August 5

August 5 is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 148 days remaining until the end of the year. This date is slightly more likely to fall on a Wednesday, Friday or Sunday (58 in 400 years each) than on Monday or Tuesday (57), and slightly less likely to occur on a Thursday or Saturday (56).

Events

• 25 – Guangwu claims the throne as emperor, restoring the Han dynasty after the collapse of the short-lived Xin dynasty.
• 642 – Battle of Maserfield: Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Northumbria.
• 910 – The last major Danish army to raid England is defeated at the Battle of Tettenhall by the allied forces of Mercia and Wessex, led by King Edward the Elder and Æthelred, Lord of the Mercians.
• 939 – The Battle of Alhandic is fought between Ramiro II of León and Abd-ar-Rahman III at Zamora in the context of the Spanish Reconquista. The battle resulted in a victory for the Emirate of Córdoba.
• 1068 – Byzantine–Norman wars: Italo-Normans begin a nearly-three-year siege of Bari.
• 1100 – Henry I is crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey.
• 1278 – The Siege of Algeciras ends in the context of the Spanish Reconquista pitting the forces of the Kingdom of Castile against the Emirate of Granada. The battle resulted in a Granadan victory.
• 1305 – William Wallace, who led the Scottish resistance against England, is captured by the English near Glasgow and transported to London where he is put on trial and executed.
• 1388 – The Battle of Otterburn, a border skirmish between the Scottish and the English in Northern England, is fought near Otterburn.
• 1583 – Sir Humphrey Gilbert establishes the first English colony in North America, at what is now St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.
• 1600 – The Gowrie Conspiracy against King James VI of Scotland (later to become King James I of England) takes place.
• 1620 – The Mayflower departs from Southampton, England on its first attempt to reach North America.
• 1689 – One thousand five hundred Iroquois attack the village of Lachine in New France.
• 1716 – The Battle of Petrovaradin takes place.
• 1735 – Freedom of the press: New York Weekly Journal writer John Peter Zenger is acquitted of seditious libel against the royal governor of New York, on the basis that what he had published was true.
• 1763 – Pontiac's War: Battle of Bushy Run: British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat Chief Pontiac's Indians at Bushy Run.
• 1772 – The First Partition of Poland begins.
• 1781 – The Battle of Dogger Bank takes place.
• 1796 – The Battle of Castiglione in Napoleon's first Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars.
• 1824 – Greek War of Independence: Constantine Kanaris leads a Greek fleet to victory against Ottoman and Egyptian ships in the Battle of Samos.
• 1858 – Cyrus West Field and others complete the first transatlantic telegraph cable after several unsuccessful attempts. It will operate for less than a month.
• 1860 – Charles XV of Sweden of Sweden-Norway is crowned king of Norway in Trondheim.
• 1861 – American Civil War: In order to help pay for the war effort, the United States government levies the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861 (3% of all incomes over US $800; rescinded in 1872).
• 1861 – The United States Army abolishes flogging.
• 1862 – American Civil War: Battle of Baton Rouge: Along the Mississippi River near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Confederate troops attempt to take the city, but are driven back by fire from Union gunboats.
• 1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Mobile Bay begins at Mobile Bay near Mobile, Alabama, Admiral David Farragut leads a Union flotilla through Confederate defenses and seals one of the last major Southern ports.
• 1874 – Japan launches its postal savings system, modeled after a similar system in the United Kingdom.
• 1882 – The Standard Oil of New Jersey is established.
• 1884 – The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloe's Island (now Liberty Island) in New York Harbor.
• 1888 – Bertha Benz drives from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back in the first long distance automobile trip, commemorated as the Bertha Benz Memorial Route since 2008.
• 1901 – Peter O'Connor sets the first IAAF recognised long jump world record of 24 ft 11.75 in (7.6137 m). The record will stand for 20 years.
• 1906 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar, King of Iran, agrees to convert the government to a constitutional monarchy.
• 1914 – World War I: The German minelayer SS Königin Luise lays a minefield about 40 miles (64 km) off the Thames Estuary (Lowestoft). She is intercepted and sunk by the British light-cruiser HMS Amphion.
