August 26 is the 238th day of the year (239th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 127 days remaining until the end of the year. [edit] Events - 1071 – Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Army at Manzikert.
- 1278 – Ladislaus IV of Hungary and Rudolph I of Germany defeat Premysl Ottokar II of Bohemia in the Battle of Marchfield near Dürnkrut in (then) Moravia.
- 1303 – Ala ud din Khilji captures Chittorgarh.
- 1346 – Hundred Years' War: the military supremacy of the English longbow over the French combination of crossbow and armoured knights is established at the Battle of Crécy.
- 1466 – A conspiracy against Piero di Cosimo de' Medici in Florence, led by Luca Pitti, is discovered.
- 1498 – Michelangelo is commissioned to carve the Pietà.
- 1748 – The first Lutheran denomination in North America, the Pennsylvania Ministerium, is founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- 1768 – The HM Bark Endeavour expedition under Captain James Cook sets sail from England.
- 1778 – The first recorded ascent of Triglav, the highest mountain in Slovenia.
- 1789 – Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen approved by National Assembly at Palace of Versailles.
- 1858 – First news dispatch by telegraph.
- 1862 – American Civil War: the Second Battle of Bull Run begins.
- 1883 – The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa begins its final, paroxysmal, stage.
- 1914 – World War I: the British Expeditionary Force fights a rear-guard action at the Battle of Le Cateau that briefly checks the German advance.
- 1914 – World War I: the German colony of Togoland is invaded by French and British forces, who take it after 5 days.
- 1920 – The 19th amendment to United States Constitution takes effect, giving women the right to vote.
- 1939 – The first Major League Baseball game is telecast, a doubleheader between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field, in Brooklyn, New York.
- 1940 – Chad is the first French colony to join the Allies under the administration of Félix Éboué, France's first black colonial governor.
- 1942 – Holocaust in Chortkiv, western Ukraine: At 2.30 am the German Schutzpolizei starts driving Jews out of their houses, divides them into groups of 120, packs them in freight cars and deports 2000 to Belzec death camp. 500 of the sick and children murdered on the spot.
- 1944 – World War II: Charles de Gaulle enters Paris.
- 1957 – The USSR announces the successful test of an ICBM – a "super long distance intercontinental multistage ballistic rocket ... a few days ago," according to the Soviet news agency, ITAR-TASS.
- 1970 – The then new feminist movement, led by Betty Friedan, leads a nation-wide Women's Strike for Equality.
- 1971 – The United States Congress declares August 26th as an annual Women's Equality Day.
- 1977 – The Charter of the French Language is adopted by the National Assembly of Quebec
- 1978 – Papal conclave, 1978 (August): Pope John Paul I is elected to the Papacy.
- 1978 – Sigmund Jähn becomes first German cosmonaut on board of the Soyuz 31 spacecraft.
- 1980 – John Birges plants a bomb at Harvey's Resort Hotel in Stateline, Nevada.
- 1987 – President Ronald Reagan proclaims September 11, 1987 as 9-1-1 Emergency Number Day.
- 1992 – Václav Klaus and Vladimír Mečiar signed agreement of split of Czechoslovakia in Brno.
- 1997 – Beni-Ali massacre in Algeria; 60-100 people killed.
