1905 – Mbunga Rebellion occupies German post Ifakara, East Africa
1915 – Kansas City Packers’ Alex Main no-hits Buffalo Blues (Federal League), 5-0
1920 – Cleveland Indians shortstop Ray Chapman is hit in the head by NY Yankees pitcher Carl Mays and dies the next day in the only MLB game-related fatality
1928 – Belgian cyclist Georges Ronsse wins men’s road race at UCI Road World Championships in Budapest, Hungary
1971 – Over 8,000 workers go on strike in Derry, Northern Ireland, in protest against the introduction of internment, which allows suspected terrorists to be indefinitely detained without trial
1987 – Astrological Harmonic Convergence – Dawn of a New Age
1997 – The South African soccer team, Bafana Bafana wins against the national team of the Democratic Republic of the Congo at First National Bank stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa
2008 – British sailor Ben Ainslie convincingly wins the Finn class at the Beijing Olympics, earning his third gold medal in as many Games
Author: gil7
Today in History for 16th August 2026
Historical Events
1915 – Kansas City Packers’ Alex Main no-hits Buffalo Blues (Federal League), 5-0
1966 – The Beatles perform in concert at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for their second and final show in the city
1972 – USSR performs a nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeastern Kazakhstan
1997 – The South African soccer team, Bafana Bafana wins against the national team of the Democratic Republic of the Congo at First National Bank stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa
2021 – Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and his cabinet resign after losing their majority amid political turmoil
Famous Birthdays
1868 – Bernarr McFadden, American physical culture advocate, credited with beginning the culture of health and fitness in the United States, born in Mill Spring, Missouri (d. 1955)
1935 – Andreas Stamatiadis, Greek soccer forward (8 caps; AEK Athens 316 games), born in Athens, Greece (d. 2025)
1954 – George Galloway, British politician, broadcaster, and writer, born in Dundee, Scotland
1958 – Anne L’Huillier, French-Swedish physicist (2023 Nobel Prize for Physics for attosecond pulses of light), born in Paris, France
1985 – Taylor Goldsmith, American folk-rock singer-songwriter, and guitarist (Dawes), born in Los Angeles, California
Famous Deaths
1419 – Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, King of Bohemia (1378-1419) and Germany (1376-1400), dies at 58
1929 – Frank Valentine der Stucken, American-Belgian composer, dies at 70
1956 – Bela Lugosi [Blaskó], Austrian actor (Dracula, Plan 9 From Outer Space), dies of a heart attack at 73
1986 – Jaime Saenz, Bolivian poet, novelist, and short story writer (b. 1921)
2024 – Countess of Airlie [Virginia Ogilvy], British-American Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth II, dies at 91
Famous Deaths for 15th August 2026
1196 – Conrad II, Duke of Swabia (b. 1173)
1935 – Will Rogers, American humorist and actor (Judge Priest), dies in a plane crash in Alaska at 55
1972 – Jeff Pfeffer, American baseball pitcher (no-hitter Boston Doves v Cincinnati Reds 1907), dies at 84
1978 – Harrison Kerr, American composer, dies at 80
1988 – Barry Bingham Sr, American newspaper publisher (The Courier-Journal, The Louisville Times), dies at 82
2004 – Sune Bergström, Swedish biochemist, (1982 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for identification of prostaglandins), dies at 88
2006 – Te Atairangikaahu, New Zealand Māori Queen for 40 years, dies at 75
2006 – Rick Bourke, Australian rugby league player (Cronulla), dies of cancer at 52
2010 – James J. Kilpatrick, American newspaper journalist and columnist (60 Minutes), dies at 89
2013 – Jacques Vergès, French lawyer known as “The Devil’s Advocate” (defended Klaus Barbie and Carlos the Jackal), dies of a heart attack at 88
Historical Events for 15th August 2026
1658 – France, Sweden, Bavaria, Brunswick, Münster, and Hesse-Kassel form the Confederation of the Rhine
1748 – United Lutheran Church in the American colonies is organized
1914 – Japan joins the Allies
1936 – Annibale Frossi scores twice as Italy beats Austria 2-1 in extra time in the football final at the Berlin Olympics
1944 – Operation Dragoon: Allied troops land in Provence
1950 – Rotterdam dock strike begins
1965 – PGA Championship Men’s Golf, Laurel Valley GC: Dave Marr wins his only major title, beating Billy Casper and Jack Nicklaus by 2 strokes
2016 – Anita Włodarczyk of Poland sets a world record of 82.29 m to win the women’s hammer throw gold medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics; Zhang Wenxiu (China) wins silver, and Sophie Hitchon (Great Britain) wins bronze
Today in History for 15th August 2026
Historical Events
1906 – First freight delivery tunnel system begins operation underneath Chicago
1944 – Operation Dragoon: Allied troops land in Provence
1945 – A riot ensues in San Francisco as the city celebrates the end of WWII
1993 – 75th PGA Championship Men’s Golf, Inverness GC: Paul Azinger wins his first major title in a playoff with Greg Norman of Australia
2016 – Anita Włodarczyk of Poland sets a world record of 82.29 m to win the women’s hammer throw gold medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics; Zhang Wenxiu (China) wins silver, and Sophie Hitchon (Great Britain) wins bronze
Famous Birthdays
1910 – Leslie Coffelt, American White House Police officer, killed in the line of duty during an assassination attempt on Harry Truman, born in Oranda, Virginia (d. 1950)
1946 – Jimmy Webb, American singer and songwriter (“MacArthur Park”; “Up Up and Away”), born in Elk City, Oklahoma
1952 – Ger Hoeymakers, Dutch rock guitarist (Franc Boeijen Group), born in Sevenum, Netherlands
1977 – Martin Biron, Canadian American ice hockey goaltender, born in Lac-Saint-Charles, Quebec
1981 – Song Ji-hyo, South Korean actress (Running Man), born in Pohang, South Korea
Famous Deaths
1196 – Conrad II, Duke of Swabia (b. 1173)
1615 – Cornelis C. Vrancx, Flemish poet and writer (Comfort of Soles), dies
1988 – Mohammed Zia ul-Haq, Pakistani general and politician (President of Pakistan 1978-88), killed in plane crash at 64
2014 – Jay Adams, American skateboarder (Z-Boys; Skateboarding HOF), dies of a heart attack at 53
2022 – Pete Carril, American basketball coach (13 × Ivy League champion, Princeton University), dies at 92
Famous Deaths for 14th August 2026
1040 – King Duncan I of Scotland, killed in battle at ca. 39 years
1573 – Saitō Tatsuoki, Japanese warlord (b. 1548)
1870 – David Farragut, American Admiral (“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!”), dies at 69
1943 – Joe Kelley, American Baseball HOF left fielder (NL stolen base leader 1896 Baltimore Orioles) and manager (Cincinnati Reds, Boston Doves), dies at 71
1970 – Vano Muradeli, Soviet Georgian composer (The Great Friendship; Our Leader), and pedagogue, dies at 62
1992 – (Samuel) “Tony” Williams, American pop singer (The Platters, 1953-59 – “Only You”; “Great Pretender”), dies at 64
2000 – Cuan McCarthy, South African cricketer (36 Test wkts for South Africa, 1 career no-ball), dies at 71
2005 – Christmas Tinto, South African ANC and UDF leader, dies at 79
2010 – Terje Stigen, Norwegian author (Det siste paradiset), dies at 88
2025 – Dawie Snyman, South African rugby union utility back (10 Tests; Western Province RFU), dies at 76
Historical Events for 14th August 2026
1040 – King Duncan I of Scotland is killed in battle against his first cousin and rival Macbeth, who succeeds him as king (not murdered in his sleep as in Shakespeare’s play)
1758 – Battle of Zorndorf: Prussia defeats Russia, with thousands killed
1825 – Dutch King William I expels foreign students
1915 – British transport Royal Edward is sunk by a German U-boat, killing 1,000
1932 – Brooklyn Dodgers reliever Johnny Quinn, 49, becomes the oldest pitcher to win an MLB game in a 2-1, 10th-inning victory over the NY Giants at the Polo Grounds
1937 – China declares war on Japan