• 1914 – World War I: The guns of Point Nepean fort at Port Phillip Heads in Victoria (Australia) fire across the bows of the Norddeutscher Lloyd steamer SS Pfalz which is attempting to leave the Port of Melbourne in ignorance of the declaration of war and she is detained; this is said to be the first Allied shot of the War.
• 1914 – In Cleveland, Ohio, the first electric traffic light is installed.
• 1916 – World War I: Battle of Romani: Allied forces, under the command of Archibald Murray, defeat an attacking Ottoman army under the command of Friedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein, securing the Suez Canal and beginning the Ottoman retreat from the Sinai Peninsula.
• 1925 – Plaid Cymru is formed with the aim of disseminating knowledge of the Welsh language that is at the time in danger of dying out.
• 1926 – Harry Houdini performs his greatest feat, spending 91 minutes underwater in a sealed tank before escaping.
• 1940 – World War II: The Soviet Union formally annexes Latvia.
• 1941 – World War II: The Battle of Smolensk concludes with Germany capturing about 300,000 Soviet Red Army prisoners.
• 1943 – World War II: Anti-Nazi resistance fighter Eva-Maria Buch guillotined at Plötzensee Prison, Berlin.
• 1944 – World War II: Possibly the biggest prison breakout in history occurs as 545 Japanese POWs attempt to escape outside the town of Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
• 1944 – World War II: Polish insurgents liberate a German labor camp in Warsaw, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners.
• 1944 – World War II: The Nazis begin a week-long massacre of anywhere between 40,000 and 100,000 civilians and prisoners of war in Wola, Poland.
• 1949 – In Ecuador, an earthquake destroys 50 towns and kills more than 6,000.
• 1949 – The Mann Gulch fire kills 13 firefighters in Montana.
• 1957 – American Bandstand, a show dedicated to the teenage "baby-boomers" by playing the songs and showing popular dances of the time, debuts on the ABC television network.
• 1958 – Herbert Hoover eclipses John Adams as having the longest retirement of any former U.S President until that time. Hoover would live another six years, his record 31 years 7 months 16 days retirement has since been eclipsed by Jimmy Carter.
• 1960 – Burkina Faso, then known as Upper Volta, becomes independent from France.
• 1962 – Apartheid in South Africa: Nelson Mandela is jailed. He would not be released until 1990.
• 1963 – The United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union sign a nuclear test ban treaty.
• 1964 – Vietnam War: Operation Pierce Arrow: American aircraft from carriers USS Ticonderoga and USS Constellation bomb North Vietnam in retaliation for strikes against U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin.
• 1965 – The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 begins as Pakistani soldiers cross the Line of Control dressed as locals.
• 1969 – Mariner program: Mariner 7 makes its closest fly-by of Mars (3,524 kilometers).
• 1971 – The first Pacific Islands Forum (then known as the "South Pacific Forum") is held in Wellington, New Zealand, with the aim of enhancing cooperation between the independent countries of the Pacific Ocean.
• 1974 – Vietnam War: The U.S. Congress places a $1 billion limit on military aid to South Vietnam.
• 1979 – In Afghanistan, Maoists undertake an attempted military uprising.
• 1981 – President Ronald Reagan fires 11,359 striking air-traffic controllers who ignored his order for them to return to work.
• 1989 – General elections are held in Nicaragua with the Sandinista National Liberation Front winning a majority.
• 1995 – Yugoslav Wars: The city of Knin, Croatia, a significant Serb stronghold, is captured by Croatian forces during Operation Storm. The date is celebrated in Croatia as Victory Day.
• 2003 – A car bomb explodes in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta outside the Marriott Hotel killing 12 and injuring 150.
• 2010 – The Copiapó mining accident occurs, trapping 33 Chilean miners approximately 2,300 ft (700 m) below the ground.
• 2010 – Ten members of International Assistance Mission Nuristan Eye Camp team are killed by persons unknown in Kuran wa Munjan District of Badakhshan Province in Afghanistan.
