Notable people who died on July 21 include: K'an II, Li Guo'er, Wei, Shangguan Wan'er, Geoffrey I.

Notable Deaths on July 21

Q: What is Manuel II Palaiologos known for?

Manuel II Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (born 1350)

91 people 658 – 2025

July 21 has seen 91 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 658 – 2025. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.

By thisDay.info Editorial Team · July 21 — Wikipedia

1425 — Manuel II Palaiologos

Byzantine emperor (born 1350)

Did you know

His wife Helena Dragaš saw to it that their sons, John VIII and Constantine XI, became emperors

Did you know

Manuel II Palaiologos or Palaeologus was Byzantine emperor from 1391 to 1425

Did you know

He is commemorated by the Greek Orthodox Church on 21 July.

Did you know

Shortly before his death he was tonsured a monk and received the name Matthaios (Ματθαίος)

Did you know

Manuel was a vassal of the Ottoman Empire, which sometimes threatened to capture his territory outright

K'an II

Mayan ruler (born 588)

Kʼan II was a Maya ruler of Caracol. He reigned AD 618–658.

658

Li Guo'er

princess of the Tang dynasty

Princess Anle, personal name Li Guo'er (李裹兒), was a princess of the Chinese Tang dynasty. She was the youngest daughter of Emperor Zhongzong and his wife Empress Wei. Popular history holds that she was doted upon…

710

Wei

empress of the Tang dynasty

Empress Wei was an empress consort of the Chinese Tang dynasty. She was the second wife of Emperor Zhongzong, who reigned twice, and during his second reign, she tried to emulate the example of her mother-in-law Wu…

710

Shangguan Wan'er

Chinese poet (born 664)

Shangguan Wan'er was a Chinese politician, poet, and imperial consort of the Wu Zhou and Tang dynasties. Described as a "female prime minister," Shangguan rose from modest origins as a palace servant to become secretary…

710

Geoffrey I

Count of Anjou

Geoffrey I of Anjou, known as Grisegonelle, was count of Anjou from 960 to 987.

987

Gojong of Goryeo

Gojong (1192–1259), personal name Wang Cheol, was the 23rd king of the Korean Goryeo dynasty, ruling from 1213 to 1259. Gojong's reign was marked by prolonged conflict with the Mongol Empire, which sought to conquer…

1259

Henry Percy

English soldier (born 1364)

Sir Henry Percy, nicknamed Hotspur or Harry Hotspur, was an English knight who fought in several campaigns against the Scots in the northern border and against the French during the Hundred Years' War. The nickname…

1403

Sir Walter Blount

English soldier, standard-bearer of Henry IV

Sir Walter Blount, was a soldier and supporter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. He later supported John's son and heir Henry Bolingbroke in his bid to become King Henry IV and in later battles against his enemies.…

1403

Edmund Stafford

5th Earl of Stafford, English soldier

Edmund Stafford, 5th Earl of Stafford and 1st Baron Audley, KG, KB was the son of Hugh de Stafford, 2nd Earl of Stafford, and his wife Philippa de Beauchamp.

1403

Antonio de Mendoza

Spanish politician, 1st Viceroy of New Spain (born 1495)

Antonio de Mendoza was a Spanish colonial administrator who was the first viceroy of New Spain, serving from 14 November 1535 to 25 November 1550, and the second viceroy of Peru, from 23 September 1551, until his death…

1552

James Butler

1st Duke of Ormonde, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (born 1610)

Lieutenant-General James FitzThomas Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond, KG, PC, was an Anglo-Irish statesman and soldier, known as Earl of Ormond from 1634 to 1642 and Marquess of Ormond from 1642 to 1661. Following the failure…

1688

Antoine Bruni d'Entrecasteaux

French admiral, explorer, and politician (born 1739)

Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni, chevalier d'Entrecasteaux was a French Navy officer, explorer and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Isle de France from 1787 to 1789. He is best known for his…

1793

Robert Burns

Scottish poet and songwriter (born 1759)

Robert Burns, also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who have…

1796

François Sébastien Charles Joseph de Croix

Count of Clerfayt, Austrian field marshal (born 1733)

François Sébastien Charles Joseph de Croix, Count of Clerfayt, a Walloon, joined the army of the Habsburg monarchy and soon fought in the Seven Years' War. Later in his military career, he led Austrian troops in the…

1798

Anthony Perry

Irish rebel leader (born ca. 1760)

Anthony Perry, known as the "screeching general", was one of the leaders of the United Irish Wexford rebels during the 1798 rebellion.

