Friday, July 15th
The 196th day of 2005
There are 169 days left in the year

Today's Highlights in History

On July 15, 1918, the Second Battle of the Marne began during World War I. (Go to article.)

On July 15, 1919, Dame Iris Murdoch, the British writer and philosopher, was born. Following her death on Feb. 8, 1999, her obituary appeared in The Times. (Go to obit. Other Birthdays)

On July 15, 1905, Harper's Weekly featured a cartoon about the Russian Revolution of 1905. (See the cartoon and read an explanation.)

Reference: The New York Times



The following courtesy Iraq War Today

Today in History
1410 - Poland and Lithuania defeat the Teutonic Knights at Tannenberg.
1815 - Napoleon Bonaparte is captured.
1864 - A train carrying Confederate prisoners collides with a coal train; of the over 950 people aboard, 65 are killed and 109.
1869 - In Paris, margarine is patented for use by the French Navy.
1870 - Georgia becomes the last confederate state readmitted to the U.S.
1888 - In Japan, the Bandai volcano erupts for the first time in a thousand years.
1904 - In Los Angeles, the first Buddhist temple in the U.S. is established.
1918 - The Second Battle of the Marne begins.
1922 - The first publicly exhibited duck-billed platypus in the U.S. makes its debut at the publicly exhibited in US, at NY Zoo.
1937 - The Japanese attack Marco Polo Bridge, invading China.
1944 - The Greenwich Observatory is damaged by a bomb.
1952 - The first transatlantic helicopter flight begins.
1954 - The first U.S.-built commercial jet transport plane (a Boeing 707) is tested.
1958 - President Eisenhower sends U.S. troops to Lebanon, where they stay for three months.
1965 - American scientists display close-up photos of Mars, taken by Mariner IV.
1971 - President Nixon announces his plan to visit the People's Repubic of China.
1975 - Soyuz 19 and Apollo 18 are launched; they rendezvous two days later.
1983 - Armenian extremists bomb Orly Airport in France, killing 8 and wounding 54.
1987 - John Poindexter testifies at the Iran-Contra hearings.
1991 - U.S. troops leave northern Iraq.

Birthdays
1606 - Rembrandt van Rijn Leiden, painter (Night Watch)
1902 - Jean Rey Belgium, president of the European Commission
1945 - Gene Upshaw, offensive tackle (Oakland Raiders)
1960 - Kim Alexis, model (Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover)

Passings
1869 - A. J. Hayne, African-American Captain of the Arkansas Militia, assassinated
1881 - William Bonney / Henry McCarty ("Billy the Kid"), killed by Pat Garrett
1948 - John J. Persing, U.S. General

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Connell, James Joseph, USN (DE); A4E shot down, died in captivity, likely due to maltreatment - remains returned March, 1974
Dennis, Mark V., USN (OH); CH46A shot down; not on official DIA list.
1967
Cassell, Robin B., USN (AZ); A1H shot down, KIA, body not recovered
1968
Bird, Leonard Adrian, USMC (DE); F4B shot down, KIA, body not recovered
James, Gobel D., USAF (OK); F105F shot down, released by DRV March, 1973 - alive and well as of 1998
Martin, Larry E., USAF (KS); F105F shot down, remains returned July, 1989 / ID'd November, 1989
1969
Polster, Harmon, USAF (OH); F4D shot down over Laos
Walker, Michael S., USAF (LA); F4D shot down over Laos
1971
Taylor, Ted J., US Army (SC); AH1B crashed, drowned during rescue attempt