August 31 in History

Historical Events on August 31

1056

After a sudden illness a few days previously, Byzantine Empress Theodora dies childless, thus ending the Macedonian dynasty.
1057

Abdication of Byzantine Emperor Michael VI Bringas after just one year.
1218

Al-Kamil becomes sultan of the Ayyubid dynasty.
1314

King Haakon V of Norway moves the capital from Bergen to Oslo.
1422

King Henry V of England dies of dysentery while in France. His son, Henry VI becomes King of England at the age of 9 months.
1776

William Livingston, the first Governor of New Jersey, begins serving his first term.
1795

War of the First Coalition: The British capture Trincomalee (present-day Sri Lanka) from the Dutch in order to keep it out of French hands.
1798

Irish Rebellion of 1798: Irish rebels, with French assistance, establish the short-lived Republic of Connacht.
1813

At the final stage of the Peninsular War, British-Portuguese troops capture the town of Donostia (now San Sebastián), resulting in a rampage and eventual destruction of the town. Elsewhere, Spanish troops repel a French attack in the Battle of San Marcial.
1864

During the American Civil War, Union forces led by General William T. Sherman launch an assault on Atlanta.
1876

Ottoman Sultan Murad V is deposed and succeeded by his brother Abdul Hamid II.
1886

The 7.0 Mw Charleston earthquake affects southeastern South Carolina with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme); 60 people killed with damage estimated at $5-6 million.
1888

Mary Ann Nichols is murdered. She is the first of Jack the Ripper's confirmed victims.
1895

German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin patents his navigable balloon.
1897

Thomas Edison patents the Kinetoscope, the first movie projector.
1907

Count Alexander Izvolsky and Sir Arthur Nicolson sign the St. Petersburg Convention, which results in the Triple Entente alliance.
1918

World War I: Start of the Battle of Mont Saint-Quentin, a successful assault by the Australian Corps during the Hundred Days Offensive.
1920

Polish-Soviet War: A decisive Polish victory in the Battle of Komarów.
1920

The first radio news program is broadcast by 8MK in Detroit.
1935

In an attempt to stay out of the growing turmoil in Europe, the United States passes the first of its Neutrality Acts.
1936

Radio Prague, now the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic, goes on the air.
1939

Nazi Germany mounts a false flag attack on the Gleiwitz radio station, creating an excuse to attack Poland the following day, thus starting World War II in Europe.
1940

Pennsylvania Central Airlines Trip 19 crashes near Lovettsville, Virginia. The CAB investigation of the accident is the first investigation to be conducted under the Bureau of Air Commerce act of 1938.
1941

World War II: Serbian paramilitary forces defeat Germans in the Battle of Loznica.
1943

USS Harmon, the first U.S. Navy ship to be named after a black person, is commissioned.
1949

The retreat of the Democratic Army of Greece in Albania after its defeat on Gramos mountain marks the end of the Greek Civil War.
1957

The Federation of Malaya (now Malaysia) gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1958

A parcel bomb sent by Ngô Đình Nhu, younger brother and chief adviser of South Vietnamese President Ngô Đình Diệm, fails to kill King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia.
1962

Trinidad and Tobago becomes independent.
1963

Crown Colony of North Borneo (now Sabah) achieves self governance.
1986

Aeroméxico Flight 498 collides with a Piper PA-28 Cherokee over Cerritos, California, killing 67 in the air and 15 on the ground.
1986

The Soviet passenger liner Admiral Nakhimov sinks in the Black Sea after colliding with the bulk carrier Pyotr Vasev, killing 423.
1987

Thai Airways Flight 365 crashes into the ocean near Ko Phuket, Thailand, killing all 83 aboard.
1991

Kyrgyzstan declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
1993

Russia completes removing its troops from Lithuania.
1996

Saddam Hussein's troops seized Irbil after the Kurdish Masoud Barzani appealed for help to defeat his Kurdish rival PUK.
1997

Diana, Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul die in a car crash in Paris.
1999

The first of a series of bombings in Moscow kills one person and wounds 40 others.
1999

A LAPA Boeing 737-200 crashes during takeoff from Jorge Newbury Airport in Buenos Aires, killing 65, including two on the ground.
2005

The 2005 Al-Aaimmah bridge stampede in Baghdad kills 953 people.
2006

Edvard Munch's famous painting The Scream, stolen on August 22, 2004, is recovered in a raid by Norwegian police.
2016

Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff is impeached and removed from office.

August 31 Birthdays

August 31 Deaths

Choose Another Date