A Day in the Past

On this day: 17 July

136 things happened on 17 July, from AD 855 to 2025. 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.

1945 81 years ago

UK story

World War II: The main three leaders of the Allied nations, Winston Churchill, Harry S. Truman and Joseph Stalin, hold the Potsdam Conference in the German city of Potsdam to decide the future of a defeated Germany.

War & peace Find out more: Allies of World War II (Wikipedia)

Around the world 18

1975 51 years ago

Apollo–Soyuz Test Project: An American Apollo and a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft dock with each other in orbit marking the first such link-up between spacecraft from the two nations.

Space Find out more: Apollo–Soyuz (Wikipedia)
1976 50 years ago

The opening of the Summer Olympics in Montreal is marred by 25 African teams boycotting the games because of New Zealand's participation. Contrary to rulings by other international sports organizations, the IOC had declined to exclude New Zealand because of their participation in South African sporting events during apartheid.

Sport Find out more: 1976 Summer Olympics (Wikipedia)

Quick quiz

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

  1. In which year did this happen: “The Battle of Castillon, the last engagement of the Hundred Years' War, ended”?

    1. 1453
    2. 1971
    3. 1947
    Show the answer

    A: 1453. 1453 — that’s 573 years ago. Find it on the page

  2. In which year did this happen: “The Manchester Metrolink, the first modern street-running light-rail system in”?

    1. 1992
    2. 1947
    3. 1997
    Show the answer

    A: 1992. 1992 — that’s 34 years ago. Find it on the page

  3. Which of these happened first?

    1. The Battle of Castillon, the last engagement of the Hundred Years' War, ended
    2. The Manchester Metrolink, the first modern street-running light-rail system in
    3. The New Zealand Wars resumed as British forces led by General Duncan Cameron
    Show the answer

    A: The Battle of Castillon, the last engagement of the Hundred Years' War, ended. 1453: The Battle of Castillon, the last engagement of the Hundred Years' War, ended · 1992: The Manchester Metrolink, the first modern street-running light-rail system in · 1863: The New Zealand Wars resumed as British forces led by General Duncan Cameron Find it on the page

  4. “The New Zealand Wars resumed as British forces led by General Duncan Cameron” happened in 1863. How many years ago was that?

    1. 163 years
    2. 173 years
    3. 153 years
    Show the answer

    A: 163 years. 2026 − 1863 = 163. Find it on the page

Born on this day 40

Famous people whose birthday is 17 July.

Remembering 22

Well-known people who died on 17 July.

Special days 21

Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 17 July somewhere in the world.

For older readers 29 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 17” 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.