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August in History
August
1, 1498
-
Christopher Columbus reached the American mainland, and named it Santa
Isla, believing it to be an island.
August
1, 1774
- British clergyman and scientist Joseph Priestley identified a gas which
he called "dephlogisticated air," later known as oxygen. Priestley's
discovery came about when he obtained a colorless gas by heating red
mercuric oxide. Priestley later shared his results with French natural
philosopher Antoine Lavoisier, who coined the term "oxygen."
In
England, Priestley became unpopular (with some people) and his house was
attacked by a mob. He emigrated to America, where he ultimately died. Over
time the family name (in America) changed to Presley (A similar change
happened to 'Wesley', which was formerly Westley'.)
August
1, 1778
- The first savings bank was opened, in Hamburg, Germany.
August
1, 1790
- The first enumeration by the US Census Bureau was completed. It showed a
population of 3,939,326 located in 16 states and the Ohio territory.
Virginia was the most populous state with 747,610 inhabitants. The census
compilation cost $44,377.
August
1, 1791
- Robert Carter III, a Virginia plantation owner, freed all 500 of his
slaves in the largest private emancipation in US history.
August
1, 1793
- The kilogram was introduced in France as the first metric weight.
August
1, 1834
- Slavery was abolished throughout the British Empire.
August
1, 1838
- Slavery was abolished in Jamaica. It had been introduced by Spanish
settlers 300 years earlier, in 1509.
*August 1, 1944
- Anne Frank penned her last entry into her diary. "[I] keep on trying to
find a way of becoming what I would like to be, and what I could be,
if...there weren't any other people living in the world." Three days
later, Anne and her family were arrested and sent to Nazi concentration
camps. Anne died at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945 at age 15.
August
2, 1776
- In Philadelphia, most of the 55 members of the Continental Congress
signed the parchment copy of the Declaration of Independence.
August
2, 1923
- President
Warren
G. Harding
died suddenly in a hotel in San Francisco while on a Western speaking
tour. His administration had been tainted by the Teapot Dome political
scandal and his sudden death prompted many unfounded rumors. He was
succeeded the next day by
Calvin Coolidge.
August
2, 1939
- Albert Einstein wrote a letter to President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
concerning the possibility of atomic weapons. "A single bomb of this type
carried by boat and exploded in a port, might very well destroy the whole
port together with some of the surrounding territory." Six years later, on
August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb, developed by the U.S., was dropped
on the Japanese port of Hiroshima.
August
2, 1990
- The Iraqi army invaded Kuwait amid claims that Kuwait threatened Iraq's
economic existence by overproducing oil and driving prices down on the
world market. An Iraqi military government was then installed in Kuwait
which was annexed by Iraq on the claim that Kuwait was historically part
of Iraq. This resulted in Desert Shield, the massive Allied military
buildup, and later the 100-hour war against Iraq, Desert Storm.
August
2, 1784
- The first mail coaches in England started running, from Bristol to
London. These were the coaches that carried the Royal Mail as well as
passengers. They were predictable, since they set off on schedule, and
arrived more or less on schedule. Such a system was a boon to business and
travel. The same transportation pattern in shipping was to be set in the
next century by Samuel Cunard, who pioneered ships that set off full or
not, and arrived on schedule. The Royal Mail was rapidly emulated by other
European countries, as well as the USA and Australia.
August
2, 1819
- The first parachute jump from a balloon was made by Charles Guille in
New York City.
August
3, 1492
- Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, with three ships,
Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria and a crew of about 90 men..
Seeking a westerly route to the Far East, he instead landed on October 12
in the Bahamas, thinking it was an outlying Japanese island.
August
3, 1610
- Henry Hudson of England discovered a great bay on the east coast of
Canada and named it for himself.
August
3, 1778
- La Scala opera house opened in Milan, Italy.
