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Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern nation of Egypt. The civilization began around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and it developed over the next three millennia. Its history occurred in a series of stable periods, known as kingdoms, separated by periods of relative instability known as Intermediate Periods. After the end of the last kingdom, known as the New Kingdom, the civilization of ancient Egypt entered a period of slow, steady decline, during which Egypt was conquered by a succession of foreign powers. The civilization of ancient Egypt thrived from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River Valley. With resources to spare, the administration sponsored the early development of an independent writing system, the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions, and a military that defeated foreign enemies and asserted Egyptian dominance. Egypt left a lasting legacy: art and architecture were copied and antiquities paraded around the world, and monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of tourists and writers for centuries. A newfound respect for antiquities and excavations in the early modern period led to the scientific investigation of Egyptian civilization and a greater appreciation of its cultural legacy for Egypt and the world. (more...)

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June 24: Battle of Carabobo Day in Venezuela (1821); Midsummer Day in Northern Europe; National Holiday/Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day in Quebec, Canada

• 1314 – In the decisive battle in the First War of Scottish Independence, Scottish forces led by Robert the Bruce defeated English troops under Edward II near Bannockburn, Scotland.
• 1880 – "O Canada", today the national anthem of Canada, was first performed in Quebec City, Quebec, during a Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day banquet.
• 1894 – Italian anarchist Sante Geronimo Caserio fatally stabbed Marie François Sadi Carnot (pictured), President of the French Third Republic, after Carnot delivered a speech at a public banquet in Lyon, France.
• 1948 – Cold War: The Soviet Union blocked access to the American, British, and French sectors of Berlin, cutting off all rail and road routes going into Soviet-controlled territory in Germany.
• 1994 – A United States Air Force B-52 Stratofortress based at Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane County, Washington, USA crashed, killing all four crew members, and providing a case study on the importance of compliance with safety regulations.

• More anniversaries: June 23 – June 24 – June 25

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