August 21

Events

Pre-1600

* 959 – Eraclus becomes the 25th bishop of Liège.
* 1140 – Song dynasty general Yue Fei defeats an army led by Jin dynasty general Wuzhu at the Battle of Yancheng during the Jin–Song Wars.
* 1169 – Battle of the Blacks: Uprising by the black African forces of the Fatimid army, along with a number of Egyptian emirs and commoners, against Saladin. The uprising is defeated after two days, consolidating Saladin's position as master of Egypt.
* 1192 – Minamoto no Yoritomo becomes '' Sei-i Taishōgun'' and the ''de facto'' ruler of Japan. (Traditional Japanese date: the 12th day of the seventh month in the third year of the Kenkyū (建久) era).
*1331 – King Stefan Uroš III, after months of anarchy, surrenders to his son and rival Stefan Dušan, who succeeds as King of Serbia.
*1415 – Henry the Navigator leads Portuguese forces to victory over the Marinids at the Conquest of Ceuta.

1601–1900

* 1680 – Pueblo Indians capture Santa Fe from the Spanish during the Pueblo Revolt.
*1689 – The Battle of Dunkeld in Scotland.
*1716 – Seventh Ottoman–Venetian War: The arrival of naval reinforcements and the news of the Battle of Petrovaradin force the Ottomans to abandon the Siege of Corfu, thus preserving the Ionian Islands under Venetian rule.
*1770 – James Cook formally claims eastern Australia for Great Britain, naming it New South Wales.
*1772 – King Gustav III completes his coup d'état by adopting a new Constitution, ending half a century of parliamentary rule in Sweden and installing himself as an enlightened despot.
*1778 – American Revolutionary War: British forces begin besieging the French outpost at Pondichéry.
*1791 – A Vodou ceremony, led by Dutty Boukman, turns into a violent slave rebellion, beginning the Haitian Revolution.
*1808 – Battle of Vimeiro: British and Portuguese forces led by General Arthur Wellesley defeat French force under Major-General Jean-Andoche Junot near the village of Vimeiro, Portugal, the first Anglo-Portuguese victory of the Peninsular War.
*1810 – Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, Marshal of France, is elected Crown Prince of Sweden by the Swedish Riksdag of the Estates.
*1821 – Jarvis Island is discovered by the crew of the ship, ''Eliza Frances''.
*1831 – Nat Turner leads black slaves and free blacks in a rebellion in Southampton County, Virginia, which will claim the lives of 55 to 65 whites and about twice that number of blacks.
*1852 – Tlingit Indians destroy Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory.
*1858 – The first of the Lincoln–Douglas debates is held in Ottawa, Illinois.
* 1862 – The Stadtpark, the first public park in Vienna, opens to the public.
*1863 – Lawrence, Kansas is destroyed by pro-Confederate guerrillas known as Quantrill's Raiders.
*1878 – The American Bar Association is founded in Saratoga Springs, New York.
* 1879 – The locals of Knock, County Mayo, Ireland report their having seen an apparition of the Virgin Mary. The apparition is later named “Our Lady of Knock” and the spot transformed into a Catholic pilgrimage site.
* 1883 – An F5 tornado strikes Rochester, Minnesota, leading to the creation of the Mayo Clinic.
*1888 – The first successful adding machine in the United States is patented by William Seward Burroughs.