August
3, 1858
- Lake Victoria, the source of the Nile, was discovered by the English
explorer John Speke
August
4, 1962
- Apartheid opponent Nelson Mandela was arrested by security police in
South Africa. He was then tried and sentenced to five years in prison. In
1963, he was placed on trial for sabotage, high treason and conspiracy to
overthrow the government and was sentenced to life in prison. A worldwide
campaign to free him began in the 1980s and resulted in his release on
February 11, 1990, at age 71 after 27 years in prison. In 1993, Mandela
shared the Nobel Peace Prize with South Africa's President F.W. de Klerk
for their peaceful efforts to bring a nonracial democracy to South Africa.
In April 1994, black South Africans voted for the first time in an
election that brought Mandela the presidency of South Africa.
August
4, 1964
- Three young civil rights workers, James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and
Michael Schwerner, were found murdered and buried in an earthen dam
outside Philadelphia, Mississippi. They had disappeared on June 21 after
being detained by Neshoba County police on charges of speeding. They were
participating in the Mississippi Summer Project organized by the Student
Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to increase black voter
registration. When their car was found burned on June 23, President Lyndon
Johnson ordered the FBI to search for the men.
*August 4, 1693
- It is believed that a monk named Dom Perignon invented champagne at the
Benedictine Abbey of Hautvillers in the region of Champagne, northern
France. He made the first champagne by re-fermenting a certain wine in the
spring and then placing it in strong, sealed bottles so that the wine
would become sparkling. Dom Perignon was Cellar Master for 47 years until
his death in 1715
August
4, 1735
- German-American journalist John Peter Zenger was acquitted of charges of
seditious libel. Zenger had been arrested a year earlier for publishing
articles in his "New York Weekly Journal" that were critical of the
colonial governor of New York. Zenger's lawyer, Andrew Hamilton, convinced
the jury that since the articles were true they could not be considered
libelous. The verdict was an important milestone in the history of the
freedom of the press in the USA.
August
4, 1753
- George Washington, a 21 year-old Virginia planter, became a Master Mason
in the fraternity of Freemasonry. Masons in the 18th century espoused
liberal democratic principles that included religious tolerance, loyalty
to local government, and the importance of charity and political
compromise. Most of the founding fathers were Freemasons.
August
4, 1790
- The Coast Guard had its beginnings as the Revenue Cutter Service.
August
5, 1858
- The first transatlantic cable was opened when Queen Victoria exchanged
greetings with US President Buchanan.
August
5, 1864
- During the Civil War, Union Admiral David G Farragut is said to have
ordered, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" as he led his fleet
against Mobile Bay, Alabama
August
5, 1583
- The first English colony in North America was founded by Sir Humphrey
Gilbert, an English navigator and explorer. He sighted the Newfoundland
coast and took possession of the area around St. John's harbor in the name
of the Queen. He was later lost at sea in a storm off the Azores on his
return trip to England.
August
5, 1861
- President
Abraham Lincoln
signed into law the first Federal income tax, a 3 percent tax on incomes
over $800, as an emergency wartime measure during the
Civil War.
However, the tax was never actually put into effect.
*August 5, 1962
- Film star Marilyn Monroe died at age 36 from an overdose of sleeping
pills. She made 29 films during her career and came to symbolize Hollywood
glamour.
August
6-10, 1787
- The Great Debate occurred during the Constitutional Convention. Outcomes
included the establishment of a four year term of office for the
President, granting Congress the right to regulate foreign trade and
interstate commerce, and the appointment of a committee to prepare a final
draft of the Constitution.
August
6, 1945
- The first Atomic bomb was dropped over the center of Hiroshima at 8:15
a.m., by the American B-29 bomber Enola Gay. The bomb detonated
about 1,800 ft. above ground, killing over 105,000 persons and destroying
the city. Another estimated 100,000 persons later died as a result of
radiation effects.
August
6, 1962
- Jamaica achieved its independence after centuries of British and Spanish
rule. During 150 years of Spanish rule, African slaves were first brought
to the island. The British invaded in 1655 and the slave trade greatly
expanded during the 1700s. Following the abolition of slavery in the
1830s, Jamaica remained a British colony.
