On This Day — August 23

🕰️ Notable Events on August 23

• 2013 — A riot at the Palmasola prison complex in Santa Cruz, Bolivia kills 31 people. Wikipedia ↗
• 2012 — A hot-air balloon crashes near the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana, killing six people and injuring 28 others. Wikipedia ↗
• 2011 — Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is overthrown after the National Transitional Council forces take control of Bab al-Azizia compound during the Libyan Civil War. Wikipedia ↗
• 2011 — A magnitude 5.8 (class: moderate) earthquake occurs in Virginia. Damage occurs to monuments and structures in Washington D.C. and the resulted damage is estimated at $200 million-$300 million USD. Wikipedia ↗
• 2007 — The skeletal remains of Russia's last royal family members Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia, and his sister Grand Duchess Anastasia are discovered near Yekaterinburg, Russia. Wikipedia ↗
• 2006 — Natascha Kampusch, who had been abducted at the age of ten, escapes from her captor Wolfgang Přiklopil, after eight years of captivity. Wikipedia ↗
• 2000 — Gulf Air Flight 072 crashes into the Persian Gulf near Manama, Bahrain, killing 143. Wikipedia ↗
• 1994 — Eugene Bullard, the only black pilot in World War I, is posthumously commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. Wikipedia ↗
• 1991 — The World Wide Web is opened to the public. Wikipedia ↗
• 1990 — Saddam Hussein appears on Iraqi state television with a number of Western "guests" (actually hostages) to try to prevent the Gulf War. Wikipedia ↗
• 1990 — Armenia declares its independence from the Soviet Union. Wikipedia ↗
• 1990 — West and East Germany announce that they will reunite on October 3. Wikipedia ↗
• 1989 — Singing Revolution: Two million people from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania stand on the Vilnius-Tallinn road, holding hands. Wikipedia ↗
• 1987 — The American male basketball team lost the gold medal to Brazilian team at the Pan American Games in Indianapolis, 120-115. Wikipedia ↗
• 1985 — Hans Tiedge, top counter-spy of West Germany, defects to East Germany. Wikipedia ↗
• 1973 — A bank robbery gone wrong in Stockholm, Sweden, turns into a hostage crisis; over the next five days the hostages begin to sympathise with their captors, leading to the term "Stockholm syndrome". Wikipedia ↗
• 1970 — Organized by Mexican American labor union leader César Chávez, the Salad Bowl strike, the largest farm worker strike in U.S. history, begins. Wikipedia ↗
• 1966 — Lunar Orbiter 1 takes the first photograph of Earth from orbit around the Moon. Wikipedia ↗
• 1958 — Chinese Civil War: The Second Taiwan Strait Crisis begins with the People's Liberation Army's bombardment of Quemoy. Wikipedia ↗
• 1954 — First flight of the Lockheed C-130 multi-role aircraft. Wikipedia ↗
• 1948 — World Council of Churches is formed by 147 churches from 44 countries. Wikipedia ↗
• 1946 — Ordinance No. 46 of the British Military Government constitutes the German Länder (states) of Hanover and Schleswig-Holstein. Wikipedia ↗
• 1945 — Soviet-Japanese War: The USSR State Defense Committee issues Decree no. 9898cc "About Receiving, Accommodation, and Labor Utilization of the Japanese Army Prisoners of War". Wikipedia ↗
• 1944 — World War II: Marseille is liberated by the Allies. Wikipedia ↗
• 1944 — World War II: King Michael of Romania dismisses the pro-Nazi government of Marshal Antonescu, who is arrested. Romania switches sides from the Axis to the Allies. Wikipedia ↗
• 1944 — Freckleton Air Disaster: A United States Army Air Forces B-24 Liberator bomber crashes into a school in Freckleton, England, killing 61 people. Wikipedia ↗
• 1943 — World War II: Kharkiv is liberated after the Battle of Kursk. Wikipedia ↗
• 1942 — World War II: Beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad. Wikipedia ↗
• 1939 — World War II: Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression treaty, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. In a secret addition to the pact, the Baltic states, Finland, Romania, and Poland are divided between the two nations. Wikipedia ↗
