What happened today in history
August
What happened on August 26
On August 26 history recorded 52 notable events. 160 people who left a mark were born on this day, and 107 died. Here is the full almanac.
- 52events
- 160births
- 107deaths
- 15observances
Highlights
Highlights
683Second Fitna: The Battle of al-Harra was fought between Umayyad forces and the rebel defenders of Medina at a lava field northeast of the city.
The Second Fitna was the second civil war in the Islamic community during the early Umayyad Caliphate. It followed the death of the first Umayyad caliph Mu'awiya I in 680 and lasted for about twelve years. The war involved three main challenges to the authorit
1071Byzantine–Seljuk wars: Seljuk Turks led by Alp Arslan captured Byzantine emperor Romanos IV at the Battle of Manzikert, marking a decline in Byzantine fortunes.
The Byzantine–Seljuk wars were a series of conflicts in the Middle Ages between the Byzantine Empire and the Seljuk Empire. They shifted the balance of power in Asia Minor, Armenia and Syria, sparking multiple wars for control over these regions, including the
1346Hundred Years' War: At the Battle of Crécy, English forces established the military supremacy of English longbows over the French combination of crossbows and armoured knights.
The Hundred Years' War was a series of conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France and a civil war in France during the late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy of Aquitaine and was triggered by a claim to the French throne mad
August 26
On this day
VII century
- 683
683The Battle of al-Harrah concludes, with Yazid I's army killing 11,000 people of the city of Medina.
XI century
XIII century
XIV century
XV century
XVI century
XVII century
- 1642
1642Dutch–Portuguese War: Second Battle of San Salvador: The Dutch force the Spanish garrison at San Salvador (modern day Keelung, Taiwan) to surrender, ending the short-lived Spanish colony on Formosa and replacing it with a new Dutch administration. - 1648
1648The Fronde: First Fronde: In the wake of the successful Battle of Lens, Cardinal Mazarin, Chief Minister of France, suddenly orders the arrest of the leaders of the Parlement of Paris, provoking the rest of Paris to break into insurrection and barricade the streets the next day.
XVIII century
- 1748
1748The first Lutheran denomination in North America, the Pennsylvania Ministerium, is founded in Philadelphia. - 1767
1767Jesuits all over Chile are arrested as the Spanish Empire suppresses the Society of Jesus. - 1768
1768Captain James Cook sets sail from England on board HMS Endeavour, starting his first voyage of discovery. - 1778
1778The first recorded ascent of Triglav, the highest mountain in Slovenia. - 1789
1789The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is approved by the National Constituent Assembly of France. - 1791
1791John Fitch is granted a United States patent for the steamboat.
XIX century
- 1810
1810The former viceroy Santiago de Liniers of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata is executed after the defeat of his counter-revolution. - 1813
1813War of the Sixth Coalition: An impromptu battle takes place when French and Prussian-Russian forces accidentally run into each other near Liegnitz, Prussia (now Legnica, Poland). - 1814
1814Chilean War of Independence: Infighting between the rebel forces of José Miguel Carrera and Bernardo O'Higgins erupts in the Battle of Las Tres Acequias. - 1833
1833The great 1833 Kathmandu–Bihar earthquake causes major damage in Nepal, northern India and Tibet, killing a total of 500 people. - 1849
1849President Faustin Soulouque of the First Republic of Haiti has the Senate and Chamber of Deputies proclaim him the Emperor of Haiti, abolishing the Republic and inaugurating the Second Empire of Haiti. - 1863
1863The Swedish-language liberal newspaper Helsingfors Dagblad proposes the current blue-and-white cross flag as the flag of Finland. - 1883
1883The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa begins its final, paroxysmal, stage.
XX century
- 1914
1914World War I: The German colony of Togoland surrenders to French and British forces after a 20-day campaign. Togoland is the first German colony to fall to Allied hands in World War I. - 1914
1914World War I: During the retreat from Mons, the British II Corps commanded by General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien fights a vigorous and successful defensive action at Le Cateau. - 1920
1920The 19th amendment to United States Constitution, giving women the right to vote, is certified. - 1922
1922Greco-Turkish War (1919–22): Turkish army launched what has come to be known to the Turks as the Great Offensive (Büyük Taarruz). The major Greek defense positions were overrun. - 1936
1936Spanish Civil War: Santander falls to the Nationalists and the Republican Interprovincial Council is dissolved. - 1940
1940World War II: Chad becomes the first French colony to join the Allies under the administration of Félix Éboué, France's first black colonial governor. - 1942
1942The Holocaust in Ukraine: At Chortkiv, the Ukrainian police and German Schutzpolizei deport two thousand Jews to Bełżec extermination camp. Five hundred of the sick and children are murdered on the spot. This continued until the next day. - 1944
1944World War II: Charles de Gaulle enters Paris. - 1966
1966The South African Border War starts with the battle at Omugulugwombashe. - 1969
1969Aeroflot Flight 1770 crashes while landing at Vnukovo International Airport, killing 16. - 1970
1970The fiftieth anniversary of American women being able to vote is marked by a nationwide Women's Strike for Equality. - 1972
1972The Games of the XX Olympiad open in Munich, West Germany. - 1977
1977The Charter of the French Language is adopted by the National Assembly of Quebec. - 1978
1978Papal conclave: Albino Luciani is elected as Pope John Paul I. - 1980
1980After John Birges plants a bomb at Harvey's Resort Hotel in Stateline, Nevada, in the United States, the FBI inadvertently detonates the bomb during its disarming. - 1981
1981Aeropesca Flight 221 crashes in Colombia's Huila Department, killing all 50 people on board. - 1993
1993Sakha Avia Flight 301 crashes on approach to Aldan Airport, killing all 24 aboard. - 1997
1997Beni Ali massacre occurs in Algeria, leaving 60 to 100 people dead. - 1998
1998The first flight of the Boeing Delta III ends in disaster 75 seconds after liftoff, resulting in the loss of the Galaxy X communications satellite. - 1999
1999Russia begins the Second Chechen War in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade.