August
6, 1965
- The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was
signed
into law
by President
Lyndon B. Johnson.
The Act suspended literacy, knowledge and character tests designed to keep
African Americans from voting in the South. It also authorized the
appointment of federal voting examiners and barred discriminatory poll
taxes. The Act was renewed by Congress in 1975, 1984 and 1991.
August
6, 1777
- The Battle of Oriskany, near Fort Stanwix NY. One of the bloodiest
battles of the Revolution. American reinforcements on their way to Fort
Stanwix, which was being besieged by the British General St. Leger,
clashed with a group of loyalist Indians and Tories. Though the battle was
indeterminate, it weakened St. Leger's hold on Fort Stanwix just enough to
convince him to call off the siege and abandon his potentially destructive
plan of meeting Burgoyne in Albany.
August
6, 1888
- Martha Turner was murdered in London by an unknown assailant, believed
to be Jack the Ripper.
August
6, 1890
- Convicted murderer William Kemmler became the first person to be
executed in the electric chair as he was put to death at Auburn State
Prison in New York.
August
6, 1914
- Austria-Hungary declared war against Russia, and Serbia declared war
against Germany.
August
7, 1711
- The first horse race meeting was held at Ascot, outside London,
established by Queen Anne. It is now 'Royal Ascot', and the meeting is
'the place to be seen' socially.
August
7, 1782
- George Washington created the Order of the Purple Heart, a decoration to
recognize merit in enlisted men and non-commissioned officers.
August
7, 1840
- The employment of climbing boys as chimney sweeps was prohibited by an
act of Parliament. Such abuses had been the target of social reformers,
and writers such as Charles Dickens and Charles Kingsley (in 'The Water
Babies').
August
7, 1990
- Just five days after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, President
George
Bush
ordered Desert Shield, a massive military buildup to prevent further Iraqi
advances.
August
9, 1945
- The second Atomic bombing of Japan occurred as an American B-29 bomber
headed for the city of Kokura, but because of poor visibility then chose a
secondary target, Nagasaki. About noon, the bomb detonated killing an
estimated 70,000 persons and destroying about half the city.
August
9, 1974
- Effective at noon,
Richard M. Nixon
resigned the presidency as a result of the Watergate scandal. Nixon had
appeared on television the night before and announced his decision to the
American people. Facing possible impeachment by Congress, he was the first
U.S. President ever to resign.
August
10, 1500
- Portuguese navigator Diego Diaz became the first European to arrive to
the island of Madagascar. Situated in the Indian Ocean, over 250 miles
(400 km) from the coast of Mozambique, Madagascar had had more influence
from Asia than from Africa: Japanese, Hindus, and Arabs colonized
Madagascar prior to the 16th century.
*August 10, 1675
- The foundation stone of the Royal Observatory was laid at Greenwich in
London. By order of King Charles II, the establishment was created to
improve knowledge of the positions of stars, and thus aid navigation.
Since 1884, the world has set its clocks according to the time of day on
the Prime Meridian at Greenwich, an imaginary line joining the North and
South Poles that passes through the observatory. A brass line set in the
sidewalk separates east from west, and is the place where many tourists
like to have themselves photographed, astride the two hemispheres.
Greenwich Mean Time is the world's time datum.
August
10, 1787
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart completed his popular Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (A
Little Night Music).
August
10, 1846
- The Smithsonian Institution was chartered in Washington DC. It was named
after British scientist James Smithson, whose bequest gave half a million
dollars for the founding of the Institution.
August
10, 1889
- The screw bottle top was patented by Dan Rylands of Hope Glass Works,
Yorkshire, England.
August
11, 1576
- English navigator Martin Frobisher, on his search for the Northwest
Passage, entered the bay in Canada now named after him.
August
11, 1587
- Sir Walter Raleigh's second expedition to New World landed in North
Carolina.
*August 11, 1841
-
Frederick Douglass,
an escaped slave, spoke before an audience in the North for the first
time. During an anti-slavery convention on Nantucket Island, he gave a
powerful, emotional account of his life as a slave. He was immediately
asked to become a full-time lecturer for the Massachusetts Antislavery
Society.
August
11-16, 1965
- Six days of riots began in the Watts area of Los Angeles, triggered by
an incident between a white member of the California Highway Patrol and an
African American motorist. Thirty-four deaths were reported and more than
3,000 people were arrested. Damage to property was listed at $40 million.
August
12, 1676
- King Philip's War ended with the assassination of Metacom, leader of the
Pokanokets, a tribe within the Wampanoag Indian Federation. Nicknamed
'King Philip' by colonists, he led a Native American uprising against
white settlers which resulted in a war that raged for nearly two years,
now known as King Philip's War. Metacom's death ended the first and
bloodiest war between Native Americans and English settlers in New
England.
August
12, 1851
- Actor and inventor Isaac Singer patented the double-treadle sewing
machine. Although the sewing machine had already been patented, Singer
improved the original versions by adding a double treadle. With his
patent, Singer set up shop in Boston and began to manufacture his
invention.
August
13, 1521
- After a three-month siege, the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan (now Mexico
City) was conquered by Hernando Cortes and Spanish troops. With a
population between 150,000 and 300,000, Tenochtitlan was set up so it
would sustain its inhabitants while still protecting the local ecosystem.
The Spanish conquest caused a human and ecological disaster of epic
proportions.
August
13, 1784
- It was the last meeting in Annapolis, Maryland for The United States
Legislature. It would relocate a few more times, from Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania to New York City, before finally going to its permanent seat
in Washington, DC.
August
13, 1814
- The Cape of Good Hope was formally ceded to the British by the Dutch.
August
13, 1898
- US troops occupied Manila, bringing the United States closer to an
ultimate victory in the Spanish-American War. The conflict had started in
earnest on the morning of 1 May 1898, when Commodore George Dewey
commenced the Battle of Manila Bay. In the space of six hours Dewey's
squadron of six ships sank every ship in the Spanish fleet. Commodore
Dewey became a national hero, and his triumphant homecoming in 1899 was
celebrated with wild enthusiasm.
August
13, 1961
- The Berlin Wall came into existence after the East German government
closed the border between east and west sectors of Berlin with barbed wire
to discourage emigration to the West. The barbed wire was replaced by a 12
foot-high concrete wall eventually extending 103 miles (166 km) around the
perimeter of West Berlin. The wall included electrified fences,
fortifications, and guard posts. It became a notorious symbol of the Cold
War. Presidents Kennedy and Reagan made notable appearances at the wall
accompanied by speeches denouncing Communism. The wall was finally opened
by an East German governmental decree in November 1989 and torn down by
the end of 1990.
August
14, 1935
- President Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act establishing the
system which guarantees pensions to those who retire at age 65. The Social
Security system also aids states in providing financial aid to dependent
children, the blind and others, as well as administering a system of
unemployment insurance.
August
14, 1941
- After three days of secret
meetings aboard warships
off the coast of Newfoundland, the Atlantic Charter was issued by
President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill. The charter, a foundation stone for the later establishment of
the United Nations, set forth eight goals for the nations of the world,
including; the renunciation of all aggression, right to self-government,
access to raw materials, freedom from want and fear, freedom of the seas,
and disarmament of aggressor nations. By September, fifteen anti-Axis
nations signed the Charter.
August
14, 1945
- Following the two Atomic bomb drops and believing continuation of the
war would only result in further loss of Japanese lives, delegates of
Emperor Hirohito accepted Allied surrender terms originally issued at
Potsdam on July 26, 1945, with the exception that the Japanese emperor's
sovereignty would be maintained. Japanese Emperor Hirohito, who had never
spoken on radio, then recorded an announcement admitting Japan's
surrender, without actually using the word. The announcement was broadcast
via radio to the Japanese people at noon the next day. The
formal
surrender ceremony
occurred later, on September 2, 1945, on board the USS Missouri in
Tokyo Bay.
