What happened today in history
August
What happened on August 5
On August 5 history recorded 78 notable events. 160 people who left a mark were born on this day, and 116 died. Here is the full almanac.
- 78events
- 160births
- 116deaths
- 14observances
Highlights
Highlights
25Liu Xiu (pictured) proclaimed himself the monarch of the Han dynasty as Emperor Guangwu.
The 20s decade ran from January 1, AD 20, to December 31, AD 29.
1100Henry I was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey.
Henry I, also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henry's elder brothers Robert Curthose and Wi
1460The Kingdom of Scotland captures Roxburgh, one of the last English strongholds in Scotland, following a siege.
The capture of Roxburgh was a siege that took place during the Anglo-Scottish Wars. Following the Second War of Scottish Independence intermittent conflict continued along the Anglo-Scottish border with Roxburgh Castle being held by the English since 1346 and
August 5
On this day
I century
- 25
25Guangwu claims the throne as Emperor of China, restoring the Han dynasty after the collapse of the short-lived Xin dynasty. - 70
70Fires resulting from the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem are extinguished.
VII century
X century
- 910
910The last major Danish army to raid England for nearly a century is defeated at the Battle of Tettenhall by the allied forces of Mercia and Wessex, led by King Edward the Elder and Æthelred, Lord of the Mercians. - 939
939The Battle of Alhandic is fought between Ramiro II of León and Abd-ar-Rahman III at Zamora in the context of the Spanish Reconquista. The battle resulted in a victory for the Emirate of Córdoba. - 974
974Abbasid Caliph al-Muti' is forced to abdicate by his Turkic general Sabuktakin and succeeded by his son al-Ta'i'.
XI century
XII century
XIII century
XIV century
- 1305
1305First Scottish War of Independence: Sir John Stewart of Menteith, the pro-English Sheriff of Dumbarton, successfully manages to capture Sir William Wallace of Scotland, leading to Wallace's subsequent execution by hanging, evisceration, drawing and quartering, and beheading 18 days later. - 1388
1388The Battle of Otterburn, a border skirmish between the Scottish and the English in Northern England, is fought near Otterburn.
XV century
XVI century
- 1506
1506The Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Crimean Khanate in the Battle of Kletsk. - 1583
1583Sir Humphrey Gilbert establishes the first English colony in North America, at what is now St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. - 1600
1600The Gowrie Conspiracy against King James VI of Scotland (later to become King James I of England) takes place at Gowrie House (Perth, Scotland).
XVII century
XVIII century
- 1716
1716Austro-Turkish War (1716–1718):The Austrians defeat the Ottomans in the Battle of Petrovaradin. One-fifth of a Turkish army and the Grand Vizier are killed. - 1735
1735Freedom of the press: New York Weekly Journal writer John Peter Zenger is acquitted of seditious libel against the royal governor of New York, on the basis that what he had published was true. - 1763
1763Pontiac's War: Battle of Bushy Run: British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat Chief Pontiac's Indians at Bushy Run. - 1766
1766An earthquake in the Sea of Marmara and Gallipoli (present-day Turkey) along the North Anatolian Fault kills at least 5,000 people. - 1772
1772First Partition of Poland: The representatives of Austria, Prussia, and Russia sign three bilateral conventions condemning the "anarchy" of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and imputing to the three powers "ancient and legitimate rights" to the territories of the Commonwealth. The conventions allow each of the three great powers to annex a part of the Commonwealth, which they proceed to do over the course of the following two months. - 1781
1781British and Dutch ships engage in the second Battle of Dogger Bank. - 1796
1796The Battle of Castiglione in Napoleon's first Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars results in a French victory.
