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Revision as of 07:12, 18 December 2013

August 15 is the 227th day of the year (228th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 138 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 636 – Arab–Byzantine wars: The Battle of Yarmouk between Byzantine Empire and Rashidun Caliphate begins.
• 717 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Maslamah ibn Abd al-Malik begins the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople, which will last for nearly a year.
• 718 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Raising of the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople.
• 778 – The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed.
• 927 – The Saracens conquer and destroy Taranto.
• 982 – Holy Roman Emperor Otto II is defeated by the Saracens in the Battle of Capo Colonna, in Calabria
• 1018 – Byzantine general Eustathios Daphnomeles blinds and captures Ibatzes of Bulgaria by a ruse, thereby ending Bulgarian resistance against Emperor Basil II's conquest of Bulgaria.
• 1040 – King Duncan I is killed in battle against his first cousin and rival Macbeth. The latter succeeds him as King of Scotland.
• 1057 – King Macbeth is killed at the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of Máel Coluim mac Donnchada.
• 1070 – The Pavian-born Benedictine Lanfranc is appointed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury in England.
• 1185 – The cave city of Vardzia is consecrated by Queen Tamar of Georgia.
• 1237 – The Battle of the Puig takes place in the context of the Spanish Reconquista pitting the forces of the Taifa of Valencia against the Kingdom of Aragon. The battle resulted in an Aragonese victory.
• 1248 – The foundation stone of Cologne Cathedral, built to house the relics of the Three Wise Men, is laid. (Construction is eventually completed in 1880.)
• 1261 – Michael VIII Palaiologos is crowned Byzantine emperor in Constantinople.
• 1281 – Mongol invasion of Japan: The Mongolian fleet of Kublai Khan is destroyed by a "divine wind" for the second time in the Battle of Kōan.
• 1309 – The city of Rhodes surrenders to the forces of the Knights of St. John, completing their conquest of Rhodes. The knights establish their headquarters on the island and rename themselves the Knights of Rhodes.
• 1430 – Francesco Sforza, lord of Milan, conquers Lucca.
• 1461 – The Empire of Trebizond surrenders to the forces of Sultan Mehmed II. This is regarded by some historians as the real end of the Byzantine Empire. Emperor David is exiled and later murdered.
• 1483 – Pope Sixtus IV consecrates the Sistine Chapel.
• 1511 – Afonso de Albuquerque of Portugal conquers Malacca, the capital of the Malacca Sultanate.
• 1517 – Seven Portuguese armed vessels led by Fernão Pires de Andrade meet Chinese officials at the Pearl River estuary.
• 1519 – Panama City, Panama, is founded.
• 1534 – Saint Ignatius of Loyola and six classmates take initial vows, leading to the creation of the Society of Jesus in September 1540.
• 1537 – Asunción, Paraguay, is founded.
• 1540 – Arequipa, Peru, is founded.
• 1549 – Jesuit priest Saint Francis Xavier comes ashore at Kagoshima (Traditional Japanese date: July 22, 1549).
• 1599 – Nine Years' War: Battle of Curlew Pass – Irish forces led by Hugh Roe O'Donnell successfully ambush English forces, led by Sir Conyers Clifford, sent to relieve Collooney Castle.
• 1695 – French forces end the bombardment of Brussels, leaving a third of the buildings in the city in ruins.
• 1760 – Seven Years' War: Battle of Liegnitz – Frederick the Great's victory over the Austrians under Ernst Gideon von Laudon.
• 1812 – War of 1812: The Battle of Fort Dearborn is fought between United States troops and Potawatomi at what is now Chicago, Illinois.
• 1843 – The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace in Honolulu, Hawaii is dedicated. Now the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, it is the oldest Roman Catholic cathedral in continuous use in the United States.
• 1843 – Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still intact amusement parks in the world, opens in Copenhagen, Denmark.
• 1863 – The Anglo-Satsuma War begins between the Satsuma Domain of Japan and the United Kingdom (Traditional Japanese date: July 2, 1863).
• 1869 – The Meiji government in Japan establishes six new ministries, including one for Shinto.
• 1893 – Ibadan area becomes a British Protectorate after a treaty signed by Fijabi, the Baale of Ibadan with the British acting Governor of Lagos, George C. Denton.
• 1907 – Ordination in Constantinople of Fr. Raphael Morgan, the first African-American Orthodox priest, "Priest-Apostolic" to America and the West Indies.
• 1914 – World War I: A male servant of American architect Frank Lloyd Wright sets fire to the living quarters of the latter's Wisconsin home, Taliesin, murders seven people and burns the living quarters to the ground.
• 1914 – World War I: The Panama Canal opens to traffic with the transit of the cargo ship SS Ancon.
• 1914 – World War I: The First Russian Army, led by Paul von Rennenkampf, enters East Prussia.
• 1914 – World War I: The beginning of the Battle of Cer.
• 1915 – A story in New York World reveals that the Weimar German government had purchased excess phenol from Thomas Edison that could be used to make explosives for the war effort and diverted it to Bayer for aspirin production.
• 1920 – Battle of Warsaw so called Miracle at the Vistula.
• 1935 – Will Rogers and Wiley Post are killed after their aircraft develops engine problems during takeoff in Barrow, Alaska.
• 1939 – 13 Stukas dive into the ground during a disastrous air-practice at Neuhammer. There are no survivors.
• 1939 – The Wizard of Oz premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California.
• 1940 – An Italian submarine torpedoes and sinks the Greek cruiser Elli at Tinos harbor during peacetime, marking the most serious Italian provocation prior to the outbreak of the Greco-Italian War in October.
• 1941 – Corporal Josef Jakobs is executed by firing squad at the Tower of London at 07:12, making him the last person to be executed at the Tower for espionage.
• 1942 – World War II: Operation Pedestal — The SS Ohio reaches the island of Malta barely afloat carrying vital fuel supplies for the island's defenses.
• 1944 – World War II: Operation Dragoon – Allied forces land in southern France.
• 1945 – World War II: Japan surrenders to end the war.
• 1947 – India gains Independence from the British Indian Empire after near 90 years of Crown rule and joins the Commonwealth of Nations.
• 1947 – Founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah is sworn in as first Governor-General of Pakistan in Karachi.
• 1948 – The Republic of Korea is established south of the 38th parallel north.
• 1952 – A flash flood drenches the town of Lynmouth, England, United Kingdom, killing 34 people.
• 1954 – Alfredo Stroessner begins his dictatorship in Paraguay.
• 1960 – Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) becomes independent from France.
• 1961 – Border guard Conrad Schumann flees from East Germany while on duty guarding the construction of the Berlin Wall.
• 1962 – James Joseph Dresnok defects to North Korea after running across the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Dresnok still resides in the capital, Pyongyang.
• 1963 – Execution of Henry John Burnett, the last man to be hanged in Scotland, UK.
• 1963 – President Fulbert Youlou is overthrown in the Republic of the Congo, after a three-day uprising in the capital.
• 1965 – The Beatles play to nearly 60,000 fans at Shea Stadium in New York, New York, an event later regarded as the birth of stadium rock.
• 1969 – Woodstock rock and roll concert opens.
• 1970 – Patricia Palinkas becomes the first woman to play professionally in an American football game.
• 1971 – President Richard Nixon completes the break from the gold standard by ending convertibility of the United States dollar into gold by foreign investors.
• 1971 – Bahrain gains independence from the United Kingdom.
• 1973 – Vietnam War: The United States bombing of Cambodia ends.
• 1974 – Yuk Young-soo, First Lady of South Korea, is killed during an apparent assassination attempt upon President, Park Chung-hee.
• 1975 – Bangladesh's founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is killed along with most members of his family during a military coup.
• 1975 – Takeo Miki makes the first official pilgrimage to Yasukuni Shrine by an incumbent prime minister on the anniversary of the end of World War II.
• 1977 – The Big Ear, a radio telescope operated by Ohio State University as part of the SETI project, receives a radio signal from deep space; the event is named the "Wow! signal" from the notation made by a volunteer on the project.
