What happened on August 31? There are more than 283 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
Interesting Facts & Myths About August 31
August 31 is the 244th day of the year 2024. There are 122 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Saturday. This day falls under the 35th week of the year 2024.
On this day in Corral, Idaho 83322 sunrise will occur at 07:02 AM and sunset will occur at 08:17 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Virgo. The modern birthstone for this month is Peridot while the mystical birthstone is Diamond.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 151 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).
Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the April 20 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)
Historical Events For August 31
- 1056After a sudden illness a few days previous, Byzantine Empress Theodora dies without children to succeed the throne, thus ending the Macedonian dynasty.
- 1218Al-Kamil becomes Sultan of Egypt, Syria and northern Mesopotamia on the death of his father Al-Adil.
- 1314King Håkon V Magnusson moves the capital of Norway from Bergen to Oslo.
- 1422King Henry V of England dies of dysentery while in France. His son, Henry VI becomes King of England at the age of 9 months.
- 1795War of the First Coalition: The British capture Trincomalee (present-day Sri Lanka) from the Dutch in order to keep it out of French hands.
- 1803Lewis and Clark start their expedition to the west by leaving Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at 11 in the morning.
- 1813At the final stage of the Peninsular War, British-Portuguese troops capture the town of Donostia (now San Sebastián), resulting in a rampage and eventual destruction of the town. Elsewhere, Spanish troops repel a French attack in the Battle of San Marcial.
- 1864During the American Civil War, Union forces led by General William T. Sherman launch an assault on Atlanta, Georgia.
- 1876Ottoman Sultan Murat V is deposed and succeeded by his brother Abd-ul-Hamid II.
- 1886An earthquake kills 100 in Charleston, South Carolina.
- 1888Mary Ann Nichols is murdered. She is the first of Jack the Ripper’s confirmed victims.
- 1895German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin patents his Navigable Balloon.
- 1897Thomas Edison patents the Kinetoscope, the first movie projector.
- 1907Count Alexander Izvolsky and Sir Arthur Nicolson sign the St. Petersburg Convention, which results in the Triple Entente alliance.
- 1920Polish-Bolshevik War: a decisive Polish victory in the Battle of Komarów.
- 1920The first radio news program is broadcast by 8MK in Detroit, Michigan.
- 1936Radio Prague, now the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic, goes on the air.
- 1939Nazi Germany mounts a staged attack on the Gleiwitz radio station, creating an excuse to attack Poland the following day thus starting World War II in Europe.
- 1940Pennsylvania Central Airlines Trip 19 crashes near Lovettsville, Virginia. The CAB investigation of the accident is the first investigation to be conducted under the Bureau of Air Commerce act of 1938.
- 1941World War II: Serbian paramilitary forces defeat Germans in the Battle of Loznica.
- 1943The USS Harmon, the first U.S. Navy ship to be named after a black person, is commissioned.
- 1945The Liberal Party of Australia is founded by Robert Menzies.
- 1949The retreat of the Democratic Army of Greece in Albania after its defeat on Gramos mountain marks the end of the Greek Civil War.
- 1957The Federation of Malaya (now Malaysia) gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
- 1958A parcel bomb sent by Ngo Dinh Nhu, younger brother and chief adviser of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem, fails to kill King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia.
- 1962Trinidad and Tobago becomes independent.
- 1963Sarawak, North Borneo and Singapore achieve technical independence pending accession to the Federation of Malaysia
- 1965The Aero Spacelines Super Guppy aircraft makes its first flight.
- 1980After two weeks of nationwide strikes, the Polish government was forced to sign the Gdańsk Agreement, allowing for the creation of the trade union Solidarity.
- 1982Anti-government demonstrations are held in 66 Polish cities to commemorate the second anniversary of the Gdańsk Agreement.
- 1986Aeroméxico Flight 498 collides with a Piper PA-28 over Cerritos, California, killing 67 in the air and 15 on the ground.
- 1986The Soviet passenger liner Ship sinks in the Black Sea after colliding with the bulk carrier Pyotr Vasev, killing 423.
- 1987Thai Airways Flight 365 crashes into the ocean near Ko Phuket, Thailand, killing all 83 aboard.
- 1991Kyrgyzstan declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
- 1992Pascal Lissouba is inaugurated as the President of the Republic of the Congo.
- 1994The Provisional Irish Republican Army declares a ceasefire.
- 1996Saddam Hussein’s troops seized Irbil after the Kurdish Masoud Barzani appealed for help to defeat his Kurdish rival PUK.
- 1997Diana, Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul die in a car crash in Paris.
- 1998North Korea reportedly launches Kwangmyŏngsŏng-1, its first satellite.
- 1999A LAPA Boeing 737-200 crashes during takeoff from Jorge Newbury Airport in Buenos Aires, killing 65, including two on the ground.
- 1999The first of a series of bombings in Moscow kills one person and wounds 40 others.
- 2005A stampede on Al-Aaimmah bridge in Baghdad kills 1,199 people.
- 2006Stolen on August 22, 2004, Edvard Munch’s famous painting The Scream is recovered in a raid by Norwegian police.
- 2010The last episode of The Bill, the longest-running police procedural television series in the United Kingdom, is aired on ITV1.
Who Were Born On August 31?
- 12Gaius Caligula, Roman Emperor (d. 41)
- 161Commodus, Roman Emperor (d. 192)
- 1569Emperor Jahangir of India (d. 1627)
- 1602Countess Amalia of Solms-Braunfels, wife of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange (d. 1675)
- 1652Ferdinand Charles, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat (d. 1708)
- 1663Guillaume Amontons, French physicist and instrument maker (d. 1705)
- 1721George Hervey, 2nd Earl of Bristol, British statesman (d. 1775)
- 1741Jean Paul Egide Martini, French composer (d. 1816)
- 1767Henry Joy McCracken, Irish political activist, founder of the Society of United Irishmen (d. 1798)
- 1802Husein Gradaščević, Bosnian general (d. 1834)
- 1821Hermann von Helmholtz, German scientist (d. 1894)
- 1822Galusha A. Grow, American politician (d. 1907)
- 1834Amilcare Ponchielli, Italian composer (d. 1886)
- 1842Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, American publisher, journalist, suffragist and civil rights leader (d. 1924)
- 1843Georg von Hertling, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1919)
- 1870Maria Montessori, Italian educator (d. 1952)
- 1871James E. Ferguson, American politician, 26th Governor of Texas (d. 1944)
- 1878Frank Jarvis, American sprinter (d. 1933)
- 1879Alma Mahler, Austrian socialite, wife of composer Gustav Mahler (d. 1964)
- 1879Emperor Taishō of Japan (d. 1926)
- 1880Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (d. 1962)
- 1885DuBose Heyward, American playwright (d. 1940)
- 1893Lily Laskine, French harpist (d. 1988)
- 1894Albert Facey, Australian writer (d. 1982)
- 1896Félix-Antoine Savard, Canadian priest and novelist (d. 1982)
- 1897Fredric March, American actor (d. 1975)
- 1900Gino Lucetti, Italian anarchist (d. 1943)
- 1902Géza Révész, Hungarian military officer and politician (d. 1977)
- 1903Arthur Godfrey, American radio and television host (d. 1983)
- 1903Vladimir Jankélévitch, French philosopher (d. 1985)
- 1905Sanford Meisner, American actor and teacher (d. 1997)
- 1907Altiero Spinelli, Italian advocate of European federalism (d. 1986)
- 1907Augustus F. Hawkins, American politician (d. 2007)
- 1907Ramon Magsaysay, 7th President of the Philippines (d. 1957)
- 1907William Shawn, American editor (d. 1992)
- 1908William Saroyan, American novelist (d. 1981)
- 1909Ferenc Fejtő, Hungarian-born journalist and political scientist (d. 2008)
- 1911Edward Brongersma, Dutch politician, writer and political activist (d. 1998)
- 1913Helen Levitt, American photographer (d. 2009)
- 1913Sir Bernard Lovell, English radio astronomer
- 1914Richard Basehart, American actor (d. 1984)
- 1916Daniel Schorr, American journalist (d. 2010)
- 1916Danny Litwhiler, American baseball player and coach
- 1916John S. Wold, American politician
- 1918Alan Jay Lerner, American lyricist (d. 1986)
- 1919Amrita Preetam, Indian poet and author (d. 2005)
- 1920G. D. Spradlin, American actor (d. 2011)
- 1920Gustavo Adolfo Palma, Guatemalan singer (d. 2010)
- 1921Raymond Williams, Welsh academic (d. 1988)
- 1924Buddy Hackett, American actor and comedian (d. 2003)
- 1928Jaime Sin, Philippine cardinal and patriot (d. 2005)
- 1928James Coburn, American actor (d. 2002)
- 1931Jean Béliveau, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1931Noble Willingham, American actor (d. 2004)
- 1934Nikos Xanthopoulos, Greek actor
- 1935Eldridge Cleaver, American political activist (d. 1998)
- 1935Frank Robinson, American baseball player and manager
- 1937Bobby Parker, American blues-rock guitarist
- 1937Warren Berlinger, American actor
- 1938Martin Bell, British journalist
- 1938Murray Gleeson, Chief Justice of Australia
- 1939Jerry Allison, American drummer (The Crickets)
- 1940Jack Thompson, Australian actor
- 1940Roger Newman, British-born American television actor and writer (d. 2010)
- 1940Wilton Felder, American musician
- 1941William DeWitt, Jr., American businessman
- 1943Leonid Ivashov, Russian general
- 1944Clive Lloyd, Guyanese West Indies cricketer
- 1944Jos LeDuc, Canadian professional wrestler (d. 1999)
- 1944Roger Dean, English artist
- 1945Itzhak Perlman, Israeli violinist
- 1945Van Morrison, Northern Irish singer-songwriter
- 1946Jerome Corsi, American writer
- 1946Tom Coughlin, American football coach
- 1947Luca di Montezemolo, Italian businessman
- 1947Mona Marshall, American voice actress
- 1947Somchai Wongsawat, 26th Prime Minister of Thailand
- 1947Yumiko Ōshima, Japanese manga artist
- 1948Harald Ertl, Austrian racing driver (d. 1982)
- 1948Holger Osieck, German footballer and coach
- 1948Ken McMullen, English film director
- 1948Lowell Ganz, American screenwriter
- 1948Rudolf Schenker, German guitarist (Scorpions)
- 1949H. David Politzer, American physicist, Nobel laureate
- 1949Richard Gere, American actor
- 1952Herbert Reul, German politician
- 1953György Károly, Hungarian author
- 1953Miguel Ángel Guerra, Argentine racing driver
- 1953Pavel Vinogradov, Russian cosmonaut
- 1954Julie Brown, American actress, singer-songwriter and screenwriter
- 1955Anthony Thistlethwaite, musician, member of The Waterboys and The Saw Doctors
- 1955Edwin Moses, American hurdler
- 1955Gary Webb, American journalist (d. 2004)
- 1955Olek Krupa, Polish actor
- 1956Maria Balazova, Slovak painter
- 1956Masashi Tashiro, Japanese television performer
- 1957Colm O'Rourke, Irish footballer and commentator
- 1957Gina Schock, American drummer (The Go-Go’s)
- 1957Glenn Tilbrook, English singer and guitarist (Squeeze)
- 1958Julie Brown, American actress
- 1958Serge Blanco, French rugby union footballer
- 1959Ralph Krueger, Canadian ice hockey coach
- 1960Chris Whitley, American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2005)
- 1960Vali Ionescu, Romanian long jumper
- 1962Dee Bradley Baker, American voice actor
- 1963Reb Beach, American guitarist (Winger, Whitesnake)
- 1963Sonny Silooy, Dutch footballer
- 1963Todd Carty, Irish actor
- 1964Raymond P. Hammond, American poet and editor
- 1965Céline Bonnier, French-Canadian actress
- 1965Willie Watson, New Zealand cricketer
- 1965Zsolt Borkai, Hungarian gymnast
- 1966Jan Einar Thorsen, Norwegian alpine skier
- 1967Anita Moen, Norwegian cross-country skier
- 1967Gene Hoglan, American drummer (Devin Townsend, Strapping Young Lad, Testament, Fear Factory)
- 1967Jonathan Cake, British actor
- 1967Nigel Avery, New Zealand weightlifter
- 1968Hideo Nomo, Japanese baseball player
- 1968Valdon Dowiyogo, Nauruan politician and Australian football player
- 1969Andrew Cunanan, American spree killer (d. 1997)
- 1969Javagal Srinath, Indian cricketer
- 1969Jonathan LaPaglia, Australian actor
- 1969Nathalie Bouvier, French alpine skier
- 1970Amy Stein, American photographer
- 1970Arie van Lent, Dutch-born German footballer
- 1970Deborah Gibson, American singer
- 1970Nikola Gruevski, 6th Prime Minister of the Republic of Macedonia
- 1970Queen Rania of Jordan
- 1970Zack Ward, Canadian actor
- 1971Pádraig Harrington, Irish golfer
- 1972Chris Tucker, American actor and comedian
- 1973Scott Niedermayer, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1974Andriy Medvedev, Ukrainian tennis player
- 1975Craig Cumming, New Zealand cricketer
- 1975Daniel Harding, British conductor
- 1975John Grahame, American ice hockey player
- 1975Sara Ramírez, American actress
- 1975Takahiro Suwa, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1976Radek Martínek, Czech ice hockey player
- 1976Roque Júnior, Brazilian footballer
- 1976Vincent Delerm, French singer-songwriter, pianist and composer
- 1977Craig Nicholls, Australian singer and guitarist (The Vines)
- 1977Ian Harte, Irish footballer
- 1977Jeff Hardy, American wrestler
- 1978Philippe Christanval, French footballer
- 1979Clay Hensley, American baseball player
- 1979Mark Johnston, Canadian swimmer
- 1979Mickie James, American professional wrestler
- 1979Ramón Santiago, Dominican baseball player
- 1979Simon Neil, Scottish singer and guitarist (Biffy Clyro)
- 1979Yuvan Shankar Raja, Indian film music composer
- 1980Joe Budden, American rapper
- 1981Dwayne Peel, Welsh rugby union footballer
- 1981Steve Saviano, American ice hockey player
- 1982Alexei Mikhnov, Ukrainian-born Russian ice hockey player
- 1982Chris Duhon, American basketball player
- 1982Ian Crocker, American swimmer
- 1982José Manuel Reina, Spanish footballer
- 1982Josh Kroeger, American baseball player
- 1982Lien Huyghebaert, Belgian sprinter
- 1982Michele Rugolo, Italian racing driver
- 1983Deniz Aydoğdu, Turkish footballer
- 1983Larry Fitzgerald, American football player
- 1984Charl Schwartzel, South African golfer
- 1984Matti Breschel, Danish road bicycle racer
- 1984Ryan Kesler, American ice hockey player
- 1984Ted Ligety, American alpine skier
- 1985Andrew Foster, Australian rules footballer
- 1985Rolando, Portuguese footballer
- 1986Feng Tianwei, Singaporean table tennis player
- 1987Ondřej Pavelec, Czech ice hockey player
- 1987Petros Kravaritis, Greek footballer
- 1989Dezmon Briscoe, American football player
Who Died On August 31?
