August 31

## Events 
### Up to 1900 
* 1056 &ndash; Byzantine Empress Theodora dies suddenly without children to succeed the throne, ending the Macedonian dynasty.
* 1314 &ndash; Norway's capital is moved from Bergen to Oslo.
* 1422 &ndash; King Henry V of England dies in France from dysentery. Henry VI of England becomes king of England at the age of just under nine months.
* 1798 &ndash; Irish Rebellion of 1798: Irish rebels, with French assistance, establish the short–lived Republic of Connacht.
* 1803 &ndash; Meriwether Lewis and William Clark start their expedition west by leaving Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at 11 in the morning.
* 1812 &ndash; Troop transporter *Salvador* runs aground on the Rio de la Plata, between Argentina and Uruguay, killing 470 people, of the 600 on board.
* 1813 &ndash; At the final stage of the Peninsular War, British  and Portuguese forces capture Donostia, now known as San Sebastian, in the Basque Country, resulting in a rampage and eventual destruction of the town.
* 1848 &ndash; Costa Rica becomes independent from the Federal Republic of Central America.
* 1864 &ndash; American Civil War: Union forces led by General William T. Sherman launch an assault on Atlanta, Georgia.
* 1876 &ndash; Ottoman sultan Murat V is deposed and succeeded by his brother Abd-ul-Hamid II.
* 1886 &ndash; An Earthquake kills 100 in Charleston, South Carolina.
* 1888 &ndash; Mary Ann Nicholls is murdered. She is perhaps the first of Jack the Ripper's victims
* 1895 &ndash; John Brallier is paid US$10 plus expenses to play football for the Latrobe, Pennsylvania YMCA, making him the first professional football player.
* 1897 &ndash; Thomas Edison patents the Kinetoscope, the first movie projector.
* 1897 &ndash; Initiated by Theodor Herzl, the Zionist World Congress in Basel, Switzerland, calls for the creation of a Jewish state.

### 1901 &ndash; 2000 
* 1907 &ndash; England, Russia and France form the Triple Entente alliance.
* 1914 &ndash; Ecuador becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.
* 1915 &ndash; Brazil becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.
* 1920 &ndash; Polish-Bolshevik War: A decisive Polish victory in the Battle of Komarów.
* 1920 &ndash; First news radio program broadcast in Detroit, Michigan.
* 1931 &ndash; Production of Ford Motor Company's Model A ends, with 4.3 million produced.
* 1936 &ndash; Radio Praha, now the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic, goes on the air.
* 1939 &ndash; Nazi Germany mounts a staged attack on Gleiwitz radio station, giving them an excuse to attack Poland the following day, starting World War II.
* 1940 &ndash; Pennsylvania Central Airlines Trip 19 crashes near Lovettsville, Virginia.
* 1941 &ndash; World War II: Serbian paramilitary forces defeat German forces  in the Battle of Loznica.
* 1943 &ndash; The USS *Harmon*, the first U.S. Navy ship to be named for a black person, is commissioned.
* 1945 &ndash; The Liberal Party of Australia is formed by Robert Menzies.
* 1949 &ndash; The Greek Civil War ends.
* 1950 &ndash; East Germany bans Jehovah's Witnesses from practising their faith.
* 1951 &ndash; The Dominican Republic records its highest–ever temperature, at 43 degrees Celsius.
* 1953 &ndash; The city of Santander in Northern Spain opens its new airport.
* 1957 &ndash; The Federation of Malaya gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
* 1958 &ndash; An assassination attempt on King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia fails, when a parcel bomb sent by Ngo Dinh Nhu, brother and advisor to Ngo Dinh Diem, fails to detonate.
* 1962 &ndash; Trinidad and Tobago become independent.
* 1963 &ndash; Sarawak, North Borneo and Singapore achieve technical independence, pending accession to the Federation of Malaya.
* 1968 &ndash; An earthquake in Iran kills at least 12,000 people.
* 1978 &ndash; William and Emily Harris, founders of the Symbionese Liberation Army, plead guilty to the 1974 kidnapping of newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst.
* 1980 &ndash; The Solidarity trade union is formed in Poland.
* 1980 &ndash; Heavy rain causes flooding in Ibadan, Nigeria, killing over 300 people.
* 1985 &ndash; Richard Ramirez, the "Night Stalker" serial killer, is arrested in Los Angeles, California.
* 1986 &ndash; An Aeroméxico Douglas DC-9 collides with a Piper PA-28 over Cerritos, California, killing 67 in the air and 15 on the ground.
* 1986 &ndash; The Soviet passenger liner *Admiral Nakhimov* sinks in the Black Sea after colliding with the bulk carrier *Pyotr Vasev*, killing 398.
* 1987 &ndash; Thai Airways Flight 365 crashes into the ocean near Ko Phuket, Thailand, killing all 83 people on board.
* 1989 &ndash; Buckingham Palace officials confirm that Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips are to be separated.
* 1990 &ndash; The plan for German unity is signed in Berlin.
* 1991 &ndash; Kyrgyzstan declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
* 1992 &ndash; Pascal Lissouba is inaugurated as the President of the Republic of the Congo after a multiparty presidential election, ending a long history of one–party oppressive rule under the Congolese Workers Party.
* 1994 &ndash; The Provisional Irish Republican Army declares a ceasefire.
* 1996 &ndash; Saddam Hussein's troops seize Irbil, Iraq, after Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani had asked for help to defeat the Kurdish PKK.
* 1997 &ndash; Diana, Princess of Wales, dies in a car crash in Paris.
* 1998 &ndash; North Korea reportedly launches *Kwangmyongsong*, its first satellite.
* 1999 &ndash; A LAPA Boeing 737–200 crashes during take–off from Jorge Newbury Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina, killing 65 people, including 2 on the ground.
* 1999 &ndash; The first of a series of Russian Apartment Bombings in Moscow, killing one person and wounding 40 others.

