Events
- 479 BC - Greco-Persian Wars: Persian forces led by Mardonius are routed by Pausanias, the Spartan commander of the Greek army in the Battle of Plataea. Along the with the Greek victory on the same day in the Battle of Mycale, the Persian invasion of Greece ended.
- 410 - Visigothic sack of Rome ends after three days.
- 663 - Remnants of the Korean Baekje Kingdom and their Yamato Japanese allies engage the combined naval forces of the Tang Chinese and Silla Koreans on the Geum River in Korea; the outcome is a significant Tang-Silla victory, while the Japanese would not attempt another invasion of Korea until the Japanese invasions of Korea of the late 16th century.
- 1232 - The Formulary of Adjudications is promulgated by Regent Hōjō Yasutoki. (Traditional Japanese date: August 10, 1232)
- 1689 - The Treaty of Nerchinsk is signed by Russia and the Qing empire.
- 1776 - Battle of Long Island, in present day Brooklyn, New York, British forces under General William Howe defeat Americans under General George Washington.
- 1789 - The French National Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, proclaiming that "men are born and remain free and equal in rights."
- 1793 - French counter-revolution, port of Toulon revolts and admits the British fleet, which lands troops and seizes the port leading to Siege of Toulon.
- 1798 - United Irishmen and French forces clash with the British army in the Battle of Castlebar, part of the Irish Rebellion of 1798.
- 1813 - French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte defeats a larger force of Austrians, Russians and Prussians at the Battle of Dresden.
- 1828 - The Russians defeat the Turks at the Battle of Akhalzic.
- 1828 - Uruguay is formally proclaimed independent at preliminary peace talks brokered by Britain between Brazil and Argentina during their war.
- 1859 - Petroleum discovered in Titusville, Pennsylvania. World's first successful oil well.
- 1861 - Union (Northern) forces attack Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.
- 1896 - Anglo-Zanzibar War: the shortest war in world history (09:00 to 09:45) between the United Kingdom and Zanzibar.
- 1916 - Romania declares war against Austria-Hungary, entering World War I as one of the Allied nations. It is soon occupied by German and Bulgarian forces.
- 1921 - The British install the son of Sharif Hussein bin Ali (leader of the Arab Revolt of 1916 against the Ottoman Empire) as King Faisal I of Iraq.
- 1927 - American aviators Billy Brock and Ed Schlee fly the Pride of Detroit over London on the way to completing the first-ever flight around the world.
- 1928 - Kellogg-Briand Pact, outlawing war, was signed by fifteen nations. Ultimately sixty-one nations signed it.
- 1939 - First flight of the Heinkel He 178, the first modern jet aircraft.
- 1943 - Japanese forces evacuate New Georgia Island in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II.
- 1952 - Reparation negotiations between West Germany and Israel end in Luxembourg; West Germany to pay 3 billion Deutschmark.
- 1957 - The Constitution of Malaysia came into force.
- 1962 - Mariner 2 unmanned space mission launched to Venus by America's NASA.
- 1969 - Israeli commando force penetrates deep into Egyptian territory to stage mortar attack on regional Egyptian Army headquarters in the Nile Valley of Upper Egypt.
- 1971 - A coup attempt fails in the African nation of Chad. The Chadian government accuses Egypt of playing a role in the attempt and breaks off diplomatic relations.
- 1975 - The Governor of Portuguese Timor abandons its capital, Dili, and flees to Atauro Island, leaving control to a rebel group.
- 1979 - An IRA bomb kills British World War II admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten and 3 others while boating on holiday in Sligo, Republic of Ireland. Another bomb near Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland kills 18 British soldiers.
- 1982 Turkish military diplomat Colonel Atilla Altikat is shot and killed in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada's capital. Justice Commandos Against Armenian Genocide claim responsibility, saying they were avenging the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians in the 1915 Armenian Genocide.
- 1985 - The Nigerian government is peacefully overthrown by Army Chief of Staff Major General Ibrahim Babangida.
- 1991 - The European Community recognizes the independence of the Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
- 1991 - Moldova declares independence from the USSR.
- 1993 - The Rainbow Bridge, connecting Tokyo's Shibaura and the island of Odaiba, is completed.
- 2000 - Ostankino Tower in Moscow catches fire, three people are killed.
- 2003 - Mars makes its closest approach to Earth in nearly 60,000 years, passing approximately 34,646,416 miles (55,758,006 kilometers) from Earth.
- 2006 - Comair Flight 5191 crashed en route from Blue Grass Airport in Lexington, Kentucky, to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia. Forty-nine of the 50 people aboard the flight were confirmed dead in the hours following the crash
- 1407 - Ashikaga Yoshikazu, Japanese shogun (d. 1425)
- 1471 - George, Duke of Saxony (d. 1539)
- 1487 - Anna of Brandenburg, queen of Denmark (d. 1514)
- 1637 - Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore, Governor of the Province of Maryland (d. 1715)
- 1665 - John Hervey, 1st Earl of Bristol, English politician (d. 1751)
- 1669 - Anne Marie of Orléans, queen of Italy (d. 1728)
- 1698 - Baal Shem Tov, Founder of the Chasiddic movement {d. 1760)
- 1677 - Otto Ferdinand von Abensberg und Traun, Austrian field marshal (d. 1748)
- 1724 - John Joachim Zubly, Swiss-born Continental Congressman (d. 1781)
- 1730 - Johann Georg Hamann, German philosopher (d. 1788)
- 1770 - Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, German philosopher (d. 1831)
- 1803 - Edward Beecher, American theologian (d. 1895)
- 1809 - Hannibal Hamlin, Vice President of the United States of America (d. 1891)
- 1858 - Giuseppe Peano, Italian mathematician (d. 1932)
- 1865 - James Henry Breasted, American Egyptologist (d. 1935)
- 1865 - Charles G. Dawes, 30th Vice President of the United States and Nobel Peace Prize laureate (d. 1951)
- 1870 - Amado Nervo, Mexican poet (d. 1919)
- 1871 - Theodore Dreiser, American author (d. 1945)
- 1874 - Carl Bosch, German chemist Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1940)
- 1875 - Katharine McCormick, American women's rights activist (d. 1967)
- 1877 - Charles Rolls, British co-founder of Rolls-Royce (d. 1910)
- 1877 - Ernst Wetter, member of the Swiss Federal Council (d. 1963)
- 1882 - Samuel Goldwyn, Polish-born Hollywood film producer (d. 1974)
- 1884 - Vincent Auriol, French President (d. 1966)
- 1886 - Rebecca Helferich Clarke, English composer and violist (d. 1979)
- 1886 - Eric Coates, English composer (d. 1957)
- 1890 - Man Ray, American photographer and artist (d. 1976)
- 1896 - Faina Ranevskaya, Russian actress (d. 1984)
- 1898 - Gaspard Fauteux, French Canadian parliamentarian (d. 1963)
- 1899 - C. S. Forester, British author (d. 1966)
- 1899 - Byron Foulger, American actor (d. 1970)
- 1904 - Norah Lofts, British author (d. 1983)
- 1904 - John Hay Whitney, American financier (d. 1982)
- 1906 - Ed Gein, American serial killer (d. 1984)
- 1908 - Don Bradman, Australian cricketer (d. 2001)
- 1908 - Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th President of the United States (d. 1973)
- 1908 - Kurt Wegner, German artist (d. 1985)
- 1909 - Sylvère Maes, Belgian cyclist (d. 1966)
- 1909 - Lester Young, American musician (d. 1959)
- 1910 - Mother Teresa, Roman Catholic nun, Nobel laureate (d. 1997)
- 1911 - Kay Walsh, British actress (d. 2005)
- 1912 - Gloria Guinness, Mexican socialite and writer(d.1980)
- 1913 - Nina Schenk von Stauffenberg, Russian-born wife of Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg (d. 2006)
- 1915 - Norman F. Ramsey, American physicist Nobel Prize laureate
- 1916 - Martha Raye, American actress (d. 1994)
- 1917 - Peanuts Lowrey, American baseball player (d. 1986)
- 1919 - Murray Grand, American songwriter and cabaret singer (d. 2007)
- 1921 - Georg Alexander, Duke of Mecklenburg, head of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (d. 1996)
- 1921 - Leo Penn, American film director (d. 1998)
- 1924 - David Rowbotham, Australian poet
- 1925 - Darry Cowl, French actor (d. 2006)
- 1926 - Pat Coombs, English actress (d. 2002)
- 1926 - Kristen Nygaard, Norwegian mathematician (d. 2002)
- 1927 - Jimmy C. Newman, American singer
- 1928 - Mangosuthu Buthelezi, South African politician
- 1929 - Ira Levin, American author (d. 2007)
- 1931 - Sri Chinmoy, Indian guru (d. 2007)
- 1931 - Joe Cunningham, American baseball player
- 1932 - Antonia Fraser, British author
- 1935 - Ernie Broglio, American baseball player
- 1935 - Frank Yablans, American film producer
- 1936 - Joel Kovel, American politician
- 1937 - Alice Coltrane, American jazz musician (d. 2007)
- 1937 - Tommy Sands, American actor and singer
- 1940 - Sonny Sharrock, American jazz guitarist (d. 1994)
- 1942 - Daryl Dragon, American keyboardist (Captain & Tennille)
- 1942 - Brian Peckford, Canadian politician
- 1943 - Tuesday Weld, American actress
- 1945 - G. W. Bailey, American actor
- 1947 - Barbara Bach, American actress
- 1947 - Harry Reems, American actor
- 1948 - Pavlos Sidiropoulos, Greek musician (d. 1990)
- 1949 - Jeff Cook, vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass, fiddle, banjo and mandolin for Alabama
- 1950 - Charles Fleischer, American actor
- 1951 - Buddy Bell, American baseball player-manager
- 1951 - Mack Brown, American University of Texas Head Football Coach
- 1952 - Paul "Pee-Wee Herman" Reubens, American actor
- 1953 - Alex Lifeson, Canadian guitarist (Rush)
- 1953 - Peter Stormare, Swedish-born actor
- 1954 - John Lloyd, British former tennis player
- 1954 - Derek Warwick, British race car driver
- 1955 - Laura Fygi, Dutch singer
- 1955 - Robert Richardson, American cinematographer
- 1955 - Diana Scarwid, American actress
- 1957 - Bernhard Langer, German golfer and two-time Masters champion
- 1958 - Normand Brathwaite, Canadian comedian and television and radio host
- 1958 - Sergei Krikalev, Russian cosmonaut
- 1958 - Tom Lanoye, Belgian author
- 1959 - Gerhard Berger, Austrian race car driver and F1 team co-owner (Scuderia Toro Rosso)
- 1959 - Juan Fernando Cobo, Colombian artist
- 1961 - Yolanda Adams, American gospel singer
- 1961 - Tom Ford, American fashion designer
- 1962 - Vic Mignogna, American voice actor
- 1962 - Adam Oates, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1963 - Downtown Julie Brown, Welsh TV personality and former MTV VJ
- 1964 - Frankie Thorn, American actress
- 1965 - Wayne James, Zimbabwean cricketer
- 1966 - Juhan Parts, Prime Minister of Estonia
- 1967 - Bob Nastanovich, American musician (Pavement, Silver Jews)
- 1969 - Reece Shearsmith, British actor and comedian
- 1969 - Chandra Wilson, American actress
- 1970 - Peter Ebdon, English snooker player
- 1970 - Tony Kanal, English-born musician (No Doubt)
- 1970 - Jeff Kenna, Irish footballer
- 1970 - Jim Thome, American baseball player
- 1971 - Julian Cheung, Hong Kong actor and singer
- 1972 - Denise Lewis, English heptathlete
- 1972 - Dalip Singh, Indian professional wrestler
- 1972 - Mike Smith, Canadian actor
- 1973 - Carlene Begnaud, American professional wrestler
- 1973 - Cory Bowles, Canadian actor
- 1973 - Danny Coyne, Welsh footballer
- 1973 - Dietmar Hamann, German footballer
- 1974 - José Vidro, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1975 - Jonny Moseley, American skier
- 1975 - Mark Rudan, Australian footballer
- 1976 - Sarah Chalke, Canadian actress
- 1976 - Carlos Moyà , Spanish tennis player
- 1976 - Steve Taylor, British writer
- 1976 - Milano Collection Akihito Terui, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1976 - Mark Webber, Australian race car driver
- 1977 - Deco, Portuguese footballer
- 1978 - Mase, American rapper
- 1979 - Giovanni Capitello, American filmmaker/actor
- 1979 - Tian Liang, Chinese diver
- 1979 - Sarah Neufeld, Canadian musician (Arcade Fire)
- 1983 - Wilson Chen, Taiwanese actor
- 1984 - David Bentley, English footballer
- 1984 - Sulley Muntari, Ghanaian footballer
- 1985 - Alexandra Nechita, Romanian artist
- 1986 - Mario, American R&B singer
- 1988 - Alexa Vega, American actress
Deaths
- 542 - Saint Caesarius of Arles
- 827 - Pope Eugene II
- 1312 - Arthur II, Duke of Brittany (b. 1262)
- 1394 - Chokei, Emperor of Japan (b. 1343)
- 1450 - Reginald West, 6th Baron De La Warr, English politician (b. 1395)
- 1521 - Josquin Des Prez, Flemish composer
- 1545 - Piotr Gamrat, Polish Catholic archbishop (b. 1487)
- 1572 - Claude Goudimel, French composer
- 1577 - Titian, Italian artist
- 1590 - Pope Sixtus V (b. 1521)
- 1635 - Félix Lope de Vega, Spanish poet and playwright (b. 1562)
- 1664 - Francisco Zurbarán, Spanish painter (b. 1598)
- 1748 - James Thomson, Scottish poet (b. 1700)
- 1773 - Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz, Prussian general (b. 1721)
- 1857 - Rufus Wilmot Griswold, American literary critic and editor (b. 1812)
- 1871 - William Whiting Boardman, American politician (b. 1794)
- 1875 - William Chapman Ralston, American banker (b. 1826)
- 1909 - Emil Christian Hansen, Danish fermentation physiologist (b. 1842)
- 1929 - Herman Potočnik Noordung, Slovenian rocket scientist (b. 1892)
- 1931 - Frank Harris, Irish author and editor (b. 1856)
- 1931 - Francis Marion Smith, American borax magnate (b. 1846)
- 1944 - Georg von Boeselager, German nobleman (b. 1915)
- 1948 - Charles Evans Hughes, U.S. Supreme Court justice (b. 1862)
- 1958 - Ernest Lawrence, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1901)
- 1963 - Garrett Morgan, American inventor (b. 1877)
- 1963 - W. E. B. Du Bois, American civil rights activist and scholar (b. 1868)
- 1963 - Allama Mashriqi, Pakistani scholar and politician (b. 1888)
- 1964 - Gracie Allen, American actress and comedienne (b. 1895)
- 1965 - Le Corbusier, Swiss architect (b. 1887)
- 1967 - Brian Epstein, English manager of The Beatles (b. 1934)
- 1968 - Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent (b. 1906)
- 1969 - Ivy Compton-Burnett, English novelist (b. 1884)
- 1969 - Erika Mann, German writer and daughter of Thomas Mann (b. 1905)
- 1971 - Bennett Cerf, American publisher and television personality (b. 1898)
- 1971 - Margaret Bourke-White, American photo-journalist (b. 1906)
- 1975 - Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia (b. 1892)
- 1976 - Mukesh, Indian playback singer (b. 1923)
- 1979 - Earl Mountbatten, British admiral and statesman (assassinated) (b. 1900)
- 1980 - Douglas Kenney, American humorist (b. 1947)
- 1981 - Valery Kharlamov, Soviet ice hockey player (b. 1948)
- 1984 - Bernard Youens, English actor (b. 1914)
- 1987 - Scott La Rock, American DJ (Boogie Down Productions) (b. 1962)
- 1988 - William Sargant, British psychiatrist (b. 1907)
- 1988 - Mario Montenegro, Filipino actor (b. 1928)
- 1990 - Stevie Ray Vaughan, American guitarist (b. 1954)
- 1996 - Greg Morris, American actor (b. 1933)
- 1999 - Hélder Câmara, Brazilian Roman Catholic archbishop (b. 1909)
- 2001 - Abu Ali Mustafa, leader of Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (assassinated) (b. 1938)
- 2001 - Michael Dertouzos, Greek internet pioneer, Director of the M.I.T. Laboratory for Computer Science (b. 1936)
- 2003 - Pierre Poujade, French politician (b. 1920)
- 2004 - Willie Crawford, American baseball player (b. 1946)
- 2005 - Seán Purcell, Gaelic footballer (b. 1929)
- 2006 - Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Indian film director (b. 1922)
- 2006 - Maria Capovilla, oldest woman alive from 2004-2006 (b. 1889)
- 2006 - Jesse Pintado, Mexican-born guitarist (Napalm Death) (b. 1969)
- 2007 - Emma Penella, Spanish actress (b. 1930)
- Roman Festivals - Volturnalia held in honor of Volturnus.
- RC Saints -
- Saint Joseph Calasanctius (Pre-1970 Roman Catholic calendar)
- Saint Monica of Hippo
- Saint Caesarius of Arles
- Saints Rufus and Carpophorus
- Saint Margaret the Barefooted.
- Moldova - Independence Day (from the USSR, 1991).
- Texas - Lyndon Baines Johnson Day
