August 12 :: Historical Events

Famous Events

• 30 BC - Cleopatra commits suicide after her lover Mark Antony's defeat at the battle of Actium.


• 1099 - First Crusade: Battle of Ascalon - Crusaders under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon defeat Fatimid forces under Al-Afdal Shahanshah. Considered the last engagement of the First Crusade.


• 1121 - Battle of Didgori: The Georgian army under King David the Builder won a decisive victory over the famous Seljuk commander Ilghazi.


• 1164 - Battle of Harim: Nur ad-Din defeats the Crusader armies of the County of Tripoli and the Principality of Antioch.


• 1281 - The fleet of Qubilai Khan is destroyed by a typhoon while approaching Japan.


• 1323 - Treaty of Nöteborg - Sweden and Novgorod (Russia) regulates the border for the first time.


• 1332 - Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Dupplin Moor - Scots under Domhnall II, Earl of Mar routed by Edward Balliol.


• 1480 - Battle of Otranto - Ottoman troops behead 800 Christians for refusing to convert to Islam.


• 1499 - First act of the Battle of Zonchio between Venetian and Ottoman fleets.


• 1676 - Praying Indian John Alderman shot and killed Metacomet the Wampanoag war chief, ending King Philip's War.


• 1687 - Charles of Lorraine defeats the Ottomans at the Battle of Mohács.


• 1793 - The Rhône department was created when the former département of Rhône-et-Loire was split into two departments: Rhône and Loire (Lêre).


• 1806 - Santiago de Liniers re-takes the city of Buenos Aires after the first British invasion.


• 1833 - Chicago was founded.


• 1851 - Isaac Singer granted a patent for his sewing machine.


• 1877 - Asaph Hall discovers Deimos.


• 1883 - The last quagga dies at the Artis Magistra zoo in Amsterdam.


• 1898 - Armistice ends the Spanish-American War.


• 1898 - The Hawaiian flag is lowered from Iolani Palace in an elaborate annexation ceremony and replaced with the American flag to signify the transfer of sovereignty from the Republic of Hawai`i to the United States.


• 1908 - First Model T Ford built.


• 1914 - World War I - Britain declares war on Austria-Hungary; British Empire countries automatically included.


• 1925 - The first cast of Alpha Psi Omega, drawn from The Masquers of Fairmont College, West Virginia, was initiated.


• 1943 - Alleged date of the first Philadelphia Experiment test on United States Navy ship USS Eldridge.


• 1944 - Waffen SS troops massacre more than 500 civil people in Sant'Anna di Stazzema.


• 1944 - Alençon liberated by General Leclerc, the first city in France to be liberated from the Nazis by French forces.


• 1952 - The Night of the Murdered Poets - Thirteen most prominent Jewish intellectuals were murdered in Moscow.


• 1953 - Nuclear testing: The Soviet atomic bomb project proceeded with the detonation of Joe 4, the first Soviet thermonuclear weapon.


• 1960 - Echo I, the first communications satellite, launched.


• 1964 - South Africa is banned from the Olympic Games due to the country's racist policies.


• 1964 - Charlie Wilson, one of the Great Train Robbers escapes from Winson Green Prison in Birmingham, England.


• 1969 - Battle of the Bogside, Catholic community of Derry engage in two-day battle with the Royal Ulster Constabulary


• 1977 - The first free flight of the Space Shuttle Enterprise.


• 1978 - Japan and the People's Republic of China sign the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and the People's Republic of China.


• 1980 - Signing of the Montevideo Treaty, which established the Latin American Integration Association.


• 1981 - The IBM Personal Computer is released.


• 1982 - Mexico announces it is unable to pay its enormous external debt, marking the beginning of a debt crisis that spread to all of Latin America and the Third World.


• 1985 - Japan Airlines Flight 123 crashes into Mount Ogura in Gunma Prefecture, Japan, killing 520. It is the worst single-plane air disaster.


• 1990 - Sue, the most complete skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex, is discovered near Faith, South Dakota.


• 1992 - Canada, Mexico, and the United States announce completion of negotiations for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).


• 1994 - Major League Baseball players go on strike. The work stoppage forces the cancellation of the 1994 World Series.


• 2000 - The Oscar class submarine K-141 Kursk of the Russian Navy exploded and sank in the Barents Sea during a military exercise.


• 2004 - New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey comes out publicly as a gay man.


• 2005 - Sri Lanka's foreign minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, is fatally shot by an LTTE sniper at his home.


• 2005 - An F2 tornado strikes the coal mining town of Wright, Wyoming, destroying nearly 100 homes and killing two people.


