August 24
-
is the 236th day of the year in the
Gregorian Calendar (237th in leap years), with 129 days remaining.
*
49 BC -
Julius Caesar's general Gaius Curio is defeated in the
Second Battle of the Bagradas River by the
Numidians under Attius Varus and King Juba of
Numidia. Curio is slain in battle.
*
79 -
Mount Vesuvius erupts. The cities of
Pompeii,
Herculaneum, and
Stabiae are buried in volcanic ash.
*
410 - The
Visigoths under
Alaric begin to pillage
Rome for three days.
*
1215 -
Pope Innocent III declares the
Magna Carta invalid.
*
1349 - Six thousand Jews are killed in
Mainz because they are blamed for the
bubonic plague.
*
1391 - Jews massacred in
Palma de Mallorca.
*
1456 - The printing of the
Gutenberg Bible is completed.
*
1459 -
Vlad Tepes (aka Dracula) had 30,000 of the merchants and officials of the Transylvanian city of
Braşov impaled.
*
1511 -
Alfonso de Albuquerque of
Portugal conquers the
Sultanate of Malacca.
*
1561 - Willem of Orange marries duchess Anna of Saxon
*
1572 -
Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre: On the orders of king
Charles IX of France, a massacre of
Huguenots (French
Protestants) begins.
*
1608 - The first official British representative to
India lands in
Surat.
*
1662 -
Act of Uniformity requires
England to accept the
Book of Common Prayer.
*
1682 -
William Penn receives the area that is now the state of
Delaware, and adds it to his colony of
Pennsylvania.
*
1690 -
Calcutta,
India is founded.
*
1814 - British troops invade
Washington, D.C. and burn down the
White House and several other buildings.
*
1816 - The
Treaty with the Ottawa, etc. is signed in
St. Louis,
Missouri.
*
1821 - The
Treaty of Córdoba is signed in
Córdoba, now in
Veracruz,
Mexico, concluding the
Mexican War of Independence from
Spain.
*
1831 -
Charles Darwin is asked to travel on
HMS Beagle.
*
1847 -
Charlotte Brontë finishes
Jane Eyre.
*
1853 -
Potato chips are first prepared.
*
1857 - The
Panic of 1857 begins, setting off one of the most severe economic crises in U.S. history.
*
1858 - In
Richmond, Virginia, 90 blacks are arrested for learning.
*
1891 -
Thomas Edison patents the motion picture camera.
*
1909 - Workers start pouring concrete for the
Panama Canal.
*
1912 -
Alaska becomes a
United States territory.
*
1914 -
World War I: German troops capture
Namur.
*
1929 -
Turkey and
Persia sign a friendship treaty.
* 1929 -
Riots in Palestine of 1929: 18 Jews in Safed, 67 in Hebron, and 22 in Jerusalem killed by Arab Palestinians
*
1931 -
France and the
Soviet Union sign a neutrality/no attack treaty.
* 1931 - Resignation of the
United Kingdom's
Second Labour Government. Formation of the
UK National Government.
*
1932 -
Amelia Earhart is the first woman to fly across the
United States non-stop (from
Los Angeles to
Newark, New Jersey).
*
1936 - The
Australian Antarctic Territory is created.
*
1942 -
World War II: The
Battle of the Eastern Solomons.
Japanese
aircraft carrier Ryujo is sunk and
US carrier
Enterprise heavily damaged.
*
1944 - World War II: French and Allied troops start the attack on
Paris.
*
1949 - The treaty creating
NATO goes into effect.
*
1950 -
Edith Sampson becomes the first black U.S. delegate to the
UN.
*
1954 - The
Communist Control Act goes into effect. The
American Communist Party is outlawed.
* 1954 -
Getúlio Dornelles Vargas, president of Brazil, commits suicide and is succeeded by
João Café Filho.
*
1960 - A temperature of −88°C (−127°F) is measured in
Vostok,
Antarctica — a world-record low.
*
1963 - The 200-metre freestyle is swum in less than 2 minutes for the first time by
Don Schollander (1:58).
*
1967 - Led by
Abbie Hoffman, a group of
hippies temporarily disrupt trading at the
NYSE by throwing dollar bills from the viewing gallery, causing a cease in trading as the brokers scramble to grab them up.
*
1968 -
France explodes its first
hydrogen bomb, thus becoming the world's fifth nuclear power.
*
1971 -
Pink Floyd performs their most famous concert, in an abandoned Pompeii amphitheatre on the 1892nd anniversary of the infamous disappearance of Pompeii.
*
1981 -
Mark David Chapman is sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for murdering
John Lennon.
*
1989 -
Colombian drug barons declare "total war" on the Colombian government.
* 1989 -
Cincinnati Reds manager
Pete Rose is banned from
baseball for gambling by Commissioner
A. Bartlett Giamatti* 1989 -
Voyager 2 passes
Neptune.
*
1990 - A judge rules that
Judas Priest are not responsible for the deaths of two youths who committed
suicide after listening to the band's music.