1798

William Bland

Australian surgeon and politician (born 1789)

William Bland was a prominent public figure in the colony of New South Wales. A surgeon by profession, he arrived in Australia as a convict but played an important role in the early years of Australian healthcare,…

1868

Sam Bass

American outlaw (born 1851)

Samuel Bass was a 19th-century American train robber, outlaw, and outlaw gang leader. Notably, he was a member of a gang of six that robbed a Union Pacific train in Nebraska of $60,000 in newly minted gold from San…

1878

Hiram Walden

American general and politician (born 1800)

Hiram Walden was an American businessman and politician from New York. He was most notable for his service as a United States representative from 1849 to 1851.

1880

Nelson Dewey

American lawyer and politician, 1st Governor of Wisconsin (born 1813)

Nelson Webster Dewey was an American lawyer, land speculator, politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was the first governor of Wisconsin, and also served in the Wisconsin Senate and served several years in the Wisconsin…

1889

Robert G. Ingersoll

American soldier, lawyer, and politician (born 1833)

Robert Green Ingersoll, nicknamed "the Great Agnostic", was an American lawyer, writer, and orator during the Golden Age of Free Thought, who campaigned in defense of agnosticism.

1899

Fiammetta Wilson

English astronomer and educator (born 1864)

Fiammetta Wilson was a British astronomer elected a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1916.

1920

Ellen Terry

English actress (born 1847)

Dame Alice Ellen Terry was an English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

1928

Bill Gleason

American baseball player (born 1858)

William G. Gleason was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball who played from 1882 through 1889 for three different teams of the American Association. Listed at 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m), 170 lb., Gleason batted and…

1932

Owen Wister

American lawyer and author (born 1860)

Owen Wister was an American writer. His novel The Virginian, published in 1902, helped create the cowboy as a folk hero in the United States and built Wister's reputation as the "father of Western fiction." He was…

1938

Bohdan Lepky

Ukrainian poet and scholar (born 1872)

Bohdan Teodor Nestor Sylvestrovych Lepky, was a Ukrainian writer, poet, scholar, public figure, and artist.

1941

Charley Paddock

American runner and actor (born 1900)

Charles William Paddock was an American athlete and two-time Olympic champion.

1943

Louis Vauxcelles

French art critic (born 1870)

Louis Vauxcelles was a French art critic. He is credited with coining the terms Fauvism (1905) and Cubism (1908). He used several pseudonyms in various publications: Pinturrichio, Vasari, Coriolès, and Critias.

1943

Claus von Stauffenberg

German soldier who attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler (born 1907)

Claus Philipp Maria Justinian Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg was a German army officer who is best known for his failed attempt on 20 July 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair, part of Operation Valkyrie, a…

1944

Gualberto Villarroel

Bolivian soldier and politician, 45th President of Bolivia (born 1908)

Gualberto Villarroel López was a Bolivian military officer who served as the 39th president of Bolivia from 1943 to 1946. A reformist, sometimes compared with Argentina's Juan Perón, he is nonetheless remembered for his…

1946

Arshile Gorky

Armenian-American painter and illustrator (born 1904)

Arshile Gorky was an Armenian-American painter who had a seminal influence on Abstract Expressionism. He spent the last years of his life as a national of the United States. Along with Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock and…

1948

Pedro Lascuráin

Mexican politician, president for 45 minutes on February 13, 1913. (born 1856)

Pedro José Domingo de la Calzada Manuel María Lascuráin Paredes was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as the 38th president of Mexico for 45 minutes on 19 February 1913, the shortest presidency in history. The…

1952

Philipp Frank

Austrian-American physicist, mathematician, and philosopher, Vienna Circle member (born 1884)

Philipp Frank was an Austrian-American physicist, mathematician and philosopher of the early-to-mid 20th century. He was a logical positivist, and a member of the Vienna Circle. He was influenced by Mach and was one of…

1966

Jimmie Foxx

American baseball player, coach, and manager (born 1907)

James Emory Foxx, nicknamed "Double X" and "the Beast", was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox, Chicago…

1967

Albert Lutuli

South African academic and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1898)

Albert John Luthuli was a South African anti-apartheid activist, traditional leader, and politician who served as the President-General of the African National Congress from 1952 until his murder in 1967.

