20th August 1975: NASA launches Viking 1, the first spacecraft to land on Mars and transmit images of the surface back to Earth
Viking 1 was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 20 August 1975 and took nearly 11 months to reach ...
20 Aug 0s
19th August 1934: The first All-American Soap Box Derby held in Dayton, Ohio
Held in Dayton, Ohio, on a track measuring 1,980 feet, the first All-American Soap Box Derby attracted 362 participants and more than 40,000 ...
19 Aug 0s
18th August 1612: The trials of nine Lancashire women and two men known as the Pendle Witches begin
The trials of the Pendle Witches are not only some of the most famous but also some of the best recorded witch trials in British history, and represent two per cent of all British witches to face trial over three ...
18 Aug 0s
17th August 1945: Animal Farm by George Orwell published in the United Kingdom
Subtitled “A Fairy Story,” the Animal Farm used a farmyard allegory to critique totalitarianism, particularly the rise and betrayal of the ideals of the Russian Revolution, which caused several publishers to initially reject the book, with concerns that it would harm wartime relations with the ...
17 Aug 0s
16th August 1819: An estimated 15 protestors are killed in the Peterloo Massacre at St Peter’s Field in Manchester
The Peterloo Massacre took place at St Peter’s Field in Manchester, when a group of over 60,000 protesters were charged by ...
16 Aug 0s
15th August 1965: The Beatles perform at Shea Stadium in New York City, in front of a crowd of over 55,000 people
The Beatles were first flown by helicopter to a nearby helipad and then driven to Shea Stadium in an armoured van where they performed a 30 minute set on a stage set up on the infield, far from the attendees in the ...
15 Aug 0s
14th August 1980: Lech Walesa leads a strike at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk and triggers the formation of the Solidarity trade union
Within two years up to 80% of the entire Polish workforce had joined Solidarity or one of its sub-organisations, and they regularly used strikes to achieve political ...
14 Aug 0s
13th August 1521: Aztec Empire ends with the Fall of Tenochtitlan to Spanish forces led by Hernán Cortés
The Aztec defence was led by the Emperor Cuauhtémoc but, despite determined resistance, the defenders were gradually overwhelmed and Cuauhtémoc was captured while trying to flee the ...
13 Aug 0s
