By Day: Historical Events on July 26th

The Battle of Dettingen occurs during the War of the Austrian Succession, marking the last time a reigning British monarch, King George II, personally leads his troops in battle.

Benjamin Franklin is appointed first Postmaster General by the Continental Congress before the Declaration of Independence was even signed. More

New York ratifies the U.S. Constitution and becomes the 11th of the original 13 states to join the Union.

Liberia declaration of Independence. More

The Bureau of Investigation, forerunner of the FBI, is established. More

U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt issues Executive Order 8832, freezing Japanese assets in the United States and eleven days later, on August 1, declares an embargo on oil and gasoline exports to Japan, bringing commercial relations between the nations to an effective end. On December 7 the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. More at: WWII Museum and the The Independent Institute.

President Harry Truman signs The National Security Act of 1947 . The Act mandated a major reorganization of the foreign policy and military establishments of the U.S. Government and created many of the institutions that Presidents found useful when formulating and implementing foreign policy, including the National Security Council (NSC).

President Harry S. Truman signs executive order 9981 banning segregation in the Armed Forces. More

Fidel Castro's revolutionary "26th of July Movement." begins and culminates by overthrowing dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959. Although he once declared that Cuba would never again be ruled by a dictator, Castro's government became a Communist dictatorship.

Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalizes the foreign-owned Suez Canal Company, which administered the canal and was owned primarily by British and French shareholders. On October 29, Israel invades the Egyptian Sinai. and on November 5, Britain and France landed paratroopers along the Suez Canal. Political pressure from the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Nations led to a withdrawal by the three invaders. The episode humiliated the United Kingdom and France and strengthened Nasser. It later became clear that Israel, France and Britain had conspired to plan the invasion. More

Maldives Independence Day.