1967

Basil Rathbone

South African-American actor and singer (born 1892)

Philip St. John Basil Rathbone was an English actor. Born in South Africa and raised in Derbyshire, he rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films,…

1967

Ruth St. Denis

American dancer and choreographer (born 1878)

Ruth St. Denis was an American pioneer of modern dance, introducing eastern ideas into the art and paving the way for other women in dance. She was inspired by the Delsarte advocate Genevieve Stebbins. St. Denis was the…

1968

Mikhail Mikhaylovich Gerasimov

Russian anthropologist and sculptor (born 1907)

Mikhail Mikhaylovich Gerasimov was a Soviet archaeologist, and anthropologist who discovered the Mal'ta–Buret' culture and developed the first technique of forensic sculpture based on findings of anthropology,…

1970

Bob Kalsu

American football player and lieutenant (born 1945)

James Robert Kalsu was an American professional football player who was an All-American tackle at the University of Oklahoma and an eighth-round selection in the 1968 NFL/AFL draft by the Buffalo Bills of the American…

1970

Ralph Craig

American sprinter and sailor (born 1889)

Ralph Cook Craig was an American track and field athlete. He was the winner of the sprint double at the 1912 Summer Olympics.

1972

Jigme Dorji Wangchuck

Bhutanese king (born 1928)

Jigme Dorji Wangchuck was King of Bhutan from 30 March 1952 until his death in 1972.

1972

Lee Miller

American model and photographer (born 1907)

Elizabeth "Lee" Miller, Lady Penrose was an American photographer and photojournalist. Miller was a fashion model in New York City in the 1920s before going to Paris, becoming a fashion and fine-art photographer there.

1977

Dave Garroway

American journalist and actor (born 1913)

David Cunningham Garroway was an American radio and television host on NBC. He was the host of Garroway at Large from 1949 to 1951, the founding host and anchor of Today from 1952 to 1961, and the host of The Dave…

1982

Paul Warwick

English race car driver (born 1969)

Paul Jason Warwick was a British racing driver.

1991

Marijac

French author and illustrator (born 1908)

Jacques Dumas, better known as Marijac, was a French comics writer, artist, and editor.

1994

Olaf Kopvillem

Estonian-Canadian conductor and composer (born 1926)

Olaf Kopvillem was a prominent Estonian World War II refugee. Having settled in Canada, he engaged in the organisation of Estonian exile activities there, and is known for his numerous humorous covers of well-known…

1997

Alan Shepard

American admiral, pilot, and astronaut (born 1923)

Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. was an American astronaut. In 1961, he became the second person and the first American to travel into space and, in 1971, he became the fifth and oldest person to walk on the Moon, at age 47.

1998

Robert Young

American actor and singer (born 1907)

Robert George Young was an American film, television, and radio actor best known for his leading roles as Jim Anderson, the father character, in Father Knows Best and the physician Marcus Welby in Marcus Welby, M.D.…

1998

Marc Reisner

American environmentalist and author (born 1948)

Marc Reisner was an American environmentalist and writer best known for his book Cadillac Desert, a history of water management in the American West.

2000

Esphyr Slobodkina

Russian-American author and illustrator (born 1908)

Esphyr Solomonovna Slobodkina was a Russian-born American artist, author, and illustrator, best known for her classic children's picture book Caps for Sale. Slobodkina was a celebrated avant garde artist and feminist in…

2002

John Davies

English-New Zealand runner and coach (born 1938)

John Llewellyn Davies was a New Zealand Olympic bronze medallist and president of the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC).

2003

Jerry Goldsmith

American composer and conductor (born 1929)

Jerrald King Goldsmith was an American composer, conductor and orchestrator with a career in film and television scoring that spanned nearly 50 years and over 200 productions, between 1954 and 2003. He was considered…

2004

Edward B. Lewis

American geneticist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1918)

Edward Butts Lewis was an American geneticist, a corecipient of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He helped to found the field of evolutionary developmental biology.

2004

Long John Baldry

English-Canadian singer and actor (born 1941)

John William "Long John" Baldry was a British-Canadian musician and actor. In the 1960s, he was one of the first British vocalists to sing the blues in clubs and shared the stage with many British musicians including…

2005

Lord Alfred Hayes

English-American wrestler and manager (born 1928)

Alfred George James Hayes was an English professional wrestler, manager and commentator, best known for his appearances in the United States with the World Wrestling Federation between 1982 and 1995 where he was known…

2005

Mako Iwamatsu

Japanese-American actor and singer (born 1933)

Makoto Iwamatsu was a Japanese-American actor, credited mononymously in almost all of his acting roles as simply Mako . His career in film, on television, and on stage spanned five decades and 165 productions. He was…

2006

Ta Mok

Cambodian soldier and monk (born 1926)

Ta Mok, also known as Nguon Kang, was a Cambodian military chief who was a senior figure in the genocidal Khmer Rouge and the leader of the national army of Democratic Kampuchea. He was also known as Brother Number Five…

2006

Dubravko Škiljan

Croatian linguist and academic (born 1949)

Dubravko Škiljan was a Croatian linguist known for his work on Classical philology and semiotics.