• 1984 – The Kurdistan Workers' Party in Turkey starts a campaign of armed attacks upon the Turkish military with an attack on police and gendarmerie bases in Şemdinli and Eruh
• 1995 – In South Carolina, Shannon Faulkner becomes the first female cadet matriculated at The Citadel (she drops out less than a week later).
• 1996 – President of Turkey Süleyman Demirel approved to "Law of ban For Casino in Turkey"
• 1998 – Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland, the worst terrorist incident of The Troubles
• 1999 – Beni Ounif massacre in Algeria; some 29 people are killed at a false roadblock near the Moroccan border, leading to temporary tensions with Morocco.
• 2005 – Israel's unilateral disengagement plan to evict all Israelis from the Gaza Strip and from four settlements in the northern West Bank begins.
• 2007 – An 8.0-magnitude earthquake off the Pacific coast devastates Ica and various regions of Peru killing 514 and injuring 1,090.
• 2013 – At least 27 people are killed and 226 injured in an explosion in southern Beirut near a complex used by Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. A previously unknown Syrian Sunni group claims responsibility in an online video.
• 2013 – The Smithsonian announces the discovery of the olinguito, the first new carnivoran species found in the Americas in 35 years.

Births

• 1171 – Alfonso IX of León (d. 1230)
• 1195 – Anthony of Padua, Portuguese priest and saint (d. 1231)
• 1432 – Luigi Pulci, Italian poet (d. 1484)
• 1575 – Bartol Kašić, Croatian linguist (d. 1650)
• 1613 – Gilles Ménage, French scholar (d. 1692)
• 1717 – Blind Jack, English engineer (d. 1810)
• 1736 – Johann Christoph Kellner, German organist and composer (d. 1803)
• 1740 – Matthias Claudius, German poet (d. 1815)
• 1769 – Napoleon, French general and emperor (d. 1821)
• 1771 – Walter Scott, Scottish author and poet (d. 1832)
• 1785 – Thomas De Quincey, English author (d. 1859)
• 1798 – Sangolli Rayanna, Indian warrior (d. 1831)
• 1813 – Jules Grévy, French politician, 4th President of the French Republic (d. 1891)
• 1824 – John Chisum, American businessman (d. 1884)
• 1844 – Thomas-Alfred Bernier, Canadian journalist, lawyer, and politician (d. 1908)
• 1846 – Charles Woodruff, American archer (d. 1927)
• 1857 – Albert Ballin, German businessman (d. 1918)
• 1858 – E. Nesbit, English author and poet (d. 1924)
• 1859 – Charles Comiskey, American baseball player and manager (d. 1931)
• 1860 – Henrietta Vinton Davis, American actress and playwright (d. 1941)
• 1860 – Florence Harding, American publisher, 31st First Lady of the United States (d. 1924)
• 1863 – Aleksey Krylov, Russian mathematician and engineer (d. 1945)
• 1865 – Mikao Usui, Japanese spiritual leader, founded Reiki (d. 1926)
• 1866 – Italo Santelli, Italian fencer (d. 1945)
• 1872 – Sri Aurobindo, Indian guru, poet, and philosopher (d. 1950)
• 1873 – Ramaprasad Chanda, Indian archaeologist and historian (d. 1942)
• 1875 – Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, English pianist, violinist, and composer (d. 1912)
• 1876 – Stylianos Gonatas, Greek colonel and politician, 111th Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1966)
• 1877 – Tachiyama Mineemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 22nd Yokozuna (d. 1941)
• 1879 – Ethel Barrymore, American actress (d. 1959)
• 1881 – Alfred Wagenknecht, German-American activist (d. 1956)
• 1882 – Marion Bauer, American composer and critic (d. 1955)
• 1883 – Ivan Meštrović, Croatian sculptor and architect, designed the Monument to the Unknown Hero (d. 1962)
• 1885 – Edna Ferber, American author (d. 1968)