XIX century
- 1816
1816The British Admiralty dismisses Francis Ronalds's new invention of the first working electric telegraph as "wholly unnecessary", preferring to continue using the semaphore. - 1824
1824Greek War of Independence: Konstantinos Kanaris leads a Greek fleet to victory against Ottoman and Egyptian naval forces in the Battle of Samos. - 1858
1858Cyrus West Field and others complete the first transatlantic telegraph cable after several unsuccessful attempts. It will operate for less than a month. - 1860
1860Charles XV of Sweden–Norway is crowned king of Norway in Trondheim. - 1861
1861American Civil War: In order to help pay for the war effort, the United States government levies the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861 (3% of all incomes over US$800; rescinded in 1872). - 1861
1861The United States Army abolishes flogging. - 1862
1862American Civil War: Battle of Baton Rouge: Along the Mississippi River near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Confederate troops attempt to take the city, but are driven back by fire from Union gunboats. - 1864
1864American Civil War: The Battle of Mobile Bay begins at Mobile Bay near Mobile, Alabama, Admiral David Farragut leads a Union flotilla through Confederate defenses and seals one of the last major Southern ports. - 1874
1874Japan launches its postal savings system, modeled after a similar system in the United Kingdom. - 1882
1882Standard Oil Company of New Jersey, today known as ExxonMobil, is established officially. The company would later grow to become the holder of all Standard Oil companies and the entity at the center of the breakup of Standard Oil. - 1884
1884The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloe's Island (now Liberty Island) in New York Harbor. - 1888
1888Bertha Benz drives from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back in the first long distance automobile trip, commemorated as the Bertha Benz Memorial Route since 2008.
XX century
- 1901
1901Peter O'Connor sets the first World Athletics recognised long jump world record of 24 ft 11.75 in (7.6137 m), a record that would stand for 20 years. - 1906
1906Persian Constitutional Revolution: Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar, King of Iran, agrees to convert the government to a constitutional monarchy. - 1914
1914World War I: The German minelayer SS Königin Luise lays a minefield about 40 miles (64 km) off the Thames Estuary (Lowestoft). She is intercepted and sunk by the British light-cruiser HMS Amphion. - 1914
1914World War I: The 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. - 1914
1914In Cleveland, Ohio, the first electric traffic light is installed. - 1916
1916World War I: Battle of Romani: Allied forces, under the command of Archibald Murray, defeat an attacking Ottoman army under the command of Friedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein, securing the Suez Canal and beginning the Ottoman retreat from the Sinai Peninsula. - 1925
1925Plaid Cymru is formed with the aim of disseminating knowledge of the Welsh language that is at the time in danger of dying out. - 1926
1926Harry Houdini performs his greatest feat, spending 91 minutes underwater in a sealed tank before escaping. - 1931
1931Judge and Nazi Party member Werner Best drafts the Boxheim Documents, which described a violent takeover of the government by the NSDAP. - 1939
1939The Thirteen Roses: Thirteen female members of the Unified Socialist Youth are executed by Francoist forces in Madrid, Spain. - 1940
1940World War II: The Soviet Union formally annexes Latvia. - 1944
1944World War II: At least 1,104 Japanese POWs in Australia attempt to escape from a camp at Cowra, New South Wales; 545 temporarily succeed but are later either killed, commit suicide, or are recaptured. - 1944
1944World War II: Polish insurgents liberate a German labor camp (Gęsiówka) in Warsaw, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners. - 1944
1944World War II: The Nazis begin a week-long massacre of between 40,000 and 50,000 civilians and prisoners of war in Wola, Poland. - 1949
1949In Ecuador, an earthquake destroys 50 towns and kills more than 6,000. - 1949
1949In Montana, 12 smokejumper firefighters and a US Forest Service fire guard are killed in the Mann Gulch Fire. - 1957
1957American Bandstand, a show dedicated to the teenage "baby-boomers" by playing the songs and showing popular dances of the time, debuts on the ABC television network. - 1960
1960Burkina Faso, then known as Upper Volta, becomes independent from France. - 1962
1962Apartheid: Nelson Mandela is jailed. He would not be released until 1990. - 1962
1962American actress Marilyn Monroe is found dead at her home from a drug overdose. - 1963
1963Cold War: The United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union sign the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. - 1964
1964Vietnam War: Operation Pierce Arrow: American aircraft from carriers USS Ticonderoga and USS Constellation bomb North Vietnam in retaliation for strikes against U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin. - 1965
1965The Indo-Pakistani war of 1965 begins as Pakistani soldiers cross the Line of Control dressed as locals. - 1966
1966A group of red guards at Experimental High in Beijing, including Deng Rong and Liu Pingping, daughters of Deng Xiaoping and Liu Shaoqi respectively, beat the deputy vice principal, Bian Zhongyun, to death with sticks after accusing her of counter-revolutionary revisionism, producing one of the first fatalities of the Cultural Revolution. - 1969
1969The Lonesome Cowboys police raid occurs in Atlanta, Georgia, leading to the creation of the Georgia Gay Liberation Front. - 1971
1971The first Pacific Islands Forum (then known as the "South Pacific Forum") is held in Wellington, New Zealand, with the aim of enhancing cooperation between the independent countries of the Pacific Ocean. - 1973
1973Mars 6 is launched from the USSR. - 1974
1974Watergate scandal: President Richard Nixon, under orders of the US Supreme Court, releases the "Smoking Gun" tape, recorded on June 23, 1972, clearly revealing his actions in covering up and interfering investigations into the break-in. His political support vanishes completely. - 1979
1979In Afghanistan, Maoists undertake the Bala Hissar uprising against the Leninist government. - 1981
1981President Ronald Reagan fires 11,359 striking air-traffic controllers who ignored his order for them to return to work. - 1984
1984A Biman Bangladesh Airlines Fokker F27 Friendship crashes on approach to Zia International Airport, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing all 49 people on board. - 1995
1995Yugoslav Wars: The city of Knin, Croatia, a significant Serb stronghold, is taken by Croatian forces during Operation Storm. The date is celebrated in Croatia as Victory Day.
XXI century
- 2003
2003A car bomb explodes in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta outside the Marriott Hotel killing 12 and injuring 150. - 2008
2008The New England Revolution win the 2008 North American SuperLiga final against the Houston Dynamo. - 2010
2010The Copiapó mining accident occurs, trapping 33 Chilean miners approximately 2,300 ft (700 m) below the ground for 69 days. - 2010
2010Ten members of International Assistance Mission Nuristan Eye Camp team are killed by persons unknown in Kuran wa Munjan District of Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan. - 2012
2012The Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting took place in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, killing six victims; the perpetrator committed suicide after being wounded by police. - 2015
2015The Environmental Protection Agency at Gold King Mine waste water spill releases three million gallons of heavy metal toxin tailings and waste water into the Animas River in Colorado. - 2019
2019The revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir (state) occurred and the state was bifurcated into two union territories (Jammu and Kashmir (union territory) and Ladakh). - 2021
2021Australia's second most populous state Victoria enters its sixth COVID-19 lockdown, enacting stage four restrictions statewide in reaction to six new COVID-19 cases recorded that morning. - 2024
2024Following the non-cooperation movement against the government of Bangladesh, Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina resigns and flees the country, ending her rule of 15 consecutive years and a total of almost two decades. The date is also known as 36 July.
Best known
Born on August 5
Best known
Died on August 5
642Eowa of Mercia
7th-century King of Mercia
642Oswald of Northumbria
King of Northumbria from 634 to 641/42; Christian saint
824Emperor Heizei
Emperor of Japan from 806 to 809
882Louis III of France
King of West Francia from 879 to 882
917Euthymius I of Constantinople
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 907 to 912
1063Gruffudd ap Llywelyn
King of Wales from 1055 to 1063
Holidays and observances
- Christian feast day: Abel of Reims
- Christian feast day: Addai
- Christian feast day: Afra
- Christian feast day: Cassian of Autun
- Christian feast day: Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major (Catholic Church)
- Christian feast day: Emygdius
- Christian feast day: Margaret the Barefooted
- Christian feast day: Memnius
- Christian feast day: Nonna of Nazianzus
- Christian feast day: Oswald of Northumbria
- Christian feast day: August 5 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Independence Day (Burkina Faso)
- July Mass Uprising Day (Bangladesh)
- Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and the Day of Croatian defenders (Croatia)
Frequently asked questions
What happened on August 5?
78 documented historical events happened on August 5, from antiquity to the present day. The best known is this: Liu Xiu (pictured) proclaimed himself the monarch of the Han dynasty as Emperor Guangwu. On the same day, in another year: Henry I was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey. 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 5?
160 people with a Wikipedia article were born on August 5, including Wendell Berry, Gay Byrne, Vern Gosdin. 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 5?
116 people with a Wikipedia article died on August 5, including Eowa of Mercia, Oswald of Northumbria, Emperor Heizei. 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 5?
14 observances are celebrated on August 5 around the world: Christian feast day: Abel of Reims, Christian feast day: Addai, Christian feast day: Afra, Christian feast day: Cassian of Autun, Christian feast day: Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major (Catholic Church), Christian feast day: Emygdius. 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