2007

Donald Stokes

English businessman (born 1914)

Donald Gresham Stokes, Baron Stokes was an English industrialist. He was the head of British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC) from 1968 to 1975.

2008

Luis Corvalán

Chilean educator and politician (born 1916)

Luis Nicolás Corvalán Lepe was a Chilean politician, teacher, and writer. He was the general secretary of the Communist Party of Chile (PCCh) for more than three decades and was twice elected to the Senate of Chile.

2010

Ralph Houk

American baseball player, coach, and manager (born 1919)

Ralph George Houk, nicknamed "the Major", was an American catcher, coach, manager, and front office executive in Major League Baseball. He is best known as the successor of Casey Stengel as manager of the New York…

2010

John E. Irving

Canadian businessman (born 1932)

John Ernest Irving CM was a Canadian businessman, the youngest son of the industrialist K. C. Irving and his wife, Harriet Lila Irving.

2010

Alexander Cockburn

Scottish-American journalist and author (born 1941)

Alexander Claud Cockburn was a Scottish-born Irish-American political journalist and writer. Cockburn was brought up by British parents in Ireland, and lived and worked in the United States from 1972. Together with…

2012

Marie Kruckel

American baseball player (born 1924)

Marie Ann Kruckel ["Kruck"] was an American outfielder and pitcher who played from 1946 through 1949 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m), 130 lb (59 kg), she…

2012

Ali Podrimja

Albanian poet and author (born 1942)

Ali Podrimja was an Albanian poet. He was born in Gjakova, at the time part of Italian-controlled Albania under Italy.

2012

James D. Ramage

American admiral and pilot (born 1916)

James D. "Jig Dog" Ramage was a Naval Aviator in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Cold War, and was a driving force in putting nuclear-capable attack aircraft aboard aircraft carriers. Before…

2012

Angharad Rees

English-b. Welsh actress (born 1944)

Angharad Rees was a Welsh actress, best known for her British television roles during the 1970s and in particular her leading role as Demelza in the 1970s BBC TV costume drama Poldark.

2012

Don Wilson

English cricketer and coach (born 1937)

Donald Wilson was an English cricketer, who played in six Test matches for England from 1964 to 1971. His first-class cricket career, which lasted from 1957 to 1974, was spent with Yorkshire County Cricket Club and he…

2012

Andrea Antonelli

Italian motorcycle racer (born 1988)

Andrea Antonelli was an Italian motorcycle racer. He was killed in an accident at the Moscow Raceway, whilst competing for Team Go Eleven Kawasaki in the Supersport World Championship.

2013

Lourembam Brojeshori Devi

Indian martial artist (born 1981)

Lourembam Brojeshori Devi was an Indian judoka who competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.

2013

Det de Beus

Dutch field hockey player (born 1958)

Anna Maria Bernadette "Det" de Beus in the Netherlands. Born in Utrecht, she was the first goalkeeper in women's field hockey to wear a mask.

2013

Luis Fernando Rizo-Salom

Colombian-French composer and educator (born 1971)

Luis Fernando Rizo-Salom was a Colombian composer of contemporary classical music who lived and worked in Paris since 1999. He was also a high performance athlete, member of the French hang gliding team.

2013

Fred Taylor

American football player and coach (born 1920)

Fred Alvin Taylor was an American football player and coach. He served as head coach at Texas Christian University from 1967 to 1970, compiling a record of 15–25–1 before he was fired following the 1970 season.

2013

Louise Abeita

Isleta Pueblo (Native American) writer, poet, and educator (born 1926)

Louise Abeita Chewiwi was a Pueblo writer, poet and educator who was an enrolled member of Isleta Pueblo.

2014

Dan Borislow

American businessman, invented the magicJack (born 1961)

Daniel Marc Borislow was an American entrepreneur, sports team owner, inventor, and thoroughbred horse breeder. Borislow was born and grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attended Widener University. In 1989, he…

2014

Lettice Curtis

English engineer and pilot (born 1915)

Eleanor Lettice Curtis was an English aviator, flight test engineer, air racing pilot, and sportswoman.

