A Day in the Past

On this day: 26 June

147 things happened on 26 June, from AD 4 to 2012. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.

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In the UK 8

UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Around the world 40

AD 684 1,342 years ago

Pope Benedict II is consecrated as pope following imperial approval from the Byzantine Emperor. He is the last pope to require the confirmation of the emperor; the next popes require only that of the more closely situated exarch of Ravenna.

Kings & queens Find out more: Pope Benedict II (Wikipedia)
AD 699 1,327 years ago

En no Ozuno, a Japanese mystic and apothecary who will later be regarded as the founder of the folk religion Shugendō, is banished to Izu Ōshima.

Find out more: En no Gyōja (Wikipedia)
1963 63 years ago

Cold War: U.S. President John F. Kennedy gives his "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech, underlining the support of the United States for democratic West Germany shortly after Soviet-supported East Germany erected the Berlin Wall.

War & peace Find out more: John F. Kennedy (Wikipedia)

Quick quiz

Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!

  1. In which year did this happen: “J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first book in”?

    1. 1997
    2. 1460
    3. 1866
    Show the answer

    A: 1997. 1997 — that’s 29 years ago. Find it on the page

  2. In which year did this happen: “Richard III becomes King of England”?

    1. 1483
    2. 1824
    3. 1960
    Show the answer

    A: 1483. 1483 — that’s 543 years ago. Find it on the page

  3. Which of these happened first?

    1. J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first book in
    2. War of the Roses: Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, and Edward, Earl of
    3. Richard III becomes King of England
    Show the answer

    B: War of the Roses: Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, and Edward, Earl of. 1997: J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first book in · 1460: War of the Roses: Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, and Edward, Earl of · 1483: Richard III becomes King of England Find it on the page

  4. “War of the Roses: Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, and Edward, Earl of” happened in 1460. How many years ago was that?

    1. 566 years
    2. 576 years
    3. 556 years
    Show the answer

    A: 566 years. 2026 − 1460 = 566. Find it on the page

Born on this day 35

Famous people whose birthday is 26 June.

Remembering 19

Well-known people who died on 26 June.

Special days 13

Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 26 June somewhere in the world.

For older readers 32 Show stories about war, disasters, crime and other difficult history

Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.

Where these facts come from

Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “June 26” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.