June 24 is the 175th day of the year (176th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 190 days remaining.
Events:
- 1314 - Battle of Bannockburn. Scottish forces led by Robert the Bruce beat Edward II of England. Scotland regains its independence.
- 1441 - Eton College founded.
- 1497 - John Cabot lands on the coast of North America.
- 1509 - Henry VIII crowned King of England.
- 1535 - The Anabaptist state of Münster is conquered and disbanded.
- 1597 - The first Dutch voyage to the East Indies reaches Bantam (on Java).
- 1662 - Dutch attempt but fail to capture Macao.
- 1664 - The colony of New Jersey is founded.
- 1692 - Kingston, Jamaica founded.
- 1793 - First republican constitution in France adopted.
- 1812 - Napoleon invades Russia.
- 1880 - First performance of O Canada, the song that would become the national anthem of Canada.
- 1859 - Battle of Solferino (Battle of the Three Sovereigns). Sardinia and France defeat Austria in northern Italy.
- 1861 - Tennessee becomes the 11th and last state to secede from the US.
- 1894 - The International Olympic Committee decides to hold the Olympic Games every four years.
- 1901 - First exhibition of Pablo Picasso's work opens.
- 1913 - Greece and Serbia annul their alliance with Bulgaria.
- 1915 - The steamer Eastland capsizes in Chicago. 800 people die.
- 1932 - A military coup ends the absolute power of the king of Siam (Thailand).
- 1940 - France and Italy sign an armistice.
- 1941 - The Germans capture Vilna, Brest-Litovsk and Kaunas.
- 1948 - Start of the Berlin Blockade. The Soviet Union makes overland travel between the West with West Berlin impossible.
- 1963 - Zanzibar is granted internal self-government by the UK.
- 1975 - An Eastern Airlines Boeing 727 crashes at John F. Kennedy Airport, New York. 113 people die.
- 1980 - O Canada first performed at le Congrès national des Canadiens-Français.
- 1983 - Sally Ride, first female American astronaut, returns to earth.
Births:
- 1795 - Ernst Heinrich Weber, anatomist and physiologist (+ 1878)
- 1803 - George James Webb, composer
- 1842 - Ambrose Bierce, author (+ 1914 (speculative))
- 1850 - Horatio Herbert Kitchener, original Order of Merit member (+ 1916]])
- 1882 - Carl Diem, sports scientist (+ 1962)
- 1888 - Gerrit Rietveld, Dutch architect
- 1895 - Jack Dempsey, boxer (+ 1983)
- 1899 - Chief Dan George, Native American actor (+ 1981)
- 1909 - David Rose, composer, musician (+ 1990)
- 1915 - Fred Hoyle, cosmologist, science fiction author (+ 2001)
- 1928 - Wolfgang Altenburg, German general
- 1930 - Claude Chabrol, film director
- 1931 - Billy Casper, professional golfer
- 1942 - Mick Fleetwood, blues/pop/rock musician (Fleetwood Mac)
- 1942 - Michele Lee
- 1944 - Chris Wood, rock musician
- 1944 - Jeff Beck, rock guitarist (Yardbirds)
- 1945 - Colin Blunstone, rock musician ((the Zombies)
- 1970 - Glenn Medeiros
Deaths:
- 1604 - Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, hereditary Lord Great Chamberlain of England
- 1908 - Grover Cleveland, former president of the USA (heart failure)
- 1987 - Jackie Gleason, actor, musician
Holidays and Observances:
- Catholicism - Feast day of St. John the Baptist
- Discovery Day in Newfoundland and Labrador (celebrating the 1497 discovery by John Cabot)
- Fête nationale du Québec, also called St-Jean-Baptiste Day
- Day of Indian in Peru
- Bannockburn Day in Scotland (see 1314 above)
See Also:
June 23 - June 25 - May 24 - July 24 -- listing of all days
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December