when the United States, China, and North Korea signed an armistice. The President of South Korea did not sign but agreed to abide by the agreement.

On July 27, 1974, the House Judiciary Committee voted 27-11 to recommend the impeachment of President Richard Nixon. Read the Articles of Impeachment adopted by the Committee.