Did you know
In 1842, Treaty of Nanking signing ends the First Opium War. This featured entry focuses on the immediate decision and its direct historical impact.
August 29 in History
1842 — Treaty of Nanking signing ends the First Opium War
August 29 spans 71 recorded events across recorded history, from 708 to 2022. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Historical Events
71 events
708 – 2022
Today in history
More major events on August 29
The featured story and these ranked highlights form a quick summary. Every recorded event remains available in the chronology below.
- 1825 Portuguese and Brazilian diplomats sign the Treaty of Rio de Janeiro, which has Portugal recognise Brazilian independence, formally ending the Brazilian War of Independence. The treaty will be ratified by the King of Portugal three months later. Source
- 1758 The Treaty of Easton establishes the first American Indian reservation, at Indian Mills, New Jersey, for the Lenape. Source
- 1475 Hundred Years' War: The Treaty of Picquigny formally ends the war between the kingdoms of France and England. Source
Did you know
The Treaty of Nanjing was the peace treaty which ended the First Opium War (1839–1842) between Great Britain and the Qing dynasty of China on 29 August 1842. This helps explain why the event mattered beyond the initial announcement.
Did you know
It was the second of what the Chinese later termed the unequal treaties, after the rejected 1841 Convention of Chuenpi, signed by British Superintendent of trade in China, Charles Elliot, and Qing Imperial Commissioner, Qishan, which the treaty was largely based on. This clarifies the institutional and public response around the event.
Did you know
In 1842, Treaty of Nanking signing ends the First Opium War had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.
Did you know
In 1842, Treaty of Nanking signing ends the First Opium War had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.
Copper coins are minted in Japan for the first time (Traditional Japanese date: August 10, 708).
Coinage used in Japan from the 8th century to 958
Wadōkaichin (和同開珎), also romanized as Wadō-kaichin or called Wadō-kaihō, is the oldest official Japanese coinage, first mentioned for 29 August 708 on order of Empress Genmei. It was long considered to be the first type of coin produced in Japan. Analyses of several findings of Fuhon-sen (富夲銭) in Asuka have shown that those coins were manufactured from 683.
708
The city of Melite surrenders to an Aghlabid army following a siege, putting an end to Byzantine Malta.
Ancient city in Malta
Melite or Melita (Latin) was an ancient city located on the site of present-day Mdina and Rabat in Malta. It started out as a Bronze Age settlement, which developed into a city called Ann under the Phoenicians and became the administrative centre of the island. The city fell to the Roman Republic in 218 BC, and it remained part of the Roman and later the Byzantine Empire until 870 AD, when it was captured and destroyed by the Aghlabids. The city was then rebuilt and renamed Medina, giving rise to the present name Mdina. It remained Malta's capital city until 1530.
870
Mainz Cathedral suffers extensive damage from a fire, which destroys the building on the day of its inauguration.
Cathedral in Mainz, Germany
Mainz Cathedral or St. Martin's Cathedral is located near the historical center and pedestrianized market square of the city of Mainz, Germany. This 1000-year-old Roman Catholic cathedral is the site of the episcopal see of the Bishop of Mainz.
1009
The Battle of Fariskur occurs during the Fifth Crusade.
Battle in the Fifth Crusade
The battle of Fāriskūr was a pitched battle fought between the army of the Fifth Crusade and Ayyubid Egypt on 29 August 1219 outside the Ayyubid encampment at Fāriskūr. It was fought while the siege of Damietta was ongoing. An Ayyubid victory, it had little effect on the course of the war.
1219
Pope Urban IV succeeds Pope Alexander IV, becoming the 182nd pope.
Head of the Catholic Church from 1261 to 1264
Pope Urban IV, born James Pantaleon, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1261 to his death three years later. He was elected pope without being a cardinal; he was the first to be elected in such a way, and this would occur for only 5 more popes afterwards.
1261
Battle of Montecatini: The army of the Republic of Pisa, commanded by Uguccione della Faggiuola, wins a decisive victory against the joint forces of the Kingdom of Naples and the Republic of Florence despite being outnumbered.
1315 battle between the Republic of Pisa and allied Naples and Florence
The Battle of Montecatini was fought in the Val di Nievole on 29 August 1315 between the Republic of Pisa, and the forces of both the Kingdom of Naples and the Republic of Florence. The Ghibelline army of Pisa, commanded by Uguccione della Faggiuola, won a victory over the Guelf armies of the Florentines and their allies. The Neapolitan forces, made up of 3200 cavalry and 30,000–60,000 infantry, were commanded by Philip I of Taranto, while the Pisan forces consisted of 3000 cavalry and 20,000 infantry.
