02/07/2026
History
*July 2nd, 1916* was a Sunday, and it was the 2nd day of the Battle of the Somme — one of WWI’s bloodiest battles.
Here’s what happened that day:
*World War I Fronts*
1. *Battle of Albert / Somme*
British forces captured the village of Fricourt and took 1,625 German prisoners, but suffered 8,791 casualties over 48 hours.
July 1st had already been the British Army’s worst day ever with 19,240 killed, and July 2nd was still heavy fighting as the British pushed on.
2. *Eastern / Caucasus Front*
- *Battle of Erzincan*: Russian forces under General Nikolai Yudenich launched counterattacks against the Ottoman Third Army in what’s now Turkey. Russian forces defeated Ottoman troops in Armenia that day.
- *Baranovichi Offensive*: Three Russian corps attacked Central Powers around Baranovichi, Belarus, but the offensive stalled by day 2.
*Politics & Thought*
- *Lenin on Imperialism*: Vladimir Lenin delivered a critique arguing imperialism is “the highest stage of capitalism” — monopoly capitalism + export of capital to colonies. This became his work _Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism_.
*Notable Births*
1. *Ken Curtis* – American actor, played Festus on _Gunsmoke_
2. *Barry Gray* – American radio broadcaster, called the "Father of Talk Radio"
3. *Hans-Ulrich Rudel* – German Luftwaffe pilot, WWII’s most decorated German soldier
*Context*: July 1916 was also the month of the Jersey Shore shark attacks that inspired _Jaws_, and William Boeing incorporated _Pacific Aero Products_ on July 15.