• 2012 – The Oak Creek shooting took place at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, killing six people; the perpetrator was shot dead by police.
• 2015 – The Gold King Mine waste water spill releases 3 million gallons of heavy metal toxin tailings and waste water into the Animas River in Colorado.

Births

• 1301 – Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent, English politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (d. 1330)
• 1397 – Guillaume Dufay, Belgian-Italian composer and theorist (d. 1474)
• 1461 – Alexander Jagiellon, Polish king (d. 1506)
• 1540 – Joseph Justus Scaliger, French philologist and historian (d. 1609)
• 1623 – Antonio Cesti, Italian organist and composer (d. 1669)
• 1641 – John Hathorne, American merchant and jurist (d. 1717)
• 1662 – James Anderson, Scottish lawyer and historian (d. 1728)
• 1694 – Leonardo Leo, Italian composer (d. 1744)
• 1749 – Thomas Lynch, Jr., American commander and politician (d. 1779)
• 1797 – Friedrich August Kummer, German cellist and composer (d. 1879)
• 1802 – Niels Henrik Abel, Norwegian mathematician and theorist (d. 1829)
• 1811 – Ambroise Thomas, French composer (d. 1896)
• 1813 – Ivar Aasen, Norwegian poet and linguist (d. 1896)
• 1815 – Edward John Eyre, English explorer and politician, Governor of Jamaica (d. 1901)
• 1827 – Deodoro da Fonseca, Brazilian field marshal and politician, 1st President of Brazil (d. 1892)
• 1828 – Louise of the Netherlands (d. 1871)
• 1833 – Carola of Vasa (d. 1907)
• 1843 – James Scott Skinner, Scottish violinist and composer (d. 1927)
• 1844 – Ilya Repin, Russian painter and sculptor (d. 1930)
• 1850 – Guy de Maupassant, French author and poet (d. 1893)
• 1862 – Joseph Merrick, English man with severe deformities (d. 1890)
• 1866 – Carl Harries, German chemist and academic (d. 1923)
• 1866 – Harry Trott, Australian cricketer (d. 1917)
• 1868 – Oskar Merikanto, Finnish pianist and composer (d. 1924)
• 1872 – Oswaldo Cruz, Brazilian physician, bacteriologist, and epidemiologist, founded the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (d. 1917)
• 1874 – Wesley Clair Mitchell, American economist and academic (d. 1948)
• 1876 – Mary Ritter Beard, American historian and activist (d. 1958)
• 1877 – Tom Thomson, Canadian painter (d. 1917)
• 1880 – Gertrude Rush, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1962)
• 1880 – Ruth Sawyer, American author and educator (d. 1970)
• 1887 – Reginald Owen, English-American actor and singer (d. 1972)
• 1888 – Victor Francen, Belgian-French actor (d. 1977)
• 1889 – Conrad Aiken, American author and poet (d. 1973)
• 1890 – Naum Gabo, Russian-American sculptor (d. 1977)
• 1890 – Erich Kleiber, Austrian conductor and director (d. 1956)
• 1897 – Roberta Dodd Crawford, American soprano and educator (d. 1954)
• 1897 – Aksel Larsen, Danish lawyer and politician (d. 1972)
• 1901 – Claude Autant-Lara, French director, screenwriter, and politician (d. 2000)
• 1904 – Kenneth V. Thimann, English-American botanist and microbiologist (d. 1997)
• 1906 – Joan Hickson, English actress (d. 1998)
• 1906 – John Huston, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1987)
• 1906 – Wassily Leontief, German-American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1999)
• 1908 – Harold Holt, Australian lawyer and politician, 17th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1967)
• 1910 – Bruno Coquatrix, French songwriter and manager (d. 1979)
• 1910 – Herminio Masantonio, Argentinian footballer (d. 1956)
• 1911 – Robert Taylor, American actor and singer (d. 1969)
• 1912 – Abbé Pierre, French priest and humanitarian (d. 2007)
• 1914 – Parley Baer, American actor (d. 2002)
• 1914 – David Brian, American actor and dancer (d. 1993)
• 1914 – Stjepan Šulek, Croatian composer and conductor (d. 1986)
• 1916 – Peter Viereck, American poet and academic (d. 2006)
• 1918 – Tom Drake, American actor and singer (d. 1982)
• 1918 – Betty Oliphant, English-Canadian ballerina, co-founded the Canada's National Ballet School (d. 2004)
• 1920 – George Tooker, American painter and academic (d. 2011)
• 1921 – Terry Becker, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2014)
• 1922 – L. Tom Perry, American businessman and religious leader (d. 2015)
• 1922 – Frank Stranahan, American golfer (d. 2013)
• 1923 – Devan Nair, Malaysian-Singaporean union leader and politician, 3rd President of Singapore (d. 2005)
• 1926 – Betsy Jolas, French composer
• 1927 – John H. Moore II, American lawyer and judge (d. 2013)
• 1928 – Carla Lane, English television writer (d. 2016)
• 1929 – Ottó Boros, Hungarian water polo player (d. 1988)
• 1929 – Don Matheson, American soldier, police officer, and actor (d. 2014)
• 1930 – Neil Armstrong, American pilot, engineer, and astronaut (d. 2012)
• 1930 – Richie Ginther, American race car driver (d. 1989)
• 1930 – Michal Kováč, Slovak lawyer and politician, 1st President of Slovakia
• 1931 – Tom Hafey, Australian footballer and coach (d. 2014)
• 1932 – Tera de Marez Oyens, Dutch pianist and composer (d. 1996)
• 1932 – Vladimir Fedoseyev, Russian conductor
• 1934 – Karl Johan Åström, Swedish engineer and theorist
• 1934 – Wendell Berry, American author, poet, and farmer
• 1934 – Gay Byrne, Irish radio and television host
• 1934 – Vern Gosdin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2009)
• 1935 – Michael Ballhaus, German director and cinematographer
• 1935 – Peter Inge, Baron Inge, English field marshal
• 1935 – John Saxon, American actor
• 1936 – Nikolai Baturin, Estonian author and playwright
• 1937 – Herb Brooks, American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2003)
• 1937 – Brian G. Marsden, English-American astronomer and academic (d. 2010)
• 1939 – Roger Clark, English race car driver (d. 1998)
• 1940 – Roman Gabriel, American football player, coach, and actor
• 1940 – Rick Huxley, English bass player (The Dave Clark Five) (d. 2013)
• 1941 – Bob Clark, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2007)
• 1941 – Leonid Kizim, Ukrainian general, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2010)
• 1941 – Airto Moreira, Brazilian-American drummer and composer (Return to Forever)
• 1942 – Joe Boyd, American record producer, founded Hannibal Records
• 1943 – Nelson Briles, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2005)
• 1943 – Sammi Smith, American singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
• 1943 – Rodney Pattisson, English yachtsman
• 1944 – Christopher Gunning, English composer
• 1945 – Loni Anderson, American actress
• 1945 – John Monks, English union leader and politician
• 1946 – Bruce Coslet, American football player and coach
• 1946 – Rick van der Linden, Dutch keyboard player and songwriter (Ekseption and Trace) (d. 2006)
• 1946 – Bob McCarthy, Australian rugby player and coach
• 1946 – Erika Slezak, American actress
• 1946 – Xavier Trias, Spanish pediatrician and politician, 118th Mayor of Barcelona
• 1947 – Angry Anderson, Australian singer-songwriter and actor (Rose Tattoo, The Party Boys, and Buster Brown)
• 1947 – Bernie Carbo, American baseball player and hairdresser
• 1947 – France A. Córdova, American astrophysicist and academic
• 1947 – Rick Derringer, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (The McCoys)
• 1947 – Greg Leskiw, Canadian guitarist and songwriter (The Guess Who)
• 1948 – Ray Clemence, English footballer and manager
• 1948 – Barbara Flynn, English actress