• 1886 – Bill Whitty, Australian cricketer (d. 1974)
• 1890 – Elizabeth Bolden, American super-centenarian (d. 2006)
• 1890 – Jacques Ibert, French composer (d. 1962)
• 1892 – Louis de Broglie, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1987)
• 1893 – Leslie Comrie, New Zealand astronomer (d. 1950)
• 1896 – Gerty Cori, Czech-American biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
• 1896 – Catherine Doherty, Russian-Canadian activist, founded the Madonna House Apostolate (d. 1985)
• 1896 – Paul Outerbridge, American photographer (d. 1958)
• 1898 – Jan Brzechwa, Polish author and poet (d. 1966)
• 1900 – Estelle Brody, American actress (d. 1995)
• 1901 – Pyotr Novikov, Russian mathematician (d. 1975)
• 1902 – Jan Campert, Dutch journalist and critic (d. 1943)
• 1904 – George Klein, Canadian inventor, invented the Motorized wheelchair (d. 1992)
• 1905 – Emile St. Godard, Canadian dog sled racer (d. 1948)
• 1909 – Hugo Winterhalter, American composer and bandleader (d. 1973)
• 1910 – Signe Hasso, Swedish actress (d. 2002)
• 1912 – Julia Child, American chef and author (d. 2004)
• 1912 – Wendy Hiller, English actress (d. 2003)
• 1912 – Amir Khan, Indian singer (d. 1974)
• 1914 – Paul Rand, American graphic designer and art director (d. 1996)
• 1916 – Aleks Çaçi, Albanian author (d. 1989)
• 1917 – Jack Lynch, Irish politician, 5th Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 1999)
• 1917 – Óscar Romero, Salvadoran archbishop (d. 1980)
• 1919 – Huntz Hall, American actor and singer (d. 1999)
• 1919 – Benedict Kiely, Irish journalist and author (d. 2007)
• 1919 – Dina Wadia, English-Pakistani daughter of Muhammad Ali Jinnah
• 1921 – August Kowalczyk, Polish actor and director (d. 2012)
• 1922 – Leonard Baskin, American sculptor and illustrator (d. 2000)
• 1922 – Giorgos Mouzakis, Greek composer (d. 2005)
• 1923 – Rose Marie, American actress and singer
• 1924 – Werner Abrolat, Russian-German actor (d. 1997)
• 1924 – Robert Bolt, English playwright and screenwriter (d. 1995)
• 1925 – Mike Connors, American actor and producer
• 1925 – Münir Özkul, Turkish actor
• 1925 – Oscar Peterson, Canadian pianist and composer (d. 2007)
• 1925 – Bill Pinkney, American singer (The Drifters) (d. 2007)
• 1925 – Erik Schmidt, Swedish-Majorcan painter and writer
• 1926 – Sami Michael, Iraqi-Israeli author
• 1926 – Julius Katchen, American pianist (d. 1969)
• 1926 – John Silber, American academic (d. 2012)
• 1926 – Konstantinos Stephanopoulos, Greek politician, 6th President of Greece
• 1927 – Eddie Leadbeater, English cricketer (d. 2011)
• 1928 – Carl Joachim Classen, German scholar (d. 2013)
• 1928 – Nicolas Roeg, English director and cinematographer
• 1929 – Georgios Roubanis, Greek pole vaulter
• 1930 – Ageeda Paavel, Estonian activist
• 1933 – Bobby Helms, American singer and guitarist (d. 1997)
• 1933 – Jim Lange, American game show host
• 1934 – Bobby Byrd, American singer-songwriter and producer (The Famous Flames) (d. 2007)
• 1934 – Nino Ferrer, Italian-French singer and actor (d. 1998)
• 1934 – Reginald Scarlett, Jamaican cricketer and coach
• 1935 – Jim Dale, English actor, singer, and screenwriter
• 1935 – Vernon Jordan, American lawyer, businessman, and activist
• 1935 – Lionel Taylor, American football player and coach
• 1936 – Rita Shane, American soprano
• 1938 – Stephen Breyer, American judge
• 1938 – Maxine Waters, American educator and politician
• 1938 – Janusz Zajdel, Polish author
• 1940 – Gudrun Ensslin, German militant leader, founded Red Army Faction (d. 1977)
• 1941 – Jim Brothers, American sculptor (d. 2013)
