On July 26, 1581, the Dutch Low Countries signed the Plakkaat van Verlatinghe (the Act of Abjuration), declaring independence from Spain. Learn more about the Plakkaat van Verlatinghe.
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On July 26, 1990, President George H.W. Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act, prohibiting discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodation, communications, and activities of state and local government. Review a summary of the Act from the US Department of Labor.
On July 25, 1792, the Brunswick Manifesto was proclaimed by Charles William Ferdinand, the Duke of Brunswick during the French Revolutionary Wars. As leader of the forces allied against France, Ferdinand promised retribution against the citizens of Paris if the French Royal Family was harmed. Instead, the Manifesto further inflamed anti-royal sentiment in Paris.
On July 25, 1947, the National Security Act of 1947 was passed, establishing a linkage between the military and national security, and setting up the National Security Council (NSC), the CIA, the Department of Defense, and several other new agencies, including the National Military Establishment with three separate departments (the Army, the Navy and the [...]
On July 24, 1929, the Kellogg-Briand Pact took effect, renouncing war as an instrument of foreign policy. It had been previously signed on August 27, 1928 by most great world powers. World War II broke out in Europe ten years after the treaty was signed. Read documents related to the Kellog-Braid Pact from Yale Law [...]
On July 24, 1925, John Scopes was found guilty of teaching evolution in a Tennessee high school, contrary to a state statute. Learn more about the Scopes Monkey Trial.
On July 23, 1840, the Act of Union was passed, creating the British province of Canada. The Act took effect on February 10, 1841.
On July 23, 1936, US Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy was born in Sacramento, California. Learn more about Justice Kennedy’s rise to the Supreme Court.
On July 22, 1976, Japan paid the last of its World War II reparations to the Philippines.
On July 22, 1939, New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia appointed Jane Matilda Bolin a judge of the city’s Domestic Relations Court, making her the first African-American woman appointed to judicial office in the United States. She served on the court for 40 years. Learn more about Jane Matilda Bolin.