1901–present

*1901 – Six hundred American school teachers, Thomasites, arrived in Manila on the USAT Thomas.
*1911 – The ''Mona Lisa'' is stolen by Vincenzo Peruggia, a Louvre employee.
*1914 – World War I: The Battle of Charleroi, a successful German attack across the River Sambre that pre-empted a French offensive in the same area.
* 1918 – World War I: The Second Battle of the Somme begins.
*1942 – World War II: The Guadalcanal Campaign: American forces defeat an attack by Imperial Japanese Army soldiers in the Battle of the Tenaru.
*1944 – Dumbarton Oaks Conference, prelude to the United Nations, begins.
* 1944 – World War II: Canadian and Polish units capture the strategically important town of Falaise, Calvados, France.
*1945 – Physicist Harry Daghlian is fatally irradiated in a criticality accident during an experiment with the Demon core at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
*1957 – The Soviet Union successfully conducts a long-range test flight of the R-7 Semyorka, the first intercontinental ballistic missile.
*1959 – United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs an executive order proclaiming Hawaii the 50th state of the union. Hawaii's admission is currently commemorated by Hawaii Admission Day.
*1963 – Xá Lợi Pagoda raids: The Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces loyal to Ngô Đình Nhu, brother of President Ngo Dinh Diem, vandalizes Buddhist pagodas across the country, arresting thousands and leaving an estimated hundreds dead.
* 1965 – The Socialist Republic of Romania is proclaimed, following the adoption of a new constitution.
*1968 – Cold War: Nicolae Ceaușescu, leader of the Socialist Republic of Romania, publicly condemns the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, encouraging the Romanian population to arm itself against possible Soviet reprisals.
* 1968 – James Anderson Jr. posthumously receives the first Medal of Honor to be awarded to an African American U.S. Marine.
* 1971 – A bomb exploded in the Liberal Party campaign rally in Plaza Miranda, Manila, Philippines with several anti-Marcos political candidates injured.
* 1982 – Lebanese Civil War: The first troops of a multinational force lands in Beirut to oversee the Palestine Liberation Organization's withdrawal from Lebanon.
*1983 – Philippine opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. is assassinated at Manila International Airport (now renamed ''Ninoy Aquino International Airport'' in his honor).
* 1986 – Carbon dioxide gas erupts from volcanic Lake Nyos in Cameroon, killing up to 1,800 people within a 20-kilometer range.
*1988 – The 6.9 Nepal earthquake shakes the Nepal–India border with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (''Severe''), leaving 709–1,450 people killed and thousands injured.
*1991 – Latvia declares renewal of its full independence after its occupation by the Soviet Union since 1940.
* 1991 – Coup attempt against Mikhail Gorbachev collapses.
*1993 – NASA loses contact with the Mars Observer spacecraft.
* 1994 – Royal Air Maroc Flight 630 crashes in Douar Izounine, Morocco, killing all 44 people on board.
*1995 – Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529, an Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia, attempts to divert to West Georgia Regional Airport after the left engine fails, but the aircraft crashes in Carroll County near Carrollton, Georgia, killing nine of the 29 people on board.
*2000 – American golfer Tiger Woods wins the 82nd PGA Championship and becomes the first golfer since Ben Hogan in 1953 to win three majors in a calendar year.
*2013 – Hundreds of people are reported killed by chemical attacks in the Ghouta region of Syria.
*2017 – A solar eclipse traverses the continental United States.

Births

Pre-1600

* 1165 – Philip II of France (d. 1223)
* 1481 – Jorge de Lencastre, Duke of Coimbra (d. 1550)
*1535 – Shimazu Yoshihiro, Japanese general (d. 1619)
*1552 – Muhammad Qadiri, Founder of the Naushahia branch of the Qadri order (d. 1654)
* 1567 – Francis de Sales, Swiss bishop and saint (d. 1622)
*1579 – Henri, Duke of Rohan (d. 1638)
*1597 – Roger Twysden, English historian and politician (d. 1672)

