August 31

It is the last day of the second third of the year.
Events
Up to 1900
1056 Byzantine Empress Theodora dies suddenly without children to succeed the throne, ending the Macedonian dynasty.
1314 Norway's capital is moved from Bergen to Oslo.
1422 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 Irish Rebellion of 1798: Irish rebels, with French assistance, establish the short-lived Republic of Connacht.
1803 Meriwether Lewis and William Clark start their expedition west by leaving Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at 11 in the morning.
1812 Troop transporter Salvador runs aground on the Rio de la Plata, between Argentina and Uruguay, killing 470 people, of the 600 on board.
1813 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 Costa Rica becomes independent from the Federal Republic of Central America.
1864 American Civil War: Union forces led by General William T. Sherman launch an assault on Atlanta, Georgia.
1876 Ottoman sultan Murat V is deposed and succeeded by his brother Abd-ul-Hamid II.
1886 An Earthquake kills 100 in Charleston, South Carolina.
1888 Mary Ann Nicholls is murdered. She is perhaps the first of Jack the Ripper's victims
1895 John Brallier is paid US$10 plus expenses to play football for the Latrobe, Pennsylvania YMCA, making him the first professional football player.
1897 Thomas Edison patents the Kinetoscope, the first movie projector.
1897 Initiated by Theodor Herzl, the Zionist World Congress in Basel, Switzerland, calls for the creation of a Jewish state.
1901 2000
1907 England, Russia and France form the Triple Entente alliance.
1914 Ecuador becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.
1915 Brazil becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.
1920 Polish-Bolshevik War: A decisive Polish victory in the Battle of Komarow.
1920 First news radio program broadcast in Detroit, Michigan.
1931 Production of Ford Motor Company's Model A ends, with 4.3 million produced.
1936 Radio Praha, now the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic, goes on the air.
1939 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 Pennsylvania Central Airlines Trip 19 crashes near Lovettsville, Virginia.
1941 World War II: Serbian paramilitary forces defeat German forces in the Battle of Loznica.
1943 The USS Harmon, the first U.S. Navy ship to be named for a black person, is commissioned.
1945 The Liberal Party of Australia is formed by Robert Menzies.
1949 The Greek Civil War ends.
1950 East Germany bans Jehovah's Witnesses from practising their faith.
1951 The Dominican Republic records its highest-ever temperature, at 43 degrees Celsius.
1953 The city of Santander in Northern Spain opens its new airport.
1957 The Federation of Malaya gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1958 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 Trinidad and Tobago become independent.
1963 Sarawak, North Borneo and Singapore achieve technical independence, pending accession to the Federation of Malaya.
1968 An earthquake in Iran kills at least 12,000 people.
1978 William and Emily Harris, founders of the Symbionese Liberation Army, plead guilty to the 1974 kidnapping of newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst.
1980 The Solidarity trade union is formed in Poland.
1980 Heavy rain causes flooding in Ibadan, Nigeria, killing over 300 people.
1985 Richard Ramirez, the "Night Stalker" serial killer, is arrested in Los Angeles, California.
1986 An Aeromexico Douglas DC-9 collides with a Piper PA-28 over Cerritos, California, killing 67 in the air and 15 on the ground.
1986 The Soviet passenger liner Admiral Nakhimov sinks in the Black Sea after colliding with the bulk carrier Pyotr Vasev, killing 398.
1987 Thai Airways Flight 365 crashes into the ocean near Ko Phuket, Thailand, killing all 83 people on board.
1989 Buckingham Palace officials confirm that Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips are to be separated.
1990 The plan for German unity is signed in Berlin.
1991 Kyrgyzstan declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
1992 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 The Provisional Irish Republican Army declares a ceasefire.
1996 Saddam Hussein's troops seize Irbil, Iraq, after Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani had asked for help to defeat the Kurdish PKK.
1997 Diana, Princess of Wales, dies in a car crash in Paris.
1998 North Korea reportedly launches Kwangmyongsong, its first satellite.
1999 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 The first of a series of Russian Apartment Bombings in Moscow, killing one person and wounding 40 others.
From 2001
2001 PBS airs the final episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood with host Fred Rogers retiring.
2004 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 A stampede at the Al-Aimmah Bridge in Baghdad kills 1,199 people.
2005 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 Edvard Munch's painting The Scream is recovered in a police raid, more than two years after it was stolen.
