17th of Taamuz
The fast of the 17th of Tammuz, is the start of a three-week mourning period for the destruction of Yerushalyim and the two Holy Temples.
The fast actually commemorates five tragic events that occurred on this date:
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Moshe broke the Luchot when he saw the Jewish people worshipping the Golden Calf.
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During the Babylonian siege of Yerushalayim, the Jews were forced to cease offering the daily sacrifices due to the lack of sheep.
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Apostomos burned the holy Torah.
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An idol was placed in the Holy Temple.
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The walls of Yerushalayim were breached by the Romans, in 69 CE, after a lengthy siege. (Three weeks later, the Romans destroyed the second Holy Temple on the 9th of Av.)
On this day we fast:
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Healthy adults over the age of bar/bat mitzvah do not eat or drink between dawn and nightfall