### From 2001 
* 2001 &ndash; PBS airs the final episode of ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' with host Fred Rogers retiring.
* 2004 &ndash; Mel Gibson's movie *The Passion of the Christ* is released on DVD and VHS in stores across the United States, selling approximately 4.1 million copies by the end of the day.
* 2005 &ndash; A stampede at the Al–Aimmah Bridge in Baghdad kills 1,199 people.
* 2005 &ndash; Football: An early–round FA Cup match in England sets the record for the most penalty kicks taken. It took 40 such kicks to separate Tunbridge Wells and Littlehampton Town.
* 2006 &ndash; Edvard Munch's painting The Scream is recovered in a police raid, more than two years after it was stolen.
* 2010 &ndash; Iraq War officially ends.
* 2016 &ndash; Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is impeached and removed from office; Michel Temer succeeds her as president.
* 2018 &ndash; A six–hour–long funeral takes place for American soul singer Aretha Franklin in Detroit, Michigan.
* 2023 &ndash; A fire in Johannesburg kills 77 people.

## Births 
### Up to 1900 
* 12 &ndash; Gaius Caligula, Roman Emperor (d. 41)
* 161 &ndash; Commodus, Roman Emperor (d. 192)
* 1018 &ndash; Jeongjong II of Goryeo, Korean ruler (d. 1046)
* 1168 &ndash; Emperor Zhangzong of Jin (d. 1208)
* 1542 &ndash; Isabella de' Medici, Italian princess (d. 1576)
* 1569 &ndash; Jahangir, Indian Mughal Emperor (d. 1627)
* 1602 &ndash; Amalia of Solms-Braunfels, wife of Frederick, Prince of Orange (d. 1675)
* 1663 &ndash; Guillaume Amontons, French physicist and instrument maker (d. 1705)
* 1721 &ndash; George Hervey, 2nd Earl of Bristol, British statesman (d. 1775)
* 1741 &ndash; Jean Paul Egide Martini, French composer (d. 1816)
* 1741 &ndash; John Houstoun, American politician, Governor of Georgia (d. 1796)
* 1748 &ndash; Jean Etienne Despreaux, French dancer, choreographer, composer, singer and playwright (d. 1820)
* 1749 &ndash; Alexander Radishchev, Russian philosopher and writer (d. 1802)
* 1760 &ndash; Peter Joseph Triest, Belgian canon of the Roman Catholic Church (d. 1836)
* 1767 &ndash; Henry Joy McCracken, Irish activist (d. 1798)
* 1786 &ndash; Michel Eugène Chevreul, French chemist (d. 1889)
* 1797 &ndash; James Ferguson, Scottish astronomer and engineer (d. 1867)
* 1811 &ndash; Theophile Gautier, French poet and novelist (d. 1872)
* 1821 &ndash; Hermann von Helmholtz, German scientist (d. 1894)
* 1822 &ndash; Galusha M. Grow, 28th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1907)
* 1834 &ndash; Amilcare Ponchielli, Italian composer (d. 1886)
* 1837 &ndash; Frederick Walter Pikin, Governor of Colorado (d. 1886)
* 1842 &ndash; Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, American publisher, journalist and activist (d. 1924)
* 1843 &ndash; Georg von Hertling, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1919)
* 1853 &ndash; Alexei Alekseyevich Brusilov, Russian general (d. 1926)
* 1866 &ndash; Elizabeth von Arnim, Australian–English writer (d. 1941)
* 1870 &ndash; Maria Montessori, Italian physician and educator (d. 1952)
* 1871 &ndash; James E. Ferguson, 26th Governor of Texas (d. 1944)
* 1871 &ndash; Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg (d. 1955)
* 1874 &ndash; Edward Thorndike, American psychologist (d. 1949)
* 1878 &ndash; Frank Jarvis, American athlete (d. 1933)
* 1879 &ndash; Alma Mahler, wife of Gustav Mahler, Walter Gropius, and Franz Werfel (d. 1964)
* 1879 &ndash; Emperor Taisho, Emperor of Japan (d. 1926)
* 1880 &ndash; Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (d. 1962)
* 1882 &ndash; Harry Porter, American high jumper (d. 1965)
* 1885 &ndash; DuBose Heyward, American playwright (d. 1940)
* 1891 &ndash; Martin Sennet Conner, 44th Governor of Mississippi (d. 1950)
* 1893 &ndash; Raymond E. Baldwin, Governor of Connecticut (d. 1986)
* 1897 &ndash; Fredric March, American actor (d. 1975)
* 1900 &ndash; Gino Lucetti, Italian anarchist, attempted assassin of Benito Mussolini (d. 1943)