- 651Aidan of Lindisfarne, Irish bishop and missionary (birth date unknown)
- 683Pacal II, ruler of the Maya polity of Palenque (b. 603)
- 1218Al-Adil I, Sultan of Egypt, Syria and northern Mesopotamia (b. 1145)
- 1234Emperor Go-Horikawa of Japan (b. 1212)
- 1372Ralph Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford, English soldier (b. 1301)
- 1422King Henry V of England (b. 1387)
- 1645Francesco Bracciolini, Italian poet (b. 1566)
- 1654Ole Worm, Danish physician (b. 1588)
- 1688John Bunyan, English writer (b. 1628)
- 1730Gottfried Finger, Czech composer
- 1741Johann Gottlieb Heineccius, German jurist (b. 1681)
- 1772William Borlase, English naturalist (b. 1695)
- 1795François-André Danican Philidor, French chess player (b. 1726)
- 1799Nicolas-Henri Jardin, French architect (b. 1720)
- 1811Louis Antoine de Bougainville, French explorer (b. 1729)
- 1814Arthur Phillip, British admiral (b. 1738)
- 1817John Thomas Duckworth, Royal Navy admiral (b. 1747)
- 1867Charles Baudelaire, French poet (b. 1821)
- 1869Mary Ward, Irish scientist (b. 1827)
- 1888Mary Ann “Polly” Nichols, British victim of Jack the Ripper (b. 1845)
- 1920Jens Oliver Lisberg, Faroese vexillographer (b. 1896)
- 1920Wilhelm Wundt, German psychologist (b. 1832)
- 1924Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian revolutionary (b. 1881)
- 1927William Carver, American sharpshooter & show hoster (b. 1851)
- 1940Georges Gauthier, French-Canadian religious figure (b. 1871)
- 1941Marina Tsvetaeva, Russian poet (b. 1892)
- 1948Billy Laughlin, American actor (b. 1932)
- 1952Henri Bourassa, French-Canadian politician (b. 1868)
- 1954Elsa Barker, American writer (b. 1869)
- 1963Georges Braque, French painter (b. 1882)
- 1967Ilya Ehrenburg, Russian writer (b. 1891)
- 1969Rocky Marciano, American boxer (b. 1923)
- 1973John Ford, American film director (b. 1894)
- 1974Norman Kirk, New Zealand prime minister (b. 1923)
- 1974William Pershing Benedict, American pilot (b. 1928)
- 1978John Wrathall, Rhodesian politician (b. 1913)
- 1979Sally Rand, American dancer and actress (b. 1904)
- 1979Tiger Smith, England cricketer (b. 1886)
- 1984Audrey Wagner, American baseball player [AAGPBL] (b. 1927)
- 1985Frank Macfarlane Burnet, Australian biologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1899)
- 1986Henry Moore, English sculptor (b. 1898)
- 1986Urho Kekkonen, Finnish politician (b. 1900)
- 1995Barry Lee Fairchild, American convicted murderer (b. 1954)
- 1997Diana, Princess of Wales (b. 1961)
- 1997Dodi Al-Fayed, Egyptian film producer (b. 1955)
- 1997Henri Paul, Deputy Head of Security at Hôtel Ritz Paris (b. 1956)
- 2000Dolores Moore, American baseball player (b. 1932)
- 2000Lucille Fletcher, American screenwriter (b. 1912)
- 2000Patricia Owens, Canadian actress (b. 1925)
- 2002Farhad Mehrad, Persian singer, guitarist and pianist (b. 1944)
- 2002George Porter, English chemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1920)
- 2002Lionel Hampton, American vibraphone player (b. 1908)
- 2004Carl Wayne, English singer (b. 1943)
- 2005Józef Rotblat, Polish-born British physicist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1908)
- 2005Michael Sheard, British actor (b. 1940)
- 2006Derrick Wayne Frazier, American convicted murderer (b. 1977)
- 2006Mohamed Abdelwahab, Egyptian footballer (b. 1983)
- 2006Tom Delaney, British racing driver (b. 1911)
- 2007Gay Brewer, American golfer (b. 1932)
- 2007Jean Jacques Paradis Canadian general (b.1928)
- 2007Karloff Lagarde, Mexican professional wrestler (b. 1928)
- 2008Ike Pappas, American news correspondent (b. 1933)
- 2008Victor Yates, New Zealand rugby player (b. 1939)
- 2009Eraño Manalo, Filipino religious figure (b. 1925)
- 2010Laurent Fignon, French bicycle racer (b. 1960)
- 2011Wade Belak, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1976)
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