Wikipedia:Selected anniversaries/July 3
This is a list of selected July 3 anniversaries that appear in the "On this day" section of the Main Page. To suggest a new item, in most cases, you can be bold and edit this page. Please read the selected anniversaries guidelines before making your edit. However, if your addition might be controversial or on a day that is or will soon be on the Main Page, please post your suggestion on the talk page instead.
Please note that the events listed on the Main Page are chosen based more on relative article quality and to maintain a mix of topics, not based solely on how important or significant their subjects are. Only four to five events are posted at a time and thus not everything that is "most important and significant" can be listed. In addition, an event is generally not posted this year if it is also the subject of the scheduled featured article or picture of the day.
To report an error when this appears on the Main Page, see Main Page errors. Please remember that this list defers to the supporting articles, so it is best to achieve consensus and make any necessary changes there first.
July 3: Independence Day in Belarus (1944)
- 987 – Hugh Capet was crowned King of France, becoming the first monarch of the Capetian dynasty, which ruled France continuously until overthrown during the French Revolution in 1792.
- 1767 – Adresseavisen, Norway's oldest newspaper still in print, was first published.
- 1844 – The last known pair of Great Auks, the only modern species in the genus Pinguinus, were killed in Eldey, off the coast of Iceland.
- 1863 – Pickett's Charge, a futile Confederate infantry assault against Union Army positions, occurred during the final and bloodiest day of fighting in the Battle of Gettysburg, marking a turning point in the American Civil War.
- 1938 – The LNER Mallard (pictured) broke the world speed record for a steam railway locomotive, reaching a speed of 126 miles (203 km) per hour.
- 1944 – World War II: During their second phase of Operation Bagration, Soviet troops liberated Minsk, present-day Belarus, from Nazi Germany.
- 1988 – United States Navy warship USS Vincennes shot down Iran Air Flight 655 over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard.