August 26
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August 26 is the 238th day of the year (239th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 127 days remain until the end of the year.
Events
- 55 BC - Julius Caesar invades Britain.
- 1071 - Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Empire at Manzikert.
- 1278 - Ladislaus IV of Hungary and Rudolph I of Germany defeat Premysl Ottokar II of Bohemia in the Battle of Marchfield near Dürnkrut in Moravia.
- 1303 - Ala ud din Khilji won Chittor.
- 1346 - Hundred Years' War: The military supremacy of the English longbow over the French combination of crossbow and armoured knights is established at the Battle of Crécy.
- 1466 - A conjure against Piero di Cosimo de' Medici in Florence, led by Luca Pitti, is discovered.
- 1498 - Michelangelo commissioned to carve the Pietà.
- 1778 - The first ascent of Triglav, the highest mountain of Slovenia.
- 1789 - Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen approved by Constituent Assembly at Palace of Versailles.
- 1818 - The first Illinois Constitution was signed in Kaskaskia.
- 1839 - The ship Amistad is captured off Long Island.
- 1858 - First news dispatch by telegraph.
- 1862 - American Civil War: The Second Battle of Bull Run begins.
- 1883 - Eruption of Mount Krakatoa.
- 1914 - World War I: Germans defeat Russians in Battle of Tannenberg, a decisive engagement which resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian 2nd Army.
- 1914 - World War I: The British Expeditionary Force briefly checks the German advance at Le Cateau.
- 1914 - World War I: The German colony of Togoland is invaded by French and British forces, who take it after 5 days.
- 1920 - 19th amendment to U.S. Constitution gives women the right to vote.
- 1928 - May Donoghue drinks a bottle of ginger beer at a cafe in Paisley, Scotland and finds the remains of a snail in the bottle. She launches a civil action against the drink manufacturer which becomes one of the famous cases in English Common Law; that of Donoghue v. Stevenson.
- 1939 - The first Major League Baseball game is telecast, a double-header between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field, in Brooklyn, New York.
- 1940 - Chad is the first French colony to join the Allies under the administration of Félix Éboué, France's first black colonial governor.
- 1942 - Holocaust in Chortkiv, western Ukraine: At 2.30 am in the morning the German Schutzpolizei starts driving Jews out of houses, splits in groups of 120, packs them in freight cars and deports 2000 Jews to Belzec death camp. 500 of sick and children murdered on the spot.
- 1944 - World War II: Charles de Gaulle enters Paris.
- 1957 - The USSR announces the successful test of an ICBM - a "super long distance intercontinental multistage ballistic rocket ... a few days ago," according to the Soviet news agency, TASS.
- 1968 - The Democratic National Convention opens in Chicago, Illinois.
- 1968 - The Beatles' "Hey Jude" is released (in a shortened version) as a single in the United States under the Apple Records label, to spend nine weeks as number one, a record for any Beatles single.
- 1969 - Canada decrimilized sodomy by the Prime Minister, by saying and quoting: "the state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation"
- 1970 - The third annual Isle of Wight rock festival, which would feature the last UK performance from Jimi Hendrix, opens in Great Britain.
- 1972 - Games of the XX Olympiad open in Munich, Germany.
- 1976 - Raymond Barre becomes Prime Minister of France.
- 1977 - Charter of the French Language is adopted by the National Assembly of Quebec
- 1978 - Papal conclave, 1978 (August): Pope John Paul I is elevated to the Papacy.
- 1978 - Sigmund Jähn becomes first German cosmonaut on board of the Soyuz 31 spacecraft.
- 1980 - John Birges plants a bomb at Harvey's Resort Hotel in Stateline, Nevada.
- 1983 - Flooding destroys most of the old town of Bilbao, Spain.
- 1987 - President Ronald Wilson Reagan proclaims September 11, 1987 as 9-1-1 Emergency Number Day.
- 1988 - Merhan Karimi Nasseri arrives at Charles de Gaulle International Airport.
- 1995 - The International Rugby Board lifts all restrictions on payments relating to the game of Rugby Union, thus bringing the game's amateur age to an end.
- 1997 - Beni-Ali massacre in Algeria; 60-100 people killed.
- 1999 - Michael Johnson breaks the 400 metres world record with a time of 43.18 seconds.
- WWE SmackDown! debuts.
- 2002 - Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Éric Gagné converts his first of a record 84 consecutive successful save opportunities.
- 2002 - Earth Summit 2002 begins in Johannesburg, South Africa.
- 2003 - Columbia Accident Investigation Board releases its final reports on Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
Births
- 1469 - Ferdinand II of Naples (d. 1496)
- 1540 - King Magnus of Livonia (d. 1583)
- 1676 - Robert Walpole, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1745)
- 1694 - Elisha Williams, American rector of Yale College (d. 1755)
- 1728 - Johann Heinrich Lambert, German scientist (d. 1777)
- 1736 - Jean-Baptiste L. Romé de l'Isle, French chemist (d. 1790)
- 1743 - Antoine Lavoisier, French chemist (d. 1794)
- 1775 - William Joseph Behr, German writer (d. 1851)
- 1789 - Abbas Mirza, Prince of Persia (d. 1833)
- 1792 - Manuel Oribe, Uruguayan political figure (d. 1857)
- 1845 - Mary Ann "Polly" Nichols, widely believed to be the first victim of Jack the Ripper (d. 1888)
- 1850 - Charles Robert Richet, French physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1935)
- 1862 - Herbert Booth, the third son of William and Catherine Booth (d. 1926)
- 1873 - Lee DeForest, American inventor (d. 1961)
- 1874 - Zona Gale, American novelist (d. 1938)
- 1875 - John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, Scottish novelist, Governor General of Canada (d. 1940)
- 1880 - Guillaume Apollinaire, French poet and art critic (d. 1918)
- 1882 - James Franck, German-born physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1964)
- 1894 - Sparky Adams, Baseball player (d. 1989)
- 1896 - Ivan Mihailov, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1990)
- 1897 - Yoon Boseon, President of South Korea (d. 1990)
- 1898 - Peggy Guggenheim, American art collector (d. 1979)
- 1899 - Rufino Tamayo, Mexican painter (d. 1991)
- 1900 - Hellmuth Walter, German engineer and inventor (d. 1980)
- 1901 - Maxwell Taylor, American general (d. 1987)
- 1901 - Chen Yi, Chinese communist military commander and politician (d. 1972)
- 1904 - Christopher Isherwood, English-born writer (d. 1986)
- 1906 - Albert Sabin, American polio researcher (d. 1993)
- 1908 - Aubrey Schenck, film producer (d. 1999)
- 1909 - Jim Davis, American actor (d. 1981)
- 1909 - Gene Moore, baseball player (d. 1978)
- 1914 - Julio Cortázar, Argentine writer (d. 1984)
- 1920 - Brant Parker, American cartoonist (d. 2007)
- 1921 - Benjamin Bradlee, American journalist
- 1922 - Irving R. Levine, American journalist
- 1923 - Wolfgang Sawallisch, German conductor and pianist
- 1924 - Alex Kellner, baseball player (d. 1996)
- 1925 - Jack Hirshleifer, American economist (d. 2005)
- 1928 - Peter Appleyard, Canadian jazz vibraphonist
- 1934 - Tom Heinsohn, American basketball player and commentator
- 1935 - Geraldine Ferraro, U.S. Vice Presidential candidate
- 1936 - Yvette Vickers, American actress
- 1940 - Don LaFontaine, American voice actor
- 1941 - Barbet Schroeder, Swiss film director
- 1941 - Akiko Wakabayashi, Japanese actress
- 1941 - Chris Curtis, English singer and drummer (The searchers) (d. 2005)
- 1942 - Vic Dana, American singer
- 1942 - Dennis Turner, British politician
- 1944 - Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester
- 1944 - Maureen Tucker, American musician (The Velvet Underground)
- 1945 - Tom Ridge, first United States Secretary of Homeland Security
- 1946 - Valerie Simpson, American singer
- 1946 - Mark Snow, American composer
- 1946 - Zhou Ji, Education Minister of the People's Republic of China
- 1952 - Bryon Baltimore, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1952 - Michael Jeter, American actor (d. 2003)
- 1952 - Will Shortz, New York Times crossword editor
- 1953 - Pat Sharkey, Irish footballer
- 1954 - Efren Reyes, World Pool Player
- 1957 - Dr. Alban, Nigerian-Swedish singer
- 1957 - Rick Hansen, Canadian paraplegic athlete
- 1960 - Branford Marsalis, American saxophonist and bandleader
- 1962 - Bob Mionske, American cyclist and attorney
- 1965 - Chris Burke, American actor
- 1965 - Bobby Duncum, Jr., wrestler (d. 2000)
- 1966 - Jacques Brinkman, Dutch field hockey player
- 1966 - Shirley Manson, Scottish singer
- 1967 - Kelly Madison, porn star
- 1970 - Olimpiada Ivanova, Russian athlete
- 1971 - Thalía, Mexican singer
- 1976 - Zemfira, Russian singer
- 1977 - Saeko Chiba, Japanese seiyuu
- 1977 - Morris Peterson, American basketball player
- 1979 - Jamal Lewis, American football player
- 1979 - Cristian Mora, Ecuadorian footballer
- 1979 - Rubén Pazos, Spanish footballer
- 1980 - Macaulay Culkin, American actor
- 1980 - Chris Pine, American actor
- 1980 - Brendan Harris, American baseball player
- 1981 - Jesse Martin, Australian yachtsman
- 1982 - Petey Williams, Canadian professional wrestler
- 1983 - Félix Porteiro, Spanish racing driver
- 1986 - Cassie Ventura, American singer
- 1988 - Danielle Savre, American actress
- 1993 - Keke Palmer, American actress
Deaths
- 1278 - King Otakar II of Bohemia
- 1346 - Killed in the Battle of Crécy:
- Charles II of Alençon (b. 1297)
- Louis I of Flanders (b. 1304)
- John I, Count of Luxemburg (b. 1296)
- Rudolph, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1320)
- 1349 - Thomas Bradwardine, Archbishop of Canterbury
- 1551 - Margareta Leijonhufvud, queen of Gustav I of Sweden (b. 1516)
- 1572 - Petrus Ramus, French philosopher (b. 1515)
- 1595 - Antonio, Prior of Crato, claimant to the throne of Portugal (b. 1531)
- 1666 - Frans Hals, Dutch painter
- 1714 - Edward Fowler, English Bishop of Gloucester (b. 1632)
- 1723 - Anton van Leeuwenhoek, Dutch scientist (b. 1632)
- 1785 - George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville, British soldier and politician (b. 1716)
- 1850 - Louis-Philippe of France (b. 1773)
- 1865 - Johann Franz Encke, German astronomer (b. 1791)
- 1910 - William James, American psychologist and philosopher (b. 1842)
- 1915 - John Bunny American comedian (b. 1863)
- 1930 - Lon Chaney, Sr., American actor (b. 1883)
- 1944 - Adam von Trott zu Solz, German anti-Nazi diplomat (executed)
- 1945 - Franz Werfel, Austrian writer (b. 1890)
- 1946 - Jeanie MacPherson, American actress and screenwriter (b. 1887)
- 1958 - Ralph Vaughan Williams, English composer (b. 1872)
- 1968 - Kay Francis, American actress (b. 1899)
- 1974 - Charles Lindbergh, American aviator (b. 1902)
- 1976 - Lotte Lehmann, German soprano (b. 1888)
- 1978 - Charles Boyer, French actor (b. 1899)
- 1978 - José Manuel Moreno, Argentine footballer (b. 1916)
- 1979 - Mika Waltari, Finnish author (b. 1908)
- 1980 - Rosa Albach-Retty, German actress (b. 1874)
- 1980 - Tex Avery, American cartoonist (b. 1908)
- 1981 - Roger Nash Baldwin, founder of the American Civil Liberties Union (b. 1884)
- 1981 - Lee Elhardt Hays, American folksinger (b. 1914)
- 1986 - Ted Knight, American actor (b. 1923)
- 1987 - Georg Wittig, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
- 1988 - Carlos Paião, Portuguese singer (b. 1957)
- 1989 - Irving Stone, American author (b. 1903)
- 1990 - Minoru Honda, Japanese astronomer (b. 1913)
- 1998 - Frederick Reines, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
- 2003 - Jim Wacker, American football coach (b. 1937)
- 2004 - Laura Branigan, American singer (b. 1957)
- 2005 - Denis D'Amour, Canadian guitarist (Voivod) (b. 1960)
- 2005 - Robert Denning, American interior designer (b. 1927)
- 2006 - Rainer Barzel, former President of the German Bundestag (b. 1924)
- 2006 - Clyde Walcott, Barbadian West Indies cricketer (b. 1926)
Holidays and observances
- Namibia - Namibia Day or Heroes' Day.
- Zanzibar - Sultan's Birthday.
- United States - Women's Equality Day.