On This Day in History – July 25

Major Events

• 306 – Constantine I was proclaimed Roman emperor by his troops following the death of his father, Constantius.
• 1593 – Henry IV of France converted from Protestantism to Catholicism to help end the Wars of Religion.
• 1837 – The first commercial use of an electric telegraph was demonstrated by William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone in London.
• 1909 – Louis Blériot became the first person to fly across the English Channel in a heavier-than-air aircraft.
• 1956 – The Italian ocean liner SS Andrea Doria sank after colliding with the MS Stockholm, killing 46 people.
• 1978 – Louise Brown, the world’s first baby conceived through in vitro fertilization (IVF), was born in England.
• 2000 – Air France Flight 4590, a Concorde, crashed shortly after takeoff in Paris, killing all 109 people on board and 4 on the ground.

Famous Birthdays

• Rosalind Franklin (1920–1958), English chemist and X-ray crystallographer whose work was critical to understanding DNA
• Walter Payton (1954–1999), American football player and Hall of Fame running back
• Matt LeBlanc (born 1967), American actor, best known for playing Joey Tribbiani on Friends
• Estelle Getty (1923–2008), American actress known for The Golden Girls
• Brad Renfro (1982–2008), American actor known for The Client
• Iman (born 1955), Somali-American fashion model, actress, and entrepreneur

Notable Deaths

• Constantius Chlorus (d. 306), Roman Emperor, father of Constantine the Great (b. c. 250)
• Samuel Taylor Coleridge (d. 1834), English poet and philosopher (b. 1772)
• Thomas Eakins (d. 1916), American realist painter, photographer, and sculptor (b. 1844)
• Estelle Getty (d. 2008), American actress from The Golden Girls (b. 1923)
• Vincente Minnelli (d. 1986), American stage and film director, father of Liza Minnelli (b. 1903)

Holidays

• Republic Day (Tunisia) – Celebrates the establishment of the Republic in 1957
• Puerto Rico Constitution Day – Marks the adoption of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico in 1952
• St. James’ Day – Christian feast day honoring James the Great, celebrated in many countries

Fun Facts

• Louise Brown, the first “test tube baby,” was born in 1978 — marking a milestone in reproductive science.
• Louis Blériot’s 1909 flight across the English Channel lasted just 36 minutes.
• Estelle Getty, born and died on the same day (July 25), gained fame in her 60s.
• The Andrea Doria disaster led to improved maritime safety standards.
• Constantine’s rise to power began on this day, shaping centuries of European history.