15 August

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Events

778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, in which Roland is killed.
927 - The Saracens are conquered and destroyed Taranto.
1040 - King Duncan I of Scotland is killed in battle against his first cousin and rival Macbeth of Scotland. The latter succeeds him as King of Scotland.
1057 - King Macbeth of Scotland is killed in the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of Malcolm III of Scotland.
1185 - The cave city of Vardzia is consecrated by Queen Tamar of Georgia.
1248 - The Cornerstone of the Cologne Cathedral, built to house the Shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne Cathedral Biblical Magi, was laid. Construction eventually completed in 1880.
1261 - Michael VIII Palaeologus is crowned Byzantine emperor in Constantinople.
1309 - The city of Rhodes surrenders to the forces of the Knights of St. John, completing their conquest of Rhodes. The knights establish their headquarters on the island, and rename themselves as the Knights of Rhodes.
1461 - The Empire of Trebizond surrenders to the forces of Sultan Mehmet II. This is the real end of the Byzantine Empire. Emperor David of Trebizond is exiled and later murdered.
1517 - Seven Portugal armed vessels led by Fernão Pires de Andrade meet China officials at the Pearl River estuary.
1519 - Panama City, Panama, is founded.
1534 - Saint Ignatius of Loyola and six classmates took initial vows that would lead to the creation of the Society of Jesus in September of 1540.
1537 - Asunción, Paraguay, is founded.
1540 - Arequipa, Peru, is founded.
1549 - Society of Jesus priest Saint Francis Xavier comes ashore at Kagoshima (Traditional Japanese calendar: July 22, 1549).
1599 - Nine Years War (Ireland): Battle of Curlew Pass - Irish forces led by Hugh Roe O'Donnell successfully ambush English forces, led by Sir Conyers Clifford, were sent to relieve Collooney Castle.
1760 - Seven Years' War: Battle of Liegnitz (1760) - Frederick the Great's victory over the Austrians under Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon.
1824 - Freed United States slaves form Liberia.
1843 - The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace in Honolulu, Hawaii is dedicated. Now the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, it is the oldest Roman Catholic cathedral in continuous use in the United States.
1843 - Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still intact amusement parks in the world, opens in Copenhagen, Denmark.
1863 - The Anglo-Satsuma War begins between the Satsuma Domain of Japan and the United Kingdom (Traditional Japanese calendar: July 2, 1863).
1869 - Meiji government establishes six ministries below Pardication (:ja:民部省) in the bottom of Cabinet, officer-of-Shinto-Worship, and jurisdiction of Cabinet.
1889- Oldest Club of Asia Mohun Bagan AC Established in Kolkata, India.
1914 - A male servant of United States architect Frank Lloyd Wright set fire to the living quarters of the architect's Wisconsin home, Taliesin (studio), murdered seven people, and burned the living quarters to the ground.
1915 - The Panama Canal opens to traffic with the transit of the cargo ship Ancon.
1920 - Polish-Soviet War: Battle of Warsaw (1920) - Poland defeat the Red Army.
1939 - 13 Junkers Ju 87 dive into the ground during a disastrous air-practice at Neuhammer. No survivors.
1942 - World War II: Operation Pedestal - The SS Ohio reaches the island of Malta barely afloat carrying vital fuel supplies for the island defenses.
1944 - World War II: Operation Dragoon - Allied forces land in southern France.
1945 - World War II: Victory over Japan Day - Japan surrenders.
1945 - World War II: Korean Liberation Day.
1947 - India gains independence from the United Kingdom and becomes an independent nation within the Commonwealth , Jawaharlal Nehru addresses the nation with the Indian Declaration of Independence and takes office as the first Prime Minister of India.
1947 - Founder of Pakistan, Jinnah is sworn in as first Governor General of Pakistan at Karachi.
1948 - The South Korea is established south of the 38th parallel north.
1950 - Srikakulam district is formed in Andhra Pradesh, India.
1952 - Devon A flashflood drenches the town of Lynmouth, killing 34 people.
1960 - Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) declares its independence from France.
1961 - Conrad Schumann flees from East Germany while on duty guarding the construction of the Berlin Wall.
1961 - Keiyo Road is specified to be the first driveway in Japan.
1962 - James Joseph Dresnok defected to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, running across the Korean DMZ. Dresnok still resides in the capital, Pyongyang.
1965 - John Coltrane plays in Chicago for the Downbeat Jazz Festival with Elvin Jones and McCoy Tyner.
1965 - The Beatles play to nearly 60,000 fans at Shea Stadium in New York City, marking the birth of stadium rock.
1969 - The Woodstock Music and Art Festival opens.
1971 - President Richard Nixon completes the break from the gold standard by ending convertibility of the United States dollar into gold by foreign investors.
1971 - Bahrain Independence Day.
1973 - Vietnam War: The United States bombing of Cambodia ends.
1974 - Seoul Seoul Metropolitan Subway Seoul Subway Line 1 opened, between Seoul Station and Cheongnyangni Station (underground)
1974 - Yuk Young-soo, First Lady of South Korea is killed amid an apparent assassination attempt upon President of South Korea, Park Chung-hee, during the anniversarial ceremony of the Liberation day.
1974 - Turkish invasion of Cyprus continues, and the 37% of the island is now under Turkish control.
1975 - Military coup in Bangladesh. Sheikh Mujibur Rehman killed along with all family members, except Haseena Wajid.
1975 - Miki Takeo makes the first official pilgrimage to Yasukuni Shrine by a sitting Prime Minister of Japan on the anniversary of the end of World War II.
1977 - The Big Ear, a radio telescope operated by The Ohio State University as part of the SETI project, receives a radio signal from deep space; the event is named the "Wow! signal" for notation made by a volunteer on the project.
1984 - PKK,Kurdish people in Turkey gain arms and start a Guerilla warfare campaign against the Turkish military
1993 - Junko Asari wins the women's marathon in the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Stuttgart, Japan's first major women's athletics victory.
1995 - In South Carolina, Shannon Faulkner becomes the first female cadet matriculated at The Citadel (Military College), but drops out in less than a week.
1998 - Omagh Bombing in Northern Ireland, becoming the worst terrorism incident of The Troubles
1999 - Beni Ounif massacre in Algeria; some 29 people killed at a false roadblock near the Moroccan border, leading to temporary tensions with Morocco.
2007 - An 2007 Peru Earthquake off the Pacific coast devastates Ica and various regions of Peru killing 514 and injuring 1,090.

Births

1171 - King Alfonso IX of Leon (d. 1230)
1195 - Anthony of Padua, Portuguese saint (d. 1231)
1432 - Luigi Pulci, Italian poet (d. 1484)
1575 - Bartol Kašić, Croatian writer and linguist (d. 1650)
1613 - Gilles Ménage, French scholar (d. 1692)
1717 - Blind Jack, English roadbuilder (d. 1810)
1740 - Matthias Claudius, German poet (d. 1815)
1769 - Napoleon I of France, Emperor of the French (d. 1821)
1771 - Sir Walter Scott, Scottish novelist and poet (d. 1832)
1785 - Thomas De Quincey, English author (d. 1859)
1813 - Jules Grévy, 2nd President of the French Republic of the French Third Republic (d. 1891)
1844 - Thomas-Alfred Bernier, Canadian journalist and politician (d. 1908)
1856 - Ivan Franko, Ukrainian writer (d. 1916)
1857 - Albert Ballin, German shipping tycoon (d. 1918)
1858 - E. Nesbit, English author (d. 1924)
1859 - Charles Comiskey, American baseball owner (d. 1931)
1860 - Henrietta Vinton Davis, American elocutionist (d. 1941)
1860 - Florence Harding, American First Lady (d. 1924)
1863 - Alexei Krylov, Russian engineer and mathematician (d. 1945)
1865 - Usui Mikao, founder of Reiki (d. 1926)
1872 - Sri Aurobindo, Indian writer and philosopher (d. 1950)
1875 - Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, English composer (d. 1912)
1878 - Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, Russian counter-revolutionary (d. 1928)
1879 - Ethel Barrymore, American actress (d. 1959)
1881 - Alfred Wagenknecht, German-born American activist (d. 1956)
1883 - Ivan Mestrovic, Croatian sculptor (d. 1962)
1885 - Edna Ferber, American novelist (d. 1968)
1890 - Elizabeth Bolden, American Supercentenarian (d. 2006)
1890 - Jacques Ibert, French composer (d. 1962)
1892 - Louis, 7th duc de Broglie, French physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics (d. 1987)
1893 - Leslie Comrie, New Zealand astronomer and computing pioneer (d. 1950)
1896 - Gerty Cori, Austrian-born biochemist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1957)
1896 - Catherine Doherty, Russian-born Canadian activist (d. 1985)
1896 - Paul Outerbridge, American photographer (d. 1958)
1896 - Léon Theremin, Russian inventor (d. 1993)
1898 - Jan Brzechwa, Polish poet (d. 1966)
1901 - Pyotr Sergeyevich Novikov, Russian mathematician (d. 1975)
1909 - Hugo Winterhalter, American composer and bandleader (d. 1973)
1910 - Signe Hasso, Swedish actress (d. 2002)
1912 - Julia Child, American cook (d. 2004)
1912 - Dame Wendy Hiller, English actress (d. 2003)
1914 - Paul Rand, American graphic designer (d. 1996)
1916 - Aleks Çaçi, Albanian writer
1917 - Jack Lynch, fourth Taoiseach (d. 1999)
1917 - Oscar Romero, El Salvador Roman catholic priest (d. 1980)
1919 - Huntz Hall, American actor (d. 1999)
1919 - Benedict Kiely, Irish author
1922 - Lukas Foss, German-born composer
1923 - Rose Marie, American actress
1924 - Robert Bolt, English playwright and Academy Award-winning screenwriter (d. 1995)
1925 - Mike Connors, American actor
1925 - Oscar Peterson, Canadian jazz pianist
1926 - Costis Stephanopoulos, Greek politician
1928 - Nicolas Roeg, English film director
1930 - Ageeda Paavel, Estonian freedom fighter
1933 - Jim Lange, American game show host
1933 - Bobby Helms, American pop singer (d. 1997)
1934 - Nino Ferrer, French-Italian singer (d. 1998)
1934 - Bobby Byrd, American soul/funk singer (d. 2007)
1935 - Vernon Jordan Jr., American presidential advisor
1935 - Lionel Taylor, American football player
1938 - Maxine Waters, American politician
1938 - Janusz A. Zajdel, Polish writer
1940 - Gudrun Ensslin, German terrorist
1940 - Rita Shane, American soprano
1942 - Larry Hartsell, American martial arts instructor (d. 2007)
1943 - María Rojo, Mexican actress and politician
1944 - Linda Ellerbee, American journalist
1944 - Tom Murphy (mayor), American politician
1944 - Sylvie Vartan, Bulgarian pop singer
1945 - Mahamandaleshwar Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda, Indian guru
1945 - Begum Khaleda Zia, Bangladeshi politician
1945 - Gene Upshaw, American NFL executive
1946 - Tony Robinson, English actor and television presenter
1946 - Jimmy Webb, American musician and composer
1947 - Raakhee Gulzar, Indian actress
1947 - Jenny Hanley, British TV presenter
1948 - Uschi Digard, American pornographic actress and model
1948 - Patsy Gallant, Canadian pop singer
1948 - George Ryton, British engineer
1949 - Richard Deacon, Welsh sculptor
1950 - Tommy Aldridge, American musician
1950 - Anne, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom
1950 - Tom Kelly (baseball), American baseball manager
1951 - Daba Diawara, Malian politician
1951 - Bobby Caldwell, American singer and musician
1954 - Mary Jo Salter, American poet
1956 - Lorraine Desmarais, French-Canadian jazz pianist and composer
1957 - Željko Ivanek, Slovenian-American actor
1958 - Victor Shenderovich, Russian satirist
1958 - Craig MacTavish, Canadian ice hockey player/coach
1958 - Rondell Sheridan, American actor and comedian
1962 - Tom Colicchio, American chef
1962 - Paraskevas Karasoulos, Greek lyricist
1963 - Alejandro González Iñárritu, Mexican film director
1964 - Melinda French Gates, American wife of Bill Gates
1964 - Debi Mazar, American actress
1965 - Rob Thomas (writer), American writer
1966 - Scott Brosius, American baseball player
1966 - Shirley Kwan, Hong Kong singer
1967 - Peter Hermann American actor
1968 - Debra Messing, American actress
1969 - Kevin Cheng, Hong Kong actor and singer
1970 - Anthony Anderson, American comedian and actor
1970 - Maddie Corman, American actress
1970 - Ben Silverman, American TV executive
1972 - Ben Affleck, American actor
1972 - Chris Morrissey (actor/film director), American film director/actor
1974 - Natasha Henstridge, Canadian actress
1975 - Kara Wolters, American basketball player
1976 - Boudewijn Zenden, Dutch football player
1977 - Nicole Paggi, American actress
1977 - Igor Cassina, Italian gymnast
1977 - Martin Biron, professional ice hockey goaltender
1978 - Tim Foreman, American bassist (Switchfoot)
1978 - Lilia Podkopayeva, Ukrainian gymnast
1978 - Stavros Tziortziopoulos, Greek footballer
1979 - Carl Edwards, American NASCAR driver
1980 - Nathalie Press, English actress
1981 - Brendan Hansen, American swimmer
1981 - Oliver Perez, American baseball player
1981 - Sung Ji Hyo, South Korean actress
1989 - Belinda (singer), Mexican singer

Deaths

423 - Honorius (emperor), Western Roman Emperor (b. 384)
778 - Roland, Frankish commander
1038 - King Stephen I of Hungary
1040 - King Duncan I of Scotland
1057 - King Macbeth of Scotland
1118 - Alexius I Comnenus, Byzantine Emperor (b. 1048)
1196 - Conrad II, Duke of Swabia (b. 1173)
1274 - Robert de Sorbon, French theologian and founder of the Sorbonne (b. 1201)
1369 - Philippa of Hainault, Queen consort of Edward III of England
1528 - Odet de Foix, Vicomte de Lautrec, French military leader (b. 1485)
1552 - Hermann of Wied, German Catholic archbishop (b. 1477)
1621 - John Barclay (1582-1621), Scottish writer (b. 1582)
1666 - Johann Adam Schall von Bell, German Jesuit missionary (b. 1591)
1714 - Constantin Brâncoveanu, Prince of Wallachia (b. 1654)
1728 - Marin Marais, French composer and viol player (b. 1656)
1758 - Pierre Bouguer, French mathematician (b. 1698)
1799 - Giuseppe Parini, Italian poet (b. 1729)
1852 - Johan Gadolin, Finnish scientist (b. 1760)
1907 - Joseph Joachim, Austrian violinist (b. 1831)
1909 - Euclides da Cunha, Brazilian writer and sociologist (b. 1866)
1917 - Thomas J. Higgins, decorated Union Army soldier (b. 1831)
1925 - Konrad Mägi, Estonian artist (b. 1878)
1935 - Wiley Post, American pilot (airplane crash) (b. 1898)
1935 - Will Rogers, American humorist and actor (airplane crash) (b. 1879)
1936 - Grazia Deledda, Italian writer, Nobel Prize in Literature (b. 1871)
1945 - Korechika Anami, Japanese Ministry of War of Japan#Ministers of War of Japan, 1900-1945 (b. 1887)
1951 - Artur Schnabel, Polish pianist (b. 1882)
1953 - Ludwig Prandtl, German physicist (b. 1875)
1959 - Blind Willie McTell, American singer (b. 1901)
1962 - Lei Feng, Chinese revolutionary (b. 1940)
1967 - René Magritte, Belgian painter (b. 1898)
1971 - Paul Lukas, Hungarian-born actor (b. 1887)
1974 - Yuk Young-soo, wife of the President of South Korea Park Chung-hee (b. 1925)
1975 - Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, President of Bangladesh (b. 1920)
1975 - Clay Shaw, alleged John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracist & businessman (b. 1913)
1982 - Hugo Theorell, Swedish scientist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1903)
1990 - Viktor Tsoi, Russian musician (b. 1962)
1995 - John Cameron Swayze, American journalist (b. 1906)
1999 - Sir Hugh Casson, British architect and artist (b. 1910)
2001 - Richard Chelimo, Kenyan athlete (b. 1972)
2003 - Gösta Sundqvist, Finnish songwriter and singer (heart attack) (b. 1957)
2004 - Semiha Berksoy, first Turkish opera singer (b. 1910)
2004 - Sune Bergström, Swedish biochemist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916)
2004 - Amarsinh Chaudhary, Indian politician (b. 1941)
2006 - Te Atairangi Kaahu, Māori queen (b. 1931)
2007 - John Gofman, American Manhattan Project scientist and advocate (b. 1918)
2007 - Geoffrey Orbell, New Zealand bush walker (b. 1908)

Holidays and observances

VJ Day / Vp day
Holidays in India – Independence Day (from the United Kingdom, 1947).
Acadie – National Day.
Austria, Maria Himmelfahrt day.
Bangladesh – National Mourning Day
Belgium, Assumption of Mary (of Blessed Virgin Mary) day.
Egypt – Flooding of the Nile Day.
France, Assumption of Mary Day.
Greece, Dormition ('Falling Asleep' of Virgin Mary.)
Hawaii – Toro Nagashi (Floating Lanterns Ceremony) to commemorate the end of the World War II.
Italy – " Assumption of Mary Day. And Ferragosto", remembrance of an ancient Roman holiday in honor of Augustus (Feriae Augusti).
Japan – Day of End of the War / The day which mourns for war dead, and prays for peace "National War-Dead Memorial Ceremony" is performed on that day every year after 1963.
Japan – Dutch Tray
Korea – Gwangbokjeol(Liberation Day).
Ancient Latvia – Māras.
Liechtenstein – Liechtenstein Day.
Paraguay – Assumption of Mary Day, and anniversary of the founding of Asunción
Poland – Polish Armed Forces Day.
Tuva – Tuva Republic Day, Naadym.
Portugal– Our Lady of Angels Feast, Azores.
Spain Assumption Day.
Costa Rica– Mother's Day.

Liturgical feasts

August 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) – Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos of the Theotokos, the commemoration of the death of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, Holy Day of Obligation. Public Holiday in: Public holidays in Austria, Public holidays in Belgium, Benin, Burundi, Public holidays in Cameroon, Public holidays in Chile, Public holidays in Côte d'Ivoire, Public holidays in Croatia, Public holidays in Cyprus, Public holidays in East Timor, Public holidays in France, Public holidays in Greece, Public holidays in Guatemala, Public holidays in India, Public holidays in Italy, Public holidays in Lebanon, Public holidays in Lithuania, Public holidays in Luxembourg, Public holidays in Malta, Public holidays in Mauritius, Public holidays in Poland, Public holidays in Portugal, Public holidays in Seychelles, Public holidays in Slovenia and Public holidays in Spain.
Calendar of Saints
Saint Alfred (died 874)
Saint Alipius, bishop
Saint Arnulph, bishop of Soissons
St. Arnoul/Saint Arnulphus
St. MacCartan/Ard/Aed/Mac-Cartan (Ard), Bishop of Clogher (Church of Ireland), Ireland
Saint Tarcisius
Blessed Rupert (died 1145)
Stanislaus Kostka
Napoleon Bonaparte (born on 15 August 1769), formerly celebrated in the First French Empire (1804-1814)

External links

BBC: On This Day
On This Day in Canada

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Events

778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, in which Roland is killed.
927 - The Saracens are conquered and destroyed Taranto.
1040 - King Duncan I of Scotland is killed in battle against his first cousin and rival Macbeth of Scotland. The latter succeeds him as King of Scotland.
1057 - King Macbeth of Scotland is killed in the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of Malcolm III of Scotland.
1185 - The cave city of Vardzia is consecrated by Queen Tamar of Georgia.
1248 - The Cornerstone of the Cologne Cathedral, built to house the Shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne Cathedral Biblical Magi, was laid. Construction eventually completed in 1880.
1261 - Michael VIII Palaeologus is crowned Byzantine emperor in Constantinople.
1309 - The city of Rhodes surrenders to the forces of the Knights of St. John, completing their conquest of Rhodes. The knights establish their headquarters on the island, and rename themselves as the Knights of Rhodes.
1461 - The Empire of Trebizond surrenders to the forces of Sultan Mehmet II. This is the real end of the Byzantine Empire. Emperor David of Trebizond is exiled and later murdered.
1517 - Seven Portugal armed vessels led by Fernão Pires de Andrade meet China officials at the Pearl River estuary.
1519 - Panama City, Panama, is founded.
1534 - Saint Ignatius of Loyola and six classmates took initial vows that would lead to the creation of the Society of Jesus in September of 1540.
1537 - Asunción, Paraguay, is founded.
1540 - Arequipa, Peru, is founded.
1549 - Society of Jesus priest Saint Francis Xavier comes ashore at Kagoshima (Traditional Japanese calendar: July 22, 1549).
1599 - Nine Years War (Ireland): Battle of Curlew Pass - Irish forces led by Hugh Roe O'Donnell successfully ambush English forces, led by Sir Conyers Clifford, were sent to relieve Collooney Castle.
1760 - Seven Years' War: Battle of Liegnitz (1760) - Frederick the Great's victory over the Austrians under Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon.
1824 - Freed United States slaves form Liberia.
1843 - The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace in Honolulu, Hawaii is dedicated. Now the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, it is the oldest Roman Catholic cathedral in continuous use in the United States.
1843 - Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still intact amusement parks in the world, opens in Copenhagen, Denmark.
1863 - The Anglo-Satsuma War begins between the Satsuma Domain of Japan and the United Kingdom (Traditional Japanese calendar: July 2, 1863).
1869 - Meiji government establishes six ministries below Pardication (:ja:民部省) in the bottom of Cabinet, officer-of-Shinto-Worship, and jurisdiction of Cabinet.
1889- Oldest Club of Asia Mohun Bagan AC Established in Kolkata, India.
1914 - A male servant of United States architect Frank Lloyd Wright set fire to the living quarters of the architect's Wisconsin home, Taliesin (studio), murdered seven people, and burned the living quarters to the ground.
1915 - The Panama Canal opens to traffic with the transit of the cargo ship Ancon.
1920 - Polish-Soviet War: Battle of Warsaw (1920) - Poland defeat the Red Army.
1939 - 13 Junkers Ju 87 dive into the ground during a disastrous air-practice at Neuhammer. No survivors.
1942 - World War II: Operation Pedestal - The SS Ohio reaches the island of Malta barely afloat carrying vital fuel supplies for the island defenses.
1944 - World War II: Operation Dragoon - Allied forces land in southern France.
1945 - World War II: Victory over Japan Day - Japan surrenders.
1945 - World War II: Korean Liberation Day.
1947 - India gains independence from the United Kingdom and becomes an independent nation within the Commonwealth , Jawaharlal Nehru addresses the nation with the Indian Declaration of Independence and takes office as the first Prime Minister of India.
1947 - Founder of Pakistan, Jinnah is sworn in as first Governor General of Pakistan at Karachi.
1948 - The South Korea is established south of the 38th parallel north.
1950 - Srikakulam district is formed in Andhra Pradesh, India.
1952 - Devon A flashflood drenches the town of Lynmouth, killing 34 people.
1960 - Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) declares its independence from France.
1961 - Conrad Schumann flees from East Germany while on duty guarding the construction of the Berlin Wall.
1961 - Keiyo Road is specified to be the first driveway in Japan.
1962 - James Joseph Dresnok defected to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, running across the Korean DMZ. Dresnok still resides in the capital, Pyongyang.
1965 - John Coltrane plays in Chicago for the Downbeat Jazz Festival with Elvin Jones and McCoy Tyner.
1965 - The Beatles play to nearly 60,000 fans at Shea Stadium in New York City, marking the birth of stadium rock.
1969 - The Woodstock Music and Art Festival opens.
1971 - President Richard Nixon completes the break from the gold standard by ending convertibility of the United States dollar into gold by foreign investors.
1971 - Bahrain Independence Day.
1973 - Vietnam War: The United States bombing of Cambodia ends.
1974 - Seoul Seoul Metropolitan Subway Seoul Subway Line 1 opened, between Seoul Station and Cheongnyangni Station (underground)
1974 - Yuk Young-soo, First Lady of South Korea is killed amid an apparent assassination attempt upon President of South Korea, Park Chung-hee, during the anniversarial ceremony of the Liberation day.
1974 - Turkish invasion of Cyprus continues, and the 37% of the island is now under Turkish control.
1975 - Military coup in Bangladesh. Sheikh Mujibur Rehman killed along with all family members, except Haseena Wajid.
1975 - Miki Takeo makes the first official pilgrimage to Yasukuni Shrine by a sitting Prime Minister of Japan on the anniversary of the end of World War II.
1977 - The Big Ear, a radio telescope operated by The Ohio State University as part of the SETI project, receives a radio signal from deep space; the event is named the "Wow! signal" for notation made by a volunteer on the project.
1984 - PKK,Kurdish people in Turkey gain arms and start a Guerilla warfare campaign against the Turkish military
1993 - Junko Asari wins the women's marathon in the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Stuttgart, Japan's first major women's athletics victory.
1995 - In South Carolina, Shannon Faulkner becomes the first female cadet matriculated at The Citadel (Military College), but drops out in less than a week.
1998 - Omagh Bombing in Northern Ireland, becoming the worst terrorism incident of The Troubles
1999 - Beni Ounif massacre in Algeria; some 29 people killed at a false roadblock near the Moroccan border, leading to temporary tensions with Morocco.
2007 - An 2007 Peru Earthquake off the Pacific coast devastates Ica and various regions of Peru killing 514 and injuring 1,090.

Births

1171 - King Alfonso IX of Leon (d. 1230)
1195 - Anthony of Padua, Portuguese saint (d. 1231)
1432 - Luigi Pulci, Italian poet (d. 1484)
1575 - Bartol Kašić, Croatian writer and linguist (d. 1650)
1613 - Gilles Ménage, French scholar (d. 1692)
1717 - Blind Jack, English roadbuilder (d. 1810)
1740 - Matthias Claudius, German poet (d. 1815)
1769 - Napoleon I of France, Emperor of the French (d. 1821)
1771 - Sir Walter Scott, Scottish novelist and poet (d. 1832)
1785 - Thomas De Quincey, English author (d. 1859)
1813 - Jules Grévy, 2nd President of the French Republic of the French Third Republic (d. 1891)
1844 - Thomas-Alfred Bernier, Canadian journalist and politician (d. 1908)
1856 - Ivan Franko, Ukrainian writer (d. 1916)
1857 - Albert Ballin, German shipping tycoon (d. 1918)
1858 - E. Nesbit, English author (d. 1924)
1859 - Charles Comiskey, American baseball owner (d. 1931)
1860 - Henrietta Vinton Davis, American elocutionist (d. 1941)
1860 - Florence Harding, American First Lady (d. 1924)
1863 - Alexei Krylov, Russian engineer and mathematician (d. 1945)
1865 - Usui Mikao, founder of Reiki (d. 1926)
1872 - Sri Aurobindo, Indian writer and philosopher (d. 1950)
1875 - Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, English composer (d. 1912)
1878 - Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, Russian counter-revolutionary (d. 1928)
1879 - Ethel Barrymore, American actress (d. 1959)
1881 - Alfred Wagenknecht, German-born American activist (d. 1956)
1883 - Ivan Mestrovic, Croatian sculptor (d. 1962)
1885 - Edna Ferber, American novelist (d. 1968)
1890 - Elizabeth Bolden, American Supercentenarian (d. 2006)
1890 - Jacques Ibert, French composer (d. 1962)
1892 - Louis, 7th duc de Broglie, French physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics (d. 1987)
1893 - Leslie Comrie, New Zealand astronomer and computing pioneer (d. 1950)
1896 - Gerty Cori, Austrian-born biochemist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1957)
1896 - Catherine Doherty, Russian-born Canadian activist (d. 1985)
1896 - Paul Outerbridge, American photographer (d. 1958)
1896 - Léon Theremin, Russian inventor (d. 1993)
1898 - Jan Brzechwa, Polish poet (d. 1966)
1901 - Pyotr Sergeyevich Novikov, Russian mathematician (d. 1975)
1909 - Hugo Winterhalter, American composer and bandleader (d. 1973)
1910 - Signe Hasso, Swedish actress (d. 2002)
1912 - Julia Child, American cook (d. 2004)
1912 - Dame Wendy Hiller, English actress (d. 2003)
1914 - Paul Rand, American graphic designer (d. 1996)
1916 - Aleks Çaçi, Albanian writer
1917 - Jack Lynch, fourth Taoiseach (d. 1999)
1917 - Oscar Romero, El Salvador Roman catholic priest (d. 1980)
1919 - Huntz Hall, American actor (d. 1999)
1919 - Benedict Kiely, Irish author
1922 - Lukas Foss, German-born composer
1923 - Rose Marie, American actress
1924 - Robert Bolt, English playwright and Academy Award-winning screenwriter (d. 1995)
1925 - Mike Connors, American actor
1925 - Oscar Peterson, Canadian jazz pianist
1926 - Costis Stephanopoulos, Greek politician
1928 - Nicolas Roeg, English film director
1930 - Ageeda Paavel, Estonian freedom fighter
1933 - Jim Lange, American game show host
1933 - Bobby Helms, American pop singer (d. 1997)
1934 - Nino Ferrer, French-Italian singer (d. 1998)
1934 - Bobby Byrd, American soul/funk singer (d. 2007)
1935 - Vernon Jordan Jr., American presidential advisor
1935 - Lionel Taylor, American football player
1938 - Maxine Waters, American politician
1938 - Janusz A. Zajdel, Polish writer
1940 - Gudrun Ensslin, German terrorist
1940 - Rita Shane, American soprano
1942 - Larry Hartsell, American martial arts instructor (d. 2007)
1943 - María Rojo, Mexican actress and politician
1944 - Linda Ellerbee, American journalist
1944 - Tom Murphy (mayor), American politician
1944 - Sylvie Vartan, Bulgarian pop singer
1945 - Mahamandaleshwar Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda, Indian guru
1945 - Begum Khaleda Zia, Bangladeshi politician
1945 - Gene Upshaw, American NFL executive
1946 - Tony Robinson, English actor and television presenter
1946 - Jimmy Webb, American musician and composer
1947 - Raakhee Gulzar, Indian actress
1947 - Jenny Hanley, British TV presenter
1948 - Uschi Digard, American pornographic actress and model
1948 - Patsy Gallant, Canadian pop singer
1948 - George Ryton, British engineer
1949 - Richard Deacon, Welsh sculptor
1950 - Tommy Aldridge, American musician
1950 - Anne, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom
1950 - Tom Kelly (baseball), American baseball manager
1951 - Daba Diawara, Malian politician
1951 - Bobby Caldwell, American singer and musician
1954 - Mary Jo Salter, American poet
1956 - Lorraine Desmarais, French-Canadian jazz pianist and composer
1957 - Željko Ivanek, Slovenian-American actor
1958 - Victor Shenderovich, Russian satirist
1958 - Craig MacTavish, Canadian ice hockey player/coach
1958 - Rondell Sheridan, American actor and comedian
1962 - Tom Colicchio, American chef
1962 - Paraskevas Karasoulos, Greek lyricist
1963 - Alejandro González Iñárritu, Mexican film director
1964 - Melinda French Gates, American wife of Bill Gates
1964 - Debi Mazar, American actress
1965 - Rob Thomas (writer), American writer
1966 - Scott Brosius, American baseball player
1966 - Shirley Kwan, Hong Kong singer
1967 - Peter Hermann American actor
1968 - Debra Messing, American actress
1969 - Kevin Cheng, Hong Kong actor and singer
1970 - Anthony Anderson, American comedian and actor
1970 - Maddie Corman, American actress
1970 - Ben Silverman, American TV executive
1972 - Ben Affleck, American actor
1972 - Chris Morrissey (actor/film director), American film director/actor
1974 - Natasha Henstridge, Canadian actress
1975 - Kara Wolters, American basketball player
1976 - Boudewijn Zenden, Dutch football player
1977 - Nicole Paggi, American actress
1977 - Igor Cassina, Italian gymnast
1977 - Martin Biron, professional ice hockey goaltender
1978 - Tim Foreman, American bassist (Switchfoot)
1978 - Lilia Podkopayeva, Ukrainian gymnast
1978 - Stavros Tziortziopoulos, Greek footballer
1979 - Carl Edwards, American NASCAR driver
1980 - Nathalie Press, English actress
1981 - Brendan Hansen, American swimmer
1981 - Oliver Perez, American baseball player
1981 - Sung Ji Hyo, South Korean actress
1989 - Belinda (singer), Mexican singer

