Heinrich Himmler on 7 July 1942 ordered experimentation on women at Auschwitz concentration camp, which would later be extended to males. The purpose of the experiments was to find ways to sterilize Jews.
Heinrich Himmler, 1942 German Federal Archives (via Wikimedia Commons)
Extermination of Jews was something Himmler and many, including Hitler, fully supported. As head of the Schutzstaffel(SS) as well as the assistant chief of the Gestapo, he controlled all the secret police and paramilitary forces in Germany. This power gave Himmler the power to carry out Hitler’s Final Solution and the reason why he called for a conference about conducting such experiments. Attending the conference were SS General Richard Glueks (hospital chief), SS Major-General Karl Gebhardt, and Professor Karl Clauberg (a leading German gynecologist) and members of the Concentration Camp Protectorate.
It was decided that the experiments on sterilization would be done in a way women would not know what was being done to them. The experiments would reveal the best methods of sterilizing Jewish women and how to sterilize men as well using X-rays. Hitler approved but it was kept top secret. A prior plan to euthanize disabled people, those suffering from incurable diseases, or confined due to mental disorders had resulted in a public outcry they did not want repeated. One of the main reasons for sterilization was to use it in places where concentration camps could not be built. It was expanded to others they deemed inferior (Slavs, Roma, homosexuals etc.) Using medical treatments to hide their true objective of killing Jews would be revealed after the war.
Gate to Auschwitz I with its Arbeit macht frei sign (“work sets you free”), 2010 Image credit: xiquinhosilva Flickr via Wikimedia Commons
World History. “Nazi Angel of Death & His Horrific Medical Experiments on Auschwitz Prisoners – Josef Mengele.” Video. YouTube, April 25, 2023. Accessed July 8, 2026. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWw5LMwM8x8.
World History. “Inhuman Nazi Medical Experiments & Nazi Doctors- Josef Mengele – Karl Gebhardt – Herta Oberheuser…” Video. YouTube, April 2, 2022. Accessed July 8, 2026. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTzke0HYjTo.
Baseball was forever changed by the Black Sox Scandal where several Chicago White Sox team members were indicted for taking bribes on 20 October 1920 to throw the 1919 World Series. The scandal resulted in new rules of player conduct and the creation of a baseball commissioner to rule baseball as a dictator for decades.
“Fix these faces in your memory” cartoon that ran in newspapers in 1920 after the scandal broker in 1920. Source: Anderson, Wayne (2004) “The Fix” in The Chicago Black Sox Trial: A Primary Source Account, Great Trials of the Twentieth Century, New York, United States: The Rosen Publishing Group Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
The White Sox were heavily favored to win the game in 1919 but many players were upset with being underpaid by team owner Charles Comiskey. It is believed that first baseman Chick Gandil may have initiated contact and through intermediaries New York gambler Arnold Rothstein offered money for the players to lose some of the games intentionally. Rumors of game fixing began on the first day of the game (1 Oct 1919). A lot of money was being placed against the Sox, which raised suspicions. The rumors reached the press box which started getting sports writers interested. As the games went on, plays were being watched more carefully and what the players were doing (or rather, not doing right). By Game 5 though, those involved were upset that they had not been paid and won Games 6 and 7. The gamblers struck back, and threats were made against the players and the families. Game 8 was lost by the Sox ending the series. The main conspirators received $5,000 each with Chick Gandil, who was the one who initiated the scheme, receiving $35,000.
Rumors swirled into the 1920 season and newspaper stories of corruption in other ball clubs emerged as well. Finally, what appeared to be a rigged regular season game between the Cubs and the Phillies in August 1920 led to a grand jury being convened in September to investigate the 1919 World Series. Pitcher Eddie Cicotte confessed to his role and signed a waiver of immunity. Shoeless Joe Jackson soon testified to receiving $5,000 from his teammates. Lefty Williams and Oscar Felsch also confessed as well. In October indictments for conspiracy were handed down for seven members of the White Sox, forever dubbed the Black Sox:
Arnold “Chick” Gandil (1st Base)
2. Eddie Cicotte (Pitcher)
3. Claude “Lefty” Williams (Pitcher)
4. Charles “Swede” Risberg (Shortstop)
5. Oscar “Happy” Felsch (Outfielder)
6. “Shoeless” Joe Jackson (Outfielder)
7. Fred McMullin (Infielder)
8. Buck Weaver (3rd Base)
The media and the public were unforgiving. Numerous stories appeared on how they sold out baseball and baseball fans over what happened. It was a major public relations nightmare for both the American and National leagues (they were separate leagues back then). As the trial date loomed, the incoming state attorney for Cook’s County, Robert E. Crowe, found that the original grand jury testimony was missing from the file left by his predecessor Maclay Hoyne. It is believed that his secretary, George Kenney, was responsible for the theft. And this is where a certain myth would also come about as well as dramatized in the movie Eight Men Out. In the telling of the story in the movie (and elsewhere), the signed confessions and other documents disappeared dramatically causing the trial to fall back on second-hand accounts to prove the bribery.
That is not what happened. Since sworn confessions are not done with grand juries, they were not there to begin with. Not having the original grand jury testimony though was embarrassing but it was overcome. The shorthand notes taken by the grand jury stenographers were taken to recreate the testimony and it was read to the jury during the trial. Both Eddie Cicotte and Joe Jackson though did recant their testimony given to the grand jury implicating them in the conspiracy. The trial which began on 16 June 1921 where the warm summer heat made the trial unbearable at times, ended on 2 August 1921. The jury returned acquittals of the defendants in three hours. Bill Lamb, the author of Black Sox in the Courtroom, speculates that the jury stopped paying attention do the stiffing heat in the court room. The transcripts would be used later in a civil trial brought by Joe Jackson against the White Sox and afterwards disappeared completely. What seems most likely to have happened is that they were put box into a box and forgotten. Years later people looking for them found them totally gone leaving just newspaper reports and other accounts about the trial. And since newspapers did not often relay trial proceedings accurately, it would be easy to believe they were missing and never used at trial.
Some documents from the trial have been recovered. A partial copy of the legal transcripts was found in 1988 by a law firm that once employed White Sox team counsel Alfred Austrian. The legal transcripts have Joe Jackson’s testimony to the grand jury. This is neither suspicious nor conspiratorial. It would be common for attorneys connected to the case order copies for their records. In 2007 the Chicago History Museum acquired documents related to the Black Sox Scandal. Within these documents were transcripts from the jury trial of Eddie Cicotte’s testimony. His grand jury testimony is not intact. However, parts if his testimony in Joe Jackson’s lawsuit against the White Sox did survive.
During the trial in 1921, White Sox player “Sleepy Bill” Burns gave the most damning testimony when he said that Rothstein was involved and Cicotte had said he would fix the game. White Sox owner Charles Comiskey, who many felt had mistreated his players by not paying his player enough and not paying promised bonuses, was grilled on the stand so hard by the defense counsel that he became enraged. So, the trial did confirm what was told to the grand jury: that players were bribed and the reasons were due to being underpaid by team owner Comiskey. The jury found otherwise and returned acquittals to all. And then they all had a nice dinner with the players thinking that it was all over.
Baseball Owners Respond
Prior to the jury verdict and even before the scandal broke out, the baseball team owners wanted to change how things were run. A National Commission governed the sport, but they realized things had to change. One suggestion was to get a recognized federal judge to sit on this commission and help direct baseball in a better direction. They looked at noted baseball fan and federal judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, but he demanded that he be made sole commissioner with nearly unchecked powers as commissioner. Although there were misgivings, the baseball owners agreed to his demands and made him the sole commissioner. This was unheard of back then as usually you wanted power vested in a group rather than one person. Landis would rule baseball from 1920-1944 and he would rule it with an iron fist. He would be the first and the last commissioner to have unchecked powers as he did.
Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, with baseball owners standing beside him, signs agreement making him Commissioner of Baseball. Date: 12 November 1920 Source (Original): Chicago Tribune. Later reprinted in The Sporting News and subsequently reprinted in other news media and books. Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
Commissioner Landis Sets a New Tone for Baseball
Landis speaking at a church in 1921 is reported as saying he would tolerate any crooks in baseball.
Now that I am in baseball, just watch the game I play. If I catch any crook in baseball, the rest of his life is going to be a pretty hot one. I’ll go to any means and to anything possible to see that he gets a real penalty for his offense.
Landis watched the jury trial like anyone else to see how it would play out. The following morning after the acquittal he stated the following:
Regardless of the verdict of juries, no player that throws a ball game; no player that undertakes or promises to throw a ball game; no player that sits in a conference with a bunch of crooked players and gamblers where the ways and means of throwing ball games are planned and discussed and does not promptly tell his club about it, will ever play professional baseball. Of course, I don’t know that any of these men will apply for reinstatement, but if they do, the above are at least a few of the rules that will be enforced. Just keep in mind that, regardless of the verdict of juries, baseball is competent to protect itself against crooks, both inside and outside the game.