1601–1900

*1625 – John Claypole, English politician (d. 1688)
*1643 – Afonso VI of Portugal (d. 1683)
* 1660 – Hubert Gautier, French mathematician and engineer (d. 1737)
*1665 – Giacomo F. Maraldi, French-Italian astronomer and mathematician (d. 1729)
*1670 – James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick, French general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire (d. 1734)
*1725 – Jean-Baptiste Greuze, French painter and educator (d. 1805)
* 1754 – William Murdoch, Scottish engineer and inventor, created gas lighting (d. 1839)
* 1754 – Banastre Tarleton, English general and politician (d. 1833)
* 1765 – William IV of the United Kingdom (d. 1837)
*1789 – Augustin-Louis Cauchy, French mathematician and academic (d. 1857)
*1798 – Jules Michelet, French historian and philosopher (d. 1874)
*1800 – Hiram Walden, American general and politician (d. 1880)
*1801 – Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, Dutch historian and politician (d. 1876)
*1813 – Jean Stas, Belgian chemist and physician (d. 1891)
*1816 – Charles Frédéric Gerhardt, French chemist and academic (d. 1856)
*1823 – Nathaniel Everett Green, English painter and astronomer (d. 1899)
*1826 – Karl Gegenbaur, German anatomist and academic (d. 1903)
*1829 – Otto Goldschmidt, German composer, conductor and pianist (d. 1907)
*1840 – Ferdinand Hamer, Dutch bishop and missionary (d. 1900)
* 1851 – Charles Barrois, French geologist and palaeontologist (d. 1939)
* 1856 – Medora de Vallombrosa, Marquise de Morès, American heiress (d. 1921)
*1858 – Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, (d. 1889)
* 1862 – Emilio Salgari, Italian journalist and author (d. 1911)
*1869 – William Henry Ogilvie, Scottish-Australian poet and author (d. 1963)
*1872 – Aubrey Beardsley, English author and illustrator (d. 1898)
*1878 – Richard Girulatis, German footballer and manager (d. 1963)
* 1879 – Claude Grahame-White, English pilot and engineer (d. 1959)
*1884 – Chandler Egan, American golfer and architect (d. 1936)
* 1885 – Édouard Fabre, Canadian runner (d. 1939)
*1886 – Ruth Manning-Sanders, Welsh-English author and poet (d. 1988)
*1887 – James Paul Moody, English sailor (d. 1912)
*1891 – Emiliano Mercado del Toro, Puerto Rican-American soldier (d. 2007)
*1892 – Charles Vanel, French actor and director (d. 1989)
*1894 – Christian Schad, German painter (d. 1982)
*1895 – Blossom Rock, American actress (d. 1978)
*1897 – Keith Arbuthnott, 15th Viscount of Arbuthnott, Scottish soldier and peer (d. 1966)

