/year

August 5 in history

235 sourced entries recorded on August 5, from 25 CE to 2025 CE. Every line is quoted from the revision it came from.

Events

  • 25The Han dynasty is restored in China as Liu Xiu proclaims himself Emperor Guangwu of Han, starting the Jianwu era (until AD 56).source
  • 642Battle of Maserfield: King Penda of Mercia defeats and kills King Oswald of Northumbria, age 38, at Oswestry (West Midlands). He commands a united British and Mercian force, which includes the Welsh army of Kings Cadafael Cadomedd of Gwynedd and Cynddylan of Pengwern. The Mercians become dominant in the English Midlands.source
  • 910Battle of Tettenhall: King Edward the Elder attacks the joint-Kings Eowils and Halfdan of Norse York. All three Viking monarchs are killed in battle (one chronicle mentions a third brother) and the Viking army is decisively defeated by allied forces of Mercia and Wessex. The co-Kings are succeeded by Ragnall ua Ímair.source
  • 939Battle of Alhandic: Abd-al-Rahman III defeats the garrison of those loyal to Ramiro II at Zamora, in the context of the Spanish Reconquista.source
  • 974Caliph al-Muti, ill and incapacitated, is deposed and succeeded by his son al-Ta'i, dying shortly after.source
  • 1096August 2–6 – The People's Crusade reorganize their forces and gather supplies. Alexios I advises Peter the Hermit to wait for reinforcements but he ignores the advice. The People's army (some 30,000 men) is transported across the Bosporus – by the Byzantine fleet to Civetot (modern Turkey).source
  • 1100Henry I is crowned King of England, at Westminster Abbey. The power of the new monarch is ill-assured, and to mollify the barons he has to grant them the Charter of Liberties, one of the first examples of a written constitution in Europe.source
  • 1103Matilda of Scotland, queen of England as wife of Henry I, gives birth to their first son William Adelin at Winchester. They already have a daughter, Princess Matilda.source
  • 1164Uppsala is recognized as the seat of the Swedish metropolitan, with the coronation of its first archbishop Stefan, by Pope Alexander III.source
  • 1192Battle of Jaffa: Richard I of England defeats the forces of Saladin and ends hostilities, paving the way for a truce.source
  • 1278Reconquista: Siege of Algeciras – Castilian forces (some 30,000 men) led by King Alfonso X ("the Wise") besiege Algeciras (at this time under control of the Marinids). A fleet of 24 ships and some 80 galleys is placed in the Bay of Gibraltar to prevent the supply of the city from nearby Gibraltar. The fleet is made up of most of the members of the Order of Saint Mary of Spain, a military-religious order which is concentrated in naval warfare.source
  • 1279The Diet of Hungary adopts the so-called Cuman laws to regulate the social status and lifestyle of the nomadic and pagan Cumans living in the Kingdom of Hungary.source
  • 1284August 5–6 – Battle of Meloria: A Genoese fleet (some 90 galleys) led by Admiral Oberto Doria defeats the Pisan ships in the Ligurian Sea. This marks the decline of the maritime power of Pisa in the Mediterranean.source
  • 1301The English Army, commanded by King Edward I, reaches Glasgow.source
  • 1302John Segrave is appointed to the custody of Berwick Castle, leaving him in charge with an English force of some 20,000 men. Robert, along with other nobles, gives his allegiance to Edward.source
  • 1305John de Menteith, a Scottish knight loyal to King Edward of England, captures William Wallace and turns him over to English soldiers at Robroyston.source
  • 1316Battle of Gransee: A North German-Danish alliance, led by Henry II, Lord of Mecklenburg ("Henry the Lion"), decisively defeats the forces under Waldemar the Great at Schulzendorf. During the battle, Waldemar escapes the battlefield, but his army – which consists largely of knights in armor — is massacred. Later, the victorious alliance negotiates a peace treaty at Zehdenick.source
  • 1324The Blitar Regency is established on the island of Java (part of modern-day Indonesia) by Java's King Jayanegara of Majapahit.source
  • 1384An earthquake strikes the island of Lesbos in Greece, killing numerous people including the Genoan Lord of Lesbos, Francesco I Gattilusio, along with his two eldest sons, Andronico and Domenico. His son Jacopo Gattiliuso survives and rules the island under the name Francesco II.source
  • 1388Battle of Otterburn: A Scottish army, led by James Douglas, defeats an English army, capturing their leader, Harry Hotspur. Douglas is killed during the battle.source
  • 1392At Gaegyeong, General Yi Sŏng-gye crowns himself King Taejo of Korea, ending the Goryeo dynasty in the Korean Peninsula, and establishing the Joseon dynasty, which will last for more than 500 years.source
  • 1392King Charles VI of France (later known as "Charles the Mad") first displays symptoms of psychosis while crossing through the forests of Le Mans, attacking his own soldiers with his sword while under the delusion that they are enemy troops from the Duchy of Brittany. Charles' madness enables Philip II, Duke of Burgundy, to strengthen his power in the French court.source
  • 1401The County of Geneva, located in southeastern France in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, comes to an end after more than 300 years when it is sold to Amadeus VIII, Count of Savoy for 45,000 gold francssource
  • 1403The coronation of Ladislaus of Naples as King of Hungary and Croatia takes place in Zara (now Zadar in Croatia), where Ladislaus had arrived on July 19. His reign lasts less than four months before he is deposed.source
  • 1421At the Battle of Brüx, Hussite troops led by Jan Želivský, are defeated by the German Saxon baron Frederick of Meissen at what is now the city of Most in what is now the Czech Republic.source
  • 1435In the Battle of Ponza, the navy of the Duchy of Milan decisively defeats King Alfonso V of Aragon who is captured.source
  • 1438Rao Bika, the founder and first ruler of the Rathore Princely Kingdom Bikaner is born to Rani Narandeji Sankhla & Rao Jodha of Jodhpur.source
  • 1485The first outbreak of sweating sickness in England begins.source
  • 1496Bartholomew Columbus, brother of Christopher Columbus, formally founds the city of Santo Domingo (first settled in March) on Hispaniola (in the modern-day Dominican Republic), making it the oldest permanent European settlement in the New World.source
  • 1498Columbus lands on the Paria Peninsula, in what is now Venezuela in the first definitely recorded landing of Europeans on the mainland Americas.source
  • 1513A force of 7,000 Scottish border troops, commanded by Lord Home, invades England and begins the destruction and pillaging of villages in Northumberland.source
  • 1524Two days before his coronation in Denmark, Frederick I is elected King of Norway.source
  • 1529Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and Francis I of France sign the Treaty of Cambrai, or Ladies' Peace in the War of the League of Cognac: Francis abandons his claims in Italy, but is allowed to retain the Duchy of Burgundy. Henry VIII of England accedes on August 27.source
  • 1532The siege of Güns in the Austrian Empire begins as the Ottoman army, under Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, attempts to take the city of Güns (now Kőszeg in Hungary) with 100,000 troops in order to mount a larger invasion of the Austrian city of Vienna, capital of the Holy Roman Empire. The defenders, less than 800 Croatian soldiers commanded by Nikola Jurišić, puts up a successful resistance despite being outnumbered by more than 100 to 1.source
  • 1536Guelders Wars: Battle of Heiligerlee – Danish allies of Charles II, Duke of Guelders, under command of Meindert van Ham, are defeated by Habsburg forces under Georg Schenck van Toutenburg in the Low Countries.source
  • 1545Scottish nobleman Domhnall Dubh, also called "Black Donald", secures an alliance with King Henry VIII of England and plans an invasion of Scotland (Dubh's Rebellion) seeking to install the Earl of Lennox as the regent for Mary, Queen of Scots, rather than the incumbent Regent Arran. The rebellion attracts little support from other nobles and Dubh dies of a fever while in Ireland, before an invasion can take place.source
  • 1550The University of Santa Catalina is authorized in Spain by a canonical bull from Pope Julius III.source
  • 1575Henry Sidney is appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.source
  • 1575Sir Henry Sidney is reappointed Lord Deputy of Ireland following the resignation of Sir William FitzWilliam.source
  • 1583Sir Humphrey Gilbert, on the site of the modern-day city of St. John's, claims the island of Newfoundland on behalf of England, marking the beginning of the British Empire.source
  • 1598Battle of Traigh Ghruinneart on Islay: the Clan Donald defeats the Clan Maclean, Sir Lachlan Mor Maclean being killed.source
  • 1604Sokolluzade Mehmed Pasha becomes the new Ottoman Grand Vizier, replacing the late Yavuz Ali Pashasource
  • 1611Nasuh Pasha becomes the new grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire after the death of Kuyucu Murad Pasha.source
  • 1619Thirty Years' War: Battle of Věstonice – Bohemian forces defeat the Austrians.source
  • 1622The Earldom of Roscommon is created for James Dillon.source
  • 1623The English ship Little James arrives at Plymouth Colony, 26 days after the Anne.source
  • 1624The King's Men perform Thomas Middleton's satire A Game at Chess at the Globe Theatre in London. The performances are suppressed on August 14 in view of the play's allusions to the Spanish Match.source
  • 1626Gaston, Duke of Orléans marries Marie de Bourbon, Duchess of Montpensiersource
  • 1631Decree on foreign and billon coinage issued.source
  • 1636Crossing of the Somme by the Army of Flanders.source
  • 1636Crossing of the Sommesource
  • 1641London theatres closed because of bubonic plague.source
  • 1647The New Model Army marches into London, "fulfilling the worst nightmares of Presbyterian MPs," and restores the members of Parliament who were deposed on July 27.source
  • 1653Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg reaffirms the nobility's freedom from taxation, and its unlimited control over the peasants, in return for a grant to him of 530,000 silver Joachimsthalers to be paid in installments over six years.source
  • 1658Just six months after winning territory from Denmark-Norway in war and subsequent treaty, Sweden's King Charles X Gustav declares a second war against Denmark. By August 11, the King's troops have surrounded Denmark's capital, Copenhagen, while the Swedish Navy blocks the harbor to prevent the city from being resupplied, and begins bombardment.source
  • 1667The province of Holland in the Dutch Republic passes the "Perpetual Edict" declaring that it will no longer acknowledge the authority of the republic's Stadtholder, and other provinces soon follow suit.source
  • 1689Beaver Wars: Lachine massacre – A force of 1,500 Iroquois largely destroys the village of Lachine, New France.source
  • 1704the Parliament of Scotland passes the Act of Security 1704 in response to the Parliament of England's Act of Settlement 1701, allowing the Scottish Parliament to select its own successor to the monarch.source
  • 1730Prince Frederick of Prussia, the eldest son of King Frederick William and a high-ranking officer, attempts to flee to England after deserting the Prussian Army and is captured along with his fellow officer Hans Hermann von Katte. Katte is executed, and Crown Prince Frederick is imprisoned at Küstrin (modern-day Kostrzyn nad Odrą in Poland) for a year before being forgiven by his father. Prince Frederick later succeeds his father as King and will be remembered as Frederick the Great.source
  • 1741August 4–5 – War of Jenkins' Ear: Invasion of Cuba – British Admiral Edward Vernon captures Guantánamo Bay in Cuba, which he renames Cumberland Bay, but which his forces are forced to abandon on December 9.source
  • 1757August 3–9 – French and Indian War: A French army under Louis-Joseph de Montcalm forces the English to surrender Fort William Henry. The French army's Indian allies slaughter the surviving men, women and children.source
  • 1763Pontiac's War: Battle of Bushy Run – British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat Chief Pontiac's Indians at Bushy Run, in the Pennsylvania backcountry.source
  • 1763August 5–6 – Battle of Bushy Run (Pontiac's War) in Pennsylvania: 77th Regiment of Foot (Montgomerie's Highlanders) fight on the winning British side prior to disbandment. 78th Fraser Highlanders are also disbanded.source
  • 1763Pontiac's War: at the Battle of Bushy Run, British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat American Indians in the Pennsylvania backcountry.source
  • 1772The first Partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth begins. The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria becomes part of the crown lands of the Habsburg monarchy.source
  • 1776Romeo and Juliet is played for the first time in Sweden at Egges Theatre in Norrköping with Margareta Seuerling as Julia.source
  • 1796French Revolutionary Wars: Battle of Castiglione – The French Army of Italy under Napoleon defeats the Habsburg army (25,000 men) under Marshal Wurmser, who thus fails to break the Siege of Mantua (1796–97), and is forced to retreat north up the Adige Valley.source
  • 1806Captain William Bligh arrives in Sydney to take over the governorship.source
  • 1812War of 1812: Tecumseh's Indian force ambushes Thomas Van Horne's 200 Americans at Brownstone Creek, causing them to flee and retreat.source
  • 1822August 5–13 – A sequence of earthquakes occurs in the northern part of the Ottoman Empire, causing severe damage from Gaziantep to Antakya in modern Turkey and from Aleppo to Khan Sheikhun in modern Syria. At least 20,000 people are killed.source
  • 1823the Royal Hibernian Academy of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture is established by letters patent in Dublin.source
  • 1823The Royal Hibernian Academy is founded in Dublin.source
  • 1831Charles Darwin travels from Shrewsbury to Llangollen with his tutor, Rev Adam Sedgwick, to carry out geological studies. They remain in Wales for more than two weeks.source
  • 1831Edward Broughton, an English convict turned serial killer and bushranger is hanged after he escaped from Sarah Island in Macquarie Harbour with four other convicts and later confessed to murdering three of his companions and resorting to cannibalism.source
  • 1847The Ramilles arrives in Auckland with the first fencibles. They are initially housed at the Auckland Barracks.source
  • 1850Port Phillip (later called Victoria) established as a separate colony from New South Wales.source
  • 1858Cyrus West Field and others complete the first transatlantic telegraph cable, after several unsuccessful attempts. The service ends on September 1, due to weak current.source
  • 1859The passenger steamship SS Admella is shipwrecked on a submerged reef near Mount Gambier South Australia with the loss of 89 lives.source
  • 1860Charles XV of Sweden and Louise of the Netherlands was crowned King and Queen of Norway in Trondheim. Louise was the first queen to be crowned in Norway since the Middle Ages.source
  • 1861In order to help pay for the war effort, the United States government issues the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861 (3% of all incomes over US$800; rescinded in 1872).source
  • 1862Battle of Baton Rouge – Along the Mississippi River near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Confederate troops drive Union forces back into the city.source
  • 1882Standard Oil of New Jersey, the company later known as ExxonMobil, is established.source
  • 1882Standard Oil of New Jersey is established.source
  • 1884The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.source
  • 1888Bertha Benz arrives in Pforzheim having driven 40 mi from Mannheim in a car manufactured by her husband Carl Benz, thus completing the first "long-distance" drive in the history of the automobile.source
  • 1891The first American Express traveler's cheque is cashed.source
  • 1899Automotive mechanic Henry Ford incorporates the Detroit Automobile Company. While the company failed, it establishes Detroit, Michigan, as the site for U.S. car manufacturing and provided a model for the Ford Motor Company.source
  • 190018 people die in a boating tragedy on the Mōtū River.source
  • 1901Peter O'Connor sets the first International Association of Athletics Federations recognised long jump world record, of 24 ft 11¾ ins (7.61m). The record will stand for 20 years.source