• 1941 – Manolis Mavrommatis, Greek politician
• 1942 – Larry Hartsell, American martial artist and author (d. 2007)
• 1943 – María Rojo, Mexican actress and politician
• 1944 – Linda Ellerbee, American journalist and author
• 1944 – Thomas J. Murphy, Jr., American politician, 56th Mayor of Pittsburgh
• 1944 – Dimitris Sioufas, Greek lawyer and politician
• 1944 – Sylvie Vartan, Bulgarian-French singer and actress
• 1945 – Duffy Dyer, American baseball player and coach
• 1945 – Gene Upshaw, American football player (d. 2008)
• 1945 – Khaleda Zia, Bangladeshi politician, 9th Prime Minister of Bangladesh
• 1946 – Tony Robinson, English actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1946 – Jimmy Webb, American singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1947 – Raakhee, Indian actress
• 1947 – Jenny Hanley, English actress
• 1948 – Uschi Digard, Swedish porn actress and model
• 1948 – Patsy Gallant, Canadian singer-songwriter and actress
• 1948 – George Ryton, Singaporean-English engineer
• 1949 – Beverly Burns, American pilot and captain
• 1949 – Richard Deacon, Welsh sculptor
• 1949 – Garry Disher, Australian author
• 1949 – Mark B. Rosenberg, American academic
• 1950 – Tommy Aldridge, American drummer (Motörhead, Whitesnake, Black Oak Arkansas, and Thin Lizzy)
• 1950 – Tom Kelly, American baseball player and manager
• 1950 – Anne, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom
• 1951 – Ann Biderman, American screenwriter and producer
• 1951 – Bobby Caldwell, American singer-songwriter
• 1951 – John Childs, English cricketer
• 1951 – Daba Diawara, Malian politician
• 1951 – Ranjan Gunatilleke, Sri Lankan cricketer
• 1952 – Chuck Burgi, American drummer and session musician
• 1953 – Carol Thatcher, English journalist
• 1953 – Mark Thatcher, English businessman
• 1954 – Stieg Larsson, Swedish journalist and author (d. 2004)
• 1954 – Hillar Mets, Estonian illustrator and animator
• 1954 – Mary Jo Salter, American poet
• 1956 – Lorraine Desmarais, Canadian pianist and composer
• 1956 – Freedom Neruda, Ivorian journalist
• 1957 – Željko Ivanek, Slovenian-American actor
• 1958 – Simon Baron-Cohen, English-Canadian psychiatrist and author
• 1958 – Laurie Bembenek, American murderer (d. 2010)
• 1958 – Craig MacTavish, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1958 – Simple Kapadia, Indian actress and costume designer (d. 2009)
• 1958 – Victor Shenderovich, Russian radio host
• 1958 – Rondell Sheridan, American actor and director
• 1959 – Scott Altman, American captain, pilot, and astronaut
• 1961 – Ed Gillespie, American political strategist
• 1961 – Gary Kubiak, American football player and coach
• 1961 – Suhasini Maniratnam, Indian actress and screenwriter
• 1961 – Arjun Sarja, Indian actor and director
• 1962 – Tom Colicchio, American chef and author
• 1962 – Vilja Savisaar-Toomast, Estonian politician
• 1963 – Alejandro González Iñárritu, Mexican director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1963 – Lady Miss Kier, American singer-songwriter, DJ, and producer (Deee-Lite)
• 1963 – Valery Levaneuski, Belarussian activist
• 1963 – Jack Russell, England cricketer and coach
• 1964 – Melinda Gates, American businesswoman and philanthropist, co-founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• 1965 – Rob Thomas, American author, screenwriter, and producer
• 1966 – Scott Brosius, American baseball player and coach
• 1966 – Shirley Kwan, Hong Kong singer, dancer, and actress
• 1966 – Dimitris Papadopoulos, Greek basketball player and coach
• 1967 – Peter Hermann, American actor
• 1968 – Debra Messing, American actress, singer, and producer
• 1969 – Kevin Cheng, American-Hong Kong singer and actor
• 1969 – Bernard Fanning, Australian singer-songwriter (Powderfinger)
• 1969 – Cris Judd, American actor, dancer, and choreographer
• 1970 – Anthony Anderson, American comedian and actor
• 1970 – Maddie Corman, American actress
• 1970 – Ben Silverman, American television producer, founded Electus Studios
• 1970 – Maya Soetoro-Ng, American educator
• 1972 – Ben Affleck, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1972 – Jennifer Alexander, Canadian ballet dancer (d. 2007)
• 1972 – Chris Morrissey, American actor and director
• 1972 – Matthew Wood, American voice actor and sound engineer
• 1973 – Amitabh Bhattacharjee, Indian actor
• 1973 – Adnan Sami, English-Canadian singer-songwriter, pianist, and actor
• 1973 – Atom Willard, American drummer (The Offspring, Rocket from the Crypt, Danko Jones, and The Special Goodness)
• 1974 – Gry Bay, Danish actress and singer
• 1974 – Natasha Henstridge, Canadian model and actress
• 1974 – Tomasz Suwary, Polish footballer
• 1975 – Bertrand Berry, American football player and radio host
• 1975 – Vijay Bharadwaj, Indian cricketer and coach
• 1975 – Brendan Morrison, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1975 – Kara Wolters, American basketball player
• 1976 – Boudewijn Zenden, Dutch footballer and manager
• 1977 – Martin Biron, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1977 – Igor Cassina, Italian gymnast
• 1977 – Nicole Paggi, American actress
• 1978 – Tim Foreman, American bass player (Switchfoot)
• 1978 – Lilia Podkopayeva, Ukrainian gymnast
• 1978 – Stavros Tziortziopoulos, Greek footballer
• 1978 – Kerri Walsh Jennings, American volleyball player
• 1979 – Carl Edwards, American race car driver
• 1980 – Brandon Harrod, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1980 – Natalie Press, English actress
• 1981 – Brendan Hansen, American swimmer
• 1981 – Song Ji-hyo, South Korean model and actress
• 1981 – Óliver Pérez, American baseball player
• 1982 – Casey Burgener, American weightlifter
• 1982 – Heather Carolin, American model and actress
• 1982 – Tsuyoshi Hayashi, Japanese actor
• 1982 – Cori Yarckin, American actress and singer
• 1983 – Timati, Russian rapper, producer, and actor
• 1984 – Quinton Aaron, American actor
• 1985 – Cogie Domingo, Filipino actor
• 1985 – Leah Hackett, English actress
• 1985 – Andrea Lewis, Canadian actress and singer
• 1985 – Santiago Stieben, Argentinian actor
• 1986 – Natalia Kills, English singer-songwriter and actress
• 1986 – Maria Fowler, English model and actress
• 1987 – Michel Kreder, Dutch cyclist
• 1988 – Oussama Assaidi, Moroccan footballer
• 1988 – Zaira Nara, Argentinian model and television host
• 1989 – Joe Jonas, American singer-songwriter and actor (Jonas Brothers)
• 1989 – Carlos Pena, Jr., American singer-songwriter and actor (Big Time Rush)
• 1989 – Belinda Peregrín, Spanish-Mexican singer-songwriter and actress
• 1990 – Nyusha, Russian singer-songwriter and producer
• 1990 – Aglaja Brix, German actress
• 1990 – Jennifer Lawrence, American actress
• 1990 – Toomas Raadik, Estonian basketball player
• 1990 – Danny Verbeek, Dutch footballer
• 1991 – Petja Piiroinen, Finnish snowboarder
• 1993 – Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, English footballer
• 1994 – Kosuke Hagino, Japanese swimmer
• 1994 – Natalja Zabijako, Estonian pair skater
• 1995 – Chief Keef, American rapper
• 1995 – Yui Ogura, Japanese voice actress and singer

Deaths

• 423 – Honorius, Roman emperor (b. 384)
• 465 – Libius Severus, Roman emperor (b. 420)
• 1038 – Stephen I of Hungary (b. 975)
• 1057 – Macbeth, King of Scotland
• 1118 – Alexios I Komnenos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1048)
• 1196 – Conrad II, Duke of Swabia (b. 1173)
• 1274 – Robert de Sorbon, French theologian and educator, founded the College of Sorbonne (b. 1201)
• 1369 – Philippa of Hainault (b. 1314)
• 1528 – Odet of Foix, Viscount of Lautrec, French general (b. 1485)
• 1552 – Hermann of Wied, German archbishop (b. 1477)
• 1621 – John Barclay, Scottish poet (b. 1582)
• 1666 – Johann Adam Schall von Bell, German missionary and astronomer (b. 1591)
• 1714 – Constantin Brâncoveanu, Romanian prince (b. 1654)
• 1728 – Marin Marais, French viol player and composer (b. 1656)
• 1758 – Pierre Bouguer, French mathematician, geophysicist, and astronomer (b. 1698)
• 1799 – Giuseppe Parini, Italian poet (b. 1729)
• 1852 – Johan Gadolin, Finnish chemist, physicist, and mineralogist (b. 1760)
• 1859 – Nathaniel Claiborne, American politician (b. 1777)
• 1880 – Adelaide Neilson, English actress (b. 1848)
• 1907 – Joseph Joachim, Hungarian violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1831)
• 1909 – Euclides da Cunha, Brazilian sociologist and journalist (b. 1866)
• 1917 – Thomas J. Higgins, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1831)
• 1925 – Konrad Mägi, Estonian painter (b. 1878)
• 1928 – Anatole von Hügel, Italian ethnologist, co-founded St Edmund's College (b. 1854)
• 1931 – Nigar Shikhlinskaya, Azerbaijani nurse (b. 1878)
• 1934 – Leo O'Connell, American soccer player (b. 1883)
• 1935 – Wiley Post, American pilot (b. 1898)
• 1935 – Will Rogers, American actor, singer, and screenwriter (b. 1879)
• 1935 – Paul Signac, French painter (b. 1863)
• 1936 – Grazia Deledda, Italian author, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1871)
• 1942 – Mahadev Desai, Indian activist and author (b. 1892)
• 1945 – Korechika Anami, Japanese general (b. 1887)
• 1951 – Artur Schnabel, Polish pianist and composer (b. 1882)
• 1953 – Ludwig Prandtl, German physicist and engineer (b. 1875)
• 1962 – Lei Feng, Chinese soldier (b. 1940)
• 1967 – René Magritte, Belgian painter (b. 1898)
• 1971 – Paul Lukas, Hungarian-American actor and singer (b. 1887)
• 1975 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bengali politician, 1st President of Bangladesh (b. 1920)
• 1975 – Clay Shaw, American businessman (b. 1913)
• 1981 – Carol Ryrie Brink, American author (b. 1895)
• 1982 – Ernie Bushmiller, American cartoonist (b. 1905)
• 1982 – Hugo Theorell, Swedish biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1903)
• 1989 – Minoru Genda, Japanese pilot, general, and politician (b. 1904)
• 1989 – Thrasyvoulos Tsakalotos, Greek general (b. 1897)
• 1990 – Viktor Tsoi, Russian singer-songwriter (Kino) (b. 1962)
• 1994 – Wout Wagtmans, Dutch cyclist (b. 1929)
• 1995 – John Cameron Swayze, American journalist (b. 1906)
• 1997 – Ida Gerhardt, Dutch poet (b. 1905)
• 1999 – Hugh Casson, English architect (b. 1910)
• 2001 – Richard Chelimo, Kenyan runner (b. 1972)
• 2004 – Sune Bergström, Swedish biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
• 2004 – Semiha Berksoy, Turkish opera singer (b. 1910)
• 2004 – Amarsinh Chaudhary, Indian politician, 8th Chief Minister of Gujarat (b. 1941)
• 2005 – Bendapudi Venkata Satyanarayana, Indian dermatologist (b. 1927)
• 2006 – Te Atairangikaahu, Māori queen (b. 1931)
• 2006 – Rick Bourke, Australian rugby player (b. 1955)
• 2006 – Coenraad Bron, Dutch computer scientist (b. 1937)
• 2006 – Faas Wilkes, Dutch footballer (b. 1923)
• 2007 – Richard Bradshaw, English conductor (b. 1944)
• 2007 – John Gofman, American biologist, chemist, and physicist (b. 1918)
• 2007 – Geoffrey Orbell, New Zealand physician (b. 1908)
• 2007 – Sam Pollock, Canadian businessman (b. 1925)
• 2008 – James Orthwein, American businessman (b. 1924)
• 2008 – Heinz-Ludwig Schmidt, German footballer and manager (b. 1920)
• 2008 – Leroy Sievers, American journalist (b. 1955)
• 2008 – Vic Toweel, South African boxer (b. 1929)
• 2008 – Jerry Wexler, American music producer and journalist (b. 1917)
• 2009 – Virginia Davis, American actor (b. 1918)
• 2010 – Denis E. Dillon, American politician (b. 1933)
• 2011 – Michael Legat, English author (b. 1923)
• 2011 – Rick Rypien, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1984)
• 2012 – Bob Birch, American bass player and saxophonist (b. 1956)
• 2012 – Altamiro Carrilho, Brazilian flute player and composer (b. 1924)
• 2012 – Biff Elliot, American actor (b. 1923)
• 2012 – Punch Gunalan, Malaysian badminton player (b. 1944)
• 2012 – Harry Harrison, American author (b. 1925)
• 2012 – Müşfik Kenter, Turkish actor (b. 1932)
• 2012 – Carina Moberg, Swedish politician (b. 1966)
• 2012 – Mitchell Todd, Scottish rugby player (b. 1991)
• 2012 – Ray Whitney, English politician (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Arben Xhaferi, Macedonian politician and activist (b. 1948)
• 2013 – S. M. Laljan Basha, Indian politician (b. 1957)
• 2013 – Bert Lance, American civil servant, 23rd Director of the Office of Management and Budget (b. 1931)
• 2013 – William S. Livingston, American political scientist and academic (b. 1920)
• 2013 – Rosalía Mera, Spanish businesswoman, co-founded Inditex and Zara (b. 1944)
• 2013 – Sławomir Mrożek, Polish-French author and playwright (b. 1930)
• 2013 – August Schellenberg, Canadian-American actor (b. 1936)
• 2013 – Marich Man Singh Shrestha, Nepali politician, 28th Prime Minister of Nepal (b. 1942)
• 2013 – Jacques Vergès, Thai-French lawyer (b. 1925)
• 2013 – Pat Wiggins, American politician (b. 1940)

Holidays and observances

• Armed Forces Day (Poland)
• Christianity – feast day:
  • Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation. (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu), and its related observances:
    • Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos (Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches)
    • The Falling Asleep of the Blessed Virgin Mary (commemoration, Anglicanism)
    • Ferragosto (Italy)
    • Mother's Day (Antwerp and Costa Rica)
    • National Acadian Day (Acadians)
    • Navy Day (Romania)
    • Virgin of Candelaria, patron of the Canary Islands. (Tenerife, Spain)
  • Stanislaus Kostka
  • Tarcisius
  • August 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Constitution Day (Equatorial Guinea)
• Earliest day on which Day of Hearts can fall, while August 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday in August. (area around Haarlem and Amsterdam)
• Founding of Asunción (Paraguay)
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of the Republic of the Congo from France in 1960.
• Independence Day of India, celebrates the independence of India from the United Kingdom in 1947.
• Liberation Day, celebrates the independence of Korea from Japan in 1945:
  • Gwangbokjeol, "Liberation Day" (South Korea)
  • Jogukhaebangui nal, "Fatherland Liberation Day" (North Korea)
• The first day of Flooding of the Nile, or Wafaa El-Nil.(Egypt and Coptic Church)
• The main day of Bon Festival (Japan)
• Victory over Japan Day (United States)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada

• Days of the year
• August