The eight acquitted players were put on the illegible list barring them from playing in major or minor league baseball. Comiskey released those still under contract to the team. All appeals were denied by Landis, and the Black Sox were forever banned from professional baseball. However, Jackson, Williams, Felsch, and Weaver were able to play in a semi-pro game though sports writers heavily criticized it and the public for attending. The standard that Landis applied still exists to this day in baseball, that ball players who collude with gamblers to throw a game or gamble against their own team do not belong in baseball. The fact they were acquitted did not erase what they testified to the grand jury where they had admitted to taking money. Other baseball players found to have consorted with gamblers or gambled on the game met the same fate was well. Team owners were not immune either if they were found to be involved in any aspect of gambling. Two owners who had purchased a racing horse track had to sell it. And players who also did things like playing baseball out of season for extra money could face being banned unless approved by him.
Babe Ruth found himself ineligible to play for a while because he did not get Landis’ permission to play out of season. After he met with Landis, and the issue was resolved, he was back playing baseball again for the Yankees. While Landis was not a fan of the farm system, he made sure that team owners disclosed their ownership of minor league teams and that they honored their contracts with players. He is severely criticized that he did not allow black players to play in baseball. At the same time, he understood some teams would react badly to a black ballplayer. Landis feared ugly incidents in the club house that would do more damage to the sport than gambling. Integration would not take place until after World War II and Landis’ death.
Baseball Commissioner Ends Permanent Ban for 16 Deceased Players
In May 2025 baseball commissioner Rob Manfred removed 16 deceased players and one deceased owner from the permanent ban list. “Obviously, a person no longer with us cannot represent a threat to the integrity of the game,” he wrote to the attorney seeking the ban lifted on the now deceased Pete Rose. He added: “Moreover, it is hard to conceive of a penalty that has more deterrent effect than one that lasts a lifetime with no reprieve.” The list of those removed are:
Eddie Cicotte
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
William Cox
Owner Philadelphia Phillies 1943. Banned for betting on team’s games.
Cozy Dolan
New York Giants 1924. As coach he conspired with player Jimmy O’Connell to bribe Philadelphia Phillies player Heiner Sand to throw game between both teams.
Phil Douglas
New York Giants 1922. Banned after telling player on St. Louis Browns he planned to spike the pennant race because he hated team manager McGraw.
Happy Felsch
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
Chick Gandil
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
Joe Gedeon
Black Sox Scandal 1921. Played on St. Louis Browns but conspired with gamblers behind the scandal.
Joe Jackson
Black Sox Scandal 1921
Benny Kauff
New York Giants 1921. Banned for selling stolen cars.
Fred McMullin
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
Jimmy O’Connell
New York Giants 1924. He and coach Cozy Dolan offered money to Philadelphia Phillies player Heiner Sand to throw game between both teams.
Gene Paulette
Philadelphia Phillies 1921. Banned for associating with gamblers.
Swede Risberg
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
Pete Rose
Manager Cincinnati Reds 1989. Accepted ban as part of legal settlement for gambling and related issues. Admitted to betting on baseball several years later.
Buck Weaver
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
Lefty Williams
Black Sox Scandal 1921.
Eight baseball players banned by Commissioner Landis in 1921, including Shoeless Joe Jackson, are now off the ineligible list. In a more surprising move, former baseball player and manager Pete Rose was reinstated as well. Rose had accepted a legal settlement which accepted the ban. He had initially denied claims he had bet on games but later in a book admitted he had. He remained popular despite the ban and there were calls over the years to lift it. He passed away at age 83 in 2024.
Manfred made clear that going forward those on the ineligible list will be removed once they pass away. According to current rules, the earliest that these players like Shoeless Joe Jackson or Pete Ross can be eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame is 2028.
PBS NewsHour. “100 Years Since ‘Black Sox’ World Series, New Details Challenge Long-held Story.” Video. YouTube, October 10, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJLapw_J0-M.
Movies
[Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.]
Asinof, Eliot, and John Sayles. Eight Men Out. Orion Pictures, 1989. A semi-fictional account of the Black Sox Scandal. Well worth watching as it does follow much of the real history as to what happened. Considered one of the best baseball movies to watch.
This was revised from 2025 to correct grammar and punctuation. Additionally new information added correcting the misconception that sworn written confessions made to grand jury had been lost.
On 2 July 1776, the Continental Congress adopted a resolution that formally declared that American colonies independent of Britain. A final document had to be created explaining the reasons. A committee of five composed of John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Morris, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson worked on a draft form for the Congress to approve. On 4 July 1776 the Declaration of Independence was published. Although John Adams believed 2 July would be remembered for generations, it would be the day the Declaration was published that would be remembered.
Declaration of Independence (1819) by John Trumbull (1756-1843). Public Domain
It would be spread in July and August in a variety of ways. It was published in newspapers throughout the American colonies. It was spread via word of mouth by horseback and by ships. Newspapers published the Declaration and was read aloud for people and troops serving the Continental Congress. It was also sent to Europe as well. The Declaration clearly spelled out the reasons for the split and roused support for the American Revolution. It was a shocking document read in London and in other capitals. For it laid out clearly and precisely the reasons why a people could, and under the proper circumstances, rise up and replace their government with something better.