• 1948 – Carole Laure, Canadian actress and singer
• 1948 – Shin Takamatsu, Japanese architect and academic
• 1950 – Luiz Gushiken, Brazilian union leader and politician (d. 2013)
• 1950 – Mahendra Karma, Indian lawyer and politician (d. 2013)
• 1950 – Goldie Rogers, Canadian wrestler (d. 2012)
• 1951 – Samantha Sang, Australian singer
• 1952 – Tamás Faragó, Hungarian water polo player
• 1952 – John Jarratt, Australian actor and producer
• 1952 – Louis Walsh, Irish talent manager
• 1953 – Rick Mahler, American baseball player and coach (d. 2005)
• 1955 – Eddie Ojeda, American guitarist and songwriter (Twisted Sister and Scarecrow)
• 1956 – Christopher Chessun, English bishop
• 1956 – Jerry Ciccoritti, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1956 – Maureen McCormick, American actress and singer
• 1957 – David Gill, English businessman
• 1957 – Faith Prince, American actress and singer
• 1959 – Pete Burns, English singer-songwriter (Dead or Alive)
• 1959 – Pat Smear, American guitarist and songwriter (Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Germs, and Adolescents)
• 1960 – David Baldacci, American lawyer and author
• 1960 – Vivian Kubrick, American-English actress and composer
• 1960 – Seth Swirsky, American singer-songwriter
• 1961 – Roly Keating, English businessman
• 1961 – Janet McTeer, English actress
• 1961 – Mark O'Connor, American violinist and composer
• 1961 – Athula Samarasekera, Sri Lankan cricketer and coach
• 1961 – Tim Wilson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2014)
• 1962 – Patrick Ewing, Jamaican-American basketball player and coach
• 1962 – Ramsay Gilderdale, English actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1962 – Otis Thorpe, American basketball player
• 1963 – Steve Lee, Swiss singer-songwriter (Gotthard) (d. 2010)
• 1964 – Rory Morrison, English journalist (d. 2013)
• 1964 – Adam Yauch, American rapper and director (Beastie Boys) (d. 2012)
• 1965 – Jeff Coffin, American saxophonist and composer (Dave Matthews Band and Béla Fleck and the Flecktones)
• 1965 – Motoi Sakuraba, Japanese keyboard player and composer
• 1966 – Jennifer Finch, American singer, bass player, and photographer (L7 and The Shocker)
• 1966 – Jonathan Silverman, American actor and producer
• 1967 – Matthew Caws, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Nada Surf)
• 1967 – Thomas Lang, Austrian drummer and producer (stOrk and Vienna Art Orchestra)
• 1968 – Terri Clark, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1968 – Funkmaster Flex, American rapper, producer, and radio host
• 1968 – Kendo Kashin, Japanese wrestler and mixed martial artist
• 1968 – Marine Le Pen, French lawyer and politician
• 1968 – Oleh Luzhny, Ukrainian footballer and manager
• 1968 – Colin McRae, Scottish race car driver (d. 2007)
• 1968 – John Olerud, American baseball player
• 1969 – Jackie Doyle-Price, English politician
• 1969 – Vasbert Drakes, Barbadian cricketer
• 1969 – Venkatesh Prasad, Indian cricketer and coach
• 1969 – Robert Scott, Australian rower
• 1970 – James Gunn, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1971 – DJ Ajax, Australian DJ and producer (d. 2013)
• 1971 – Valdis Dombrovskis, Latvian academic and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Latvia
• 1971 – Jared Hasselhoff, American bass player and songwriter (Bloodhound Gang)
• 1972 – Ikuto Hidaka, Japanese wrestler
• 1972 – Aaqib Javed, Pakistani cricketer and coach
• 1972 – Darren Shahlavi, English-American actor and martial artist (d. 2015)
• 1972 – Theodore Whitmore, Jamaican footballer and manager
• 1972 – Christian Olde Wolbers, Belgian-American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (Fear Factory, Beowülf, Arkaea, and Kush)