1981 – George Foster hits his 8th home run into the red seats at Riverfront
2024 – Tropical Storm Ernesto becomes a hurricane, bringing strong winds and rain to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, taking out power supplies
Today in History for 14th August 2026
Historical Events
1824 – General Lafayette returns to the US
1984 – West Indies complete 5-0 series annihilation of England
1993 – Nigerian presidential election
1995 – Shannon Faulkner becomes the first woman to attend The Citadel
2023 – Former US President Donald Trump and 18 others, including Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows, are indicted by a grand jury in Atlanta on felony charges for attempting to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia
Famous Birthdays
1738 – Leopold Hofmann, Austrian composer and kapellmeister (Cathedral of St. Stephan, 1772-93), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1793)
1910 – Pierre Schaeffer, French electronics engineer and composer, born in Nancy, France (d. 1995)
1926 – (Armando) “Buddy” Greco, American jazz and pop singer (“Ooh! Look-A There, Ain’t She Pretty”; “The Lady Is A Tramp”), pianist, and television personality (Away We Go), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2017)
1947 – Danielle Steel, American author (Rememberance, Zoya, Star, Daddy), born in New York City
1983 – Mila Kunis, Ukrainian-American actress (Friends with Benefits; That ’70s Show – “Jacki'”), born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine SSR, Soviet Union
Famous Deaths
1975 – Joris Baers, Belgian priest and librarian (founded magazine Boekengids), dies at 87
1988 – Robert Calvert, South African-British writer and musician (Hawkwind), dies of a heart attack at 43
2000 – Cuan McCarthy, South African cricketer (36 Test wkts for South Africa, 1 career no-ball), dies at 71
2009 – Lawrence Lucie, American jazz guitarist (Fletcher Henderson, Louis Armstrong), and educator (Manhattan College, 1974-2004), dies at 101
2020 – Angela Buxton, English tennis player (French C’ships, Wimbledon women’s doubles 1956 [with Althea Gibson]), dies at 85
Famous Deaths for 13th August 2026
1382 – Eleanor of Aragon, wife of John I of Castile, dies giving birth to her third child at 24
1617 – Johann Jakob Grynaeus, Swiss Protestant Calvinist clergyman, and theologian, dies at 76
1749 – Johann Elias Schlegel, German critic and dramatic poet, dies at 30
1955 – John Klenner, American pianist, composer, and songwriter (“Just Friends”, “Heartaches”), dies at 56
1992 – Jan Elburg, Dutch poet (Through the Night), dies at 72
2000 – Antony Duff, British WWII submarine commander, diplomat, (1946-80), intelligence officer (Director of MI5, 1985-88), and advocate for the homeless, dies at 80
2006 – Payao Poontarat, Thai Olympic boxer (b. 1957)
2007 – Brian Adams, aka Demolition Crush, American professional wrestler (b. 1964)
2008 – Henri Cartan, French Mathematician, dies at 104
2012 – Joan Roberts [Josephine Seagrist], American radio and stage actress (Oklahoma!), dies of congestive heart failure at 95
Historical Events for 13th August 2026
1933 – PGA Championship Men’s Golf, Blue Mound CC: Gene Sarazen defeats Willie Goggin, 5 and 4 for 3rd of his 3 PGA C’ship titles; 6th of his 7 majors
1937 – Second Sino-Japanese War: Japanese forces start the Battle of Shanghai, a three-month conflict involving over one million troops
1951 – Great Britain and Iraq sign a new oil contract
1962 – Bert Campaneris of Daytona Beach (FSL) pitches with both arms and plays all nine positions
1989 – Two hot-air balloons crash at Alice Springs, Australia, killing 13 people
1999 – 32nd San Diego Comic-Con International opens at San Diego Convention Center
2008 – Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice wraps up the medley double at the Beijing Olympics as she swims a world record of 2:08.45 to win the 200 m individual medley gold medal
2016 – American swimmer Michael Phelps ends his career at the Rio Olympics as part of the winning 4 x 100 m medley relay, his record 23rd gold medal