• 1929 — Hebron Massacre during the 1929 Palestine riots: Arab attack on the Jewish community in Hebron in the British Mandate of Palestine, continuing until the next day, resulted in the death of 65-68 Jews and the remaining Jews being forced to leave the city. Wikipedia ↗
• 1927 — Italian anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti are executed after a lengthy, controversial trial. Wikipedia ↗
• 1923 — Captain Lowell Smith and Lieutenant John P. Richter performed the first mid-air refueling on De Havilland DH-4B, setting an endurance flight record of 37 hours. Wikipedia ↗
• 1921 — British airship R-38 experiences structural failure over Hull in England and crashes in the Humber estuary. Of her 49 British and American training crew, only four survive. Wikipedia ↗
• 1914 — World War I: Battle of Mons: The British Army begins withdrawal. Wikipedia ↗
• 1904 — The automobile tire chain is patented. Wikipedia ↗
• 1898 — The Southern Cross Expedition, the first British venture of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, departs from London. Wikipedia ↗
• 1873 — Albert Bridge in Chelsea, London opens. Wikipedia ↗
• 1866 — Austro-Prussian War ends with the Treaty of Prague. Wikipedia ↗
• 1864 — The Union Navy captures Fort Morgan, Alabama, thus breaking Confederate dominance of all ports on the Gulf of Mexico except Galveston, Texas. Wikipedia ↗
• 1839 — The United Kingdom captures Hong Kong as a base as it prepares for war with Qing China. The ensuing three-year conflict will later be known as the First Opium War. Wikipedia ↗
• 1831 — Nat Turner's slave rebellion is suppressed. Wikipedia ↗
• 1813 — At the Battle of Großbeeren, the Prussians under Von Bülow repulse the French army. Wikipedia ↗
• 1799 — Napoleon I of France leaves Egypt for France en route to seizing power. Wikipedia ↗
• 1784 — Western North Carolina (now eastern Tennessee) declares itself an independent state under the name of Franklin; it is not accepted into the United States, and only lasts for four years. Wikipedia ↗
• 1775 — American Revolutionary War: King George III delivers his Proclamation of Rebellion to the Court of St James's stating that the American colonies have proceeded to a state of open and avowed rebellion. Wikipedia ↗
• 1703 — Edirne event: Sultan Mustafa II of the Ottoman Empire is dethroned. Wikipedia ↗
• 1655 — Battle of Sobota: The Swedish Empire led by Charles X Gustav defeats the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Wikipedia ↗
• 1650 — Colonel George Monck of the English Army forms Monck's Regiment of Foot, which will later become the Coldstream Guards. Wikipedia ↗
• 1628 — George Villiers, the first Duke of Buckingham, is assassinated by John Felton. Wikipedia ↗
• 1614 — Fettmilch Uprising: Jews are expelled from Frankfurt, Holy Roman Empire, following the plundering of the Judengasse. Wikipedia ↗
• 1600 — Battle of Gifu Castle: The eastern forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu defeat the western Japanese clans loyal to Toyotomi Hideyori, leading to the destruction of Gifu Castle and serving as a prelude to the Battle of Sekigahara. Wikipedia ↗
• 1595 — Long Turkish War: Wallachian prince Michael the Brave confronts the Ottoman army in the Battle of Călugăreni and achieves a tactical victory. Wikipedia ↗
• 1572 — French Wars of Religion: Mob violence against thousands of Huguenots in Paris results in the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre. Wikipedia ↗
• 1541 — French explorer Jacques Cartier lands near Quebec City in his third voyage to Canada. Wikipedia ↗
• 1521 — Christian II of Denmark is deposed as king of Sweden and Gustav Vasa is elected regent. Wikipedia ↗
• 1514 — The Battle of Chaldiran ends with a decisive victory for the Sultan Selim I, Ottoman Empire, over the Shah Ismail I, founder of the Safavid dynasty. Wikipedia ↗
• 1382 — Siege of Moscow: The Golden Horde led by Tokhtamysh lays siege to the capital of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Wikipedia ↗
• 1328 — Battle of Cassel: French troops stop an uprising of Flemish farmers. Wikipedia ↗