Thomas Jefferson, one of the principal writers of the Declaration, wanted to convey in a commonsense manner the reasons for the split. He wanted everyone who read or heard it read aloud to know exactly why this had to occur. He drew upon well-known political works in the language he used. His most important goal was to express the American mind against the tyranny of Britain.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.”
The Spirit of 76 (Yankee Doodle) by Archibald Willard (1836–1918) 1912 Public Domain va Wikimedia Commons
The Declaration announced to the world the uniqueness of the American Revolution. This was not like simply toppling a monarch and replacing him with a Cromwell or another king. It was about creating a government that believed and supported civil liberties along with the idea of self-government. A government that ruled with the consent of the governed, and not the other way around which was common in most of the world. The Declaration would become the cornerstone of what the United States would stand for and inspire others around the world to believe in it as well.
Independence Day Celebration in Centre Square, Philadelphia Painting by John Lewis Krimmel ((1786–1821) Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
Today many are not sure of what happened in 1776 because they were not taught or learned why this occurred. There are those who try to rewrite history to fit their own narrative, often for political or social reasons or causes. The American Revolution occurred because people had become tired and frustrated by a government that was remote to their needs. They were British citizens, and many had families that came from Britain and settled in the colonies. They assumed they had the same basic rights of all English citizens, but the government saw the colonies as a means of revenue to refill their treasury. And they had little representation back in London, unlike there where you had a House of Commons that represented each borough.
When the British imposed taxes and restrictions on the American Colonies, many were disturbed by these actions and began protesting them. Attempts in some small ways of self-governance were met with indifference or hostility. The infamous tax on tea that led to the famous Boston Tea Party (1773). While this act was not celebrated by everyone (John Adams and George Washington, both thought it was wrong), it became a defining act of defiance, and the British took note since 45 tons of tea (worth a lot of money) was destroyed. The British closed down the port, demanded compensation, ended the Massachusetts Constitution, ended elections of public officials, instituted martial law as all courts were moved to Britain, and required housing of British troops on private property. And to further snub the local Protestants, French-Canadian Catholics were allowed to worship openly.
These rules, called the Coercive Acts, led to the First Continental Congress of 1774. Many thought what happened was wrong but this was too far. The British hoped the acts would stop further acts of rebellion but ended up doing the opposite. It brought together people of all levels against the British and further convinced many that they now lived under a tyranny. The First Continental Congress, while disagreeing about the Boston Tea Party, was strongly united against Britain because of the Coercive Acts. In their declaration they formally censured Britain for these acts, imposed a boycott of British goods, declared they had a right to govern themselves, and called on colonists to form militias. For most it came down to a simple word: sovereignty. And so, with the Declaration of Independence on 4 July 1776, they declared to the world the reasons why they had to formally break with Britain and declare their independence. Those that signed the declaration knew they would become targets, and many did. Some were arrested, imprisoned, or executed. Families were destroyed. Many leaders would lose all their wealth during the war to follow. And it was no sure thing they would win.
Britain was one of the premier powers of Europe at the time, with France being the other. They had a highly trained army and navy against a ragtag group of colonials though some had military experience (like George Washington). And the British showed, along with German mercenary troops, they were indeed not to be doubted. Yet something remarkable did happen. Despite all the odds against them, battles lost, cities taken, and at times appearing hopeless, the Americans did turn it around and show the British that they were determined and resolved in their desire to win. And they did to the surprise and shock of the world. They had defeated Britain and achieved their independence. What came of it was an American republic, distinctly different from anywhere else, where the government was set to serve the people and constrained by a constitution, to prevent a tyrant from ruling outright. And the first amendments to this constitution would enshrine and limit those powers they so detested the British had done to them.
A Fourth of July fireworks display at the Washington Monument Date: July 4, 1986 Photo: Ssgt. Lono Kollars, USAF National Archives and Records Administration, National Archives Identifier (NAID) 6413316 Public Domain
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IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
— John Hancock
New Hampshire: Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton
Massachusetts: John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry
Rhode Island: Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery
Connecticut: Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott
New York: William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris
New Jersey: Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark
Pennsylvania: Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross
Delaware: Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean
Maryland: Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia: George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton
North Carolina: William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn
South Carolina: Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton
Georgia: Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton
Suggested Reading
[Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.]
