THURSDAY, Aug. 7, 2025

1461-Ming Dynasty Chinese military general Cao Qin stages a coup against the Tianshun Emperor

1714-Battle of Gangut: Russian Navy wins its first major victory during the Great Northern War against Sweden

1782 Commander of the Continental Army, George Washington, creates two Honorary Badges of Distinction and a Badge of Military Merit (now the Purple Heart). First time military awards are presented to common soldiers.

1933-Iraqi government forces slaughter over 3,000 Assyrians in the village of Simele in northern Iraq, commemorated as Assyrian Martyrs' Day

1955-Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering, the precursor to Sony, begins selling its first transistor radios in Japan

1990-U.S. deploys troops to Saudi Arabia, beginning Operation Desert Shield