1901–present

*1902 – Angel Karaliychev, Bulgarian author (d. 1972)
*1903 – Kostas Giannidis, Greek pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1984)
*1904 – Count Basie, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1984)
*1905 – Bipin Gupta, Indian actor and producer (d. 1981)
*1906 – Friz Freleng, American animator, director, and producer (d. 1995)
*1907 – P. Jeevanandham, Indian lawyer and politician (d. 1963)
*1909 – Nikolay Bogolyubov, Russian mathematician and physicist (d. 1992)
* 1912 – Toe Blake, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1995)
*1914 – Doug Wright, English cricketer and coach (d. 1998)
*1916 – Bill Lee, American actor and singer (d. 1980)
* 1916 – Consuelo Velázquez, Mexican pianist and songwriter (d. 2005)
*1917 – Leonid Hurwicz, Russian economist and mathematician (d. 2008)
* 1918 – Billy Reay, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2004)
* 1921 – Reuven Feuerstein, Romanian-Israeli psychologist and academic (d. 2014)
* 1922 – Albert Irvin, English soldier and painter (d. 2015)
*1923 – Keith Allen, Canadian-American ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 2014)
*1924 – Jack Buck, American sportscaster (d. 2002)
* 1924 – Jack Weston, American actor (d. 1996)
*1926 – Can Yücel, Turkish poet and translator (d. 1999)
*1927 – Thomas S. Monson, American religious leader, 16th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d. 2018)
* 1928 – Addison Farmer, American bassist (d. 1963)
* 1928 – Art Farmer, American trumpet player and composer (d. 1999)
* 1928 – Bud McFadin, American football player (d. 2006)
*1929 – Herman Badillo, Puerto Rican-American lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
* 1929 – X. J. Kennedy, American poet, translator, anthologist, editor
* 1929 – Ahmed Kathrada, South African politician and political prisoner (d. 2017)
*1930 – Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon (d. 2002)
* 1930 – Frank Perry, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1995)
*1932 – Menashe Kadishman, Israeli sculptor and painter (d. 2015)
* 1932 – Melvin Van Peebles, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2021)
* 1933 – Janet Baker, English soprano and educator
* 1933 – Michael Dacher, German mountaineer (d. 1994)
* 1933 – Barry Norman, English author and critic (d. 2017)
* 1933 – Erik Paaske, Danish actor and singer (d. 1992)
*1934 – Sudhakarrao Naik, Indian lawyer and politician, 13th Chief Minister of Maharashtra (d. 2001)
* 1934 – Paul Panhuysen, Dutch composer (d. 2015)
*1936 – Wilt Chamberlain, American basketball player and coach (d. 1999)
* 1936 – Radish Tordia, Georgian painter and educator
* 1937 – Donald Dewar, Scottish lawyer and politician, first First Minister of Scotland (d. 2000)
* 1937 – Gustavo Noboa, Ecuadorian academic and politician, 51st President of Ecuador (d. 2021)
* 1937 – Robert Stone, American novelist and short story writer (d. 2015)
* 1938 – Kenny Rogers, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (d. 2020)
* 1938 – Mike Weston, English rugby player
* 1939 – James Burton, American Hall of Fame guitarist
* 1939 – Festus Mogae, Botswana economist and politician, third President of Botswana
* 1939 – Clarence Williams III, American actor (d. 2021)
*1940 – Dominick Harrod, English journalist, historian, and author (d. 2013)
* 1940 – Endre Szemerédi, Hungarian-American mathematician and computer scientist
* 1941 – Jackie DeShannon, American singer-songwriter
*1943 – Patrick Demarchelier, French photographer (d. 2022)
* 1943 – Jonathan Schell, American journalist and author (d. 2014)
* 1943 – Lucius Shepard, American author and critic (d. 2014)
* 1943 – Hugh Wilson, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2018)
*1944 – Perry Christie, Bahamian politician, third Prime Minister of the Bahamas
* 1944 – Peter Weir, Australian director, producer, and screenwriter
*1945 – Basil Poledouris, Greek-American composer, conductor (d. 2006)
* 1945 – Celia Brayfield, English journalist and author
* 1945 – Jerry DaVanon, American baseball player
* 1945 – Willie Lanier, American football player
* 1945 – Patty McCormack, American actress
* 1947 – Carl Giammarese, American singer-songwriter and musician
* 1949 – Loretta Devine, American actress and singer
* 1949 – Daniel Sivan, Israeli scholar and academic
*1950 – Patrick Juvet, Swiss singer-songwriter and model
*1951 – Eric Goles, Chilean mathematician and computer scientist
* 1951 – Yana Mintoff, Maltese politician, economist and educator
* 1951 – Chesley V. Morton, American businessman and politician
*1952 – Keith Hart, Canadian firefighter, wrestler, and trainer
* 1952 – Jiří Paroubek, Czech soldier and politician, sixth Prime Minister of the Czech Republic
* 1952 – Bernadette Porter, English nun and educator
* 1952 – Joe Strummer, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2002)
* 1953 – Ivan Stang, American author, publisher, and director
* 1954 – Archie Griffin, American football player
* 1954 – Steve Smith, American drummer
* 1954 – Mark Williams, New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter
* 1956 – Kim Cattrall, English-Canadian actress
* 1956 – Jon Tester, American farmer and politician
*1957 – Frank Pastore, American baseball player and radio host (d. 2012)
*1958 – Mark Williams, Australian footballer and coach
*1959 – Anne Hobbs, English tennis player and coach
* 1959 – Jim McMahon, American football player and coach
* 1961 – Gerardo Barbero, Argentinian chess player and coach (d. 2001)
* 1961 – V. B. Chandrasekhar, Indian cricketer and coach (d. 2019)
* 1961 – Stephen Hillenburg, American marine biologist, cartoonist, animator and creator of SpongeBob SquarePants (d. 2018)
*1962 – John Korfas, Greek-American basketball player and coach
* 1962 – Gilberto Santa Rosa, Puerto Rican bandleader and singer of salsa and bolero
* 1962 – Pete Weber, American bowler
*1963 – Mohammed VI of Morocco, King of Morocco
* 1963 – Nigel Pearson, English footballer and manager
*1964 – Gary Elkerton, Australian surfer
* 1965 – Jim Bullinger, American baseball player
* 1966 – John Wetteland, American baseball player and coach
*1967 – Darren Bewick, Australian footballer
* 1967 – Charb, French journalist and cartoonist (d. 2015)
* 1967 – Carrie-Anne Moss, Canadian actress
* 1967 – Serj Tankian, Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer
*1968 – Dina Carroll, English singer-songwriter
* 1968 – Goran Ćurko, Serbian footballer
* 1968 – Laura Trevelyan

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