2014

Hans-Peter Kaul

German lawyer and judge (born 1943)

Hans-Peter Kaul was a German international law scholar and former diplomat and lawyer. From 11 March 2003 until 1 July 2014, he served as Judge at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. At the ICC, Kaul was…

2014

Rilwanu Lukman

Nigerian engineer and politician (born 1938)

Rilwanu Lukman was a Nigerian engineer who held several ministerial positions in the Nigerian Federal government before becoming Secretary General of OPEC from 1 January 1995 to 31 December 2000. He died on 21 July…

2014

Kevin Skinner

New Zealand rugby player and boxer (born 1927)

Kevin Lawrence Skinner was a rugby union player from New Zealand who won 20 full caps for the All Blacks, two of them as captain. He was also a heavyweight boxer, winning the New Zealand championship in 1947.

2014

Robert Broberg

Swedish singer-songwriter (born 1940)

Robert Zero Karl Oskar Broberg, originally Robert Karl Oskar Broberg – born in the Råsunda district of Solna parish in Stockholm County, died in Gustav Vasa (district) parish in Stockholm – was a Swedish singer,…

2015

E. L. Doctorow

American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (born 1931)

Edgar Lawrence Doctorow was an American novelist, editor, and professor, best known for his works of historical fiction.

2015

Nicholas Gonzalez

American physician (born 1947)

Nicholas James Gonzalez was a New York–based physician known for developing the Gonzalez regimen, an alternative cancer treatment. Gonzalez's treatments were based on his belief that pancreatic enzymes were the body's…

2015

Czesław Marchaj

Polish-English sailor and academic (born 1918)

Czesław Antony Marchaj, often known in the West as C.A. Marchaj or Tony Marchaj, was a Polish-British yachtsman whose published scientific studies of the aerodynamics and hydrodynamics of sailing boats have been…

2015

Dick Nanninga

Dutch footballer (born 1949)

Dirk Jacobus Willem "Dick" Nanninga was a Dutch footballer who played as a forward. At club level, he played for Dutch sides BV Veendam, Roda JC and MVV Maastricht. He also had a short spell with Hong Kong club Seiko.…

2015

Dennis Green

American football player and coach (born 1949)

Dennis Earl Green was an American professional football coach. During his National Football League (NFL) career, Green coached the Minnesota Vikings from 1992 to 2001 and the Arizona Cardinals from 2004 to 2006. He…

2016

John Heard

American film and television actor (born 1946)

John Matthew Heard Jr. was an American actor. He made his debut appearance in film with the ensemble Between the Lines (1977). He appeared in a number of successful films, including Heart Beat (1980), Cutter's Way…

2017

Alene Duerk

U.S. Navy first female admiral (born 1920)

Alene Bertha Duerk became the first female admiral in the U.S. Navy in 1972. She was also the director of the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps from 1970 to 1975. She is a 1974 recipient of a Distinguished Alumni Award of Case…

2018

Annie Ross

Scottish-American singer and actress (born 1930)

Annie Ross was a British-born American singer and actress, best known as a member of the influential jazz vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross. She helped pioneer the vocalese style of jazz singing, with a style…

2020

Andrew Mlangeni

South African political activist (born 1925)

Andrew Mokete Mlangeni, also known as Percy Mokoena, Mokete Mokoena, and Rev. Mokete Mokoena, was a South African political activist and anti-apartheid campaigner who, along with Nelson Mandela and others, was…

2020

Tony Bennett

American singer (born 1926)

Anthony Dominick Benedetto, known professionally as Tony Bennett, was an American jazz and traditional pop singer. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award, and two Primetime…

2023

Pau Alsina

Spanish motorcycle rider (born 2008)

Pau Alsina was a Spanish motorcycle racer. He died from injuries sustained in an accident at MotorLand Aragón. He was competing in the 2025 FIM JuniorGP World Championship at the time of his death.

2025

Notable deaths

Who died on July 21?

Manuel II Palaiologos — Byzantine emperor from 1391 to 1425

FeaturedManuel II Palaiologos

Death year1425

Known forShortly before his death he was tonsured a monk and received the name Matthaios (Ματθαίος)

Deaths on this date91 (658 – 2025)

Explore July 21

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2025

A Bangladesh Air Force Chengdu FT-7BGI crashes shortly after takeoff into Milestone School campus in Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing 35 people and injuring 173. Wikipedia →

2024

U.S. President Joe Biden announces he will no longer seek a second term and withdraws from the 2024 election, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as she launches her own presidential campaign. Wikipedia →

2023

The Barbenheimer phenomenon begins as two major motion pictures, Greta Gerwig's fantasy comedy Barbie and Christopher Nolan's epic biographical thriller Oppenheimer, are released in theaters on the same day and audiences, instead of creating a rivalry between the extremely dissimilar films, instead attend and praise both as an informal, surreal double feature. Wikipedia →

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1425 — Manuel II Palaiologos

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