On July 27

A major oil spill from the Colonial Pipeline was discovered in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina (system map pictured).

The last nine Aston Martin DB9 units rolled off the production line, marking the end of a twelve-year manufacturing period.

Police in Tokyo found the mummified remains of Sogen Kato, thought to have died in 1978, leading to widespread inquiries into the status of isolated elderly people in Japan.

While covering a police pursuit in Phoenix, Arizona, two news helicopters collided in mid-air, killing both crews.

Jamaat al Muslimeen, a radical Islamic group, began a coup attempt against the government of Trinidad and Tobago by taking hostages, including Prime Minister A. N. R. Robinson, before surrendering five days later.

American musician Madonna released her self-titled debut album, which set the standard for the genre of dance-pop for decades.

Mattachine Midwest, a gay rights organization in Chicago, held its first meeting.

The Austrian State Treaty came into effect, ending the Allied occupation of Austria, although the country was not free of Allied troops until October.

After straying into Bulgarian airspace, El Al Flight 402 was shot down by two MiG-15 fighter jets, resulting in the deaths of all 58 on board.

An armistice was signed (pictured) to end hostilities in the Korean War, officially making the division of Korea indefinite by creating a 4 km wide (2.5 mi) demilitarized zone across the Korean Peninsula.

The world's first commercial jet airliner to reach production, the de Havilland Comet, had its maiden flight.

As the Surprise Hurricane struck Texas, a United States Army Air Forces pilot made the first reconnaissance flight into a hurricane.

Second World War: Allied forces halted the Axis invasion of Egypt at the First Battle of El Alamein.

Red Summer: Race riots erupted in Chicago after a racial incident occurred on a South Side beach, leading to 38 fatalities and 537 injuries.

First World War: British mariner Charles Fryatt was executed in Bruges, Belgium, after a German court-martial found him guilty of being a franc-tireur.

The Battle of Ushant, the first encounter between the French and British fleets in the American Revolutionary War, ended indecisively and led to political disputes in both countries.

First Jacobite rising: Scottish and Irish Jacobites defeated Williamite forces at Killiecrankie, Scotland.

Byzantine–Ottoman wars: The Ottoman sultanate gained its first major victory against the Byzantine Empire at the Battle of Bapheus in Bithynia.

Saint Mary's Church on Gotland, later to become Visby Cathedral (pictured), was consecrated.

Philip II of France decisively won the Battle of Bouvines, the conclusive battle of the 1213–1214 Anglo-French War.