August
14, 1945
- V-J Day, commemorating President Truman's announcement that Japan had
surrendered to the Allies.
*August 14, 1880
- In Germany, Cologne Cathedral was completed; it had been started in the
13th century.
August
14, 1893
- France became the first country to introduce vehicle registration
plates.
August
14, 1900
- The Boxer Rebellion was ended and Beijing captured by an international
punitive force.
August
15, 1456
- The earliest known copy of The Gutenberg Bible, the first book printed
from a movable type, was dated by hand on this day. Printed by the German
Johann Gutenberg, its exact date of publication is unknown. Gutenberg
probably printed about 180 copies, of which 20 complete copies are in
existence.
August
15, 1969
-
Woodstock began in a field near Yasgur's Farm at Bethel, New York. The
three-day concert featured 24 bands and drew a crowd of more than 300,000
young people. The event came to symbolized the counter-culture movement of
the 60's.
August
16, 1743
- The earliest prize-ring code of boxing rules was formulated in England
by the champion pugilist Jack Broughton.
August
16, 1780
- The Battle of Camden in South Carolina occurred during the American
Revolutionary War. The battle was a big defeat for the Americans as forces
under Gen. Gates were defeated by troops of British Gen. Charles
Cornwallis, resulting in 900 Americans killed and 1,000 captured.
August
16, 1896
- Gold was discovered in Rabbit Creek, a tributary of the Klondike River
in Alaska, resulting in the Great Klondike Gold Rush.
August
16, 1977
-
Elvis Presley was pronounced dead at the Memphis Baptist Hospital at 3:30
p.m., at age 42.
August
16, 1812
- Detroit fell to British and Indian forces in the War of 1812.
August
17, 1807
- Robert Fulton's "North River Steam Boat" began heading up New York's
Hudson River on its successful round-trip to Albany.
August
17, 1863
- Federal batteries and ships bombarded Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor
during the Civil War.
August
17, 1943
- During
World
War II in Europe,
the Allies completed the conquest of the island of Sicily after just 38
days. This gave the Allies control of the Mediterranean and also led to
the downfall of Benito Mussolini and Italy's eventual withdrawal from the
war. However, the Germans managed to evacuate 39,569 troops, 47 tanks, 94
heavy guns, over 9,000 vehicles and 2,000 tons of ammunition back to the
Italian mainland from Sicily.
*August 17, 1978
- The first transatlantic balloon trip was completed by three Americans,
Max Anderson, Ben Abruzzo, and Larry Newman, all from Albuquerque, New
Mexico. Starting from Maine on August 11, they traveled in Double Eagle
II over 3,000 miles in 137 hours, landing about 60 miles west of
Paris.
August
17, 1998-
Bill Clinton became the first sitting President to give testimony before a
grand jury in which he, the President, was the focus of the investigation.
This resulted from a sweeping investigation of the President by
Independent Counsel Ken Starr as well as a private lawsuit concerning
alleged sexual harassment by Clinton before he became President. In the
evening, President Clinton appeared on national television and gave a
speech
admitting he had engaged in an improper relationship with former White
House intern Monica Lewinsky. The admission occurred several months after
a much publicized denial.
August
18, 1920
- The 19th
Amendment
to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, granting women the right to vote.
August
18, 1587
- Virginia Dare became the first child of English parents to be born on
American soil, on what is now Roanoke Island NC,
15 days after the first English settlers
arrived in the New World. Her grandfather, Governor John White, traveled
to England to gather supplies for Dare and the other colonists. On
Governor White' s return to the New World, his granddaughter, family, and
fellow settlers had vanished. The only trace of their settlement was the
word "Croatoan" carved into a tree.
What
happened to Virginia Dare and the other colonists? No one will ever know
the answer. They will forever be known as the "Lost Colony."