• 1305 — Sir William Wallace is executed for high treason at Smithfield, London. Wikipedia ↗
• 1268 — Battle of Tagliacozzo: The army of Charles of Anjou defeats the Ghibellines supporters of Conradin of Hohenstaufen marking the fall of the Hohenstaufen family from the Imperial and Sicilian thrones, and leading to the new chapter of Angevin domination in Southern Italy. Wikipedia ↗
• 1244 — Siege of Jerusalem: The city's citadel, the Tower of David, surrenders to Khwarezmian Empire. Wikipedia ↗
• 634 — Abu Bakr dies at Medina and is succeeded by Umar I who becomes the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate. Wikipedia ↗
• 476 — Odoacer, chieftain of the Germanic tribes (Herulic - Scirian foederati), is proclaimed rex Italiae ("King of Italy") by his troops. Wikipedia ↗
• 406 — Gothic king Radagaisus is executed after he is defeated by Roman general Stilicho and 12,000 "barbarians" are incorporated into the Roman army or sold as slaves. Wikipedia ↗
• After the successful invasion of Egypt, Octavian executes Marcus Antonius Antyllus, eldest son of Mark Antony, and Caesarion, the last king of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt and only child of Julius Caesar and Cleopatra. Wikipedia ↗
• Ludi Volcanalici are held within the temple precinct of Vulcan, and used by Augustus to mark the treaty with Parthia and the return of the legionary standards that had been lost at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BC. Wikipedia ↗
• Mount Vesuvius begins stirring, on the feast day of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire. Wikipedia ↗

🎂 Notable Births on August 23

• 1997 — Lil Yachty, American rapper and singer Wikipedia ↗
• 1993 — Iván López Mendoza, Spanish professional footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1993 — Seo Hye-lin, South Korean girl group EXID member Wikipedia ↗
• 1990 — Seth Curry, American basketball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1989 — Breanna Conrad, American fashion designer Wikipedia ↗
• 1989 — Heiko Schwarz, German footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1988 — Olga Govortsova, Belarusian tennis player Wikipedia ↗
• 1988 — Carl Hagelin, Swedish ice hockey player Wikipedia ↗
• 1988 — Jeremy Lin, American basketball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1986 — Sky Blu, American rapper Wikipedia ↗
• 1986 — Brett Morris, Australian rugby league player Wikipedia ↗
• 1986 — Josh Morris, Australian rugby league player Wikipedia ↗
• 1985 — Valeria Lukyanova, Moldovan-Ukrainian model and singer Wikipedia ↗
• 1984 — Glen Johnson, English footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1984 — Eric Tai, New Zealand rugby player and actor Wikipedia ↗
• 1983 — James Collins, Welsh footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1983 — Athena Farrokhzad, Iranian-Swedish poet, playwright, and critic Wikipedia ↗
• 1983 — Sun Mingming, Chinese basketball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1983 — Tony Moll, American football player Wikipedia ↗
• 1983 — Bruno Spengler, Canadian race car driver Wikipedia ↗
• 1982 — Natalie Coughlin, American swimmer Wikipedia ↗
• 1982 — Scott Palguta, American soccer player Wikipedia ↗
• 1982 — Cristian Tudor, Romanian footballer (d. 2012) Wikipedia ↗
• 1981 — Carlos Cuéllar, Spanish footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1981 — Stephan Loboué, Ivorian footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1980 — Denny Bautista, Dominican baseball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1980 — Rex Grossman, American football player Wikipedia ↗
• 1980 — Nenad Vučković, Serbian handball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1979 — Jessica Bibby, Australian basketball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1979 — Saskia Clark, English sailor Wikipedia ↗
• 1979 — Edgar Sosa, Mexican boxer Wikipedia ↗
• 1979 — Zuzana Váleková, Slovak tennis player Wikipedia ↗
• 1978 — Kobe Bryant, American basketball player and businessman Wikipedia ↗
• 1978 — Julian Casablancas, American singer-songwriter and producer Wikipedia ↗