Deaths

423 - Honorius (emperor), Western Roman Emperor (b. 384)
778 - Roland, Frankish commander
1038 - King Stephen I of Hungary
1040 - King Duncan I of Scotland
1057 - King Macbeth of Scotland
1118 - Alexius I Comnenus, Byzantine Emperor (b. 1048)
1196 - Conrad II, Duke of Swabia (b. 1173)
1274 - Robert de Sorbon, French theologian and founder of the Sorbonne (b. 1201)
1369 - Philippa of Hainault, Queen consort of Edward III of England
1528 - Odet de Foix, Vicomte de Lautrec, French military leader (b. 1485)
1552 - Hermann of Wied, German Catholic archbishop (b. 1477)
1621 - John Barclay (1582-1621), Scottish writer (b. 1582)
1666 - Johann Adam Schall von Bell, German Jesuit missionary (b. 1591)
1714 - Constantin Brâncoveanu, Prince of Wallachia (b. 1654)
1728 - Marin Marais, French composer and viol player (b. 1656)
1758 - Pierre Bouguer, French mathematician (b. 1698)
1799 - Giuseppe Parini, Italian poet (b. 1729)
1852 - Johan Gadolin, Finnish scientist (b. 1760)
1907 - Joseph Joachim, Austrian violinist (b. 1831)
1909 - Euclides da Cunha, Brazilian writer and sociologist (b. 1866)
1917 - Thomas J. Higgins, decorated Union Army soldier (b. 1831)
1925 - Konrad Mägi, Estonian artist (b. 1878)
1935 - Wiley Post, American pilot (airplane crash) (b. 1898)
1935 - Will Rogers, American humorist and actor (airplane crash) (b. 1879)
1936 - Grazia Deledda, Italian writer, Nobel Prize in Literature (b. 1871)
1945 - Korechika Anami, Japanese Ministry of War of Japan#Ministers of War of Japan, 1900-1945 (b. 1887)
1951 - Artur Schnabel, Polish pianist (b. 1882)
1953 - Ludwig Prandtl, German physicist (b. 1875)
1959 - Blind Willie McTell, American singer (b. 1901)
1962 - Lei Feng, Chinese revolutionary (b. 1940)
1967 - René Magritte, Belgian painter (b. 1898)
1971 - Paul Lukas, Hungarian-born actor (b. 1887)
1974 - Yuk Young-soo, wife of the President of South Korea Park Chung-hee (b. 1925)
1975 - Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, President of Bangladesh (b. 1920)
1975 - Clay Shaw, alleged John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracist & businessman (b. 1913)
1982 - Hugo Theorell, Swedish scientist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1903)
1990 - Viktor Tsoi, Russian musician (b. 1962)
1995 - John Cameron Swayze, American journalist (b. 1906)
1999 - Sir Hugh Casson, British architect and artist (b. 1910)
2001 - Richard Chelimo, Kenyan athlete (b. 1972)
2003 - Gösta Sundqvist, Finnish songwriter and singer (heart attack) (b. 1957)
2004 - Semiha Berksoy, first Turkish opera singer (b. 1910)
2004 - Sune Bergström, Swedish biochemist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916)
2004 - Amarsinh Chaudhary, Indian politician (b. 1941)
2006 - Te Atairangi Kaahu, Māori queen (b. 1931)
2007 - John Gofman, American Manhattan Project scientist and advocate (b. 1918)
2007 - Geoffrey Orbell, New Zealand bush walker (b. 1908)