• 1973 – Justin Marshall, New Zealand rugby player and sportscaster
• 1973 – Sean Sherk, American mixed martial artist
• 1974 – Alvin Ceccoli, Australian footballer
• 1974 – Julio César Enciso, Paraguayan footballer
• 1974 – Olle Kullinger, Swedish footballer
• 1974 – Antoine Sibierski, French footballer
• 1975 – Dan Hipgrave, English guitarist and journalist (Toploader)
• 1975 – Josep Jufré, Catalan cyclist
• 1975 – Eicca Toppinen, Finnish cellist and composer (Apocalyptica)
• 1976 – Jeff Friesen, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1976 – Marians Pahars, Latvian footballer and manager
• 1976 – Eugen Trică, Romanian footballer and manager
• 1977 – Eric Hinske, American baseball player and coach
• 1977 – Soraya Jiménez, Mexican weightlifter (d. 2013)
• 1977 – Mark Mulder, American baseball player and sportscaster
• 1977 – Michael Walsh, English footballer
• 1978 – Cosmin Bărcăuan, Romanian footballer and manager
• 1978 – Carolina Duer, Argentinian boxer
• 1978 – Kim Gevaert, Belgian sprinter
• 1978 – Nektaria Karantzi, Greek singer
• 1979 – David Healy, Irish footballer
• 1980 – Wayne Bridge, English footballer
• 1980 – Salvador Cabañas, Paraguayan footballer
• 1980 – Jason Culina, Australian footballer
• 1980 – Ali Umar, Maldivian footballer
• 1980 – Sophie Winkleman, English actress
• 1981 – David Clarke, English ice hockey player
• 1981 – Carl Crawford, American baseball player
• 1981 – Maik Franz, German footballer
• 1981 – Erik Guay, Canadian skier
• 1981 – Kenta Hamano, Japanese musician, composer, and actor (Sakerock)
• 1981 – Alester Maregwede, Zimbabwean cricketer
• 1981 – Anna Rawson, Australian golfer
• 1982 – Jamie Houston, English-German rugby player
• 1982 – Lolo Jones, American hurdler
• 1982 – Michele Pazienza, Italian footballer
• 1982 – Tobias Regner, German singer-songwriter
• 1982 – Pete Sell, American mixed martial artist
• 1982 – Ryu Seung-min, South Korean table tennis player
• 1983 – Korey Hall, American football player
• 1983 – Dawn Richard, American singer-songwriter and dancer (Danity Kane and Diddy – Dirty Money)
• 1984 – Helene Fischer, German singer and dancer
• 1984 – Steve Matai, New Zealand rugby player
• 1985 – Laurent Ciman, Belgian footballer
• 1985 – Salomon Kalou, Ivorian footballer
• 1985 – Gil Vermouth, Israeli footballer
• 1985 – Erkan Zengin, Swedish footballer
• 1986 – Paula Creamer, American golfer
• 1988 – Michael Jamieson, Scottish-English swimmer
• 1988 – Eddie Nolan, Irish footballer
• 1988 – Federica Pellegrini, Italian swimmer
• 1988 – Kaimar Saag, Estonian footballer
• 1989 – Ryan Bertrand, English footballer
• 1989 – Mathieu Manset, French footballer
• 1991 – Esteban Gutiérrez, Mexican race car driver
• 1991 – Konrad Hurrell, New Zealand rugby league player
• 1991 – Andreas Weimann, Austrian footballer
• 1992 – Chen Ding, Chinese runner
• 1992 – Tray Walker, American football player (d. 2016)
• 1993 – Patrick McBrearty, Irish footballer
• 1993 – Suzuka Ohgo, Japanese actress
• 1995 – Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, Danish footballer

Deaths

• 642 – Eowa of Mercia
• 642 – Oswald of Northumbria (b. 604)
• 824 – Heizei, Japanese emperor (b. 773)
• 882 – Louis III, Frankish king (b. 863)
• 917 – Euthymius I of Constantinople (b. 834)
• 1364 – Kōgon, Japanese emperor (b. 1313)
• 1579 – Stanislaus Hosius, Polish cardinal (b. 1504)
• 1610 – Alonso García de Ramón, Spanish soldier and politician, Royal Governor of Chile (b. 1552)
• 1633 – George Abbot, English archbishop and academic (b. 1562)
• 1678 – Juan García de Zéspedes, Mexican tenor and composer (b. 1619)
• 1729 – Thomas Newcomen, English engineer, invented the Newcomen atmospheric engine (b. 1664)