• 1978 — Randal Tye Thomas, American journalist and politician (d. 2014) Wikipedia ↗
• 1978 — Andrew Rannells, American actor and singer Wikipedia ↗
• 1977 — Douglas Sequeira, Costa Rican footballer and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1976 — Pat Garrity, American basketball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1975 — Sean Marks, New Zealand basketball player and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1974 — Mark Bellhorn, American baseball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1974 — Benjamin Limo, Kenyan runner Wikipedia ↗
• 1974 — Konstantin Novoselov, Russian-English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate Wikipedia ↗
• 1973 — Casey Blake, American baseball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1973 — Kerry Walmsley, New Zealand cricketer Wikipedia ↗
• 1972 — Mark Butcher, English cricketer and singer Wikipedia ↗
• 1972 — Raul Casanova, Puerto Rican-American baseball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1972 — Martin Grainger, English footballer and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1972 — Manuel Vidrio, Mexican footballer, coach, and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1971 — Demetrio Albertini, Italian footballer and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1971 — Tim Gutberlet, German footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1970 — Lawrence Frank, American basketball player and coach Wikipedia ↗
• 1970 — Jason Hetherington, Australian rugby league player Wikipedia ↗
• 1970 — Jay Mohr, American actor, producer, and screenwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1970 — River Phoenix, American actor (d. 1993) Wikipedia ↗
• 1969 — Tinus Linee, South African rugby player and coach (d. 2014) Wikipedia ↗
• 1969 — Jack Lopresti, English soldier and politician Wikipedia ↗
• 1969 — Jeremy Schaap, American journalist and author Wikipedia ↗
• 1969 — Keith Tyson, English painter and illustrator Wikipedia ↗
• 1968 — Laura Claycomb, American soprano Wikipedia ↗
• 1968 — Chris DiMarco, American golfer Wikipedia ↗
• 1967 — Jim Murphy, Scottish lawyer and politician, Minister of State for Europe Wikipedia ↗
• 1967 — Richard Petrie, New Zealand cricketer Wikipedia ↗
• 1966 — Rik Smits, Dutch-American basketball player Wikipedia ↗
• 1965 — Roger Avary, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1963 — Park Chan-wook, South Korean director, producer, and screenwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1963 — Richard Illingworth, English cricketer and umpire Wikipedia ↗
• 1963 — Kenny Wallace, American race car driver Wikipedia ↗
• 1962 — Martin Cauchon, Canadian lawyer and politician, 46th Canadian Minister of Justice Wikipedia ↗
• 1962 — Shaun Ryder, English singer-songwriter and actor Wikipedia ↗
• 1961 — Dean DeLeo, American guitarist and songwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1961 — Alexandre Desplat, French composer and conductor Wikipedia ↗
• 1961 — Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iranian commander and politician, 54th Mayor of Tehran Wikipedia ↗
• 1961 — Gary Mabbutt, English footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1961 — Hitomi Takahashi, Japanese actress Wikipedia ↗
• 1960 — Rodney Greenblat, American painter and graphic designer Wikipedia ↗
• 1960 — Gary Hoey, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer Wikipedia ↗
• 1959 — Edwyn Collins, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist Wikipedia ↗
• 1959 — George Kalovelonis, Greek tennis player and coach Wikipedia ↗
• 1958 — Julio Franco, Dominican baseball player and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1957 — Tasos Mitropoulos, Greek footballer and politician Wikipedia ↗
• 1956 — Andreas Floer, German mathematician and academic (d. 1991) Wikipedia ↗
• 1956 — Valgerd Svarstad Haugland, Norwegian educator and politician, Norwegian Minister of Culture Wikipedia ↗
• 1954 — Charles Busch, American actor and screenwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1954 — Halimah Yacob, Singapore unionist and potlician, 9th Speaker and 8th President of Singapore Wikipedia ↗