July, from the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry Limbourg brothers (fl. 1402–1416) Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
July, named for Julius Caesar, is the seventh month on the Gregorian calendar. It used to be called Quintillis (meaning five) on the old Roman calendar since that calendar started in March. Usually the hottest month in the Northern Hemisphere but below the equator, since it is winter the coldest month. While people often think that the “Dog days of Summer” refers to canines panting due to the heat, it refers to an astronomic event. During July the star Sirius can be seen in the night sky along with the constellation Canis Major (the largest dog).
The July Supermoon (aka Buck Moon, Thunder Moon, Hay Moon etc.) occurs when the moon is closest to Earth making it appear larger than normal. And it can be either a full or new moon. Buck Moon comes from noticing that deer shed their antlers every year and start growing new ones in July, hence Buck Moon. For a full list of July astronomical events, go to timeanddate.com.
A Fourth of July fireworks display at the Washington Monument Date: July 4, 1986 Photo: Ssgt. Lono Kollars, USAF National Archives and Records Administration, National Archives Identifier (NAID) 6413316 Public Domain
Two major holidays occur during July: the Fourth of July in the U.S. and Bastille Day (14 July) in France. The Fourth of July (Independence Day) is celebrated on 4 July to celebrate the American colonies declaring independence from Great Britain in 1776. Bastille Day commemorates the storming of the Bastille in Paris on 14 July 1789 and considered the start of the French Revolution.
Old Adages for July
Ne’er trust a July sky.
If ant hills are high in July, the coming winter will be hard.
As July, so next January.
No tempest, good July,
Lest the corn look ruely.
Whatever July and August do not boil,
September can not fry.
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 would result in a chain of events leading to World War I in August 1914.
Map of Europe 1914 (in French) Varmin, 2010 via Wikimedia Commons
In 1914 Europe was divided into several major players: Great Britain, France, Germany, and Austria-Hungary. Russia, the largest country of all because of its sheer territory, was not considered a major player. It was a country that had a small industrial base but was mostly agrarian based society. Its defeat in a recent war with Japan showed how it was quite behind the Europeans in terms of building up a powerful military to protect its interests. Britain and Germany (with France often supporting, but not always the British) often clashed over colonies and related interests.
The Austrian Hungarian Empire was the second largest country in Europe after Russia and a multinational state with many different peoples under it. It was also a major industrial power and with its access to the Adriatic, a naval power as well. It was a dual monarchy-Austria Empire and Kingdom of Hungary-and coequal in power. Both states conducted joint foreign relations, defense, and financial policies but left the administration under their individual states. Because it was a polyglot empire, it had a lot of different languages. The major ones were German, Hungarian and Croatian. Because of its industrial capacity, Austria-Hungary was a major exporter of electric home and industrial appliances making it third after the United States and Germany.
Unrest though within Austria-Hungary had become an issue with various groups wanting independence for their peoples. And on this particular day, Archduke Ferdinand was visiting the Imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This area had been annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908, which angered Serbian nationalists who believed it should be part of Serbia. His visit hatched a plot to assassinate the archduke. 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip shot the royal couple at point-blank range while they were in their official procession. Princip was part of a group that was well armed, trained, and assisted by the Serbian government. Serbia though had a major supporter in Russia. This meant any reaction to Serbian support of the assassination team would draw in Russia, so Austria asked Germany to back them should conflict break out.
The first page of the edition of the Domenica del Corriere, an Italian paper, with a drawing by Achille Beltrame depicting Gavrilo Princip killing Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo. (Cropped) 12 July 1914, Achille Beltrame Public Domain (via Wikimedia Commons)
Germany warned to do it quickly while sympathy for Ferdinand was still high. Austria debated its action, and this took time and was not until mid-July they delivered an ultimatum to Serbia.
Russia had already decided to intervene while Serbia was preparing its reply. However, the Russian military knew it was not yet ready for a general war. Yet they saw the hand of Germany in the ultimatum and were determined to show support for Serbia. Once the Serbians knew that Russia was mobilizing, it made it easier for Serbia to defy Austria-Hungary. Germany became nervous about the possibility of Russian troops massing on its border. Russia was allied with France, and Germans had figured on fighting France first rather than Russia. They thought Russia would take longer to get its forces ready. France, for its part, now realizing war with Germany and Austria-Hungary was a real possibility, began mobilizing as well.
Britain, which had an informal alliance with France and Russia, was not committed to war with Germany. At that point, they were still on friendly terms and wanted to remain neutral. Germany made some promises to further that neutrality. However, the German plans to invade France would involve it invading Belgium, a neutral state. This upset many in British leadership and it was decided on moral terms they had to enter the conflict.
By the end of July, the assassination of an archduke had become barely remembered as the belligerents all lined up. Germany and Austria Hungary (central powers) vs Britain, France, and Russia. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on 28 July. On 1 August, Germany declared war on Belgium, France, and Russia. On 4 August, Britain declared war on Germany and on 6 August, Austria-Hungary declared war on Russia. The “Guns of August” had arrived, and war would be on until 1918.
The peace that had existed, fragile at best of times, was shattered.
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IV corps of the Grande Armeé in the invasion of Russia (1812) Albrecht Adam (1786 – 1862) Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Russia on 24 June 1812 in retaliation for Czar Alexander I not accepting Bonaparte’s Continental System. Napoleon assembled the largest fighting force up to that time called the Grande Armee. With over 500,000 soldiers and staff, it marched into Russia seeking a quick victory. It was not to be. The Russian Army under General Mikhail Kutuzov was in retreat refusing a full-scale engagement against the powerful French. As Russia troops retreated, they burned everything leaving nothing for the French to find.
By September, Napoleon had engaged the Russians at Battle of Borodino. The battle was indecisive but resulted in large losses on both sides. On 14 September he arrived in Moscow to find it empty as the people had evacuated. The Russian Army too had left leaving the city to Napoleon. With winter approaching, Napoleon decided to rest and use it for his winter quarters. Russian partisans though set fires in the city the next day resulting in the quarters he had selected destroyed. He waited for a month hoping for a surrender which never came. Now with winter closing in, Napoleon decided to leave. The retreat though was more difficult than they could have imagined.
Fire of Moscow (1812) Viktor Mazurovsky (1859–1944) Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
An early winter set in making it harder on his troops and food was rationed. The Russians, it seems, had not fully retreated, and began attacking the troops in the rear. Cossacks with very sharp lances attacked ruthlessly. They made it to the Berezina River in November but found Russians waiting for them. Using makeshift bridges, Napoleon and his troops started crossing but the Russians attacked. Napoleon burned the bridges stranding over 10,000 on the other side to be captured or killed by the Russians. Napoleon, in a hurry to return to Paris, would eventually leave his troops behind. The remaining force would eventually return home but fewer than a 100,000 made it back home. The loss of over 400,000 was staggering and called into question his leadership of the French Empire.
Aftermath
The disastrous invasion of Russia has long been studied by historians and military strategists. His basic idea of invading was sound, but he underestimated how long it would take and the will of the Russians to make him pay dearly for every inch he gained. Napoleon thought it would be a quick victory, but it turned into a long painful retreat with an early winter, few food supplies, and his army being attacked by Russians. If you read accounts of those who survived, it is truly horrific the conditions they had to retreat under. Dead animals used for fuel; bodies stacked in windows for insulation. If you recall Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back scene where Han Solo rips open his now dead ride so they can crawl inside it for warmth, this happened for real here.
Napoleon’s withdrawal from Russia by Adolph Northen (1828-1876) Public Domain (via Wikimedia Commons)
His defeat in Russia strengthened his enemies. Austria, Britain, Prussia, and Sweden would now ally with Russia against Napoleon. British forces under Wellington were slowly but steadily pushing the French out of Spain. While Napoleon would have some victories, two defeats hurt his reign enormously. The Battle of Vittoria in Spain on 21 June 1813 would end French domination of Spain. His brother Joseph that he had put on the throne, was forced to flee for his life. Sadly, the royal crown worn by Spanish kings was lost in the melee of the retreat and never to be found again. And in October 1813, he suffered a crushing defeat in the Battle of Leipzig. Paris would fall the following March forcing him into exile. He would briefly return in 1815 but be defeated again in the Battle of Waterloo
Invading Russia has not proven successful for any conquering general. You might get initial successes, as Hitler did, but it seems to always turn around against the invader. Hitler, like Napoleon, thought the campaign would be quick. Instead after their initial victories, Operation Barbarossa ran into real problems. General Franz Halder realized he had sorely underestimated how many divisions the Russians could field. And because of the long distances involved, it became very hard for Germans to hold their lines. Moscow was in at sight at one point, but they never got there due to the long expanse of territory, supply issues, and underestimating the strength of Russia. Like Napoleon, the German forces were stalled. Halder believed without a powerful lightning strike, there was little chance for success. Owing to policy and strategy differences with Hitler, he was dismissed. The damage was done and the losses substantial. The Russians would push eventually the Germans out of their country and follow them all the way back to Berlin.
Suggested Reading
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On 22 June 1940, the formal surrender of France to Germany was concluded. Signed on 21 June 1940 at Compiegne in the same railway car in which Germany surrendered in 1918, it was a major triumph for Hitler. He also sat in the exact same chair that Marshal Ferdinand Foch sat in receiving the German surrender in 1918. The site where the treaty was signed, a monument to France’s defeat of Germany in World War I, was destroyed and the railway car shipped to Germany.
German Troops in Paris, 14 June 1940 Photo: Heinz Fremde (1907-1987) German Federal Archives:Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-126-0350-26A / Fremke, Heinz / CC-BY-SA 3.0
France at the outset of the war was considered to have the best professional army in continental Europe. Aside from trained soldiers, they had tanks and heavy artillery. And, of course, the famous Maginot Line. This was a series of fortifications near the German border meant to deter an invasion force. The hills and woods of the Ardennes were considered impenetrable in the north but there was a caveat as General Philippe Petain noted. You had to destroy the invasion force before it exited that area. France and Germany had officially been at war since 3 Sep 1939 when France, allied with England, offered support to the Polish government.
French forces briefly entered the Saar on 7 September but withdrew after meeting a very thin line of German defense on the undermanned Siegfried line. With most of its forces concentrated in Poland at the time, Germany did not have the capacity to stand up to France’s 98 divisions and tanks that were being committed. However French hesitation and wanting to avoid total war had them withdraw forces starting on 17 September and done a month later. It began a time called the Phony War where both Germany and France were armed and ready, but nothing was happening. Hitler had hoped he could make peace with England and France but that was not to be.
On 10 May 1940, Germany attacked France. German armored units made a push through the Ardennes, and then through the Somme valley to surround the allied units in Belgium. British, Belgian and French forces were pushed to the sea. British forces were evacuated at Dunkirk, which is an exciting tale of its own. During the six-week campaign Germany conquered France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands. German troops marched unopposed into Paris on 14 June. By 18 June with the collapse of both the French government (which had fled) and the military, negotiations began between French and German military officers.
At the meeting on 21 June, Hitler read the preamble and like Marshal Foch left to leave Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht to handle the details. There were several objectives that the Germans wanted and got. They wanted French North Africa and the French Navy out of the war. Also, they wanted to deny the British use of French territories since they could not possibly defend them. Occupied France was 3/5ths of the country which included the key ports on the French Channel and Atlantic and to the Spanish border. The Free Zone was administered by a newly formed French government in Vichy with Marshal Petain as its president.
The Weeping Frenchman (Marseilles, 1940) This iconic picture of a Frenchman weeping is often wrongly attributed as being in Paris on the Champs-Élysées. In actuality, the man was in Marseilles and is weeping because the French troops are departing taking with them their regiment flags to North Africa in September 1940. It first appeared in Life magazine in 1941.
Vichy France, as it became known, was authoritarian and reversed the policies of previous administrations. The media became tightly controlled, anti-Semitism was propagated, and labor unions put under strict controls. Vichy France kept French territories and the navy under French rather than German control. With the German army elsewhere, unoccupied France was generally free from military control. However, due to its neutrality it was forbidden to assist nations at war with Germany. Despite it being unoccupied, Vichy had to conform to German policies including identifying foreign nationals, deporting stateless persons, and of course assisting Germans in locating and ultimately deporting French Jews to be murdered in the death camps.
The treaty was formally concluded on 22 June 1940 and went into effect on 25 June 1940. A separate treaty between France and Italy was signed as well. Italy initially only wanted a small portion of France (about 832 square miles with the largest town being Menton). In November 1942, after Germany seized a large portion of Vichy, Italy got control over Toulon and the eastern part of Provence up to the Rhone River. Corsica and Nice were also to become Italian occupied but that did not occur. During the period of Italian occupation, Jews were relatively safe as Italian authorities declined German requests to turn over Jews to them. Once Italy deposed Mussolini and later signed an armistice with the Allies in 1943, Germans quickly moved in and rounded up all Jews they could locate. Over 3,000 would be deported.
Suggested Reading
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Wouk, H. (2018, December). Winds of War [Special Collector’s Edition]. Paramount. This excellent six-part miniseries is based on the Herman Wouk novel of the same name. And he wrote the script for this, so it hues close to the book (but does compress or eliminate some characters or situations). Through the Henry family, we get to see the scope of the looming war approaching and their involvement in it. The acting is superb, though the actress Ali MacGraw is miscast as Natalie Jastrow. Aside from that, this is a riveting depiction of the events leading up to World War II. It is one of the best miniseries ever made, and it shows with the high production quality and attention to detail.
With the Summer Solstice today, summer officially begins in the Northern Hemisphere. Below the equator, the seasons are reversed, and it is the Winter Solstice. The June Solstice takes place between June 20-22. To determine the exact time of the Summer Solstice in your area, go to timeanddate.com.