1315
Battle of Winchelsea (or Les Espagnols sur Mer): The English naval fleet under King Edward III defeats a Castilian fleet of 40 ships.
1350 naval battle of the Hundred Years' War
The Battle of Winchelsea or the Battle of Les Espagnols sur Mer was a naval battle that took place on 29 August 1350 as part of the Hundred Years' War between England and France. It was a victory for an English fleet of 50 ships, commanded by King Edward III, over a Castilian fleet of 47 larger vessels, commanded by Charles de la Cerda. Between 14 and 26 Castilian ships were captured, and several were sunk. Only two English vessels are known to have been sunk, but there was a significant loss of life.
1350
Hundred Years' War: The Treaty of Picquigny formally ends the war between the kingdoms of France and England.
Medieval Anglo-French conflicts, 1337–1453
The Hundred Years' War was a conflict between the kingdoms of England and France and a civil war in France during the late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy of Aquitaine and was triggered by a claim to the French throne made by Edward III of England. The war grew into a broader military, economic, and political struggle involving factions from across Western Europe, fuelled by emerging nationalism on both sides. The periodisation of the war typically charts it as taking place over 116 years. However, it was an intermittent conflict which was frequently interrupted by external factors, such as the Black Death, and several years of truces.
1475
Pope Innocent VIII succeeds Pope Sixtus IV.
Head of the Catholic Church from 1484 to 1492
Pope Innocent VIII, born Giovanni Battista Cybo, was head of the Catholic Church and leader of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death, in July 1492. Son of the viceroy of Naples, Cybo spent his early years at the Neapolitan court. He became a priest in the retinue of Cardinal Calandrini, half-brother to Pope Nicholas V (1447–55); Bishop of Savona under Pope Paul II; and with the support of Cardinal Giuliano Della Rovere he was made a cardinal by Pope Sixtus IV. After intense politicking by Della Rovere, Cybo was elected pope in 1484. King Ferdinand I of Naples had supported Cybo's competitor, Rodrigo Borgia. The following year, Pope Innocent supported the barons in their failed revolt.
1484
Vasco da Gama decides to depart Calicut and return to the Kingdom of Portugal.
Portuguese explorer (c. 1460s – 1524)
Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese mariner, explorer and nobleman. His discovery of the first direct maritime route between Europe and India via the Cape of Good Hope and across the Indian Ocean from Malindi in Kenya to Kozhikode was to open up European exploration of, and commerce with, India, and is considered a landmark event and a turning point in world history.
1498
The Ottoman Turks capture Nándorfehérvár (Belgrade).
Turkic ethnic group
The Ottoman Turks were an Oghuz Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the entirety of the six centuries that it existed. Their descendants are the present-day Turkish people, who comprise the majority of the population in the Republic of Turkey, which was established shortly after the end of World War I.
1521
Battle of Mohács: The Ottoman Turks led by Suleiman the Magnificent defeat and kill the last Jagiellonian king of Hungary and Bohemia.
1526 battle of the Ottoman–Hungarian Wars
The Battle of Mohács took place on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, in the Kingdom of Hungary. It was fought between the forces of Hungary, led by King Louis II, and the invading Ottoman Empire, commanded by Suleiman the Magnificent and his grand vizier, Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha. The Ottomans achieved a decisive victory through superior planning, firepower, and a well-executed encirclement that overwhelmed the Hungarian forces.
1526
The Ottoman Turks capture Buda, the capital of the Hungarian Kingdom.
Turkic ethnic group
The Ottoman Turks were an Oghuz Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the entirety of the six centuries that it existed. Their descendants are the present-day Turkish people, who comprise the majority of the population in the Republic of Turkey, which was established shortly after the end of World War I.
1541
Toyotomi Hideyoshi issues a nationwide sword hunting ordinance, disarming the peasantry so as to firmly separate the samurai and commoner classes, prevent peasant uprisings, and further centralise his own power.
Military ruler of Japan from 1585 to 1598
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as Kinoshita Tōkichirō and Hashiba Hideyoshi , was a Japanese samurai and daimyō of the late Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods, regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan. Although he came from a peasant background, he rose to the rank and title of Kampaku and Daijō-daijin , the highest official position and title in the nobility class. He was the first base-born person in history to become a Kampaku. He then passed the position and title of Kampaku to his nephew, Toyotomi Hidetsugu. He remained in power as Taikō (太閤), the title of a retired Kampaku, until his death.
1588
The Guru Granth Sahib is fully compiled and completed by Guru Arjan.
Primary scripture of Sikhism
The Guru Granth Sahib is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the religion.
1604
The city of Nuuk in Greenland is founded as the fort of Godt-Haab by the royal governor Claus Paarss.
Capital and largest city of Greenland
Nuuk is the capital and most populous city of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark. It is the seat of the Sermersooq municipality and the government of Greenland and is the territory's largest cultural and economic center. In January 2025, it had a population of 20,113—more than a third of the territory's population—making it one of the smallest capital cities in the world by population.
1728
The eruption of Oshima–Ōshima and the Kampo tsunami: At least 2,000 people along the Japanese coast drown in a tsunami caused by the eruption of Oshima.
Volcanic eruption and tsunami off the coast of Hokkaido
The devastating eruption of Oshima–Ōshima began on 18 August 1741 and ended on 1 May the next year. Eleven days into the eruption, the Kampo tsunami with estimated maximum heights of 60–90 m (200–300 ft) swept across neighboring islands in Japan and the Korean Peninsula. The eruption and its resulting tsunami killed at least 1,400 people. Damage was extreme along the coast of Japan, while in Korea, the tsunami damaged fishing boats.
1741
Frederick the Great attacks Saxony, beginning the Seven Years' War in Europe.
King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786
Frederick II was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled King in Prussia, declaring himself King of Prussia after annexing Royal Prussia from the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1772. His most significant accomplishments include military successes in the Silesian wars, reorganisation of the Prussian Army, the First Partition of Poland, and patronage of the arts and the Enlightenment. Prussia greatly increased its territories and became a major military power in Europe under his rule. He became known as Frederick the Great and was nicknamed "Old Fritz".
1756
The Treaty of Easton establishes the first American Indian reservation, at Indian Mills, New Jersey, for the Lenape.
1758 peace agreement between British colonists and various Native American nations
The Treaty of Easton was a colonial agreement signed in Easton, Pennsylvania in October 1758 during the French and Indian War between British colonials and the chiefs of 13 Native American nations, representing tribes of the Haudenosaunee, Lenape (Delaware), and Shawnee. It was one of several colonial treaties conducted in the town.
1758
American Revolutionary War: British and American forces battle indecisively at the Battle of Rhode Island.
1775–1783 conflict in North America
The American Revolutionary War, also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence or simply the American Revolution, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which American Patriot forces organized as the Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army. The conflict was fought in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. The war's outcome seemed uncertain for most of the war, but Washington and the Continental Army's decisive victory in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 led King George III and the Kingdom of Great Britain to negotiate an end to the war. In 1783, in the Treaty of Paris, the British monarchy acknowledged the independence of the Thirteen Colonies, leading to the establishment of the United States as an independent and sovereign nation.
1778
American Revolutionary War: American forces battle and defeat the British and Iroquois forces at the Battle of Newtown.
Indigenous confederacy in North America
The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, also known as the Iroquois, are a confederacy of Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans and First Nations peoples in northeast North America. They were known by the French during the colonial years as the Iroquois League, and later as the Iroquois Confederacy. They have also been called the Six Nations.
1779
Shays' Rebellion, an armed uprising of Massachusetts farmers, begins in response to high debt and tax burdens.
Armed uprising in western Massachusetts (1786–1787)
Shays's Rebellion was an armed uprising in Western Massachusetts and Worcester in response to a debt crisis among the citizenry and in opposition to the state government's increased efforts to collect taxes on both individuals and their trades. The fighting took place in the areas around Springfield during 1786 and 1787. Historically, scholars have argued that the four thousand rebels, called Shaysites, who protested against economic and civil rights injustices by the Massachusetts government were led by Revolutionary War veteran Daniel Shays. By the early 2020s, scholarship has suggested that Shays's role in the protests was significantly exaggerated.
1786
British troops under Sir Arthur Wellesley defeat a Danish militia outside Copenhagen in the Battle of Køge.
British Army officer and statesman (1769–1852)
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, was a British Army officer and statesman. A leading figure in early-19th-century British politics, Wellesley served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces.
1807
Portuguese and Brazilian diplomats sign the Treaty of Rio de Janeiro, which has Portugal recognise Brazilian independence, formally ending the Brazilian War of Independence.
The treaty will be ratified by the King of Portugal three months later.
The Kingdom of Portugal was a monarchy in the western Iberian Peninsula and the predecessor of the modern Portuguese Republic. Existing to various extents between the mid-12th century and the early 20th century, it was also known as the Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves after 1471, and was the main constituent of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves, which existed between 1815 and 1822. It coexisted with the Portuguese Empire, the realm's overseas colonies.
1825
Michael Faraday discovers electromagnetic induction.
English chemist and physicist (1791–1867)
Michael Faraday was an English chemist and physicist who contributed vastly to the study of electrochemistry and electromagnetism. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, and electrolysis. Although Faraday received little formal education, as a self-made man, he was one of the most influential scientists in history. It was by his research on the magnetic field around a conductor carrying a direct current that Faraday established the concept of the electromagnetic field in physics. Faraday also established that magnetism could affect rays of light and that there was an underlying relationship between the two phenomena. He similarly discovered the principles of electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, and the laws of electrolysis. His inventions of electromagnetic rotary devices formed the foundation of electric motor technology, and it was largely due to his efforts that electricity became practical for use in technology. The SI unit of capacitance, the farad, is named after him.
1831
American Civil War: The Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries gives Federal forces control of Pamlico Sound.
1861–1865 conflict in the United States
The American Civil War was a civil war in the United States between the Union and the Confederacy, which was formed in 1861 by states that had seceded from the Union to preserve slavery in the United States. The South saw slavery as threatened because of the election of Abraham Lincoln and the growing abolitionist movement in the North. The war ended with Union victory, the dissolution of the Confederacy and the abolition of slavery, freeing four million African Americans.
1861
The Mount Washington Cog Railway opens, making it the world's first mountain-climbing rack railway.
Mountain-climbing cog railway in New Hampshire, United States
The Mount Washington Cog Railway, also known as the Cog, is the world's first mountain-climbing cog railway. The railway climbs Mount Washington in New Hampshire, United States. It uses a Marsh rack system and both steam and biodiesel-powered locomotives to carry tourists to the top of the mountain. Its track is built to a 4 ft 8 in gauge, which is technically a narrow gauge, as it is 1⁄2 inch (13 mm) less than a 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in standard gauge.
1869
Emperor Meiji orders the abolition of the han system and the establishment of prefectures as local centers of administration.
(Traditional Japanese date: July 14, 1871).
Emperor Meiji was Emperor of Japan from 30 January 1867 until his death in 1912. The Meiji Restoration proclaimed the Empire of Japan in 1868, beginning the Meiji era. During his reign, Japan transformed from a feudal state under the Tokugawa shogunate into a major imperial power.
1871
Gottlieb Daimler patents the world's first motorcycle with an internal combustion engine, the Reitwagen.
German engineer, industrialist and automotive pioneer (1834–1900)
Gottlieb Wilhelm Daimler was a German engineer, industrial designer and industrialist. He was a pioneer of internal-combustion engines and automobile development. He invented the high-speed liquid petroleum-fueled engine.
1885
The Goodyear tire company is founded in Akron, Ohio.
American multinational tire manufacturer
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, commonly known as Goodyear, is an American multinational tire manufacturer headquartered in Akron, Ohio. Since 2021, the company has been the world's third-largest tire manufacturer by annual revenue.
1898
The Slava, the last of the five Borodino-class battleships, is launched.
Borodino-class pre-dreadnought
Slava was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the Imperial Russian Navy, the last of the five Borodino-class battleships. Completed too late to participate in the Battle of Tsushima during the Russo-Japanese War, she survived while all of her sister ships were either sunk during the battle or surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Navy.
1903
The Quebec Bridge collapses during construction, killing 75 workers.
Bridge in Quebec City and Lévis, Quebec
The Quebec Bridge is a road, rail, and pedestrian bridge across the lower Saint Lawrence River between Sainte-Foy and Lévis, in Quebec, Canada. The project failed twice during its construction, in 1907 and 1916, at the cost of 88 lives and additional people injured. The bridge eventually opened in 1919.
1907
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, also known as the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty, becomes effective, officially starting the period of Japanese rule in Korea.
1910 formal annexation of Korea by Japan
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, also known as the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty (Korean: 한일병합조약), was made by representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on 22 August 1910. In this treaty, Japan formally annexed Korea following the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905 and the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1907.
1910
Ishi, considered the last Native American to make contact with European Americans, emerges from the wilderness of northeastern California.