2010 Iraq War officially ends.
2016 Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is impeached and removed from office; Michel Temer succeeds her as president.
2018 A six-hour-long funeral takes place for American soul singer Aretha Franklin in Detroit, Michigan.
Births
Up to 1900
12 Gaius Caligula, Roman Emperor (d. 41)
161 Commodus, Roman Emperor (d. 192)
1018 Jeongjong II of Goryeo, Korean ruler (d. 1046)
1168 Emperor Zhangzong of Jin (d. 1208)
1542 Isabella de' Medici, Italian princess (d. 1576)
1569 Jahangir, Indian Mughal Emperor (d. 1627)
1602 Amalia of Solms-Braunfels, wife of Frederick, Prince of Orange (d. 1675)
1663 Guillaume Amontons, French physicist and instrument maker (d. 1705)
1721 George Hervey, 2nd Earl of Bristol, British statesman (d. 1775)
1741 Jean Paul Egide Martini, French composer (d. 1816)
1741 John Houstoun, American politician, Governor of Georgia (d. 1796)
1748 Jean Etienne Despreaux, French dancer, choreographer, composer, singer and playwright (d. 1820)
1749 Alexander Radishchev, Russian philosopher and writer (d. 1802)
1760 Peter Joseph Triest, Belgian canon of the Roman Catholic Church (d. 1836)
1767 Henry Joy McCracken, Irish activist (d. 1798)
1786 Michel Eugene Chevreul, French chemist (d. 1889)
1797 James Ferguson, Scottish astronomer and engineer (d. 1867)
1811 Theophile Gautier, French poet and novelist (d. 1872)
1821 Hermann von Helmholtz, German scientist (d. 1894)
1822 Galusha M. Grow, 28th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1907)
1834 Amilcare Ponchielli, Italian composer (d. 1886)
1837 Frederick Walter Pikin, Governor of Colorado (d. 1886)
1842 Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, American publisher, journalist and activist (d. 1924)
1843 Georg von Hertling, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1919)
1853 Alexei Alekseyevich Brusilov, Russian general (d. 1926)
1866 Elizabeth von Arnim, Australian-English writer (d. 1941)
1870 Maria Montessori, Italian physician and educator (d. 1952)
1871 James E. Ferguson, 26th Governor of Texas (d. 1944)
1871 Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg (d. 1955)
1874 Edward Thorndike, American psychologist (d. 1949)
1878 Frank Jarvis, American athlete (d. 1933)
1879 Alma Mahler, wife of Gustav Mahler, Walter Gropius, and Franz Werfel (d. 1964)
1879 Emperor Taisho, Emperor of Japan (d. 1926)
1880 Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (d. 1962)
1882 Harry Porter, American high jumper (d. 1965)
1885 DuBose Heyward, American playwright (d. 1940)
1891 Martin Sennet Conner, 44th Governor of Mississippi (d. 1950)
1893 Raymond E. Baldwin, Governor of Connecticut (d. 1986)
1897 Fredric March, American actor (d. 1975)
1900 Gino Lucetti, Italian anarchist, attempted assassin of Benito Mussolini (d. 1943)
1901 1950
1903 Vladimir Jankelevitch, French philosopher and musicologist (d. 1985)
1903 Arthur Godfrey, American television host (d. 1983)
1907 William Shawn, American editor (d. 1992)
1907 Ramon Magsaysay, President of the Philippines (d. 1957)
1907 Altiero Spinelli, Italian politician (d. 1986)
1908 William Saroyan, American novelist and playwright (d. 1981)
1909 Ferenc Fejto, Hungarian-French journalist and political scientist (d. 2008)
1913 Bernard Lovell, English radio astronomer and physicist (d. 2012)
1913 Helen Levitt, American photographer (d. 2009)
1914 Richard Basehart, American actor (d. 1984)
1916 Robert Hanbury Brown, English astronomer and physicist (d. 2002)
1916 Daniel Schorr, American journalist (d. 2010)
1918 Alan Jay Lerner, American composer (d. 1986)
1924 Buddy Hackett, American actor and comedian (d. 2003)
1925 Katyna Ranieri, Italian actress and singer (d. 2018)
1928 James Coburn, American actor (d. 2002)