• 2005 - Civil unrest provoked in the Maldives


• 2005 - An F1 tornado strikes Glen Cove, New York, a rare event on Long Island


• 2007 - Bulk carrier M/V New Flame collides with oil tanker Torm Gertrud at the southernmost tip of Gibraltar, ending up partially submerged.

Famous Births

• 1503 - Christian III of Denmark and Norway (d. 1559)


• 1566 - Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain (d. 1633)


• 1604 - Tokugawa Iemitsu, Japanese shogun (d. 1651)


• 1629 - Tsar Alexei I of Russia (d. 1676)


• 1643 - King Afonso VI of Portugal (d. 1683)


• 1644 - Heinrich Ignaz Biber, Bohemian composer (d. 1704)


• 1647 - Johann Heinrich Acker, German writer (d. 1719)


• 1686 - John Balguy, English philosopher (d. 1748)


• 1696 - Maurice Greene, English composer (d. 1755)


• 1720 - Konrad Ekhof, German actor (d. 1778)


• 1762 - King George IV of the United Kingdom (d. 1830)


• 1774 - Robert Southey, English poet and biographer (d. 1843)


• 1856 - "Diamond Jim" Brady, American financier (d. 1917)


• 1859 - Katharine Lee Bates, American poet (d. 1929)


• 1866 - Jacinto Benavente, Spanish writer, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1954)


• 1867 - Edith Hamilton, German classicist (d. 1963)


• 1872 - Princess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein (d. 1956)


• 1876 - Mary Roberts Rinehart, American author (d. 1958)


• 1880 - Radclyffe Hall, British author (d. 1943)


• 1880 - Christy Mathewson, American baseball player (d. 1925)


• 1881 - Cecil B. DeMille, American director (d. 1959)


• 1883 - Pauline Frederick, American actress (d. 1938)


• 1885 - Jean Cabannes, French physicist (d. 1959)


• 1885 - Marion Lorne, American actress (d. 1968)


• 1886 - Sir Keith Murdoch, Australian journalist and newspaper owner (d. 1952)


• 1887 - Erwin Schrödinger, Austrian physicist, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1961)


• 1889 - Zerna Sharp, American writer and educator (Dick and Jane) (d. 1981)


• 1892 - Alfred Lunt, American actor (d. 1977)


• 1902 - Mohammad Hatta, Vice President of Indonesia 1945-1956 (d. 1980)


• 1904 - Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia, only son of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia (d. 1918)


• 1906 - Harry Hopman, Australian-born tennis player and coach (d. 1985)


• 1906 - Tedd Pierce, American animator (d. 1972)


• 1907 - Joe Besser, American actor and comedian (d. 1988)


• 1909 - Richard Bare, American director


• 1910 - Jane Wyatt, American actress (d. 2006)


• 1910 - Yusof bin Ishak, first President of Singapore (d. 1970)


• 1911 - Cantinflas, Mexican actor (d. 1993)


• 1912 - Samuel Fuller, American film director (d. 1997)


• 1914 - Gerd Buchdahl, German philosopher (d. 2001)


• 1914 - Ruth Lowe, Canadian pianist and composer (I'll Never Smile Again) (d. 1981)


• 1915 - Michael Kidd, American choreographer (d. 2007)


• 1918 - Guy Gibson, British aviator, awarded Victoria Cross (d. 1944)


• 1919 - Vikram Sarabhai, Indian physicist (d. 1971)


• 1924 - Derek Shackleton, English cricketer (d. 2007)


• 1924 - Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, leader of Pakistan (d. 1988)


• 1925 - Norris McWhirter, Scottish co-founder of the Guinness Book of Records (d. 2004)


• 1925 - Ross McWhirter, Scottish co-founder of the Guinness Book of Records (d. 1975)


• 1925 - George Wetherill, American scientist (d. 2006)


• 1926 - John Derek, American actor (d. 1998)


• 1926 - Joe Jones, American R&B singer (d. 2005)


• 1926 - Wallace Markfield, American writer (d. 2002)


• 1927 - Porter Wagoner, American singer (d. 2007)


• 1928 - Charles Blackman, Australian artist


• 1928 - Bob Buhl, American baseball player (d. 2001)


• 1928 - Dan Curtis, film and television producer and director


• 1929 - Buck Owens, American singer (d. 2006)


• 1930 - George Soros Hungarian-American financier and political activist


• 1930 - Jacques Tits, Belgian mathematician


• 1931 - William Goldman, American screenwriter


• 1932 - Charlie O'Donnell, American game show announcer


• 1932 - Somdet Phra Nang Chao Sirikit Phra Borommarachininat, Queen of Thailand


• 1933 - Parnelli Jones, American race car driver and team owner


• 1935 - John Cazale, Italian-American actor (d. 1978)