August
19, 1812
- The USS "Constitution" defeated the British frigate "Guerriere" east of
Nova Scotia during the War of 1812
August
19, 1934
- In Germany, a plebiscite was held in which 89.9 percent of German voters
approved granting Chancellor
Adolf
Hitler
additional powers, including the office of president.
August
19, 1991
- Soviet hard-line Communists staged a coup, temporarily removing Mikhail
Gorbachev from power. The coup failed within 72 hours as democratic
reformer Boris Yeltsin rallied the people. Yeltsin then became the leading
power in the country. The Communist Party was soon banned and by December
the Soviet Union itself disintegrated.
August
20, 1741
- Danish explorer Vitus Bering and his crew were the first Europeans to
reach Alaska. This was Bering's second attempt to reach Alaska from the
Kamchatka peninsula, Russia. The Bering Strait between Siberia and Alaska
was named after him.
August
21, 1863
- During the
U.S.
Civil War,
William Quantrill led 450 irregular Confederate raiders on a pre-dawn
terrorist raid of Lawrence, Kansas, leaving 150 civilians dead, 30 wounded
and much of the town a smoking ruin. In 1862, Quantrill had been denied a
Confederate commission by the Confederate Secretary of War, who labeled
Quantrill's notions of war as 'barbarism.'
August
21, 1959
- President
Dwight
D. Eisenhower
signed a proclamation admitting Hawaii to the Union as the 50th state.
August
22, 1986
- Deadly fumes from a volcanic eruption under Lake Nios in Cameroon killed
more than 1,500 persons.
August
22, 1762
- Ann Franklin became the first female editor of an American newspaper,
the Newport RI "Mercury."
August
22, 1776
- August 27,1776 The Battle of Long Island NY. The first of many battles
which comprised the British invasion of New York. Washington's futile
attempts to defend the city led to severe American losses and almost lost
him the war.
August
22, 1777
- With the approach of General Benedict Arnold's army, British Colonel
Barry St. Ledger abandoned Fort Stanwix and returned to Canada.
August
22, 1787
- John Fitch showed his steamboat on the Delaware River to delegates of
the Continental Congress.
August
22, 1788
- The British settlement in Sierra Leone was founded, to secure a home in
Africa for freed slaves from England. Liberia was later established as a
home for freed American slaves.
August
23, 1775
- King George III of England refused the American colonies' offer of peace
and declared them in open rebellion.
August
23, 1839
- Hong Kong was taken by the British.
August
23, 1927
- Italian immigrants Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were
electrocuted inside a prison at Charlestown, Massachusetts They had been
convicted of a shoe factory payroll robbery during which the paymaster and
a guard had been killed. Following their convictions, all appeals for a
new trial had failed, despite the lack of hard evidence and a later
admission by a known criminal that he had participated in the robbery with
an organized criminal gang. The days and weeks leading up to their
execution aroused worldwide protests amid accusations of unfair treatment
because they had radical political views and were Italian. They were later
exonerated and pardoned by Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis.
August
24, 79 A.D.
-
Vesuvius, an active volcano in southern Italy, erupted and destroyed the
cities of Pompeii, Stabiae and Herculaneum.
August
24-25, 1814
- During the War of 1812, Washington D.C. was invaded by British forces
that burned the Capitol, the White House and most other public buildings
along with a number of private homes. The burning was in retaliation for
the earlier American burning of the parliament building in York (Toronto).
August
25, 1814
- Not a great day for book learning. British forces destroyed the United
States Library of Congress along with the 3,000 books it contained. This
was in retaliation for the Americans' burning of York (now Toronto).
August
25, 1985
- Samantha Smith died in an airplane crash in Maine. In 1982, the 11 year
old American schoolgirl had written a letter to Soviet leader Yuri
Andropov asking, "Why do you want to conquer the whole world, or at least
our country?" To her surprise, Andropov replied personally to her and
offered an all-expense paid trip to the U.S.S.R. She toured the country
for two weeks amid worldwide publicity and came to symbolize American and
Soviet hopes for peaceful co-existance.
