On the 18th of August 1783 a huge fireball meteor is seen across Great Britain as it passes over the east coast. The meteor became known as the 1783 Great Meteor and was an unusually bright bolide,it was observable from the British Isles at a time when such phenomena were not well understood. The meteor…
On This Day: August 17th
On the 17th of August 1908 Emile Cohl created the first animated cartoon, it was called Fantasmagorie and was first shown in Paris, France. It is one of the earliest examples of traditional (hand-drawn) animation, and considered by film historians to be the first animated cartoon. The film largely consists of a stick man moving…
On This Day: August 16th
On August 16th 1819 the Peterloo Massacre occurred in Manchester, England. The Peterloo Massacre occurred at St Peter’s Field, Manchester, England, on 16 August 1819, when cavalry charged into a crowd of 60,000–80,000 who had gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation. It caused the deaths of 15 people and around 500 injuries. The…
On This Day: August 15th
On the 15th of August India gained independence from British rule, after almost 200 years under crown rule. India then joined the Commonwealth of Nations. India had an ongoing battle for independence via the Indian Independence Movement which encompassed activities and ideas aiming to end the East India Company rule (1757–1858) and the British Raj…
On This Day: August 14th
On the 14th of August 1947 Pakistan gained independence from the British Empire. Pakistan then joined the Commonwealth of Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, or the Commonwealth (formerly the British Commonwealth), is an intergovernmental organisation of 53 member states that were mostly territories of the former British Empire. The Commonwealth operates by intergovernmental consensus of…
On This Day: August 13th
On the 13th of August 1898 Carl Gustav Witt did covered 433 Eros, it was the first near-Earth asteroid to be discovered. 433 Eros is an S-type near-Earth asteroid approximately 34.4×11.2×11.2 kilometres in size, the second-largest near-Earth asteroid after 1036 Ganymed. It was the first asteroid orbited by an Earth probe (in 2000). It belongs…
On This Day: August 12th
On August 12th 1994 Major League Baseball players went on strike, this strike led to the cancellation of the 1994 World Series. This’s was only the second time in the events history it had been cancelled.
On This Day: August 11th
On the 11th of August 1965 the Watts riots began in the Watts neighbourhood of Los Angeles, the riots lasted till August 17th. On August 11, 1965, an African-American motorist was arrested for drunk driving. A minor roadside argument broke out, and then escalated into a fight. The community reacted in outrage, and six days…
On This Day: August 10th
On August 10th 1977 24 year old David Berkowitz (the Son of Sam) was arrested in Yonkers, New York. He was arrested for a series of killings in the New York City area over the period of one year. Between July 29th 1976 and July 31st 1977 he killed 6 and wounded 7 people, the…
On This Day: August 9th
On August 9th 1902 Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark were crowned as King and Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Edward was the eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Edward was related to royalty throughout Europe. Before his accession to the throne, he served…
On This Day: August 8th
On the 8th of August 1220 Sweden was defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula. It was fought between invading Swedes and Estonians for the control of a castle in Lihula, Estonia. The event is described in the Chronicle of Henry of Livonia and the Livonian Rhymed Chronicle. The Swedish army took the…
On This Day: August 7th
On August 7th 1789 the United States Department of War was established. The department was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, also bearing responsibility for naval affairs until the establishment of the Navy Department in 1798, and for most land-based air forces until the…
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