• 1937 - Walter Dean Myers, African-American author


• 1938 - Jean-Paul L'Allier, Canadian Mayor of Quebec


• 1939 - George Hamilton, American actor


• 1939 - Roy Romanow, Canadian politician


• 1939 - Michael D. Antonovich, American politician


• 1941 - Réjean Ducharme, Quebec novelist and playwright


• 1943 - Deborah Walley, American actress (d. 2001)


• 1944 - Peter Hofmann, German tenor


• 1947 - Ron Mael, American musician (Sparks)


• 1947 - Sam Rosen, American sportscaster


• 1949 - Panagiotis Chinofotis, Greek politician


• 1949 - Mark Knopfler OBE, Scottish guitarist (Dire Straits)


• 1950 - Jim Beaver, American actor and writer


• 1951 - Willie Horton, American murderer and rapist


• 1952 - Chen Kaige, Chinese film director


• 1954 - Sam J. Jones, American actor


• 1954 - Pat Metheny, American guitarist


• 1955 - Ann M. Martin, American author


• 1955 - Terry Taylor, American retired professional wrestler


• 1956 - Bruce Greenwood, Canadian actor


• 1959 - Amanda Redman, English actress


• 1960 - Laurent Fignon, French cyclist


• 1961 - Roy Hay, British guitarist and keyboardist (Culture Club)


• 1961 - Lawrence Hayward, English musician (Felt, Denim, Go Kart Mozart)


• 1962 - Miss Cleo, American psychic


• 1963 - Sir Mix A Lot, American rapper


• 1965 - Peter Krause, American actor


• 1966 - Les Ferdinand, English footballer


• 1967 - Regilio Tuur, Dutch boxer


• 1967 - Andrey Plotnikov, Russian race walker


• 1967 - Andy Hui, Hong Kong actor and singer


• 1968 - Andras Jones, American actor


• 1969 - Aga Muhlach, Filipino actor


• 1970 - Anthony Swofford, American novelist


• 1970 - Jim Schlossnagle, baseball coach


• 1970 - Charles Mesure, British actor


• 1971 - Michael Ian Black, American comedian


• 1971 - Rebecca Gayheart, American actress


• 1971 - Pete Sampras, American tennis player


• 1972 - Mark Kinsella, Irish footballer


• 1972 - Takanohana, Sumo yokozuna


• 1973 - Joseba Beloki, Spanish cyclist


• 1973 - Jonathan Coachman, American professional wrestler and executive


• 1973 - Todd Marchant, American ice hockey player


• 1973 - Richard Reid (shoe bomber)


• 1973 - Yvette Nicole Brown, American actress


• 1973 - Sayyed Muqtada al-Sadr - son of Ayatollah Mohammad Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr


• 1973 - Grey DeLisle, American voice actress


• 1974 - Matt Clement, American baseball player


• 1975 - Casey Affleck, American actor


• 1975 - David Filmore, American actor


• 1976 - Mikko Viljami "Linde" Lindström, Finnish guitarist


• 1976 - Antoine Walker, American basketball player


• 1976 - Wednesday 13, American musician (Wednesday 13, Murderdolls)


• 1976 - Brad Lukowich, Canadian ice hockey player


• 1976 - Richard McCourt, English children's television presenter


• 1976 - Henry Tuilagi, Samoan rugby player


• 1977 - Plaxico Burress, American football player


• 1977 - Jesper Grønkjær, Danish footballer


• 1977 - Park Yong-ha, South Korean actor and singer


• 1978 - Hayley Wickenheiser, Canadian ice hockey player


• 1978 - Chris Chambers, American football player


• 1979 - D.J. Houlton, American baseball player


• 1979 - Cindy Klassen, Canadian speed skater


• 1980 - Maggie Lawson, American actress


• 1980 - Dominique Swain, American actress


• 1980 - Matt Thiessen, Canadian-born musician (Relient K)


• 1980 - Jade Villalon, American singer/songwriter


• 1981 - Tony Capaldi, Northern Ireland footballer


• 1981 - Djibril Cissé, French footballer


• 1982 - Alexandros Tzorvas, Greek footballer


• 1983 - Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Dutch footballer


• 1984 - Marian Rivera, a Philippine actress


• 1990 - Mario Balotelli, Italian footballer

Famous Deaths

• 30 BC - Cleopatra (b. 69 BC)


• 875 - Louis II Holy Roman Emperor (b. 825)


• 1424 - Yongle, Emperor of China (b. 1460)


• 1484 - George of Trebizond, Greek philosopher (b. 1395)


• 1484 - Pope Sixtus IV (b. 1414)


• 1512 - Alessandro Achillini, Italian philosopher (b. 1463)


• 1577 - Thomas Smith, English diplomat and scholar (b. 1513)


• 1588 - Alfonso Ferrabosco (I), Italian composer (b. 1543)


• 1612 - Giovanni Gabrieli, Italian composer


• 1633 - Jacopo Peri, Italian composer (b. 1561)


• 1638 - Johannes Althusius, German writer (b. 1557)


• 1648 - Ibrahim I, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1615)


• 1674 - Philippe de Champaigne, French painter (b. 1602)


• 1689 - Pope Innocent XI (b. 1611)


• 1778 - Peregrine Bertie, 3rd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, British general and politician (b. 1714)


• 1809 - Mikhail Kamensky, Russian field marshal (b. 1738)


• 1810 - Etienne Louis Geoffroy, French pharmacist and entomologist (b. 1725)


• 1822 - Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh, English politician and statesman (b. 1769)


• 1827 - William Blake, English poet and artist (b. 1757)


• 1848 - George Stephenson, British locomotive designer (b. 1781)


• 1861 - Eliphalet Remington, American inventor, designer of the Remington rifle (b. 1793)


• 1864 - Sakuma Shōzan, Japanese reformer (b. 1811)


• 1865 - William Jackson Hooker, English botanist (b. 1785)


• 1891 - James Russell Lowell, American poet and essayist (b. 1819)


• 1896 - Thomas Chamberlain, officer of the 20th Maine at the Battle of Gettysburg


• 1900 - Wilhelm Steinitz, Austrian chess player (b. 1836)


• 1901 - Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld, Finnish-Swedish explorer (b. 1832)


• 1914 - John Philip Holland, Irish submarine designer (b. 1840)


• 1918 - Anna Held, Polish-born actress and singer (b. 1872)


• 1922 - Arthur Griffith, President of Ireland (b. 1871)


• 1928 - Leoš Janáček, Czech composer (b. 1854)


• 1934 - Hendrik Petrus Berlage, Dutch architect (b. 1856)


• 1935 - Friedrich Schottky, German mathematician (b. 1851)


• 1943 - Bobby Peel, English cricketer (b. 1857)


• 1944 - Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., brother of President John F. Kennedy (b. 1915)


• 1948 - Harry Brearley, English inventor (b. 1871)


• 1952 - David Bergelson, Yiddish language writer (b. 1884)


• 1955 - Thomas Mann, German writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1875)


• 1955 - James B. Sumner, American chemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1887)


• 1959 - Mike O'Neill, Irish-born American baseball player (b. 1877)


• 1964 - Ian Fleming, English novelist (James Bond) (b. 1908)


• 1968 - Esther Forbes, American novelist (b. 1891)


• 1973 - Walter Rudolf Hess, Swiss physiologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1881)


• 1973 - Karl Ziegler, German chemist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1898)


• 1979 - Ernst Boris Chain, German-born biochemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1906)


• 1982 - Henry Fonda, American actor (b. 1905)


• 1982 - Salvador Sanchez, Mexican boxer (b. 1959)


• 1982 - Varlam Shalamov, Russian writer (b. 1907)


• 1985 - Kyu Sakamoto, Japanese singer (plane crash) (b. 1941)


• 1985 - Manfred Winkelhock, German race car driver (b. 1951)


• 1988 - Jean-Michel Basquiat, Haitian-American artist (b. 1960)


• 1989 - William Shockley, American physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1910)


• 1989 - Samuel Okwaraji, Nigerian footballer (b. 1964)


• 1990 - B. Kliban, American cartoonist (b. 1935)


• 1990 - Dorothy Mackaill, British-born American actress (b. 1903)


• 1992 - John Cage, American composer (b. 1912)


• 1996 - Robert Gravel, French Canadian actor and theatrical director (b. 1945)


• 1996 - Mark Gruenwald, American comic book writer and editor (b. 1953)


• 1997 - Luther Allison, American musician (b. 1939)


• 1999 - Jean Drapeau, Quebec politician, mayor of Montreal (b. 1916)


• 2000 - Loretta Young, American actress (b. 1913)


• 2002 - Enos Slaughter, American baseball player (b. 1916)


• 2004 - Sir Godfrey Hounsfield, English electrical engineer and inventor, Nobel laureate (b. 1919)


• 2004 - Peter Woodthorpe, British actor (b. 1931)


• 2005 - John Loder, co-founder of the anarcho-punk band CRASS (b. 1946)


• 2007 - Merv Griffin, American television host and game show creator (b. 1925)


• 2007 - Mike Wieringo, American comic book artist (b. 1963)

Famous Holidays and observances

• United Nations - International Youth Day (since 1999)


• Glorious Twelfth at the Yorkshire Dales


• Thailand - The Queen's Birthday, Mother's Day


• RC Saints