* 1990 -
Sinéad O'Connor refuses to perform at the Garden State Arts Plaza in
Holmdel, New Jersey if "
The Star-Spangled Banner" is played before her show, as is customary.
*
1991 -
Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as head of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
* 1991 -
Ukraine declares itself independent from the
Soviet Union.
*
1992 - Diplomatic relations are established between the
People's Republic of China and
South Korea.
* 1992 -
Hurricane Andrew hits
South Florida as a Category 5
Hurricane.
*
1994 - Initial accord between
Israel and the
PLO about partial self-rule of the
Palestinians on the
West Bank.
*
1995 -
Windows 95, a computer operating system by
Microsoft, is released with much fanfare.
*
1998 - The
Netherlands is selected as the site for the trial of the two
Libyan suspects of the 1988 PanAm bombing.
*
2001 -
Air Transat Flight 236 runs out of fuel over the Atlantic Ocean (en route to Lisbon from New York) and makes an emergency landing in the Azores.
*
2004 - Two airliners in
Russia, carrying a total of 89 passengers, explode within minutes of each other after flying out of
Domodedovo International Airport, near
Moscow, leaving no survivors. The explosions were caused by suicide bombers (reportedly female) from the Russian
Republic of Chechnya.
*
1113 -
Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou (d.
1151)
*
1198 - King
Alexander II of Scotland (d.
1249)
*
1358 - King
John I of Castile (d.
1390)
*
1393 -
Arthur III, Duke of Brittany (d.
1458)
*
1552 -
Lavinia Fontana, Italian painter (d.
1614)
*
1580 -
John Taylor, English poet (d.
1654)
*
1591 -
Robert Herrick, English poet (d.
1674)
*
1635 -
Peder Griffenfeld, Danish statesman (d.
1699)
*
1669 -
Alessandro Marcello, Italian composer (d.
1747)
*
1759 -
William Wilberforce, English campaigner against slavery (d.
1833)
*
1772 - King
William I of the Netherlands (1814-1840)
*
1787 -
James Weddell, Antarctica explorer (d.
1834)
*
1817 -
Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy, Russian writer (d.
1875)
*
1837 -
Théodore Dubois, French composer and teacher (d.
1924)
*
1852 -
Deacon White, baseball player (d.
1919)
*
1863 -
Dragutin Lerman, Croatian explorer (d.
1918)
*
1865 - King
Ferdinand I of Romania (d.
1927)
*
1872 -
Max Beerbohm, British parodist and caricaturist (d.
1956)
*
1880 -
Joshua Lionel Cowen, American inventor and entrepreneur (d.
1965)
*
1884 -
Earl Derr Biggers, American author (d.
1933)
*
1887 -
Harry Hooper, baseball player (d.
1974)
*
1890 -
Duke Kahanamoku, Hawaiian swimmer and surfer (d.
1968)
* 1890 -
Jean Rhys, Dominican writer (d.
1979)
*
1898 -
Malcolm Cowley, American literary critic, writer, and editor (d.
1989)
*
1899 -
Gaylord DuBois, American comic book writer(d.
1993)
*
1899 -
Jorge Luis Borges, Argentine writer (d.
1986)
*
1901 -
Preston Foster, American actor (d.
1970)
*
1904 -
Alice White, American film actress (d.
1983)
*
1915 -
James Tiptree, Jr., American writer (d.
1987)
*
1916 -
Hal Smith, American actor and voice actor (d.
1994)
*
1918 -
Sikander Bakht Indian politician, Cabinet Minister, Governor of Kerala (d.
2004)
*
1922 -
René Lévesque, Premier of Quebec (d.
1987)
*
1923 -
Arthur Jensen, American psychologist
*
1927 -
Harry Markowitz, American economist,
Bank of Sweden Prize winner
*
1929 -
Yasser Arafat, Palestinian leader, recipient of the
Nobel Peace Prize (d.
2004)
*
1934 -
Kenny Baker, English actor
*
1936 -
A. S. Byatt, English novelist
*
1938 -
Halldór Blöndal, Icelandic politician
* 1938 -
David Freiberg, American bassist (
Quicksilver Messenger Service and
Jefferson Starship)
*
1943 -
John Cipollina, American guitarist (
Quicksilver Messenger Service) (d.
1989)
*
1944 -
Jim Capaldi, British drummer, singer, and songwriter (
Traffic) (d.