XXI century
- 2003
2003A Beechcraft 1900 operating as Colgan Air Flight 9446 crashes after taking off from Barnstable Municipal Airport in Yarmouth, Massachusetts, killing both pilots on board. - 2009
2009Kidnapping victim Jaycee Dugard is discovered alive in California after being missing for over 18 years. Her captors, Phillip and Nancy Garrido, are apprehended. - 2011
2011The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Boeing's all-new composite airliner, receives certification from the EASA and the FAA. - 2014
2014The Jay Report into the Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal is published. - 2015
2015Two U.S. journalists are shot and killed by a disgruntled former coworker while conducting a live report in Moneta, Virginia. - 2018
2018Three people are killed and eleven wounded during a mass shooting at a Madden NFL '19 video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida. - 2021
2021During the 2021 Kabul airlift, a suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport kills 13 US military personnel and at least 169 Afghan civilians. - 2023
2023Exactly five years after the 2018 Jacksonville Landing shooting, there is another shooting in Jacksonville, Florida, leaving three people dead. - 2026
2026A series of large flash floods and debris flows along the Nepal–Tibet border and the Trishuli River, believed to have been caused by glacier collapse, stuck and destroyed numerous settlements, including the Gyirong checkpoint, and killed over 1,400 people, with over 5,800 reported missing.
Best known
Born on August 26
Best known
Died on August 26
Holidays and observances
- Christian feast day: Alexander of Bergamo (Roman Catholic Church)
- Christian feast day: Blessed Ceferino Namuncurá
- Christian feast day: Jeanne-Elisabeth Bichier des Ages
- Christian feast day: Blessed John Paul I
- Christian feast day: Blessed Lavrentia Herasymiv
- Christian feast day: Mariam Baouardy (Melkite Greek Catholic Church)
- Christian feast day: Melchizedek
- Christian feast day: Our Lady of Częstochowa
- Christian feast day: Simplicius, Constantius and Victorinus
- Christian feast day: Teresa Jornet Ibars
- Christian feast day: August 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Heroes' Day (Namibia)
- International Dog Day, an observance promoting dog adoption and animal welfare (2004).
- Repentance Day (Papua New Guinea)
Frequently asked questions
What happened on August 26?
52 documented historical events happened on August 26, from antiquity to the present day. The best known is this: Second Fitna: The Battle of al-Harra was fought between Umayyad forces and the rebel defenders of Medina at a lava field northeast of the city. On the same day, in another year: Byzantine–Seljuk wars: Seljuk Turks led by Alp Arslan captured Byzantine emperor Romanos IV at the Battle of Manzikert, marking a decline in Byzantine fortunes. On Almanaccolo every event is listed in chronological order, grouped by century, and links to the Wikipedia article it comes from, so you can always read further or check the source. Alongside the events you find who was born and who died on this date, and which observances are celebrated around the world.
Who was born on August 26?
160 people with a Wikipedia article were born on August 26, including Eleanor Dark, Caroline Pafford Miller, Christopher Isherwood. The list spans every era and every field — art, science, politics, sport, entertainment — ordered by year of birth, from the earliest to the most recent. The six featured people are those most has been written about: the ordering uses the length of their Wikipedia article as an indicator of prominence. For each one you find their occupation, year of birth and a link to the full biography.
Who died on August 26?
107 people with a Wikipedia article died on August 26, including AD 787, Emperor Kōkō, Ottokar II of Bohemia. The list is in chronological order by year of death and spans all of documented history, from antiquity to the present day. For each person you find their occupation, the year and a link to the Wikipedia biography, where the full story and its sources can be read.
What is celebrated on August 26?
15 observances are celebrated on August 26 around the world: Christian feast day: Alexander of Bergamo (Roman Catholic Church), Christian feast day: Blessed Ceferino Namuncurá, Christian feast day: Jeanne-Elisabeth Bichier des Ages, Christian feast day: Blessed John Paul I, Christian feast day: Blessed Lavrentia Herasymiv, Christian feast day: Mariam Baouardy (Melkite Greek Catholic Church). The list gathers national holidays, international days and religious or civil observances falling on this date in different countries, as recorded on Wikipedia. Some are fixed and recur on the same day every year; others depend on the local calendar. Each links to the article explaining its origin and meaning.
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Source: Wikipedia · Calendar