10 July It Happened Today

1099  Death of medieval Spanish military leader El Cid.

1778  King Louis XVI of France declares war of England.

1851  Death of French pioneer of photography, Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre.

1871  Birth of French novelist Marcel Proust.

1890  Wyoming becomes the 44th state of the Union.

1941  Death of American ragtime composer Jelly Roll Morton.

1985  The Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior sinks in Auckland harbour.