• 1743 – John Hervey, 2nd Baron Hervey, English courtier and politician, Vice-Chamberlain of the Household (b. 1696)
• 1778 – Charles Clémencet, French historian and author (b. 1703)
• 1778 – Thomas Linley the younger, English composer (b. 1756)
• 1792 – Frederick North, Lord North, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1732)
• 1799 – Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, English admiral and politician (b. 1726)
• 1868 – Jacques Boucher de Crèvecœur de Perthes, French archaeologist and historian (b. 1788)
• 1877 – Gustav, Prince of Vasa (b. 1799)
• 1877 – Robert Williams (Trebor Mai), Welsh poet (b.1830)
• 1880 – Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra, Austrian physician and dermatologist (b. 1816)
• 1881 – Spotted Tail, American tribal chief (b. 1823)
• 1888 – Anna Haining Bates, Canadian-American giant (b. 1846)
• 1895 – Friedrich Engels, German philosopher (b. 1820)
• 1901 – Victoria, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom (b. 1840)
• 1911 – Bob Caruthers, American baseball player and umpire (b. 1864)
• 1921 – Dimitrios Rallis, Greek lawyer and politician, 78th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1844)
• 1923 – Vatroslav Jagić, Croatian linguist, philologist, and academic (b. 1835)
• 1925 – Jennie Lee, American actress (b. 1848)
• 1929 – Millicent Fawcett, English union leader and activist (b. 1847)
• 1933 – Charles Harold Davis, American painter and academic (b. 1856)
• 1935 – David Townsend, American art director and set designer (b. 1891)
• 1939 – Béla Jankovich, Hungarian economist and politician, Minister of Education of Hungary (b. 1865)
• 1944 – Maurice Turnbull, Welsh cricketer and rugby player (b. 1906)
• 1946 – Wilhelm Marx, German lawyer and politician, 17th Chancellor of Germany (b. 1863)
• 1948 – Montagu Toller, English cricketer and lawyer (b. 1871)
• 1952 – Sameera Moussa, Egyptian physicist and academic (b. 1917)
• 1955 – Carmen Miranda, Portuguese-Brazilian actress and singer (b. 1909)
• 1957 – Heinrich Otto Wieland, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1877)
• 1959 – Edgar Guest, English-American journalist and poet (b. 1881)
• 1960 – Arthur Meighen, Canadian lawyer and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1874)
• 1962 – Marilyn Monroe, American model, actress, and singer (b. 1926)
• 1963 – Salvador Bacarisse, Spanish composer (b. 1898)
• 1964 – Art Ross, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (b. 1886)
• 1967 – György Bródy, Hungarian water polo player (b. 1908)
• 1968 – Luther Perkins, American guitarist (The Tennessee Three) (b. 1928)
• 1978 – Jesse Haines, American baseball player and coach (b. 1893)
• 1980 – Harold L. Runnels, American soldier and politician (b. 1924)
• 1983 – Judy Canova, American actress and singer (b. 1913)
• 1983 – Joan Robinson, English economist and author (b. 1903)
• 1984 – Richard Burton, Welsh-Swiss actor and producer (b. 1925)
• 1985 – Arnold Horween, American football player and coach (b. 1898)
• 1987 – Georg Gaßmann, German politician, Mayor of Marburg (b. 1910)
• 1991 – Paul Brown, American football player and coach (b. 1908)
• 1991 – Soichiro Honda, Japanese engineer and businessman, founded Honda (b. 1906)
• 1992 – Jeff Porcaro, American drummer, songwriter, and producer (Toto and Clover) (b. 1954)
• 1994 – Menachem Avidom, Israeli composer (b. 1908)
• 1994 – Alain de Changy, Belgian race car driver (b. 1922)
• 1998 – Otto Kretschmer, German commander (b. 1912)
• 1998 – Todor Zhivkov, Bulgarian commander and politician, 36th Prime Minister of Bulgaria (b. 1911)
• 2000 – Otto Buchsbaum, Austrian-Brazilian journalist and activist (b. 1920)
• 2000 – Tullio Crali, Montenegrin-Italian pilot and painter (b. 1910)
• 2000 – Alec Guinness, English actor (b. 1914)
• 2001 – Otema Allimadi, Ugandan politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Uganda (b. 1929)
• 2001 – Christopher Skase, Australian-Spanish businessman (b. 1948)
• 2002 – Josh Ryan Evans, American actor (b. 1982)
• 2002 – Chick Hearn, American sportscaster (b. 1916)
• 2002 – Franco Lucentini, Italian journalist and author (b. 1920)
• 2002 – Matt Robinson, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1937)
• 2005 – Polina Astakhova, Russian gymnast and coach (b. 1936)
• 2005 – Jim O'Hora, American football player and coach (b. 1915)
• 2005 – Raul Roco, Filipino lawyer and politician, 31st Filipino Secretary of Education (b. 1941)
• 2006 – Susan Butcher, American dog sled racer (b. 1954)
• 2007 – Jean-Marie Lustiger, French cardinal (b. 1926)
• 2007 – Florian Pittiș, Romanian actor, singer, director, and producer (b. 1943)
• 2008 – Neil Bartlett, English-American chemist and academic (b. 1932)
• 2008 – Reg Lindsay, Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1929)
• 2009 – Budd Schulberg, American author, screenwriter, and producer (b. 1914)
• 2011 – Andrzej Lepper, Polish farmer and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Poland (b. 1954)
• 2011 – Francesco Quinn, Italian-American actor (b. 1963)
• 2011 – Aziz Shavershian, Australian bodybuilder and model (b. 1989)
• 2012 – Erwin Axer, Polish director and screenwriter (b. 1917)
• 2012 – Michel Daerden, Belgian lawyer and politician (b. 1949)
• 2012 – Fred Matua, American football player (b. 1984)
• 2012 – Martin E. Segal, Russian-American businessman, co-founded Film Society of Lincoln Center (b. 1916)
• 2012 – Sister Boom Boom, American astrologer and drag queen performer (b. 1955)
• 2012 – Kirk Urso, American soccer player (b. 1990)
• 2012 – Chavela Vargas, Costa Rican-Mexican singer-songwriter and actress (b. 1919)
• 2012 – Roland Charles Wagner, French author and translator (b. 1960)
• 2013 – Ruth Asawa, American sculptor and educator (b. 1926)
• 2013 – Shawn Burr, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1966)
• 2013 – George Duke, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer (b. 1946)
• 2013 – Willie Dunn, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1942)
• 2013 – Roy Rubin, American basketball player and coach (b. 1925)
• 2013 – May Song Vang, American activist (b. 1951)
• 2013 – Rob Wyda, American commander and judge (b. 1959)
• 2014 – Diann Blakely, American poet and academic (b. 1957)
• 2014 – Scott Ciencin, American author (b. 1962)
• 2014 – Harold J. Greene, American general (b. 1962)
• 2014 – Vladimir Orlov, Russian author (b. 1936)
• 2014 – Chapman Pincher, Indian-English historian, journalist, and author (b. 1914)
• 2014 – Jesse Leonard Steinfeld, American physician and academic, 11th Surgeon General of the United States (b. 1927)
• 2015 – George Cole, English actor (b. 1925)
• 2015 – Arthur Walter James, English journalist and politician (b. 1912)
• 2015 – Tony Millington, Welsh footballer (b. 1943)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Abel of Reims
  • Addai
  • Afra
  • Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald, and Lucas Cranach the Elder (Episcopal Church (USA))
  • Cassian of Autun
  • Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major (Catholic Church)
  • Emygdius
  • Memnius
  • Oswald of Northumbria
  • August 5 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Independence Day (Burkina Faso)
• The beginning of the Carnival of Bogotá, celebrated until the next day.
• National Underwear Day (United States)
• Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and the Day of Croatian defenders

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada