Anniversaries

1st August 1714 (295 Years)

Richard Wilson, the Welsh artist considered by many to be the father of British landscape painting, is born.

1st August 1833 (176 Years)

The Slavery Abolition Act was passed by the British Parliament.

1st August 1840 (169 Years)

Labourer slaves in most of the British Empire are emancipated.

1st August 1870 (139 Years)

Tower Subway, the world’s first underground tube railway opened in London.

1st August 1927 (82 Years)

Chinese Civil War starts, fought between forces loyal to the government of the Republic of China, and forces loyal to the Communist Party of China.

1st August 1936 (73 Years)

Yves Saint Laurent, French fashion designer who impacted fashion from the 1960s to the present day, is born.

1st August 1936 (73 Years)

The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was officially opened in Berlin by the Chancellor and Führer Adolf Hitler.

1st August 1987 (22 Years)

Pola Negri, Polish stage and film actress who achieved worldwide fame during the silent and golden eras of Hollywood and European film for her femme fatale roles, died.

1st August 1987 (22 Years)

Pola Negri, Polish stage and film actress who achieved worldwide fame during the silent and golden eras of Hollywood and European film for her femme fatale roles, died.

2nd August 1667 (342 Years)

Francesco Borromini, Italian architect born in today's Ticino (CH) and a leading figure in the emergence of Roman Baroque architecture, died.

2nd August 1788 (221 Years)

Thomas Gainsborough, English portrait and landscape painter, died.

2nd August 1922 (87 Years)

Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish-born scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who patented the first practical telephone. died.

2nd August 1923 (86 Years)

Warren G. Harding, 29th President of the United States, died.

2nd August 1932 (77 Years)

Peter O'Toole, Irish-English actor, singer, and producer, was born.

2nd August 1934 (75 Years)

Paul von Hindenburg, the former President of Germany, died.

2nd August 1964 (45 Years)

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident, causing President Johnson to escalate war in Vietnam.

2nd August 1964 (45 Years)

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident, causing President Johnson to escalate war in Vietnam.

2nd August 1976 (33 Years)

Fritz Lang, Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor, dies.

3rd August 1881 (128 Years)

William Fargo, American businessman and politician, co-founded Wells Fargo and American Express, died.

Second Barons' War: Battle of Evesham - the army of Prince Edward (the future king Edward I of England) defeats the forces of rebellious barons led by Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, killing de Montfort and many of his allies.

4th August 1693 (316 Years)

Dom Perignon invented champagne.

4th August 1932 (77 Years)

Alfred Henry Maurer, American painter, died.

5th August 1930 (79 Years)

Neil Armstrong, the first man to step foot on the Moon, is born.

5th August 1951 (58 Years)

Red Hill Jr.'s fatal attempt to 'barrel ride' the Niagara falls using “The Thing”.

5th August 1962 (47 Years)

Marilyn Monroe, American actress and model, famous for playing comic "dumb blonde" characters, died.

5th August 1963 (46 Years)

The United States, United Kingdom and Soviet Union sign a nuclear test ban.

6th August 1766 (243 Years)

William Hyde Wollaston, English chemist and physicist famous for discovering palladium and rhodium, is born.

6th August 1809 (200 Years)

Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, one of the most popular British poets, was born.

6th August 1881 (128 Years)

Sir Alexander Fleming, Scottish biologist, pharmacologist and botanist, best-known for discovery Penicillin, was born.