August 14

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Events

• 1183 – Taira no Munemori and the Taira clan take the young Emperor Antoku and the three sacred treasures and flee to western Japan to escape pursuit by the Minamoto clan. (Traditional Japanese date: Twenty-fifth Day of the Seventh Month of the Second Year of Juei).
• 1385 – Portuguese Crisis of 1383–1385: Battle of Aljubarrota – Portuguese forces commanded by King João I and his general Nuno Álvares Pereira defeat the Castilian army of King Juan I.
• 1598 – Nine Years War: Battle of the Yellow Ford – Irish forces under Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, defeat an English expeditionary force under Henry Bagenal.
• 1842 – Indian Wars: Second Seminole War ends, with the Seminoles forced from Florida to Oklahoma.
• 1846 – The Cape Girardeau meteorite, a 2.3 kg chondrite-type meteorite strikes near the town of Cape Girardeau in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri.
• 1848 – Oregon Territory is organized by act of Congress.
• 1880 – Construction of Cologne Cathedral, the most famous landmark in Cologne, Germany, is completed.
• 1885 – Japan's first patent is issued to the inventor of a rust-proof paint.
• 1888 – A recording of English composer Arthur Sullivan's The Lost Chord, one of the first recordings of music ever made, is played during a press conference introducing Thomas Edison's phonograph in London.
• 1893 – France introduces motor vehicle registration.
• 1897 – The town of Anosimena is captured by French troops from Menabe defenders in Madagascar.
• 1900 – A joint European-Japanese-United States force (Eight-Nation Alliance) occupies Beijing, in a campaign to end the bloody Boxer Rebellion in China.
• 1901 – The first claimed powered flight, by Gustave Whitehead in his Number 21.
• 1908 – The first beauty contest is held in Folkestone, England.
• 1911 – United States Senate leaders agree to rotate the office of President pro tempore of the Senate among leading candidates to fill the vacancy left by William P. Frye's death.
• 1912 – United States Marines invade Nicaragua to support the U.S.-backed government installed there after José Santos Zelaya had resigned three years earlier.
• 1921 – Tannu Tuva, later Tuvinian People's Republic is established as a completely independent country (which is supported by Russia).
• 1925 – The original Hetch Hetchy Moccasin Powerhouse is completed and goes on line.
• 1933 – Loggers cause a forest fire in the Coast Range of Oregon, later known as the first forest fire of the Tillamook Burn. It is extinguished on September 5, after destroying 240,000 acres (970 km²).
• 1935 – United States Social Security Act passes, creating a government pension system for the retired.
• 1936 – Rainey Bethea is hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky in the last public execution in the United States.
• 1937 – Chinese Air Force Day: The beginning of air-to-air combat of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II in general, when 6 Imperial Japanese Mitsubishi G3M bombers are shot down by the Nationalist Chinese Air Force while raiding Chinese air bases.
• 1941 – World War II – Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt sign the Atlantic Charter of war stating postwar aims.
• 1945 – Japan accepts the Allied terms of surrender in World War II and the Emperor records the Imperial Rescript on Surrender (August 15 in Japan standard time).
• 1947 – Pakistan gains Independence from the British Indian Empire under the administration of United Kingdom and joins the British Commonwealth.
• 1959 – Founding and first official meeting of the American Football League.
• 1967 – UK Marine Broadcasting Offences Act declares participation in offshore pirate radio illegal.
• 1969 – British troops are deployed in Northern Ireland.
• 1972 – An East German Ilyushin Il-62 crashes during takeoff from East Berlin, killing 156.
• 1973 – The constitution of 1973 comes into effect in Pakistan
• 1976 – The Senegalese political party PAI-Rénovation is legally recognized. PAI-Rénovation thus becomes the third legal party in the country.
• 1980 – Lech Wałęsa leads strikes at the Gdańsk, Poland shipyards.
• 1987 – All the children held at Kia Lama, a rural property on Lake Eildon, Australia, run by the Santiniketan Park Association, are released after a police raid.
• 1994 – Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, the terrorist known as "Carlos the Jackal", is captured.
• 2003 – Widescale power blackout in the northeast United States and Canada.
• 2006 – Chencholai bombing in which 61 Tamil girls are killed in Sri Lankan Airforce bombing.
• 2007 – The 2007 Kahtaniya bombings kills at least 400 people.

Births

• 1297 – Emperor Hanazono, Emperor of Japan (d. 1348)
• 1473 – Margaret Pole, 8th Countess of Salisbury, daughter of George, Duke of Clarence (d. 1541)
• 1479 – Princess Catherine of York (d. 1527)
• 1575 – Robert Hayman, English-born poet (d. 1629)
• 1586 – William Hutchinson, Rhode Island colonist (d. 1642)
• 1599 – Méric Casaubon, English classical scholar (d. 1671)
• 1625 – François de Harlay de Champvallon, Archbishop of Paris (d. 1695)
• 1642 – Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1723)
• 1653 – Christopher Monck, 2nd Duke of Albemarle, English statesman (d. 1688)
• 1688 – Frederick William I of Prussia (d. 1740)
• 1714 – Claude Joseph Vernet, French painter (d. 1789)
• 1727 – Princess Marie Louise Élisabeth of France, daughter of king Louis XV (d. 1759)
• 1727 – Princess Anne Henriette of France, daughter of king Louis XV (d. 1752)
• 1740 – Pope Pius VII (d. 1823)
• 1758 – Antoine Charles Horace Vernet, French painter (d. 1835)
• 1777 – Francis I of the Two Sicilies (d. 1830)
• 1777 – Hans Christian Ørsted, Danish physicist (d. 1851)
• 1817 – Alexander H. Bailey, American politician (d. 1874)
• 1840 – Richard von Krafft-Ebing, German psychologist (d. 1902)
• 1847 – Robert Comtesse, member of the Swiss Federal Council (d. 1922)
• 1851 – Doc Holliday, American gambler and dentist (d. 1887)
• 1857 – Max Wagenknecht, German composer (d. 1922)
• 1863 – Ernest Thayer, American poet (d. 1940)
• 1865 – Guido Castelnuovo, Italian mathematician (d. 1952)
• 1866 – Charles Jean de la Vallée-Poussin, Belgian mathematician (d. 1962)
• 1867 – John Galsworthy, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1933)
• 1867 – Cupid Childs, American baseball player (d. 1912)
• 1871 – Guangxu Emperor, Qing Emperor of China (d. 1908)
• 1876 – Aleksandar Obrenović, King of Serbia (d. 1903)
• 1881 – Francis Ford, American actor (d. 1953)
• 1882 – Gisela Richter, British-born art historian (d. 1972)
• 1887 – Guangxu Emperor, Latvian film actress (d. 1937)
• 1895 – Jack Gregory, Australian cricketer (d. 1973)
• 1908 – Manos Katrakis, Greek actor (d. 1984)
• 1910 – Pierre Schaeffer, French composer (d. 1995)
• 1910 – Willy Ronis, French photographer (d. 2009)
• 1913 – Paul Dean, American baseball player (d. 1981)
• 1915 – B.A. Santamaria, Australian political activist and journalist (d. 1998)
• 1916 – Fumio Fujimura, Japanese baseball player (d. 1992)
• 1916 – Wellington Mara, Co-Owner of the New York Giants (d. 2005)
• 1924 – Georges Prêtre, French conductor
• 1924 – Holger Juul Hansen, Danish actor
• 1924 – Sverre Fehn, Norwegian architect (d. 2009)
• 1925 – Russell Baker, American columnist
• 1926 – Alice Ghostley, American actress (d. 2007)
• 1926 – René Goscinny, French comic-strip author (d. 1977)
• 1926 – Lina Wertmüller, Italian film director
• 1929 – Dick Tiger, Nigerian boxer (d. 1971)
• 1930 – Earl Weaver, American baseball manager
• 1932 – Lee Hoffman, American author (d. 2007)
• 1933 – Richard R. Ernst, Swiss chemist and Nobel Prize Laureate
• 1935 – John Brodie, American football player
• 1936 – Trevor Bannister, British actor
• 1940 – Dash Crofts, American musician
• 1940 – Galen Hall, American football coach
• 1941 – David Crosby, American musician
• 1941 – Connie Smith, American singer
• 1942 – Jackie Oliver, British Formula One driver
• 1943 – Jimmy Johnson, American football coach
• 1945 – Steve Martin, American actor and comedian
• 1945 – Wim Wenders, German-born film director
• 1946 – Antonio Fargas, American actor
• 1946 – Susan Saint James, American actress
• 1946 – Larry Graham, American musician
• 1947 – Peter Christian, British actor
• 1947 – Bruce Nash, American television producer
• 1947 – Maddy Prior, British folk singer
• 1947 – Danielle Steel, American novelist
• 1947 – Jiro Taniguchi, Japanese manga artist
• 1948 – Terry Adams, American musician (NRBQ)
• 1949 – Bob Backlund, American wrestler
• 1949 – Morten Olsen, Danish footballer
• 1950 – Gary Larson, American cartoonist (The Far Side)
• 1951 – Peter Blegvad, American musician (Slapp Happy)
• 1952 – Carl Lumbly, American actor
• 1952 – Debbie Meyer, American swimmer
• 1953 – James Horner, American composer
• 1953 – Cliff Johnson, American computer game author
• 1954 – Mark Fidrych, American baseball player (d. 2009)
• 1956 – Jackée Harry, American actress
• 1956 – Andy King, English footballer
• 1956 – Johnny Lever, Indian actor
• 1956 – Rusty Wallace, American race car driver
• 1957 – Peter Costello, Australian politician
• 1957 – Gino Hernandez, American professional wrestler (d. 1986)
• 1958 – Bobby Eaton, American professional wrestler
• 1959 – Marcia Gay Harden, American actress
• 1959 – Magic Johnson, American basketball player
• 1960 – Sarah Brightman, British soprano
• 1960 – Cecilia Gasdia, Italian soprano
• 1961 – Susan Olsen, American actress
• 1961 – "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert, American wrestler (d. 1995)
• 1962 – Rameez Raja, Pakistani cricketer
• 1964 – Brannon Braga, American scriptwriter
• 1964 – Neal Anderson, American football player
• 1965 – Emmanuelle Béart, French actress
• 1966 – Halle Berry, American actress
• 1966 – Karl Petter Løken, Norwegian footballer
• 1968 – Catherine Bell, American actress
• 1968 – Darren Clarke, Northern Irish golfer
• 1968 – Adrian Lester, British actor
• 1968 – Billy Mavreas, Greek-Canadian cartoonist
• 1968 – Pravin Amre, Indian cricketer
• 1969 – Tracy Caldwell, American astronaut
• 1969 – DJ Uncle Al, American hip-hop DJ (d. 2001)
• 1969 – Stig Tøfting, Danish footballer
• 1971 – Raoul Bova, Italian actor
• 1971 – Pramodya Wickramasinghe, Sri Lankan cricketer
• 1972 – Jay Manuel, Canadian make-up artist
• 1972 – Yu Jae-seok, South Korean entertainer
• 1973 – Jared Borgetti, Mexican footballer
• 1973 – Daisuke Ishiwatari, Japanese game developer and composer
• 1973 – Jay-Jay Okocha, Nigerian footballer
• 1973 – Kieren Perkins, Australian swimmer
• 1974 – Chucky Atkins, American basketball player
• 1974 – Martin Bulloch, Scottish musician (Mogwai)
• 1974 – Christopher Gorham, American actor
• 1974 – Ana Matronic, American singer (Scissor Sisters)
• 1975 – Mike Vrabel, American football player
• 1976 – Alex Albrecht, American actor
• 1976 – Maya Nasri, Lebanese actress and singer
• 1976 – Steve Braun, Canadian actor
• 1977 – Juan Pierre, American baseball player
• 1978 – Anastasios Kyriakos, Greek footballer
• 1978 – Kate Ritchie, Australian actress
• 1979 – Paul Burgess, Australian athlete
• 1979 – Yoichiro Morikawa, Japanese film director
• 1980 – Estrella Morente, Spanish flamenco singer
• 1980 – Roy Williams, American football player
• 1981 – Matthew Etherington, English footballer
• 1981 – Julius Jones, American football player
• 1981 – Kofi Kingston, Jamacian professional wrestler
• 1983 – Elena Baltacha, Ukrainian/British tennis player
• 1983 – Mila Kunis, Ukrainian/American actress
• 1983 – Leo Núñez, Dominican baseball player
• 1983 – Spencer Pratt,American socialite
• 1984 – Clay Buchholz, American baseball player
• 1984 – Josh Gorges, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1984 – Nick Grimshaw, British radio DJ and television presenter
• 1984 – Robin Söderling, Swedish tennis player
• 1985 – Christian Gentner, German footballer
• 1985 – Ashlynn Brooke, American Pornographic Actress
• 1986 – Terin Humphrey, American gymnast
• 1987 – Tim Tebow, American football player and winner of 2007 Heisman trophy
• 1987 – Chrystina Sayers, American singer and dancer (Girlicious)
• 1988 – Shahd Barmada, Syrian singer
• 1989 – Kyle Turris, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1990 – Jaydee Bixby, Canadian singer

Deaths

• 582 – Tiberius II Constantine, Byzantine Emperor
• 1167 – Rainald of Dassel, Archbishop of Cologne
• 1204 – Minamoto no Yoriie, Japanese shogun (b. 1182)
• 1390 – John FitzAlan, 2nd Baron Arundel, English soldier (b. 1364)
• 1430 – Philip I, Duke of Brabant (b. 1404)
• 1433 – King John I of Portugal (b. 1357)
• 1464 – Pope Pius II (b. 1405)
• 1573 – Saitō Tatsuoki, Japanese warlord (b. 1548)
• 1691 – Richard Talbot, 1st Earl of Tyrconnel, Irish rebel (b. 1630)
• 1704 – Roland Laporte, French Protestant leader (b. 1675)
• 1727 – William Croft, English composer (b. 1678)
• 1774 – Johann Jakob Reiske, German physician (b. 1716)
• 1784 – Nathaniel Hone, Irish-born painter (b. 1718)
• 1856 – Constant Prévost, French geologist (b. 1787)
• 1860 – André Marie Constant Duméril, French zoologist (b. 1774)
• 1870 – David Farragut, American officer of the United States Navy (b. 1801)
• 1874 – Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs, American politician (b. 1821)
• 1905 – Simeon Solomon, British artist (b. 1840)
• 1909 – William Stanley, inventor and engineer (b. 1829)
• 1928 – Alfred Henschke, ps. Klabund, German writer, poet (b. 1890)
• 1926 – John H. Moffitt, American politician (b. 1843)
• 1938 – Hugh Trumble, Australian cricketer (b. 1876)
• 1941 – Paul Sabatier, French chemist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1854)
• 1941 – Saint Maximilian Kolbe, Polish martyr (b. 1894)
• 1943 – Joe Kelley, American baseball player (b. 1871)
• 1951 – William Randolph Hearst, American newspaper magnate (b. 1863)
• 1954 – Nikos Ploumpidis, Greek resistance fighter (b. 1901)
• 1955 – Herbert Putnam, Librarian of Congress (b. 1861)
• 1956 – Bertolt Brecht, German writer (b. 1898)
• 1958 – Frédéric Joliot, French physicist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1900)
• 1958 – Konstantin von Neurath, German diplomat (b. 1873)
• 1964 – Johnny Burnette, American Rockabilly singer (b. 1934)
• 1966 – Tip Snooke, South African cricketer (b. 1881)
• 1967 – Bob Anderson, British racing driver (b. 1931)
• 1972 – Pierre Brasseur, French actor (b. 1905)
• 1972 – Oscar Levant, American actor (b. 1906)
• 1972 – Jules Romains, French author (b. 1885)
• 1978 – Nicolas Bentley, British writer (b. 1907)
• 1980 – Dorothy Stratten, Canadian actress and model (b. 1960)
• 1981 – Karl Böhm, Austrian conductor (b. 1894)
• 1981 – Dudley Nourse, South African cricketer (b. 1910)
• 1982 – Patrick Magee, Irish actor (b. 1922)
• 1984 – Spud Davis, American baseball player (b. 1904)
• 1984 – J. B. Priestley, British playwright (b. 1894)
• 1985 – Gale Sondergaard, American actress (b. 1899)
• 1988 – Roy Buchanan, American guitarist (b. 1939)
• 1988 – Robert Calvert, South African singer (Hawkwind) (b. 1945)
• 1988 – Enzo Ferrari, Italian car maker (b. 1898)
• 1989 – Ricky Berry, American basketball player (b. 1964)
• 1991 – Alberto Crespo, Argentine racing driver (b. 1920)
• 1992 – John Sirica, American judge (b. 1904)
• 1992 – Tony Williams, American singer (The Platters) (b. 1928)
• 1994 – Elias Canetti, British-Austrian novelist (b. 1905)
• 1996 – Tom Mees, American sportscaster (b. 1949)
• 1999 – Pee Wee Reese, American baseball player (b. 1918)
• 2000 – Alain Fournier, French-born computer graphics researcher (b. 1943)
• 2000 – Cuan McCarthy, South African cricketer (b. 1929)
• 2002 – Dave Williams, American singer (Drowning Pool) (b. 1972)
• 2003 – Helmut Rahn, German footballer (b. 1929)
• 2004 – Czesław Miłosz, Polish-born writer, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1911)
• 2004 – Trevor Skeet, New Zealand-born British politician (b. 1918)
• 2005 – Coo Coo Marlin, American race car driver (b. 1932)
• 2006 – Bruno Kirby, American actor (b. 1949)
• 2007 – Tikhon Khrennikov, Russian composer (b. 1913)
• 2007 – Pinchas Goldstein, Israeli politician (b. 1939)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day
  • Maximilian Kolbe
• Independence Day, celebrate the day on which Pakistan was made an independent country based on border lines created by the British during the end of their rule of India in 1947. (Pakistan)

External links

• »BBC: On This Day
• »On This Day in Canada