A Day in the Past

On this day: 11 July

151 things happened on 11 July, from AD 154 to 2026. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.

Printable worksheet Take the quiz

In the UK 6

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

1924 102 years ago

UK story

Eric Liddell wins the gold medal in 400m at the 1924 Paris Olympics, after refusing to run in the heats for 100m, his favoured distance, on a Sunday.

Sport Find out more: Eric Liddell (Wikipedia)

Around the world 48

1576 450 years ago

While exploring the North Atlantic Ocean in an attempt to find the Northwest Passage, Martin Frobisher sights Greenland, mistaking it for the hypothesized (but non-existent) island of "Frisland".

Explorers Find out more: Atlantic Ocean (Wikipedia)

Quick quiz

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

  1. In which year did this happen: “Waterloo Bridge Station, which later became Britain's busiest railway station”?

    1. 1796
    2. 1848
    3. 1921
    Show the answer

    B: 1848. 1848 — that’s 178 years ago. Find it on the page

  2. In which year did this happen: “The Belfast Harp Festival, an early event in the Gaelic revival, began at the”?

    1. 1992
    2. 1792
    3. 1708
    Show the answer

    B: 1792. 1792 — that’s 234 years ago. Find it on the page

  3. Which of these happened first?

    1. The Belfast Harp Festival, an early event in the Gaelic revival, began at the
    2. A coalition army of Dutch, English and German troops under the duke of
    3. Waterloo Bridge Station, which later became Britain's busiest railway station
    Show the answer

    B: A coalition army of Dutch, English and German troops under the duke of. 1792: The Belfast Harp Festival, an early event in the Gaelic revival, began at the · 1708: A coalition army of Dutch, English and German troops under the duke of · 1848: Waterloo Bridge Station, which later became Britain's busiest railway station Find it on the page

  4. “A coalition army of Dutch, English and German troops under the duke of” happened in 1708. How many years ago was that?

    1. 328 years
    2. 308 years
    3. 318 years
    Show the answer

    C: 318 years. 2026 − 1708 = 318. Find it on the page

Born on this day 38

Famous people whose birthday is 11 July.

Remembering 20

Well-known people who died on 11 July.

Special days 13

Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 11 July somewhere in the world.

For older readers 26 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 “July 11” 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.