  • 1914The guns of Point Nepean fort at Port Phillip Heads in Victoria (Australia) fire across the bows of the Norddeutscher Lloyd steamer SS Pfalz, which is attempting to leave the Port of Melbourne in ignorance of the declaration of war, and she is detained; this is said to be the first Allied shot of the war.source
  • 1914The first electric traffic light is installed between Euclid Avenue and East 105 Street, in Cleveland, Ohio.source
  • 1914German zeppelins drop bombs on Liège, Belgium, killing 9 civilians.source
  • 1915August 5–23 – Hurricane Two of the 1915 Atlantic hurricane season over Galveston and New Orleans leaves 275 dead.source
  • 1916Icelandic parliamentary election, August 1916source
  • 1916August 3–5 – WWI: Sinai and Palestine Campaign – Battle of Romani: British Imperial troops secure victory over a joint Ottoman-German force.source
  • 1920July 30–August 8 – The 1st World Scout Jamboree is held at Olympia, London.source
  • 1921The first radio baseball game is broadcast: Harold Arlin announces the Pirates-Phillies game from Forbes Field over Westinghouse KDKA in Pittsburgh.source
  • 1926In New York, the Warner Brothers' Vitaphone system is experienced by audiences for the first time, in the movie Don Juan, starring John Barrymore.source
  • 1928Portugal won a bronze medal in men's fencing, team épée, at the Summer Olympicssource
  • 1937The Soviet Union commences one of the largest campaigns of the Great Purge, to "eliminate anti-Soviet elements". Within the following year, at least 724,000 people are fired on order of the troikas, directed by Joseph Stalin. This is an offensive that targets social classes (such as the kulaks or nobles) and Stalin's personal opponents from the Communist Party and their sympathizers.source
  • 1940Camillien Houde, the mayor of Montreal, is arrested for sedition due to his anti-conscription rhetoricsource
  • 1942August 3–15 – WWII: Operation Pedestal – A British convoy of 14 merchant ships with a massive escort of two battleships, 4 aircraft carriers, 7 cruisers, 32 destroyers and smaller ships commanded by Admiral Edward Neville Syfret, sets sail to Malta under relentless attacks by day and night from enemy submarines, aircraft and Axis surface forces. The 55,000 tons of food and fuel (particularly from oil tanker SS Ohio) delivered by this convoy saves Malta from surrender and allows Malta-based aircraft and submarines to resume their attacks against Rommel's supply lines, although over 500 British sea- and airmen are killed and many ships (including carrier HMS Eagle (1918)) are lost.source
  • 1943United States Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) are formed, consolidating the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS) and Women Airforce Service Pilots (WFTD).source
  • 1943John F. Kennedy and crew are found by Solomon Islands coastwatchers Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, with their dugout canoe.source
  • 1943WWII: John F. Kennedy and crew are found by Solomon Islanders coastwatchers Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana with their dugout canoe.source
  • 1947The Netherlands ends Operation Product, the first of its major military Police Actions in Indonesia.source
  • 1948Alger Hiss appears before the HUAC, to deny the allegations of Whittaker Chambers.source
  • 1949In Ecuador, the 6.8 Ml Ambato earthquake kills more than 5,000, and destroys a number of villages.source
  • 19502 Squadron SAAF departs from South Africa to take part in the Korean War.source
  • 19501950 Fairfield-Suisun Boeing B-29 crash: A bomb-laden Boeing B-29 Superfortress crashes into a residential area in California, United States, killing 17 people and injuring 68.source
  • 1952The Treaty of Taipei between Japan and the Republic of China goes into effect, officially ending the Second Sino-Japanese War.source
  • 1953Operation Big Switch: Prisoners of war are repatriated to the United States after the Korean War.source
  • 1962Anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela is arrested by the South African government near Howick, and charged with incitement to rebellion. On November 7, he is sentenced to imprisonment.source
  • 1963The United States, United Kingdom and Soviet Union sign the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.source
  • 1964Vietnam War: Operation Pierce Arrow – Aircraft from carriers USS Ticonderoga and USS Constellation bomb North Vietnam in retaliation for strikes against U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin.source
  • 1964The Simba rebel army in the Democratic Republic of the Congo captures Stanleyville, and takes 1,000 Western hostages.source
  • 1966The Caesars Palace hotel and casino opens in Las Vegas, United States.source
  • 1966the Beatles releases the album Revolver, in the UK.source
  • 1967A man with schizophrenia, Victor Hoffman, kills nine near Shell Lake, Saskatchewansource
  • 1969Mariner program: Mariner 7 makes its closest fly-by of Mars (3,524 km).source
  • 1971The McDonnell Douglas DC-10 enters service with American Airlines.source
  • 1973Mars 6, also known as 3MP No. 50P, is launched by the Soviet Union to explore Mars.source
  • 1976The clock of "Big Ben" at the Palace of Westminster in London suffers internal damage and requires frequent repairs. The clock is stopped at times on 26 of the next 275 days.source
  • 1977Gunvor Galtung Haavik, interpreter charged with espionage (b.1912)source
  • 1979The Polisario Front signs a peace treaty with Mauritania. Mauritania withdraws from the Western Sahara territory it had occupied, and cedes it to the SADR.source
  • 1980July 31–August 11: Hurricane Allen.source
  • 1981August 3–6. Negotiations between the government and Solidarity in Warsaw. Food supply situation, economic reform and trade unions bills are discussed. The negotiations end in a fiasco; the government accuses Solidarity of terminating the talks.source
  • 1988The 1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis culminates in the ousting of the Lord President of Malaysia, Salleh Abas.source
  • 1989Park Avenue Joe is finally declared the winner after finishing in a dead heat with Probe in the Hambletonian Stakes for parimutuel and prize money purposes, based on the two heat and runoff format, based on average finish.source
  • 1993The discovery of the Tel Dan Stele, the first archaeological confirmation of the existence of the Davidic line, announced.source
  • 1993An MRT collision takes place at Clementi station during the morning rush hour, resulting in 156 injuries.source
  • 1994Maleconazo: Groups of protesters spread from Havana, Cuba's Castillo de la Punta ("Point Castle"), creating the first protests against Fidel Castro's government since 1959.source
  • 1994Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay decide in Buenos Aires to create a free trade zone between MERCOSUR and Bolivia.source
  • 1997August 3–11 – Two of the three islands of the Union of the Comoros – Anjouan and Mohéli – attempt to revert to colonial rule by France. The plan fails when the French government of President Jacques Chirac refuses to recolonize them, resulting in the two islands being reintegrated into the Comoros over the next two years.source
  • 1998August 5 Korean Air Flight 8702source
  • 2003A car bomb exploded at the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta, Indonesia, killing 12 people and injuring 150.source
  • 2004Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport begins operation in Guangzhou, China.source
  • 2011NASA announces that its Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has captured photographic evidence of possible liquid water on Mars during warm seasons.source
  • 2011Juno, the first solar-powered spacecraft on a mission to Jupiter, is launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.source
  • 2012At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, In athletics, sprinter Usain Bolt of Jamaica wins the 100 metres final.source
  • 2015Debris found on Réunion Island is confirmed to be that of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, missing since March 2014.source
  • 2016August 5–21 – The 2016 Summer Olympics are held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the first time in South America.source