1928 Jaime Sin, Filipino cardinal (d. 2005)
1931 Jean Beliveau, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2014)
1931 Brita Koivunen, Finnish singer (d. 2014)
1931 Noble Willingham, American actor (d. 2004)
1932 Roy Castle, English actor, singer and dancer (d. 1994)
1935 Frank Robinson, American baseball player and manager
1935 Eldridge Cleaver, American political activist (d. 1998)
1936 Vladimir Orlov, Russian author (d. 2014)
1937 Gilles Latulippe, Canadian comedian, author and theatre manager (d. 2014)
1937 Warren Berlinger, American actor
1937 Bobby Parker, American guitarist
1938 Martin Bell, British journalist and politician
1940 Wilton Felder, American jazz saxophonist (d. 2015)
1940 Alain Calmat, French figure skater
1942 Isao Aoki, Japanese golfer
1944 Roger Denn, English artist, designer, architect and publisher
1945 Bob Welch, American musician (d. 2012)
1945 Van Morrison, Northern Irish musician
1945 Itzhak Perlman, Israeli violinist
1945 Leonid Popov, Soviet-Ukrainian cosmonaut
1946 Ann Coffey, Scottish politician
1947 Somchai Wongsawat, former Prime Minister of Thailand
1947 Mona Marshall, American voice actress
1948 Holger Osieck, German football coach
1948 Harald Ertl, Austrian racing driver (d. 1982)
1948 Lowell Ganz, screenwriter
1948 Rudolf Schenker, German musician (Scorpions)
1949 Richard Gere, American actor
1949 Hugh David Politzer, American physicist
1951 1975
1952 Kim Kashkashian, Armenian-American violist
1953 Pavel Vingradov, Russian cosmonaut
1954 Robert Kocharian, former President of Armenia
1955 Edwin Moses, American athlete
1956 Tsai Ing-wen, President of the Republic of China
1956 Mark Mangini, American sound editor
1956 Masashi Tashiro, Japanese television performer
1959 Ralph Krueger, Canadian ice hockey coach
1960 Chris Whitley, American musician
1960 Vali Ionescu, Romanian long jumper
1960 Hassan Nasrallah, Lebanese leader of Hezbollah
1962 Dee Bradley Baker, American actor
1963 Todd Carty, Irish actor
1965 Zsolt Borkai, Hungarian gymnast
1966 Jan Einar Thorsen, Norwegian alpine skier
1967 Anna Moen, Norwegian skier
1968 Valdon Dowiyogo, Nauruan politician
1968 Derek Whyte, Scottish footballer
1969 Jonathan LaPaglia, Australian actor
1969 Andrew Cunanan, American serial killer (d. 1997)
1970 Debbie Gibson, American singer
1970 Queen Rania of Jordan, Jordanian Queen
1970 Nikola Gruevski, Macedonian politician
1970 Arie van Lent, Dutch-German footballer
1971 Padraig Harrington, Irish golfer
1971 Junior Jack, Italian music producer and DJ
1972 Chris Tucker, American actor
From 1976
1976 Roque Junior, Brazilian footballer
1976 Radek Martinek, Czech ice hockey player
1976 Lucy Speed, British actress
1977 Craig Nicholls, American singer, songwriter, and guitarist (The Vines)
1977 Jeff Hardy, American professional wrestler
1979 Simon Neil, Scottish singer and guitarist (Biffy Clyro)
1980 Joe Budden, American rapper
1981 Dwayne Peel, Welsh rugby player
1982 Christopher Katongo, Zambian footballer
1982 Jose Manuel Reina, Spanish footballer
1982 Alexei Mikhnov, Ukrainian-Russian ice hockey player
1982 Chris Duhon, American basketball player
1984 Ted Ligety, American skier
1984 Ryan Kesler, American ice hockey player
1985 Rolando, Portuguese footballer
1985 Ashley Hartman, American actress and model
1985 Mohammad bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia
1986 Ryan Kelley, American actor
1987 Ondrej Pavelec, Czech ice hockey player
1988 David Ospina, Colombian footballer
1990 Gary Mackay-Steven, Scottish footballer
1991 Shi Tingmao, Chinese diver
1998 Saya Kawamoto, Japanese idol and singer
2017 Prince Gabriel, Duke of Dalarna, Swedish royal
Deaths
Up to 1900
577 John Scholasticus, Patriarch of Constantinople
651 Aidan of Lindisfarne, Irish bishop and missionary
683 Pacal II, Mayan ruler (b. 603)
1056 Byzantine Empress Theodora (b. 981)
1158 Sancho I of Castile (b. 1134)
1234 Emperor Go-Horikawa of Japan (b. 1212)
1422 King Henry V of England (b. 1387)
1654 Ole Worm, Danish physician (b. 1588)
1688 John Bunyan, English writer (b. 1628)
1724 Louis I of Spain (b. 1707)
1741 Johann Gottlieb Heineccius, German jurist (b. 1681)
1762 Emperor Momozono of Japan (b. 1741)
1772 William Borlase, English naturalist (b. 1695)
1799 Nicolas-Henri Jardin, French architect (b. 1720)
1811 Louis Antoine de Bougainville, French explorer (b. 1729)
1814 Arthur Phillip, British admiral, first Governor of New South Wales (b. 1738)
1864 Ferdinand Lassalle, German writer and politician (b. 1825)
1867 Charles Baudelaire, French poet (b. 1821)
1888 Mary Ann Nichols, victim of Jack the Ripper (b. 1845)
1901 2000
1920 Wilhelm Wundt, German psychologist (b. 1832)
1920 Jens Oliver Lisberg, Faroese law student (b. 1896)
1924 Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian revolutionary (b. 1881)
1927 William Frank Carver, American target shooter and showman (b. 1851)
1941 Marina Tsvetaeva, Russian poet (b. 1892)
1948 Billy Laughlin, American actor (b. 1932)
1948 Andrei Zhdanov, Soviet politician (b. 1896)
1963 Georges Braque, French painter (b. 1882)
1967 Ilya Ehrenburg, Soviet writer, journalist and translator (b. 1891)
1969 Rocky Marciano, American boxer (b. 1923)
1973 John Ford, American movie director (b. 1894)
1974 Norman Kirk, Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1923)
1978 John Wrathall, Rhodesian politician (b. 1913)
1979 Sally Rand, American dancer and actress (b. 1904)
1985 Frank Macfarlane Burnet, Australian biologist (b. 1899)
1986 Henry Moore, English sculptor (b. 1898)
1986 Urho Kekkonen, President of Finland (b. 1900)
1986 Jorge Alessandri, President of Chile (b. 1896)
1990 Nathaniel Clifton, American basketball player (b. 1922)
1991 Cliff Lumsden, Canadian marathon swimmer (b. 1931)
1997 Diana, Princess of Wales (car accident) (b. 1961)
1997 Dodi Fayed, Egyptian-born movie producer (car accident) (b. 1955)
1997 Henri Paul, French security guard (car accident) (b. 1956)
From 2001
2002 Lionel Hampton, American vibraphone player (b. 1908)
2002 George Porter, English chemist (b. 1920)
2004 Carl Wayne, English singer (b. 1943)
2005 Joseph Rotblat, Polish-British physicist (b. 1908)
2006 Mohamed Abdelwahab, Egyptian footballer (b. 1983)
2010 Laurent Fignon, French cyclist (b. 1960)
2011 Wade Belak, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1976)
2011 Valery Rozhdestvensky, Russian cosmonaut (b. 1939)
2012 Sergey Leonidovich Sokolov, Soviet-Russian military commander (b. 1911)
2012 Carlo Maria Martini, Italian cardinal (b. 1927)
2012 Max Bygraves, British entertainer (b. 1922)
2013 David Frost, British broadcaster (b. 1939)
2014 Stefan Andrei, Romanian Communist politician (b. 1931)
2014 Stan Goldberg, American comic author (b. 1932)
2014 Jimi Jamison, American rock music singer-songwriter (b. 1951)
2014 Carol Vadnais, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1945)
2014 Bapu, Indian movie director (b. 1933)
2014 Yves Carcelle, French businessman (b. 1948)
2015 Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, English politician (b. 1926)
2017 Richard Anderson, American actor (b. 1926)
2017 Janne Carlsson, Swedish actor and musician (b. 1937)
2017 Mike Cockerill, Australian soccer journalist (b. 1960)
2017 Egon Gunther, German film director and screenwriter (b. 1927)
2017 Tamara Tchinarova, Romanian ballet dancer and writer (b. 1919)
2018 Susan Brown, American actress (b. 1932)
2018 Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Italian geneticist (b. 1922)
2018 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
Days of the year