By Day: Historical Events on July 7th

Edward II becomes King of England after the death of his father, Edward I.

The U.S. House of Representatives notifies the Senate of the Impeachment of North Carolina's Senator William Blount for high crimes and misdemeanors. The Senate trial which did not begin until December,1798 ended on January 14, 1799, as the Senate dismissed the case on jurisdictional grounds, leaving many issues unsettled, most importantly the question, "was a senator a civil officer of the United States and therefore liable to impeachment?" Although the Senate failed to voice its opinion on that matter, its dismissal of the Blount case set a precedent that still holds today—a U.S. senator cannot be impeached. More

Kit Carson begins his campaign against the Navajo that resulted in their removal from the Four Corners area to southeastern New Mexico. More

Construction work for the Hoover Dam begins after the appropriations were approved. The dam was dedicated in 1935 and the hydroelectric generators went online in 1937. The Hoover Dam was built for a cost of $49 million (approximately $760 million adjusted for inflation). The power plant and generators cost an additional $71 million. The sale of electrical power generated by the dam paid back its construction cost, with interest, by 1987. More

The Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, code-named Operation Barbarossa, begins.

A series of coordinated terrorist attacks in London, England, kill 52 people and injure over 700.

The United Nations declares a famine in parts of southern Somalia, the first time the term has been used in almost 20 years.