  • 2017Mauritania holds a constitutional referendum for approval of proposed amendments to the constitution.source
  • 2017Mauritanians vote on the constitutional referendum to abolish the Senate and add red bands to the flag. Criticism of President Aziz's attempts at suppressing opposition also arises.source
  • 2017The UN Security Council unanimously approves fresh sanctions on North Korean trade and investment.source
  • 2018A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the island of Lombok, Indonesia, killing 563 people and injuring more than a thousand people.source
  • 20192019–20 Hong Kong protests: Amid ongoing protests, Hong Kong is hit by the first general strikes of their kind since 1967.source
  • 2020U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar travels to Taiwan, the highest U.S. official visit to the country in 40 years. The PRC condemns the visit.source
  • 2021Tigray War: The Tigray Defense Forces seize the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Lalibela.source
  • 2022August 5 – August 7 – Israel launches airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, killing Islamic Jihad military leader Tayseer Jabari. Both parties agree to a ceasefire after three days of skirmish.source
  • 2022July 28–August 8 – The 2022 Commonwealth Games is held in Birmingham, England.source
  • 2022July 29 – August 8: Guyana at the 2022 Commonwealth Gamessource
  • 2024Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina announces her resignation and flees to India following nationwide protests.source
  • 2025The Trump administration dismisses all five Democratic members of the seven-person Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico, including chairman Arthur Gonzalez, citing inefficiency.source

Births

  • 1103William Adelin, duke of Normandy (died 1120)source
  • 1262Ladisslaus IV ("the Cuman"), king of Hungary (died 1290)source
  • 1301Edmund of Woodstock, English nobleman and prince (died 1330)source
  • 1418Malatesta Novello, Italian condottiero (died 1465)source
  • 1461Alexander Jagiellon, King of Poland (died 1506)source
  • 1490Andrey of Staritsa, son of Ivan III "the Great" of Russia (died 1537)source
  • 1540Joseph Justus Scaliger, French Protestant scholar (died 1609)source
  • 1540Joseph Justus Scaliger, French-Italian religious leader and scholar. (d.1609)source
  • 1578Charles d'Albert, duc de Luynes, first duke of Chaulnes (died 1621)source
  • 1581Hedwig of Denmark, Danish princess (died 1641)source
  • 1594Stefano Durazzo, Italian cardinal (died 1667)source
  • 1607Antonio Barberini, Italian Catholic cardinal (died 1671)source
  • 1623August 5 (baptism) – Antonio Cesti, Italian composer (died 1669)source
  • 1626Richard Ottley, English politician (died 1670)source
  • 1648Guichard Joseph Duverney, French anatomist (died 1730)source
  • 1648Guichard Joseph Duverney, anatomist (died 1730)source
  • 1681Vitus Bering, Danish-born Russian explorer (died 1741)source
  • 1681Vitus Bering, explorer (died 1741 in Imperial Russia)source
  • 1704William Allen, wealthy merchant (died 1780)source
  • 1737Johann Friedrich Struensee, Danish royal physician (died 1772)source
  • 1763Bill Richmond, American-born British boxer (died 1829)source
  • 1802Niels Henrik Abel, Norwegian mathematician (died 1829)source
  • 1815Edward John Eyre, English explorer, colonial governor (died 1901)source
  • 18155 August (in England): Edward John Eyre, provincial governor.source
  • 1823Eliza Tibbets, mother of the California orange industry (died 1898)source
  • 1827Deodoro da Fonseca, 1st President of Brazil (died 1892)source
  • 1827Deodoro da Fonseca, first President of Brazil and military officer (died 1892)source
  • 1862Joseph Merrick (the Elephant Man), English sufferer from deformities (died 1890)source
  • 1872Oswaldo Cruz; bacteriologist, epidemiologist, and public health official (died 1917)source
  • 1906John Huston, American film director, screenwriter, and actor (died 1987)source
  • 1908Harold Holt, 17th Prime Minister of Australia (died 1967)source
  • 1930Neil Armstrong, American astronaut, first human to set foot on the Moon, commander of Apollo 11 (died 2012)source
  • 1952Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodiasource
  • 1974Kajol, Indian actresssource

Deaths

  • 350Cassian of Autun Roman Catholic bishop and saint;source
  • 362Eusignius of Antioch, Byzantine Orthodox bishop and martyr (born 252)source
  • 553Xiao Ji, prince of the Liang dynasty (born 508)source
  • 642August 5 or 641 – Oswald, king of Northumbriasource
  • 824Heizei, emperor of Japan (born 773)source
  • 877Ubayd Allah ibn Yahya ibn Khaqan, Abbasid viziersource
  • 882King Carloman II becomes sole ruler of the West Frankish Kingdom, after the accidental death of his brother, Louis III. His power is limited by rebellious nobles in Burgundy.source
  • 882Louis III, king of the West Frankish Kingdomsource
  • 890Ranulf II, duke of Aquitaine (born 850)source
  • 910Eowils and Halfdan, kings of Northumbriasource
  • 917Euthymius I, patriarch of Constantinoplesource
  • 940Li Decheng, Chinese general (born 863)source
  • 1063Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, king of Gwyneddsource
  • 1079Hezilo (or Hettilo), bishop of Hildesheimsource
  • 1191Rudolf of Zähringen, archbishop of Mainzsource
  • 1364Emperor Kōgon of Japan (born 1313)source
  • 1415Richard of Conisburgh, 3rd Earl of Cambridge (executed) (born 1375)source
  • 1415Henry Scrope, 3rd Baron Scrope of Masham (executed) (born 1370)source
  • 1447John Holland, 2nd Duke of Exeter, English nobleman and military commander (born 1395)source
  • 1503Reginald Bray, British courtier (born 1440)source
  • 1579Stanislaus Hosius, Polish Catholic cardinal (born 1504)source
  • 1585August 5 or August 6 – Yermak Timofeyevich, Cossack leader and explorer of Siberiasource
  • 1600John Ruthven, 3rd Earl of Gowrie, Scottish conspirator (born 1577)source
  • 1600The brothers Alexander Ruthven and John Ruthven, 3rd Earl of Gowrie, are killed during a failed attempt to kidnap or murder King James VI of Scotland at their home.source
  • 1600the Gowrie House affair, a plot to kidnap James VI in Perth, in which Robert Logan of Restalrig is implicated, devised by John Ruthven, 3rd Earl of Gowrie (who dies in the attempt, together with his brother Alexander Ruthven)source
  • 1633George Abbot, Archbishop of Canterbury (born 1562)source
  • 1638Peter Minuit (born 1580/85), governor of New Netherlandsource
  • 1658Gundakar, Prince of Liechtenstein, court official in Vienna (born 1580)source
  • 1716Battle of Petrovaradin: 83,300 Austrian troops of Prince Eugene of Savoy defeat 150,000 Ottoman Turks under Silahdar Damat Ali Pasha (who is killed).source
  • 1720Anne Finch, Countess of Winchilsea, English poet (born 1661)source
  • 1729Thomas Newcomen, English inventor (born 1663)source
  • 1743John Hervey, 2nd Baron Hervey, English statesman and writer (born 1696)source
  • 1756Sir George Wynne, 1st Baronet, landowner and politician, 56source
  • 1792Frederick North, Lord North, Prime Minister of Great Britain (born 1732)source
  • 1799Richard Howe, British admiral (born 1726)source
  • 1807Jeanne Baret French explorer, naturalist, botanist (born 1740)source
  • 1846Dorothy Thomas, Caribbean entrepreneur and former slave (born 1756)source
  • 1888Philip Sheridan, American general (born 1831)source
  • 1895Friedrich Engels, German communist philosopher (born 1820)source
  • 1901Victoria, Princess Royal (born 1840)source
  • 1952Sameera Moussa, the first female Egyptian nuclear physicistsource
  • 1955Carmen Miranda, Portuguese-born Brazilian singer and actress (born 1909)source
  • 1962Death of Marilyn Monroe: Actress Marilyn Monroe is found dead aged 36 from an overdose of sleeping pills and chloral hydrate at her home in Brentwood, Los Angeles; it is officially ruled a "probable suicide" (the exact cause has been disputed).source
  • 1973Black September members open fire at the Athens airport; 3 people are killed, 55 injured.source
  • 1984Richard Burton, 58, Welsh actor, intracerebral haemorrhagesource
  • 1992Robert Muldoon, 70, New Zealand politician, prime minister (1975–1984).source
  • 1998Todor Zhivkov, 86, Bulgarian politician, president of Bulgaria, pneumonia.source