John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the second and third US presidents and both signers of the Declaration of Independence, died on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of its adoption. Jefferson died first, at Monticello in Virginia, at 83, and Adams died several hours later in Quincy, Massachusetts, at 90. They had been estranged after the 1800 election but had renewed their friendship through letters from 1812 until their deaths. Neither knew the other had died, since news travelled slowly, and newspapers printed mourning bars and eulogies.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.