Holidays and observances

VJ Day / Vp day
Holidays in India – Independence Day (from the United Kingdom, 1947).
Acadie – National Day.
Austria, Maria Himmelfahrt day.
Bangladesh – National Mourning Day
Belgium, Assumption of Mary (of Blessed Virgin Mary) day.
Egypt – Flooding of the Nile Day.
France, Assumption of Mary Day.
Greece, Dormition ('Falling Asleep' of Virgin Mary.)
Hawaii – Toro Nagashi (Floating Lanterns Ceremony) to commemorate the end of the World War II.
Italy – " Assumption of Mary Day. And Ferragosto", remembrance of an ancient Roman holiday in honor of Augustus (Feriae Augusti).
Japan – Day of End of the War / The day which mourns for war dead, and prays for peace "National War-Dead Memorial Ceremony" is performed on that day every year after 1963.
Japan – Dutch Tray
Korea – Gwangbokjeol(Liberation Day).
Ancient Latvia – Māras.
Liechtenstein – Liechtenstein Day.
Paraguay – Assumption of Mary Day, and anniversary of the founding of Asunción
Poland – Polish Armed Forces Day.
Tuva – Tuva Republic Day, Naadym.
Portugal– Our Lady of Angels Feast, Azores.
Spain Assumption Day.
Costa Rica– Mother's Day.

Liturgical feasts

August 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) – Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos of the Theotokos, the commemoration of the death of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, Holy Day of Obligation. Public Holiday in: Public holidays in Austria, Public holidays in Belgium, Benin, Burundi, Public holidays in Cameroon, Public holidays in Chile, Public holidays in Côte d'Ivoire, Public holidays in Croatia, Public holidays in Cyprus, Public holidays in East Timor, Public holidays in France, Public holidays in Greece, Public holidays in Guatemala, Public holidays in India, Public holidays in Italy, Public holidays in Lebanon, Public holidays in Lithuania, Public holidays in Luxembourg, Public holidays in Malta, Public holidays in Mauritius, Public holidays in Poland, Public holidays in Portugal, Public holidays in Seychelles, Public holidays in Slovenia and Public holidays in Spain.
Calendar of Saints
Saint Alfred (died 874)
Saint Alipius, bishop
Saint Arnulph, bishop of Soissons
St. Arnoul/Saint Arnulphus
St. MacCartan/Ard/Aed/Mac-Cartan (Ard), Bishop of Clogher (Church of Ireland), Ireland
Saint Tarcisius
Blessed Rupert (died 1145)
Stanislaus Kostka
Napoleon Bonaparte (born on 15 August 1769), formerly celebrated in the First French Empire (1804-1814)

External links

BBC: On This Day
On This Day in Canada

BBC ON THIS DAY | Front Page
1998: Clinton admits Lewinsky affair. President of the United States, Bill Clinton ... 15 August

BBC ON THIS DAY | 15 | 1945: Allied nations celebrate VJ Day
Allied nations across the globe rejoice on Victory in Japan day that marks the end of World War II.

August 15 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
August 15 is the 227th day of the year (228th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 138 days remaining until the end of the year.

BBC - Proms - 15 August 2008
Details of Proms 2008Details of Proms 2008 events by day ... BBC Proms - 18 July-13 Sept 2008 - The World's Greatest Classical Music Festival

BBC - BBC 6 Music Programmes - Schedule, Friday 15 August 2008
BBC 6 Music full schedule for Friday 15 August 2008 ... The irreverent music lover serves up brekkie. With soul singer Martha Reeves.

Virgo 15 August | Virgo | Now Magazine
VIRGO STARSIGN daily zodiac horoscope 15 August 2008 ... Virgo. 23 Aug - 22 Sep. Something's bothering you Virgo and no matter how much your friends have tried to reassure you ...

howies®
I-Design and Moelfre featuring… tim march: 15 August 06:29pm: Supermind Book: tim march: 15 August 04:51pm: another lost DOer: earthtax: 15 August 04:46pm

The Omagh Bomb: The massacre in Omagh, 15 August 1998
An account of the events surrounding this attack, including background information, eyewitness accounts, tributes to those who died and information about the ongoing investigation.

Before the Omagh bomb, 15 August 1998
The hour before the Omagh bomb, 15 August 1998 ... Saturday, 15 August 1998 was a busy day for Omagh shoppers. Just two weeks until school resumed after the summer and many parents ...

CAIN: Events: Omagh: The Omagh Bomb, 15 August 1998
CAIN: Events: Omagh: The Omagh Bomb, 15 August 1998 ... Page Compiled: Martin Melaugh, Fionnuala McKenna, and Brendan Lynn Material is added to this site on a regular basis ...