First Confidential

THIS DAY IN HISTORY - JULY 29th

This Day in History

July 29th, 238

Roman Empire Decline and Fall of Rome

Roman Empire:
238 - The Praetorian Guard stormed the palace and capture Pupienus and Balbinus. They are dragged through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day Gordian III, age 13, is proclaimed emperor.

Wikipedia  Image: Relief from a 3rd-century sarcophagus depicting a battle between Romans and Germanic warriors; the central figure is perhaps the emperor Hostilian / Depiction of the Menorah on the Arch of Titus in Rome.

July 29th, 615

Pakal ascends the throne of Palenque at age 12

Pakal ascends the throne of Palenque at age 12.

Wikipedia  Photo: Palenque; Pre-Hispanic City and National Park of Palenque, Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List UNESCO ● Temple of the Cross ● Temple of the Inscription ● A bas-relief in the Palenque museum that depicts Upakal K'inich, the son of K'inich Ahkal Mo' Naab III ● Stone carving of Pacal the Great, one of the main figures responsible for the city's art and architecture ● K'inich Kan B'alam II, one of the many rulers of Palenque. Detail from the Temple XVII Tablet.

July 29th, 904

Byzantine Empire Collage

Byzantine Empire (East Roman Empire):
904 - Sack of Thessalonica; Saracen raiders under Leo of Tripoli sack Thessalonica, the Byzantine Empire's second-largest city, after a short siege, and plunder it for a week.
1014 - Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars; Battle of Kleidion - Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat on the Bulgarian army.

Wikipedia  Image: The Baptism of Constantine painted by Raphael's pupils (1520–1524, fresco, Vatican City, Apostolic Palace); Mural of Saints Cyril and Methodius, 19th century, Troyan Monastery, Bulgaria; Justinian I depicted on one of the famous mosaics of the Basilica of San Vitale, Ravenna; The Greek fire was first used by the Byzantine Navy during the Byzantine-Arab Wars (from the Madrid Skylitzes, Biblioteca Nacional de España, Madrid); Alexios I, founder of the Komnenos dynasty.

July 29th, 1567

James VI is crowned King of Scotland at Stirling

James VI is crowned King of Scotland at Stirling.

Wikipedia  Painting: James VI of Scotland and later James I of England

July 29th, 1864

Lincoln Memorial: an American national monument built to honor the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln - located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. across from the Washington Monument American Civil War: Battle of Antietam; Stone Bridge at Antietam Battlefield - Sharpsburg, Maryland American Civil War: American Civil War: First Battle Between Ironclads; CSS Virginia/Merrimac (left) vs. USS Monitor, in 1862 at the Battle of Hampton Roads

American Civil War:
1864 - Confederate spy Belle Boyd is arrested by Union troops and detained at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C.

Wikipedia  Image: ● Lincoln Memorial; an American national monument built to honor the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln - located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. across from the Washington Monument.
● The northern army led by George McClellan and the southern army led by Robert E. Lee met at Antietam Creek, Maryland in September, 1862. It was a bloody battle where 13,000 Confederates and 12,000 Union troops died in just one day. McClellan had hesitated to attack before the battle thus letting the southern troops regroup. Also, he had saved reserves and refused to use them at the end of the battle thinking that Lee was holding reserves for a counterattack, even though those reserves didn't exist. The Union victory stopped Lee's northward advance and was a turning point in the war.
● Battle of Antietam / Stone Bridge at Antietam Battlefield - Sharpsburg, Maryland
● First Battle Between Ironclads: CSS Virginia/Merrimac (left) vs. USS Monitor, in 1862 at the Battle of Hampton Roads.
● Although photography was still in its infancy, war correspondents produced thousands of images, bringing the harsh realities of the frontlines to those on the home front in a new and visceral way. The Atlantic.

July 29th, 1965

Vietnam War: Operation Swift; U.S. Marines engage the North Vietnamese in battle in the Que Son Valley Vietnam War: Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

Vietnam War:
1965 - The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrive in Vietnam , landing at Cam Ranh Bay.
1967 - off the coast of North Vietnam the USS Forrestal catches fire the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134.

Wikipedia  Photo: Vietnam_War; Side view of an HH-53 helicopter of the 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron as seen from the gunner's position on an A-1 of the 21st Specialist Operations Squadron. (USAF Photo by Ken Hackman), Boston Globe;
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, credit Free Republic;
Vietnam War: The Big Picture / Boston Globe.

July 29th, 1987

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and French President François Mitterrand officiate at the opening of the Channel Tunnel on May 6th, 1994

Channel Tunnel: British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President of France François Mitterrand sign the agreement to build a tunnel under the English Channel (Eurotunnel).

Wikipedia  Photo: Channel Tunnel: Eurostar train ● The service tunnel is 4.8m in diameter and lies between the two rail tunnels 15m away from each of them ● The only remaining accessible section of the tunnel at Shakespeare Cliff, as the tunnel dips downwards the water eventually comes up to the roof, credit by Nick Catford.