Last member of Yahi People
Ishi was the last known member of the Native American Yahi people from the present-day state of California in the United States. The rest of the Yahi were killed in the California genocide in the 19th century. Widely described as the "last wild Indian" in the United States, Ishi lived most of his life isolated from modern North American culture, and was the last known Native manufacturer of stone arrowheads. In 1911, aged 50, he emerged at a barn and corral, 2 mi (3.2 km) from downtown Oroville, California.
1911
The Canadian Naval Service becomes the Royal Canadian Navy.
Maritime component of the Canadian Armed Forces
The Royal Canadian Navy is the naval force of Canada, and one of three environmental commands of the Canadian Armed Forces. The command's official strength includes 8,400 Regular Force sailors, 4,100 naval reservists, and a fleet that includes 25 commissioned warships and additional auxillary vessels.
1911
A typhoon strikes China, killing at least 50,000 people.
Tropical cyclone affecting China
The 1912 China Typhoon was an extremely deadly tropical cyclone that devastated the coast of China on August 29, 1912. It formed in the Philippine Sea, before making its way to China. The typhoon brought strong winds and substantial amounts of rain. Heavy flooding along rivers were reported in Zhejiang, resulting in 50,000–220,000 fatalities. It is one of the deadliest recorded typhoons in history.
1912
World War I: Start of the Battle of St.
Quentin in which the French Fifth Army counter-attacked the invading Germans at Saint-Quentin, Aisne.
World War I, or the First World War, also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Central Powers. Major theatres of war included Europe and the Middle East, and well as parts of Africa and the Asia-Pacific. One of the deadliest conflicts in history, World War I resulted in an estimated 15 to 22 million deaths, including in mass war crimes against civilians and genocides. The conflict saw important developments in weaponry, including the first large-scale use of machine guns, artillery, aircraft, chemical weapons, and tanks, and was a major factor in the deadly Spanish flu pandemic.
1914
US Navy salvage divers raise F-4, the first U.S.
submarine sunk in an accident.
USS Skate/F-4 (SS-23), also known as "Submarine No. 22", was an F-class submarine in the United States Navy (USN). She was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the skate, though she was renamed F-4 prior to launching. Commissioned in 1913, she operated in the Pacific Ocean, until she sank accidentally in 1915, the first commissioned submarine of the US Navy to be lost at sea.
1915
The United States passes the Philippine Autonomy Act.
1916 U.S. law creating a fully elected legislature in the Philippines
The Jones Law was an organic act passed by the United States Congress. The law replaced the Philippine Organic Act of 1902 and acted as a constitution of the Philippines from its enactment until 1934, when the Tydings–McDuffie Act was passed. The Jones Law created the first fully elected Philippine legislature.
1916
World War I: Bapaume taken by the New Zealand Division in the Hundred Days Offensive.
Commune in Hauts-de-France, France
Bapaume is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France.
1918
The last 36 remaining inhabitants of St Kilda are voluntarily evacuated to other parts of Scotland.
Archipelago in Outer Hebrides, Scotland, United Kingdom
St Kilda is a remote archipelago situated 35 nautical miles west-northwest of North Uist in the North Atlantic Ocean. It contains the westernmost islands of the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The largest island is Hirta, whose sea cliffs are the highest in the United Kingdom; three other islands were also used for grazing and seabird hunting. The islands are administratively a part of the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar local authority area.
1930
World War II: Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, is occupied by Nazi Germany following an occupation by the Soviet Union.
Global conflict (1939–1945)
World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many engaging in total war on an unprecedented scale. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the deaths of 60 to 75 million people, a majority of whom were civilians. Millions died as a result of massacres, starvation, disease, and genocides including the Holocaust. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.
1941
World War II: German-occupied Denmark scuttles most of its navy; Germany dissolves the Danish government.
At the outset of World War II in September 1939, Denmark declared itself neutral, but that neutrality did not prevent Nazi Germany from occupying the country soon after the outbreak of war; the occupation lasted until Germany's defeat. The decision to occupy Denmark was taken in Berlin on 17 December 1939. On 9 April 1940, Germany invaded Denmark in Operation Weserübung. In contrast to the situation in other countries under German occupation, most Danish institutions continued to function relatively normally until 1945. Both the Danish government and King of Denmark remained in the country in an uneasy coalition between a democratic system and a totalitarian one until, amidst growing civilian resistance and unrest, the Danish government refused to further cooperate with the Germans' demands; in response, on 29 August 1943, Germany declared martial law and placed Denmark under direct military occupation, which lasted until the Allied victory on 5 May 1945.
1943
World War II: Slovak National Uprising takes place as 60,000 Slovak troops turn against the Nazis.
1944–45 anti-Nazi armed resistance
Slovak National Uprising was organised by the Slovak resistance during the Second World War. It was directed on the one hand against the German invasion of Slovakia by the German military, which began on 29 August 1944, and on the other against the Slovak collaborationist regime of the Ludaks under Jozef Tiso. It was one of the largest uprisings against Nazism and its allies in Europe.
1944
Northwest Airlines Flight 421 crashes in Fountain City, Wisconsin, killing all 37 aboard.
1948 aviation accident
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 421 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight from Chicago, Illinois, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that crashed on 29 August 1948. The Martin 2-0-2 aircraft, operated by Northwest Orient Airlines, suffered structural failure in its left wing and crashed approximately 4.1 miles (6.6 km) northwest of Winona, Minnesota, about 95 miles (153 km) southeast of Minneapolis. A Civil Aeronautics Board investigation determined that the crash was caused by fatigue cracks in the wings of the aircraft, and recommended lower speeds and frequent inspections of all Martin 2-0-2 aircraft. All 33 passengers and 4 crew members on board were killed. The crash was the first loss of a Martin 2-0-2, and remains the worst accident involving a Martin 2-0-2, as well as the worst aviation accident in Wisconsin.
1948
Soviet atomic bomb project: The Soviet Union tests its first atomic bomb, known as First Lightning or Joe 1, at Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan.
Soviet Union program to develop nuclear weapons during and after World War II
The Soviet atomic bomb project was authorized by Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union to develop nuclear weapons during and after World War II.
1949
Korean War: British Commonwealth Forces Korea arrives to bolster the US presence.
1950–1953 conflict on the Korean Peninsula
The Korean War was an armed conflict fought on the Korean Peninsula between North Korea and South Korea and their allies. North Korea was supported by China and the Soviet Union, while South Korea was supported by the United Nations led by the United States under the auspices of the United Nations Command (UNC).
1950
American experimental composer John Cage's 4’33” premieres at Maverick Concert Hall, played by American pianist David Tudor.
Music genre
Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, institutionalized compositional, performing, and aesthetic conventions in music. Elements of experimental music include indeterminacy, in which the composer introduces the elements of chance or unpredictability with regard to either the composition or its performance. Artists may approach a hybrid of disparate styles or incorporate unorthodox and unique elements.
1952
United States Air Force Academy opens in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Military academy in El Paso County, Colorado, US
The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in Air Force Academy, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. It is the youngest of the five service academies, having graduated its first class in 1959, but is the third in seniority. Graduates of the academy's four-year program receive a Bachelor of Science degree and are commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force or U.S. Space Force. The academy is also one of the largest tourist attractions in Colorado, attracting approximately a million visitors each year.
1958
Air France Flight 343 crashes on approach to Yoff Airport in Senegal, killing all 63 aboard.
1960 aviation accident in Senegal
Air France Flight 343 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Paris, France, to Abidjan, Ivory Coast, with scheduled stopovers at Dakar, Senegal, and Monrovia, Liberia. On 29 August 1960, around 06:50, the aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while attempting to land at Yoff Airport, Dakar. All 55 passengers and 8 crew were killed. A tribunal concluded that the pilot, who had earlier been punished by Air France for recklessness, had continued to land without use of instruments in bad weather, amounting to willful misconduct.
1960
The Gemini V spacecraft returns to Earth, landing in the Atlantic Ocean.
1965 crewed spaceflight in NASA's Project Gemini
Gemini 5
was a 1965 crewed spaceflight in NASA's Project Gemini. It was the third crewed Gemini flight, the eleventh crewed American spaceflight, and the nineteenth human spaceflight. It was also the first time an American crewed space mission held the world record for duration, set on August 26, 1965, by breaking the Soviet Union's previous record set by Vostok 5 in 1963. This record might have been one day longer; however, Gemini V was cut short, due to the approach of Hurricane Betsy.
1965
The Beatles perform their last concert before paying fans at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.
English rock band (1960–1970)
The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band in popular music and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle, beat and 1950s rock 'n' roll, their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. They also explored styles ranging from folk and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock. As pioneers in recording, songwriting and artistic presentation, the Beatles revolutionised many aspects of the music industry and were often publicised as leaders of the era's youth and sociocultural movements.
1966
Leading Egyptian thinker Sayyid Qutb is executed for plotting the assassination of President Gamal Abdel Nasser.
Egyptian political theorist and revolutionary (1906–1966)
Sayyid Ibrahim Husayn Shadhili Qutb was an Egyptian political theorist and revolutionary who was a leading member of the Muslim Brotherhood.
1966
Chicano Moratorium against the Vietnam War, East Los Angeles, California.
Police riot kills three people, including journalist Rubén Salazar.
The Chicano Moratorium, formally known as the National Chicano Moratorium Committee Against The Vietnam War, was a movement of Chicano anti-war activists that built a broad-based coalition of Mexican-American groups to organize opposition to the Vietnam War. Led by activists from local colleges and members of the Brown Berets, a group with roots in the high school student movement that staged walkouts in 1968, the coalition peaked with an August 29, 1970 march in East Los Angeles that drew 30,000 demonstrators. The march was described by scholar Lorena Oropeza as "one of the largest assemblages of Mexican Americans ever." It was the largest anti-war action taken by any single ethnic group in the USA. It was second in size only to the massive U.S. immigration reform protests of 2006.
1970
El Tacnazo: Francisco Morales Bermúdez, Peruvian Prime Minister carries out a coup d'état in the city of Tacna, forcing the sitting President of Peru, Juan Velasco Alvarado, to resign and assuming his place as the new President.
1975 coup d'état in Peru
The Tacnazo was a military coup launched by then Peruvian Prime Minister, General Francisco Morales Bermúdez against the administration of President Gen. Juan Velasco Alvarado in 1975. This led to what is known in Peru as the "Second Phase" of the Revolutionary Government of the Armed Forces, which lasted until the elections of 1980.
1975
Meitnerium, a synthetic chemical element with the atomic number 109, is first synthesized at the Gesellschaft für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt, Germany.
Chemical element with atomic number 109 (Mt)
Meitnerium is a synthetic chemical element; it has symbol Mt and atomic number 109. It is an extremely radioactive synthetic element. The most stable known isotope, meitnerium-278, has a half-life of 4.5 seconds, although the unconfirmed meitnerium-282 may have a longer half-life of 67 seconds. The element was first synthesized in August 1982 by the GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research near Darmstadt, Germany, and it was named after the Austrian-Swedish nuclear physicist Lise Meitner in 1997.
1982
Odaeyang mass suicide: Thirty-three individuals linked to a religious cult are found dead in the attic of a cafeteria in Yongin, South Korea.
Investigators attribute their deaths to a murder-suicide pact.
The Evangelical Baptist Church (EBC) of Korea was established in 1962 by Yoo Byung-eun and Pastor Kwon Shin-chan. The name of the church was changed to EBC in 1981. It is not connected to the Korea Baptist Convention. In South Korea, EBC is commonly known as Guwonpa, meaning Salvation Sect, from the Korean term guwon (구원), "salvation".
1987
Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union suspends all activities of the Soviet Communist Party.
Highest legislative body of the Soviet Union (1938–1991)
The Supreme Soviet of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (SSUSSR) was the highest organ of state authority of the Soviet Union from 1936 to 1991. Based on the principle of unified power, it was the only branch of government in the Soviet state, and headed the unified state apparatus.
1991
Libero Grassi, an Italian businessman from Palermo, is killed by the Sicilian Mafia after taking a solitary stand against their extortion demands.
Italian clothing manufucturer
Libero Grassi was an Italian clothing manufacturer from Palermo, Sicily, who was killed by the Mafia after taking a solitary stand against their extortion demands. The businessman wrote an open letter to the local newspaper informing the extortionists that he was no longer willing to pay pizzo, a Sicilian term for protection money. Other business-owners and shopkeepers in Palermo refused to join his public campaign. Grassi was gunned down in the street near his home eight months after writing the letter.
1991
Vnukovo Airlines Flight 2801, a Tupolev Tu-154, crashes into a mountain on the Arctic island of Spitsbergen, killing all 141 aboard.
1996 aviation accident in Norway
Vnukovo Airlines Flight 2801 was an international charter flight from Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, Russia, to Svalbard Airport on Spitsbergen, in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. On 29 August 1996 at 10:22:23 CEST, a Tupolev Tu-154M operating this flight crashed into the ground in Operafjellet during the final approach to Svalbard Airport. All 141 people aboard the plane were killed, making it the deadliest aviation accident in Norwegian history. The accident was the result of a series of small navigational errors causing the aircraft to be 3.7 kilometres from the approach centerline at the time of impact.
1996
Netflix is launched as an internet DVD rental service.
American video streaming service
Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres. It is available internationally in multiple languages.
1997
At least 98 villagers are killed by the Armed Islamic Group of Algeria GIA in the Rais massacre, Algeria.
