| July 11 | Index | July 13 |
| Every Year |
July 12 is the 193rd day of the year (194th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 172 days remaining until the end of the year. |
| Every Year |
Independence Day (Kiribati)
Celebrates the independence of Kiribati from the United Kingdom in 1979. |
| Every Year |
Independence Day (São Tomé and Príncipe)
Celebrates the independence of São Tomé and Príncipe from Portugal in 1975. |
| 100 BCE | Born today: Julius Caesar (July 12, 100 BCE–March 15, 44 BCE, age age 55y 8m 3d)
Roman politician and general. |
| 1562 | Fray Diego de Landa, acting Bishop of Yucatán, burned the sacred books of the Maya. |
| 1776 | Captain James Cook began his third voyage. |
| 1806 | Sixteen German imperial states left the Holy Roman Empire and formed the Confederation of the Rhine. |
| 1812 | The American Army of the Northwest briefly occupied the Upper Canadian settlement at what is now at Windsor, Ontario. |
| 1854 | Born today: George Eastman (July 12, 1854–March 14, 1932, age 77y 8m 2d)
American businessman, founded Eastman Kodak. |
| 1863 | Born today: Albert Calmette (July 12, 1863–October 29, 1933)
French physician, bacteriologist, and immunologist |
| 1880 | Born today: Tod Browning (July 12, 1880–October 6, 1962)
Born Charles Albert Browning Jr., he was an American film actor, film director, screenwriter and vaudeville performer. Browning’s career spanned the silent film and sound film eras. Best known as the director of Dracula (1931), Freaks (1932), and silent film collaborations with Lon Chaney and Priscilla Dean, Browning directed many movies in a wide range of genres. |
| 1884 | Born today: Louis B. Mayer (July 12, 1884–October 29, 1957)
Born Lazar Meir, Russian-born American film producer, co-founded Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. |
| 1895 | Born today: Buckminster Fuller (July 12, 1895–_____, 1983), American architect and engineer, designed the Montreal Biosphère |
| 1895 | Born today: Oscar Hammerstein II (July 12, 1895–_____, 1960), American director, producer, and songwriter |
| 1908 | Born today: Milton Berle (July 12, 1908–_____, 2002), American comedian and actor |
| 1917 | The Bisbee Deportation occured as vigilantes kidnapped and deported nearly 1,300 striking miners and others from Bisbee, Arizona. |
| 1920 | The Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty was signed, by which Soviet Russia recognized the independence of Lithuania. |
| 1928 | Born today: Elias James Corey (July 12, 1928– ), American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate |
| 1939 | Born today: Arlen Ness (July 12, 1939– ), American motorcycle designer and entrepreneur |
| 1941 | Born today: Benny Parsons (July 12, 1941–_____, 2007), American race car driver and sportscaster |
| 1943 | The Battle of Prokhorovka began near Prokhorovka, Belgorod Oblast, 87 kilometres (54 mi) southeast of Kursk in the Soviet Union, during the Second World War.
Taking place on the Eastern Front, the engagement was part of the wider Battle of Kursk, and occurred when the 5th Guards Tank Army of the Soviet Red Army attacked the II SS-Panzer Corps of the German Wehrmacht in one of the largest tank battles in military history. German and Soviet forces engaged in one of the largest armored engagements of all time. |
| 1948 | Born today: Richard Simmons (July 12, 1948– ), American fitness trainer and actor |
| 1949 | Born today: Rick Hendrick (July 12, 1949– ), American businessman, founded Hendrick Motorsports |
| 1950 | Born today: Eric Carr (July 12, 1950–_____, 1991), American drummer and songwriter |
| 1951 | Born today: Cheryl Ladd (July 12, 1951– ), American actress |
| 1952 | Born today: Philip Taylor Kramer (July 12, 1952–ca. February 12, 1995)
He was an American bass guitar player for the rock group Iron Butterfly and associated groups between 1974 and 1980. He later became a computer engineering executive and inventor. He disappeared in February 1995 and was found dead in May 1999, his death ruled a probable suicide. |
| 1957 | Born today: Rick Douglas Husband (July 12, 1957–February 1, 2003)
(Colonel, USAF) was an American astronaut and fighter pilot. He traveled into space twice: as Pilot of STS-96 and Commander of STS-107. He and the rest of the crew of STS-107 were killed when Columbia disintegrated during reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere. Husband is a recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. |
| 1959 | Born today: ʻAhoʻeitu Tupou VI (July 12, 1959– , age )
He is the King of Tonga. |
| 1961 | Indian city Pune flooded due to failure of the Khadakwasla and Panshet dams, killing at least two thousand people. |
| 1962 | The Rolling Stones performed their first concert at London’s Marquee Club. |
| 1962 | Born today: Julio César Chávez (July 12, 1962– ), Mexican boxer |
| 1967 | Born today: John Petrucci (July 12, 1967– ), American singer-songwriter and guitarist |
| 1971 | The Australian Aboriginal Flag was flown for the first time.
 Australian Aboriginal Flag The Australian Aboriginal Flag represents Aboriginal Australians. It is one of the official flags of Australia, and holds special legal and political status. It is often flown together with the national flag and with the Torres Strait Islander Flag, which is also an official flag of Australia. The Australian Aboriginal Flag was designed in 1971 by Aboriginal artist Harold Thomas, who is descended from the Luritja people of Central Australia and holds intellectual property rights to the flag’s design. The flag was originally designed for the land rights movement, and it became a symbol of the Aboriginal people of Australia. |
| 1975 | São Tomé and Príncipe declared independence from Portugal. |
| 1978 | Born today: Michelle Rodriguez (July 12, 1978– ), American actress |
| 1979 | The island nation of Kiribati became independent from the United Kingdom. |
| July 11 | Index | July 13 |