• 1953 — Bobby G, English singer-songwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1952 — Santillana, Spanish footballer Wikipedia ↗
• 1952 — Georgios Paraschos, Greek footballer and manager Wikipedia ↗
• 1951 — Allan Bristow, American basketball player and coach Wikipedia ↗
• 1951 — Mark Hudson, American musician, songwriter, and producer Wikipedia ↗
• 1951 — Jimi Jamison, American singer-songwriter and musician (Survivor) (d. 2014) Wikipedia ↗
• 1951 — Akhmad Kadyrov, Chechen cleric and politician, 1st President of the Chechen Republic (d. 2004) Wikipedia ↗
• 1951 — Queen Noor of Jordan Wikipedia ↗
• 1949 — Vicky Leandros, Greek singer and politician Wikipedia ↗
• 1949 — Shelley Long, American actress Wikipedia ↗
• 1949 — Rick Springfield, Australian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor Wikipedia ↗
• 1948 — Atef Bseiso, Palestinian intelligence officer (d. 1992) Wikipedia ↗
• 1948 — Andrei Pleșu, Romanian journalist and politician, 95th Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Wikipedia ↗
• 1948 — Rudy Ruettiger, American football player Wikipedia ↗
• 1948 — Lev Zeleny, Russian physicist and academic Wikipedia ↗
• 1947 — Willy Russell, English playwright and composer Wikipedia ↗
• 1947 — Linda Thompson, English folk-rock singer-songwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1947 — Rowena Wallace, English-Australian actress Wikipedia ↗
• 1946 — Keith Moon, English drummer, songwriter, and producer (d. 1978) Wikipedia ↗
• 1945 — Rayfield Wright, American football player and coach Wikipedia ↗
• 1944 — Antonia Novello, Puerto Rican-American physician and admiral, 14th Surgeon General of the United States Wikipedia ↗
• 1943 — Dale Campbell-Savours, Baron Campbell-Savours, English businessman and politician Wikipedia ↗
• 1943 — Nelson DeMille, American lieutenant and author Wikipedia ↗
• 1943 — Peter Lilley, English politician, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Wikipedia ↗
• 1943 — Pino Presti, Italian bass player, composer, conductor, and producer Wikipedia ↗
• 1942 — Nancy Richey, American tennis player Wikipedia ↗
• 1941 — Onora O'Neill, Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, British philosopher, academic, and politician Wikipedia ↗
• 1940 — Galen Rowell, American mountaineer and photographer (d. 2002) Wikipedia ↗
• 1940 — Richard Sanders, American actor and screenwriter Wikipedia ↗
• 1938 — Giacomo Bini, Italian priest and missionary (d. 2014) Wikipedia ↗
• 1938 — Roger Greenaway, English singer-songwriter and producer Wikipedia ↗
• 1936 — Rudy Lewis, American R&B singer (The Drifters) (d. 1964) Wikipedia ↗
• 1936 — Henry Lee Lucas, American murderer (d. 2001) Wikipedia ↗
• 1935 — Roy Strong, English historian, curator, and author Wikipedia ↗
• 1934 — Sonny Jurgensen, American football player and sportscaster Wikipedia ↗
• 1933 — Robert Curl, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate Wikipedia ↗
• 1933 — Don Talbot, Australian swim coach and administrator Wikipedia ↗
• 1933 — Pete Wilson, American commander and politician, 36th Governor of California Wikipedia ↗
• 1932 — Houari Boumediene, Algerian colonel and politician, 2nd President of Algeria (d. 1978) Wikipedia ↗
• 1932 — Enos Nkala, Zimbabwean soldier and politician, Zimbabwean Minister of Defence (d. 2013) Wikipedia ↗
• 1932 — Mark Russell, American comedian and pianist Wikipedia ↗
• 1931 — Barbara Eden, American actress and singer Wikipedia ↗
• 1931 — Hamilton O. Smith, American microbiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate Wikipedia ↗
• 1930 — Michel Rocard, French civil servant and politician, 160th Prime Minister of France (d. 2016) Wikipedia ↗
• 1929 — Vladimir Beekman, Estonian poet and translator (d. 2009) Wikipedia ↗
• 1929 — Zoltán Czibor, Hungarian footballer (d. 1997) Wikipedia ↗
• 1929 — Peter Thomson, Australian golfer Wikipedia ↗
• 1928 — Marian Seldes, American actress (d. 2014) Wikipedia ↗
• 1927 — Dick Bruna, Dutch author and illustrator (d. 2017) Wikipedia ↗

📅 National Days on August 23 (Calendar.cx)