1993–2004 Islamist insurgent group in the Algerian Civil War
The Armed Islamic Group was one of the two main Islamist insurgent groups that fought the Algerian government and army in the Algerian Civil War.
1997
Eighty people are killed when Cubana de Aviación Flight 389 crashes during a rejected takeoff from the Old Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito, Ecuador.
1998 aviation accident
Cubana de Aviación Flight 389 (CU389/CUB389) was a scheduled international passenger flight, flying from the former Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito to Havana's José Martí International Airport, with a stopover at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Guayaquil, operated by Cuban flag carrier Cubana de Aviación.
1998
Four people are killed when Binter Mediterráneo Flight 8261 crashes into the N-340 highway near Málaga Airport.
2001 aviation accident in Spain
Binter Mediterráneo Flight 8261 on 29 August 2001, is a crash that landed next to the N-340 highway, some 200 meters short of runway 32 at Ruiz Picasso International Airport at Málaga, Spain. The captain reported a fire in the aircraft's port engine to Málaga Air Traffic Control while on final approach. The fire turned out to be a false alarm but, in following the emergency procedures, the First Officer inadvertently shut down both of the aircraft's engines. The plane descended, hitting the airport approach lights, and stopping next to the N-340.
2001
Sayed Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, the Shia Muslim leader in Iraq, is assassinated in a terrorist bombing, along with nearly 100 worshippers as they leave a mosque in Najaf.
Nobility title in the Islamic world
Sayyid is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan and Husayn. The title may also refer to the descendants of the family of the Bani Hashim through Muhammad's great-grandfather Hashim, and others including Hamza, Abbas, Abu Talib, and Asad ibn Hashim.
2003
Hurricane Katrina devastates much of the U.S.
Gulf Coast from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle, killing up to 1,392 people and causing $125 billion in damage.
Hurricane Katrina was an extremely powerful and catastrophic tropical cyclone that affected the Southeastern United States in late August 2005, particularly in and around the city of New Orleans. Katrina became the United States' costliest tropical cyclone, with an estimated $125 billion in damages, making it the costliest. The hurricane killed 1,392 people, making it the deadliest American hurricane since the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane. Katrina was the twelfth tropical cyclone, the fifth hurricane, the third major hurricane, and the second Category 5 hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. It was also the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in the contiguous United States, as measured by barometric pressure. When not adjusted for inflation, it ties with 2017's Hurricane Harvey as the costliest tropical cyclone.
2005
At least 26 Chinese miners are killed and 21 missing after a blast in the Xiaojiawan coal mine, located at Panzhihua, Sichuan Province.
2012 gas explosion in Panzhihua, Sichuan Province, China
The Xiaojiawan coal mine disaster was a mining accident which happened on 29 August 2012 at the Xiaojiawan coal mine, located in Panzhihua in Sichuan Province, China. It was the deadliest mine accident since the 2009 Heilongjiang mine explosion. As a result of a gas explosion in the Xiaojiawan coal mine, at least 46 miners were killed. 51 were sent to hospital with seven in critical condition. It was reported that 16 miners died from carbon monoxide poisoning, while three others died in hospital.
2012
The XIV Paralympic Games open in London, England, United Kingdom.
Multi-parasport event in London, England
The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Summer Paralympic Games as organised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
2012
2020 Women's FA Community Shield.
Football match
The 2020 Women's FA Community Shield was the ninth Women's FA Community Shield, and the first after the competition's revival following an eleven-season abeyance. As with its male equivalent, the Community Shield is an annual football match played between the winners of the previous season's league and the previous season's Women's FA Cup. However, as the 2019–20 Women's FA Cup was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, the 2020 Community Shield was contested by the 2019–20 FA WSL champions Chelsea and the still-reigning 2018–19 FA Cup winners, Manchester City. Both teams were contesting their first ever Women's Community Shield.
2020
Russo-Ukrainian war: Ukraine begins its southern counteroffensive in the Kherson Oblast, eventually culminating in the liberation of the city of Kherson.
Ongoing conflict since 2014
The Russo-Ukrainian war began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia occupied Crimea and annexed it from Ukraine. It then supported Russian separatist armed groups who started a war in the eastern Donbas region against Ukraine's military. In 2018, Ukraine declared the region to be occupied by Russia. The first eight years of conflict also involved naval incidents and cyberwarfare. In February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and began occupying more of the country, starting the current phase of the war, the largest conflict in Europe since World War II. The war has resulted in a refugee crisis and hundreds of thousands of deaths.
2022