2005)
*
1945 -
Ken Hensley, English musician (
Uriah Heep)
* 1945 -
Vincent K. McMahon, American professional wrestling entrepreneur
*
1947 -
Paulo Coelho, Brazilian author
* 1947 -
Roger De Vlaeminck, Belgian cyclist
*
1948 -
Kim Sung-Il, Chief of Staff of
Republic of Korea Air Force* 1948 -
Jean-Michel Jarre, French musician
*
1951 -
Orson Scott Card, American writer
*
1956 -
John Culberson, American politician
*
1957 -
Stephen Fry, English comedian, author, and actor
*
1958 -
Steve Guttenberg, American actor
* 1958 -
Tracy Harris, American artist
*
1960 -
Cal Ripken, Jr., baseball player
*
1962 -
Craig Kilborn, American talk show host
* 1962 -
David Koechner, American actor
*
1963 -
John Bush, American singer (
Anthrax)
* 1963 -
Hideo Kojima, Japanese video game director
*
1964 -
Salizhan Sharipov, cosmonaut
*
1965 -
Marlee Matlin, American actress
* 1965 -
Reggie Miller, American basketball player
*
1968 -
Shoichi Funaki, Japanese professional wrestler
* 1968 -
Andreas Kisser, Brazilian guitarist (
Sepultura)
*
1973 -
David Chappelle, American actor and comedian
* 1973 -
Inge de Bruijn, Dutch swimmer
* 1973 -
Carmine Giovinazzo, American actor
* 1973 -
Andrew Brunette, Canadian
National Hockey League player
*
1974 -
Jennifer Lien, American actress
*
1975 -
Mark de Vries, Surinamese-Dutch footballer
*
1978 -
Rafael Furcal, Dominican
Major League Baseball player
*
1981 -
Chad Michael Murray, American actor
*
1983 -
Christopher Parker, British actor
*
1988 -
Rupert Grint, English actor
*
79 -
Pliny the Elder, Roman writer and naturalist (b.
23)
*
1042 -
Michael V,
Byzantine Emperor) (b.
1015)
*
1103 - King
Magnus III of Norway (b.
1073)
*
1217 -
Eustace the Monk, French mercenary and pirate (bc.
1170)
*
1540 -
Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola, Italian painter (b.
1503)
*
1542 -
Gasparo Contarini, Italian diplomat and cardinal (b.
1483)
*
1572 - Victims of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre:
*1572 -
Gaspard de Coligny, French Huguenot leader (b.
1519)
*1572 -
Pierre de la Ramée, French humanist (b.
1515)
*1572 -
Charles de Téligny, French Huguenot soldier (bc.
1535)
*
1595 -
Thomas Digges, English astronomer (b.
1546)
*
1647 -
Nicholas Stone, English sculptor and architect (b.
1586)
*
1664 -
Maria Cunitz, Silesian astronomer (bc.
1610)
*
1679 -
Jean François Paul de Gondi, cardinal de Retz, French churchman and agitator (b.
1614)
*
1680 -
Thomas Blood, Irish-born thief of the British crown jewels (b.
1618)
*
1683 -
John Owen, English non-conformist theologian (b.
1616)
*
1759 -
Ewald Christian von Kleist, German poet (b.
1715)
*
1779 -
Kosmas Aitolos, Greek Orthodox martyr (b.
1714)
*
1831 -
August von Gneisenau, Prussian field marshal (b.
1760)
*
1832 -
Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot, French mathematician (b.
1796)
*
1841 -
Theodore Edward Hook, English author (b.
1788)
*
1888 -
Rudolf Clausius, German physicist (b.
1822)
*
1921 -
Nikolay Gumilyov, Russian poet (b.
1886)
*
1940 -
Paul Gottlieb Nipkow, German television pioneer (b.
1860)
*
1946 -
James Clark McReynolds, U.S. Supreme Court justice (b.
1862)
*
1954 -
Getúlio Vargas,
President of Brazil (b.
1882)
*
1956 -
Kenji Mizoguchi, Japanese film director (b.
1898)
*
1958 -
Paul Henry, Northern Irish artist (b.
1876)
*
1967 -
Henry J. Kaiser, American industrialist (b.
1882)
*
1975 -
Eamon de Valera,
President of Ireland (b.
1882)
*
1978 -
Louis Prima, American band leader (b.
1910)
*
1979 -
Hanna Reitsch, German pilot (b.
1912)
*
1980 -
Yootha Joyce, British actress (b.
1927)
*
1985 -
Paul Creston, American composer (b.
1906)
*
1987 -
Malcolm Kirk, wrestler (b.
1936)
*
1990 -
Sergei Dovlatov, Russian writer (b.
1941)
*
1991 -
Bernard Castro, Italian inventor (b.
1904)
*
1995 -
Alfred Eisenstaedt, German-born photographer (b.
1898)
*
1998 -
E.G. Marshall, American actor (b.
1910)
*
2002 -
Hoyt Wilhelm, baseball player (b.
1922)
*
2003 - Sir
Wilfred Thesiger, British explorer (b.
1910)
*
2004 -
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, Swiss-born psychiatrist (b.
1926)
*
Roman festivals - first of the 3 days on which the
mundus was opened
*
Roman Catholic Saints - Feast day of Saint
Bartholomew*
Liberia: Flag Day
*
Sierra Leone: President's Birthday
*
Ukraine: National Holiday, independence from Russia (1991)
*
BBC: On This Day*
New York Times: On This DayAugust 23 -
August 25 -
July 24 -
September 24 --
listing of all days