- 2003 – The Columbia Accident Investigation Board releases its final reports on Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
- 2008 – Russia unilaterally recognizes the independence of the former Georgian breakaway republics Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
[edit] Births - 1469 – Ferdinand II of Naples (d. 1496)
- 1540 – King Magnus of Livonia (d. 1583)
- 1676 – Robert Walpole, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1745)
- 1694 – Elisha Williams, American rector of Yale College (d. 1755)
- 1728 – Johann Heinrich Lambert, German scientist (d. 1777)
- 1736 – Jean-Baptiste L. Romé de l'Isle, French chemist (d. 1790)
- 1740 – Joseph Montgolfier, French inventor (d. 1810)
- 1743 – Antoine Lavoisier, French chemist (d. 1794)
- 1775 – William Joseph Behr, German writer (d. 1851)
- 1789 – Abbas Mirza, Prince of Persia (d. 1833)
- 1792 – Manuel Oribe, Uruguayan political figure (d. 1857)
- 1819 – Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Consort of the United Kingdom (d. 1861)
- 1826 – Princess Alexandra of Bavaria (d. 1875)
- 1845 – Mary Ann Nichols, English victim of Jack the Ripper (d. 1888)
- 1850 – Charles Richet, French physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1935)
- 1854 – Arnold Fothergill, England cricketer (d. 1932)
- 1862 – Herbert Booth, American son of William and Catherine Booth (d. 1926)
- 1864 – Anna Ulyanova, older sister of Vladimir Lenin (d. 1935)
- 1865 – Arthur James Arnot, Scottish inventor (d. 1946)
- 1873 – Lee DeForest, American inventor (d. 1961)
- 1874 – Zona Gale, American novelist (d. 1938)
- 1875 – John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, Scottish novelist, Governor General of Canada (d. 1940)
- 1880 – Guillaume Apollinaire, French poet and art critic (d. 1918)
- 1882 – James Franck, German-born physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1964)
- 1885 – Jules Romains, French author (d. 1972)
- 1890 – Tommy Andrews, Australian cricketer (d. 1970)
- 1894 – Sparky Adams, Baseball player (d. 1989)
- 1896 – Ivan Mihailov, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1990)
- 1897 – Yoon Boseon, President of South Korea (d. 1990)
- 1898 – Peggy Guggenheim, American art collector (d. 1979)
- 1899 – Rufino Tamayo, Mexican painter (d. 1991)
- 1900 – Hellmuth Walter, German engineer and inventor (d. 1980)
- 1901 – Hans Kammler, German engineer and SS officer (disappeared in 1945)
- 1901 – Maxwell Taylor, American general (d. 1987)
- 1901 – Chen Yi, Chinese communist military commander and politician (d. 1972)
- 1904 – Christopher Isherwood, English-born writer (d. 1986)
- 1906 – Albert Sabin, American polio researcher (d. 1993)
- 1908 – W. B. Henning, Prussian-born Iranist (d. 1967)
- 1908 – Aubrey Schenck, film producer (d. 1999)
- 1908 – Bill Hunt, Australian cricketer (d. 1983)
- 1909 – Jim Davis, American actor (d. 1981)
- 1909 – Gene Moore, baseball player (d. 1978)
- 1909 – Eric Davies, South African cricketer (d. 1976)
- 1910 – Mother Teresa, Nobel Peace Prize winning Christian missionary (d. 1997)
- 1914 – Julio Cortázar, Argentine writer (d. 1984)
- 1920 – Brant Parker, American cartoonist (d. 2007)
- 1920 – Prem Tinsulanonda, Thai soldier and politician
- 1921 – Benjamin Bradlee, American journalist
- 1922 – Irving R. Levine, American journalist (d. 2009)
- 1923 – Wolfgang Sawallisch, German conductor and pianist
- 1924 – Alex Kellner, baseball player (d. 1996)
- 1925 – Jack Hirshleifer, American economist (d. 2005)
- 1925 – Alain Peyrefitte, French politician and writer (d. 1999)
- 1925 – Sangharakshita, Buddhist Philosopher, Founder of the Western Buddhist Order
- 1927 – B. V. Doshi, Indian architect
- 1928 – Peter Appleyard, Canadian jazz vibraphonist
- 1928 – Naïm Kattan, Canadian novelist and essayist
- 1930 – Joe Solomon, West Indian cricketer
- 1932 – Luis Salvadores, Chilean basketball player.
- 1934 – Tom Heinsohn, American basketball player and commentator
- 1935 – Geraldine Ferraro, American politician
- 1936 – Yvette Vickers, American actress
- 1938 – Jet Black, English Drummer, one of the founder members of The Stranglers
- 1940 – Don LaFontaine, American voice actor (d. 2008)
- 1941 – Barbet Schroeder, Swiss film director
- 1941 – Akiko Wakabayashi, Japanese actress
- 1941 – Chris Curtis, English singer and drummer (The Searchers) (d. 2005)
- 1942 – Vic Dana, American singer
- 1942 – Dennis Turner, British politician
- 1944 – Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, British prince
- 1944 – Stephen Greif, English actor
- 1944 – Maureen Tucker, American musician (The Velvet Underground)
- 1945 – Jo Freeman, American feminist scholar
- 1945 – Tom Ridge, first United States Secretary of Homeland Security
- 1946 – Valerie Simpson, American singer
- 1946 – Mark Snow, American composer
- 1946 – Zhou Ji, Education Minister of the People's Republic of China
- 1946 – Chantal Renaud, Quebec singer and actress
- 1947 – Emiliano Díez, Cuban actor
- 1947 – Nicolae Dobrin, Romanian footballer (d. 2007)
- 1950 – Benjamin Hendrickson, American actor (d. 2006)
- 1952 – Bryon Baltimore, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1952 – Michael Jeter, American actor (d. 2003)
- 1952 – Will Shortz, American crossword editor
- 1953 – Pat Sharkey, Irish footballer
- 1954 – Efren Reyes, Filipino pool player
- 1956 – Mark Mangino, American football coach
- 1957 – Dr. Alban, Nigerian-Swedish singer
- 1957 – Rick Hansen, Canadian paraplegic athlete
- 1958 – Jan Nevens, Belgian cyclist
- 1959 – Stan Van Gundy, American basketball coach
- 1960 – Branford Marsalis, American saxophonist and bandleader
- 1960 – Nancy Martinez, Canadian-born singer
- 1960 – Wanda De Jesus, American actress
- 1961 – Daniel Lévi, French singer-songwriter, composer and pianist
- 1961 – Jeff Parrett, American baseball player
- 1962 – Bob Mionske, American cyclist and attorney
- 1963 – David Byas, English cricketer
- 1965 – Chris Burke, American actor
- 1965 – Bobby Duncum, Jr., wrestler (d. 2000)
- 1965 – Jon Hensley, American actor
- 1966 – Jacques Brinkman, Dutch field hockey player
- 1966 – Shirley Manson, Scottish singer
- 1966 – Avner Ben-Gal, Israeli artist and painter
- 1968 – Byron Lawson, Canadian actor
- 1970 – Olimpiada Ivanova, Russian athlete
- 1970 – Brett Schultz, South African cricketer
- 1971 – Thalía, Mexican singer
- 1974 – Eric D. Snider, American humor columnist / movie reviewer
- 1975 – Morgan Ensberg, American baseball player
- 1975 – Tyler Connolly, Canadian Singer
- 1976 – Amaia Montero, Spanish singer (La Oreja de Van Gogh)
- 1976 – Zemfira, Russian singer
- 1977 – Saeko Chiba, Japanese seiyū
- 1977 – Morris Peterson, American basketball player
- 1977 – Liam Botham, Hampshire cricketer and rugby league player
- 1978 – Raja Kashif, Pakistani singer
- 1979 – Jamal Lewis, American football player
- 1979 – Cristian Mora, Ecuadorian footballer
- 1979 – Rubén Pazos, Spanish footballer
- 1979 – Yağmur Sarıgül, Turkish Musician (maNga)
- 1980 – Macaulay Culkin, American actor
- 1980 – Brendan Harris, American baseball player
- 1980 – Chris Pine, American actor
- 1981 – Jesse Martin, Australian yachtsman
- 1981 – Petey Williams, Canadian professional wrestler
- 1981 – Demetria McKinney, American actress
- 1981 – Tino Best, West Indian cricketer
- 1982 – David Long, New Zealand musician
- 1982 – Noah Welch, American ice hockey player