### 1901 &ndash; 1950 
* 1903 &ndash; Vladimir Jankelevitch, French philosopher and musicologist (d. 1985)
* 1903 &ndash; Arthur Godfrey, American television host (d. 1983)
* 1907 &ndash; William Shawn, American editor (d. 1992)
* 1907 &ndash; Ramon Magsaysay, President of the Philippines (d. 1957)
* 1907 &ndash; Altiero Spinelli, Italian politician (d. 1986)
* 1908 &ndash; William Saroyan, American novelist and playwright (d. 1981)
* 1909 &ndash; Ferenc Fejto, Hungarian–French journalist and political scientist (d. 2008)
* 1913 &ndash; Bernard Lovell, English radio astronomer and physicist (d. 2012)
* 1913 &ndash; Helen Levitt, American photographer (d. 2009)
* 1914 &ndash; Richard Basehart, American actor (d. 1984)
* 1916 &ndash; Robert Hanbury Brown, English astronomer and physicist (d. 2002)
* 1916 &ndash; Daniel Schorr, American journalist (d. 2010)
* 1918 &ndash; Alan Jay Lerner, American composer (d. 1986)
* 1924 &ndash; Buddy Hackett, American actor and comedian (d. 2003)
* 1925 &ndash; Katyna Ranieri, Italian actress and singer (d. 2018)
* 1928 &ndash; James Coburn, American actor (d. 2002)
* 1928 &ndash; Jaime Sin, Filipino cardinal (d. 2005)
* 1931 &ndash; Jean Beliveau, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2014)
* 1931 &ndash; Brita Koivunen, Finnish singer (d. 2014)
* 1931 &ndash; Noble Willingham, American actor (d. 2004)
* 1932 &ndash; Roy Castle, English actor, singer and dancer (d. 1994)
* 1935 &ndash; Frank Robinson, American baseball player and manager
* 1935 &ndash; Eldridge Cleaver, American political activist (d. 1998)
* 1936 &ndash; Vladimir Orlov, Russian author (d. 2014)
* 1937 &ndash; Gilles Latulippe, Canadian comedian, author and theatre manager (d. 2014)
* 1937 &ndash; Warren Berlinger, American actor
* 1937 &ndash; Bobby Parker, American guitarist
* 1938 &ndash; Martin Bell, British journalist and politician
* 1940 &ndash; Wilton Felder, American jazz saxophonist (d. 2015)
* 1940 &ndash; Alain Calmat, French figure skater
* 1942 &ndash; Isao Aoki, Japanese golfer
* 1944 &ndash; Roger Denn, English artist, designer, architect and publisher
* 1945 &ndash; Bob Welch, American musician (d. 2012)
* 1945 &ndash; Van Morrison, Northern Irish musician
* 1945 &ndash; Itzhak Perlman, Israeli violinist
* 1945 &ndash; Leonid Popov, Soviet–Ukrainian cosmonaut
* 1946 &ndash; Ann Coffey, Scottish politician
* 1947 &ndash; Somchai Wongsawat, former Prime Minister of Thailand
* 1947 &ndash; Mona Marshall, American voice actress
* 1948 &ndash; Holger Osieck, German football coach
* 1948 &ndash; Harald Ertl, Austrian racing driver (d. 1982)
* 1948 &ndash; Lowell Ganz, screenwriter
* 1948 &ndash; Rudolf Schenker, German musician (Scorpions)
* 1949 &ndash; Richard Gere, American actor
* 1949 &ndash; Hugh David Politzer, American physicist

### 1951 &ndash; 1975 
* 1952 &ndash; Kim Kashkashian, Armenian–American violist
* 1953 &ndash; Pavel Vingradov, Russian cosmonaut
* 1954 &ndash; Robert Kocharian, former President of Armenia
* 1955 &ndash; Edwin Moses, American athlete
* 1956 &ndash; Tsai Ing-wen, President of the Republic of China
* 1956 &ndash; Mark Mangini, American sound editor
* 1956 &ndash; Masashi Tashiro, Japanese television performer
* 1959 &ndash; Ralph Krueger, Canadian ice hockey coach
* 1960 &ndash; Chris Whitley, American musician
* 1960 &ndash; Vali Ionescu, Romanian long jumper
* 1960 &ndash; Hassan Nasrallah, Lebanese leader of Hezbollah
* 1962 &ndash; Dee Bradley Baker, American actor
* 1963 &ndash; Todd Carty, Irish actor
* 1965 &ndash; Zsolt Borkai, Hungarian gymnast
* 1966 &ndash; Jan Einar Thorsen, Norwegian alpine skier
* 1967 &ndash; Anna Moen, Norwegian skier
* 1968 &ndash; Valdon Dowiyogo, Nauruan politician
* 1968 &ndash; Derek Whyte, Scottish footballer
* 1969 &ndash; Jonathan LaPaglia, Australian actor
* 1969 &ndash; Andrew Cunanan, American serial killer (d. 1997)
* 1970 &ndash; Debbie Gibson, American singer
* 1970 &ndash; Queen Rania of Jordan, Jordanian Queen
* 1970 &ndash; Nikola Gruevski, Macedonian politician
* 1970 &ndash; Arie van Lent, Dutch–German footballer
* 1971 &ndash; Padraig Harrington, Irish golfer
* 1971 &ndash; Junior Jack, Italian music producer and DJ
* 1972 &ndash; Chris Tucker, American actor

### From 1976 
* 1976 &ndash; Roque Junior, Brazilian footballer
* 1976 &ndash; Radek Martinek, Czech ice hockey player
* 1976 &ndash; Lucy Speed, British actress
* 1977 &ndash; Craig Nicholls, American  singer, songwriter, and guitarist (The Vines)
* 1977 &ndash; Jeff Hardy, American professional wrestler
* 1979 &ndash; Simon Neil, Scottish singer and guitarist (Biffy Clyro)
* 1980 &ndash; Joe Budden, American rapper
* 1981 &ndash; Dwayne Peel, Welsh rugby player
* 1982 &ndash; Christopher Katongo, Zambian footballer
* 1982 &ndash; José Manuel Reina, Spanish footballer
* 1982 &ndash; Alexei Mikhnov, Ukrainian–Russian ice hockey player
* 1982 &ndash; Chris Duhon, American basketball player
* 1984 &ndash; Ted Ligety, American skier
* 1984 &ndash; Ryan Kesler, American ice hockey player
* 1985 &ndash; Rolando, Portuguese footballer
* 1985 &ndash; Ashley Hartman, American actress and model
* 1985 &ndash; Mohammad bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia
* 1986 &ndash; Ryan Kelley, American actor
* 1987 &ndash; Ondrej Pavelec, Czech ice hockey player
* 1988 &ndash; David Ospina, Colombian footballer
* 1990 &ndash; Gary Mackay-Steven, Scottish footballer
* 1991 &ndash; Shi Tingmao, Chinese diver
* 1998 &ndash; Saya Kawamoto, Japanese idol and singer
* 2017 &ndash; Prince Gabriel, Duke of Dalarna, Swedish royal

## Deaths 
### Up to 1900 
* 577 &ndash; John Scholasticus, Patriarch of Constantinople 
* 651 &ndash; Aidan of Lindisfarne, Irish bishop and missionary
* 683 &ndash; Pacal II, Mayan ruler (b. 603)
* 1056 &ndash; Byzantine Empress Theodora (b. 981)
* 1158 &ndash; Sancho I of Castile (b. 1134)
* 1234 &ndash; Emperor Go-Horikawa of Japan (b. 1212)
* 1422 &ndash; King Henry V of England (b. 1387)
* 1654 &ndash; Ole Worm, Danish physician (b. 1588)
* 1688 &ndash; John Bunyan, English writer (b. 1628)
* 1724 &ndash; Louis I of Spain (b. 1707)
* 1741 &ndash; Johann Gottlieb Heineccius, German jurist (b. 1681)
* 1762 &ndash; Emperor Momozono of Japan (b. 1741)
* 1772 &ndash; William Borlase, English naturalist (b. 1695)
* 1799 &ndash; Nicolas-Henri Jardin, French architect (b. 1720)
* 1811 &ndash; Louis Antoine de Bougainville, French explorer (b. 1729)
* 1814 &ndash; Arthur Phillip, British admiral, first Governor of New South Wales (b. 1738)
* 1864 &ndash; Ferdinand Lassalle, German writer and politician (b. 1825)
* 1867 &ndash; Charles Baudelaire, French poet (b. 1821)
* 1888 &ndash; Mary Ann Nichols, victim of Jack the Ripper (b. 1845)

### 1901 &ndash; 2000 
* 1920 &ndash; Wilhelm Wundt, German psychologist (b. 1832)
* 1920 &ndash; Jens Oliver Lisberg, Faroese law student (b. 1896)
* 1924 &ndash; Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian revolutionary (b. 1881)
* 1927 &ndash; William Frank Carver, American target shooter and showman (b. 1851)
* 1941 &ndash; Marina Tsvetaeva, Russian poet (b. 1892)
* 1948 &ndash; Billy Laughlin, American actor (b. 1932)
* 1948 &ndash; Andrei Zhdanov, Soviet politician (b. 1896)
* 1963 &ndash; Georges Braque, French painter (b. 1882)
* 1967 &ndash; Ilya Ehrenburg, Soviet writer, journalist and translator (b. 1891)
* 1969 &ndash; Rocky Marciano, American boxer (b. 1923)
* 1973 &ndash; John Ford, American movie director (b. 1894)
* 1974 &ndash; Norman Kirk, Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1923)
* 1978 &ndash; John Wrathall, Rhodesian politician (b. 1913)
* 1979 &ndash; Sally Rand, American dancer and actress (b. 1904)
* 1985 &ndash; Frank Macfarlane Burnet, Australian biologist (b. 1899)
* 1986 &ndash; Henry Moore, English sculptor (b. 1898)
* 1986 &ndash; Urho Kekkonen, President of Finland (b. 1900)
* 1986 &ndash; Jorge Alessandri, President of Chile (b. 1896)
* 1990 &ndash; Nathaniel Clifton, American basketball player (b. 1922)
* 1991 &ndash; Cliff Lumsden, Canadian marathon swimmer (b. 1931)
* 1997 &ndash; Diana, Princess of Wales (car accident) (b. 1961)
* 1997 &ndash; Dodi Fayed, Egyptian–born movie producer (car accident) (b. 1955)
* 1997 &ndash; Henri Paul, French security guard (car accident) (b. 1956)

### From 2001 
* 2002 &ndash; Lionel Hampton, American vibraphone player (b. 1908)
* 2002 &ndash; George Porter, English chemist (b. 1920)
* 2004 &ndash; Carl Wayne, English singer (b. 1943)
* 2005 &ndash; Joseph Rotblat, Polish–British physicist (b. 1908)
* 2006 &ndash; Mohamed Abdelwahab, Egyptian footballer (b. 1983)
* 2010 &ndash; Laurent Fignon, French cyclist (b. 1960)
* 2011 &ndash; Wade Belak, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1976)
* 2011 &ndash; Valery Rozhdestvensky, Russian cosmonaut (b. 1939)
* 2012 &ndash; Sergey Leonidovich Sokolov, Soviet–Russian military commander (b. 1911)
* 2012 &ndash; Carlo Maria Martini, Italian cardinal (b. 1927)
* 2012 &ndash; Max Bygraves, British entertainer (b. 1922)
* 2013 &ndash; David Frost, British broadcaster (b. 1939)
* 2014 &ndash; Stefan Andrei, Romanian Communist politician (b. 1931)
* 2014 &ndash; Stan Goldberg, American comic author (b. 1932)
* 2014 &ndash; Jimi Jamison, American rock music singer-songwriter (b. 1951)
* 2014 &ndash; Carol Vadnais, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1945)
* 2014 &ndash; Bapu, Indian movie director (b. 1933)
* 2014 &ndash; Yves Carcelle, French businessman (b. 1948)
* 2015 &ndash; Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, English politician (b. 1926)
* 2017 &ndash; Richard Anderson, American actor (b. 1926)
* 2017 &ndash; Janne Carlsson, Swedish actor and musician (b. 1937)
* 2017 &ndash; Mike Cockerill, Australian soccer journalist (b. 1960)
* 2017 &ndash; Egon Günther, German film director and screenwriter (b. 1927)
* 2017 &ndash; Tamara Tchinarova, Romanian ballet dancer and writer (b. 1919)
* 2018 &ndash; Susan Brown, American actress (b. 1932)
* 2018 &ndash; Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Italian geneticist (b. 1922)
* 2018 &ndash; Alexander Zakharenko, Ukrainian separatist leader (b. 1976)

## Observances 
* Independence Day (Malaysia, Trinidad and Tobago, Kyrgyzstan)
* Day of Solidarity and Freedom (Poland)
* National Language Day (Moldova)
* Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne