Sunday, August 31, 2025
Today: 1886: A powerful earthquake strikes Charleston, South Carolina, leading to the deaths of 60 people. 1888: The body of Mary Ann Nichols, believed to be the first victim of Jack the Ripper, is discovered in London, England. 1897: Thomas Edison is granted a patent for the Kinetograph, a pioneering motion picture camera. 1920: The […]
Saturday, August 30, 2025
Today: 30 B.C.: Cleopatra VII Philopator, the last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, dies, reportedly by suicide. 1835: The city of Melbourne, Australia, is founded by settlers from Tasmania. 1862: The Second Battle of Bull Run (or Second Manassas) concludes in a decisive victory for the Confederate army during the American Civil […]
Friday, August 29, 2025
Today: 70: The First Roman-Jewish War culminates in the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by Roman legions under Titus. 1533: Atahualpa, the last emperor of the Inca Empire, is executed by garrote by Spanish conquistadors under the command of Francisco Pizarro, marking a pivotal moment in the Spanish conquest of Peru. 1756: Frederick […]
Thursday, August 28, 2025
Today: 430: St. Augustine of Hippo, one of the most influential Christian theologians, dies in what is now Annaba, Algeria. 1565: The first Spanish settlement in North America is established at St. Augustine, Florida, by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. 1833: The Slavery Abolition Act is given Royal Assent, leading to the abolition of slavery throughout […]
Wednesday, August 27, 2025
Today: 410: The Sack of Rome by the Visigoths, which had begun three days earlier, comes to an end. This marked the first time in nearly 800 years that Rome had fallen to a foreign enemy. 1776: In the Battle of Long Island, British forces under General William Howe defeat the American Continental Army led […]
Tuesday, August 26, 2025
Today: 55 B.C.E.: Roman General Julius Caesar’s fleet arrives off the coast of Britain for the first time. This marked the beginning of the Roman conquest of Britain. 1346: During the Hundred Years’ War, the English army, led by Edward III, defeated a much larger French army at the Battle of Crécy. This battle is […]
Monday, August 25, 2025
Today: 1609: Galileo Galilei demonstrates his first telescope to Venetian lawmakers. 1814: During the War of 1812, British troops burn the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. 1825: Uruguay declares its independence from the Brazilian Empire. 1875: Captain Matthew Webb becomes the first person to swim across the English Channel. 1916: The United States […]
Sunday, August 24, 2025
Today: 79 CE: Mount Vesuvius erupts, burying the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in ash. 410: The Visigoths, led by King Alaric I, begin a three-day pillaging of Rome. 1572: The St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre begins, as thousands of Protestant Huguenots are killed by Catholics in Paris and throughout France. 1814: During the […]
Saturday, August 23, 2025
Today: 79 AD: The Roman volcano Mount Vesuvius is believed to have begun stirring, with its famous eruption destroying the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum the following day. 1305: Scottish knight William Wallace was executed for treason by the English in London. He had led the Scottish resistance during the Wars of Scottish Independence. 1833: […]
Friday, August 22, 2025
Today: 1485: The Battle of Bosworth Field ends the Wars of the Roses. Richard III, the last English king to die in battle, is killed, and Henry Tudor becomes King Henry VII, establishing the Tudor dynasty. 1642: The English Civil War begins when King Charles I raises his royal standard in Nottingham, declaring war on […]