- 1983 – Félix Porteiro, Spanish racing driver
- 1986 – Cassie, American singer
- 1986 – Colin Kazim-Richards, Turkish footballer
- 1988 – Elvis Andrus, Venezuelan baseball player
- 1988 – Princess Maria Laura of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este
- 1988 – Danielle Savre, American actress
- 1992 – Yang Yilin, Chinese gymnast
- 1993 – Keke Palmer, American actress
[edit] Deaths - 1278 – King Otakar II of Bohemia
- 1346 – Killed in the Battle of Crécy:
- 1349 – Thomas Bradwardine, Archbishop of Canterbury
- 1551 – Margareta Leijonhufvud, queen of Gustav I of Sweden (b. 1516)
- 1572 – Petrus Ramus, French philosopher (b. 1515)
- 1595 – Antonio, Prior of Crato, claimant to the throne of Portugal (b. 1531)
- 1666 – Frans Hals, Dutch painter (b. c. 1580)
- 1714 – Edward Fowler, English Bishop of Gloucester (b. 1632)
- 1723 – Anton van Leeuwenhoek, Dutch scientist (b. 1632)
- 1785 – George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville, British soldier and politician (b. 1716)
- 1850 – Louis-Philippe of France (b. 1773)
- 1865 – Johann Franz Encke, German astronomer (b. 1791)
- 1908 – Tony Pastor, American vaudeville performer (b. 1837)
- 1910 – William James, American psychologist and philosopher (b. 1842)
- 1930 – Lon Chaney, Sr., American actor (b. 1883)
- 1944 – Adam von Trott zu Solz, German diplomat (b. 1909)
- 1945 – Franz Werfel, Austrian writer (b. 1890)
- 1946 – Jeanie MacPherson, American actress and screenwriter (b. 1887)
- 1956 – Alfred Wagenknecht, German-born American activist (b. 1881)
- 1958 – Ralph Vaughan Williams, English composer (b. 1872)
- 1968 – Kay Francis, American actress (b. 1899)
- 1974 – Charles Lindbergh, American aviator (b. 1902)
- 1976 – Lotte Lehmann, German soprano (b. 1888)
- 1978 – Charles Boyer, French actor (b. 1899)
- 1978 – José Manuel Moreno, Argentine footballer (b. 1916)
- 1979 – Mika Waltari, Finnish author (b. 1908)
- 1980 – Rosa Albach-Retty, German actress (b. 1874)
- 1980 – Tex Avery, American cartoonist (b. 1908)
- 1981 – Roger Nash Baldwin, founder of the American Civil Liberties Union (b. 1884)
- 1981 – Lee Elhardt Hays, American folksinger (b. 1914)
- 1986 – Ted Knight, American actor (b. 1923)
- 1987 – Georg Wittig, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
- 1987 – John Goddard, West Indian cricketer (b. 1919)
- 1988 – Carlos Paião, Portuguese singer (b. 1957)
- 1989 – Irving Stone, American author (b. 1903)
- 1990 – Minoru Honda, Japanese astronomer (b. 1913)
- 1992 – Arthur Leigh Allen, American suspected murderer (b. 1933)
- 1992 – Bob de Moor, Belgian comics artist (b. 1925)
- 1998 – Frederick Reines, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
- 2000 – Akbar Adibi, Iranian scientist (b. 1939)
- 2001 – Louis Muhlstock, Canadian painter (b. 1904)
- 2003 – Jim Wacker, American football coach (b. 1937)
- 2004 – Laura Branigan, American singer (b. 1957)
- 2005 – Denis D'Amour, Canadian guitarist (Voivod) (b. 1960)
- 2005 – Robert Denning, American interior designer (b. 1927)
- 2005 – Ed White, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1949)
- 2006 – Rainer Barzel, German politician (b. 1924)
- 2006 – Clyde Walcott, Barbadian West Indies cricketer (b. 1926)
- 2007 – Gaston Thorn, Luxembourger politician (b. 1928)
- 2007 – Ramon Zamora, Filipino martial arts actor (b. 1935)
- 2009 – Dominick Dunne, American writer, Vanity Fair correspondent (b. 1925)
[edit] Holidays and observances [edit] External links
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