This illustration shows how daylight falls on Earth at the seasonal points. Image: NASA
Summer is the warmest of all the seasons with daylight hours the longest. The Summer Solstice has the longest day of sunlight. Prior to the solstice, daybreak gets earlier, and sunsets much later. While it gets warm and dry in North America (except for thunderstorms and hurricanes) and Europe, other areas particularly in Asia see tremendous amounts of rain called monsoons. Summer is usually time off for students in schools and universities. Also, many take time off from work to celebrate vacation with their family and friends. A lot of sporting events and outdoor concerts take place during this time as well. In areas of the far north, the sun never truly sets during this period (and in wintertime the sun never really rises either).
Summer field in Belgium (Hamois). The blue flower is cornflower and the red one a corn poppy. Image credit: Luc Viatour (via Wikimedia Commons)
The Summer Solstice (or the local beginning of summer depending on custom and tradition) is celebrated in different ways. Some light bonfires, houses are decorated with festive banners, and special foods are eaten. Some go to Stonehenge and watch the sunrise of the first rays of summer. In Sweden, it is tradition to have the first strawberries of the season and the first full moon after the solstice is called the Strawberry moon. In some places, Midsummer’s Day is celebrated on 24 June preceded by Midsummer’s Eve. Since summer means then end of long and dark winters in some places of Europe, lighting torches and bonfires became a way to note it, sometimes in town squares or mountainsides.
Father and son reading the Sunday newspaper in Alexandria, VA. Scenes similar to this are found all over the United States because of wartime transportation problems. Photo: Ann Rosener, Office of War Information. 1943 U.S. Library of Congress, Digital Id#fsa 8d19164 Public Domain
Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June in the United States. The movement to recognize fathers began in a West Virginia church in 1908. The sermon that day asked to remember 362 men who had perished in a mine explosion the previous December and many of the men were fathers. In 1909 Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington tried to establish an equivalent of Mother’s Day for male parents. She had been raised by a widower and believed the recognition was due. She promoted it so well to local churches, service organizations, and government officials that Washington State celebrated Father’s Day on June 19,1910. The movement to recognize fathers spread slowly but in 1924 President Calvin Coolidge urged state governments to observe Father’s Day. Since then most states now recognize the third Sunday of June as Father’s Day but it is not a public holiday (neither is Mother’s Day).
Father’s Day is also celebrated in many countries. In Europe and most Spanish speaking countries it is celebrated on St. Joseph’s Day on March 19. St. Joseph is the patron saint of fathers.
Dad & Children Crimson Rose publicdomainpibtures.net
Prayer for Fathers
“God our Father, in your wisdom and love you made all things. Bless these men, that they may be strengthened as Christian fathers. Let the example of their faith and love shine forth. Grant that we, their sons and daughters, may honor them always with a spirit of profound respect. Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.” (Author unknown)
Juneteenth Emancipation Day Celebration, June 19, 1900, Texas. Original source: The Portal to Texas History Austin History Center, Austin Public Library. Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves in Confederate states. Most African Americans would not learn of this act until after the areas they lived in were liberated by Union troops. On 19 June 1865, Union troops entered Galveston, Texas (Texas was a Confederate state during the war) and learned that they were freed. Celebrations began with prayers, feasts, and dance. The following year it would take place throughout Texas on the same date becoming an annual tradition and holiday in 1980. The celebration would spread to other states and sometimes recognized as a state holiday as well. As a result of its importance to African Americans and to the United States as well, the U.S. Congress made it a national holiday in 2021 with President Biden signing the resolution of Congress, It formally began as a holiday on Monday, 20 June 2022. Per federal law, since June 19th fell on a Sunday this year, it was celebrated the following Monday as a national holiday. The formal name of the holiday is Juneteenth National Independence Day.
Battle Cry of Freedom Lyrics
Oh we’ll rally round the flag, boys, we’ll rally once again,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom
And we’ll rally from the hillside, we’ll gather from the plain,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom.
Chorus
The Union forever! Hurrah, boys, hurrah!
Down with the traitor, up with the star;
While we rally round the flag, boys, rally once again,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
Oh we’re springing to the call for three hundred thousand more,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
And we’ll fill our vacant ranks of our brothers gone before,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
Chorus
The Union forever! Hurrah, boys, hurrah!
Down with the traitor, up with the star;
While we rally round the flag, boys, rally once again,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
We will welcome to our numbers the loyal, true, and brave,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
And although he may be poor, he shall never be a slave,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
Chorus
The Union forever! Hurrah, boys, hurrah!
Down with the traitor, up with the star;
While we rally round the flag, boys, rally once again,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
So we’re springing to the call from the East and from the West,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
And we’ll hurl the rebel crew from the land we love best,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
The Union forever! Hurrah, boys, hurrah!
Down with the traitor, up with the star;
While we rally round the flag, boys, rally once again,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom!
Composed and lyrics by George Frederick Root in 1862.
(Note: There are variations of the lyrics, but this is the standard Union version]
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