August
26, 1883
- One of the most catastrophic volcanic eruptions in recorded history
occurred on the Indonesian island of Krakatoa. Explosions were heard 2,000
miles away. Tidal waves 120 ft. high killed 36,000 persons on nearby
islands, while five cubic miles of earth were blasted into the air up to a
height of 50 miles.
August
26, 55 BC
- Julius Caesar landed in Britain.
August
27, 1664
- Nieuw Amsterdam became New York as 300 English soldiers under Col.
Mathias Nicolls took the town from the Dutch under orders from Charles II.
The town was renamed after the King's brother James, Duke of York.
August
27, 1776
- The Continentals were defeated at Long Island.
August
27,1784 -
The first balloon ascent was made in Britain by James Tytler at Edinburgh.
August
27, 1859
- Edwin Drake was the first in the USA to strike oil at Titusville,
Pennsylvania
August
28, 1609
- Henry Hudson discovered Delaware Bay.
August
28, 1640
- King Philip's War in New England ended with the death of Metacom (King
Philip) and the surrender of the Indians.
August
28, 1879
- Cetewayo, the last great ruler of the Zulus, was captured by Redcoats.
Cetewayo and his troops had defeated the British in the famous Battle of
Isandhlwana, but later Zulu forces were thoroughly defeated at the Battle
of Ulundi. With Cetewayo's capture, Zululand was divided.
*August 28, 1963
- The
March
on Washington
occurred as over
250,000 persons
attended a Civil Rights rally in Washington DC at which Rev. Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. made his now-famous I Have a Dream speech.
August
29, 1792
- In one of the worst maritime disasters, 900 people drowned on the
British battleship Royal George. As the ship was being repaired, a
gust of wind allowed water to flood into open gun ports. The ship sank
within minutes.
August
29, 1991
- Following the unsuccessful coup of August 19-21, the Soviet Communist
Party was suspended, thus ending the institution that ruled the Soviet
Union for nearly 75 years.
*August 29, 1533
- The last Incan King of Peru, Atahualpa, was murdered on orders from
Spanish conqueror Francisco Pizarro.
August
29, 1778
- Crown forces defeat the Americans at the Battle of Rhode Island.
August 30, 30 BC - Cleopatra, the seventh and most famous queen of
ancient Egypt committed suicide.
August
30, 1146
- A conference of European leaders outlawed the crossbow. It was hoped
that by banning the weapon, wars would eventually end. Despite the
prohibition, crossbows continued to be used until the 16th century, when
they were replaced by firearms.
August
30, 1781
- The French fleet arrived in the Chesapeake Bay to aid the American
Revolution. The fleet had first come in support of the Americans in 1778.
August
30, 1860
- The first British tramway, operated by the Birkenhead Street Railway,
was inaugurated by an American, George Francis Train.
August
31, 1888
- The body of Mary Ann 'Polly' Nichols, the first victim of Jack the
Ripper, was found mutilated in Buck's Row, London.
August
31, 1980
- Solidarity, the Polish trade union, was formed at Gdansk, Poland. Led by
Lech Walesa, Solidarity opposed Communist rule and was outlawed in 1981.
Seven years later, the re-legalization of Solidarity occurred and the
government agreed to hold partially free parliamentary elections.
Solidarity candidates scored stunning victories in the elections that
followed, gaining power in Poland and paving the way for the downfall of
Communism there.
*August 31, 1997
- Britain's Princess Diana died at age 36 from massive internal injuries
suffered in a high-speed car crash, reportedly after being chased by
photographers. The crash occurred shortly after midnight in Paris inside a
tunnel along the Seine River at the Pont de l'Alma bridge, less than a
half mile north of the Eiffel Tower. Also killed in the crash were Diana's
companion, Dodi Fayed, 42, and chauffeur Henri Paul. A fourth person in
the car, bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, was seriously injured.
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