August 11

August 11 in recent years

2024 (Sunday)

2023 (Friday)

2022 (Thursday)

2021 (Wednesday)

2020 (Tuesday)

2019 (Sunday)

2018 (Saturday)

2017 (Friday)

2016 (Thursday)

2015 (Tuesday)

August 11 is the 223rd day of the year (224th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 142 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 3114 BC – The Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, used by several pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilizations, notably the Mayans, begins.
• 2492 BC – Traditional date of the defeat of Bel by Hayk, progenitor and founder of the Armenian nation.
• 480 BC – Greco-Persian Wars: Battle of Artemisium – the Persians achieve a naval victory over the Greeks in an engagement fought near Artemisium, a promontory on the north coast of Euboea.
• 355 – Claudius Silvanus, accused of treason, proclaims himself Roman Emperor against Constantius II.
• 1755 – Charles Lawrence gives expulsion orders to remove the Acadians from Nova Scotia beginning the Great Upheaval.
• 1786 – Captain Francis Light establishes the British colony of Penang in Malaysia
• 1804 – Francis II assumes the title of first Emperor of Austria.
• 1858 – The Eiger in the Bernese Alps is ascended for the first time by Charles Barrington accompanied by Christian Almer and Peter Bohren.
• 1898 – Spanish-American War: American troops enter the city of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico.
• 1918 – World War I: the Battle of Amiens ends.
• 1919 – The constitution of the Weimar Republic is adopted.
• 1920 – The Latvia-Bolshevist Russia peace treaty, which relinquished Russia's authority and pretenses to Latvia, is signed.
• 1929 – Babe Ruth becomes the first baseball player to hit 500 home runs in his career with a home run at League Park in Cleveland, Ohio.
• 1929 – The Bud Billiken Parade and Picnic begins its annual tradition, which is now the oldest and largest African American parade in the United States.
• 1934 – The first civilian prisoners arrive at the Federal prison on Alcatraz Island.
• 1942 – Actress Hedy Lamarr and composer George Antheil receive a patent for a frequency hopping, spread spectrum communication system that later became the basis for modern technologies in wireless telephones and Wi-Fi.
• 1952 – Hussein is proclaimed King of Jordan.
• 1960 – Chad declares independence.
• 1965 – Race riots (the Watts riots) begin in the Watts area of Los Angeles, California.
• 1972 – Vietnam War: the last United States ground combat unit departs South Vietnam.
• 1975 – East Timor: Governor Mário Lemos Pires of Portuguese Timor abandons the capital Dili, following a coup by the Timorese Democratic Union (UDT) and the outbreak of civil war between UDT and Fretilin.
• 1982 – A bomb explodes on Pan Am Flight 830, en route from Tokyo to Honolulu, killing one teenager and injuring 15 passengers.
• 1999 – The Salt Lake City Tornado tears through the downtown district of the city, killing one.
• 2003 – NATO takes over command of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, marking its first major operation outside Europe in its 54-year-history.
• 2003 – Jemaah Islamiyah leader Riduan Isamuddin, better known as Hambali, is arrested in Bangkok, Thailand.
• 2003 – A heat wave in Paris results in temperatures rising to 112°F (44° C), leaving about 144 people dead.

Births

• 1467 – Mary of York, English princess (d. 1482)
• 1648 – Jeremiah Shepard, American minister (d. 1720)
• 1667 – Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici, Florentine patroness of the arts, the last scion of the House of Medici (d. 1743)
• 1673 – Richard Mead, English physician (d. 1754)
• 1718 – Sir Frederick Haldimand, Swiss-born British colonial governor (d. 1791)
• 1722 – Richard Brocklesby, English physician (d. 1797)
• 1778 – Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, German (Prussian) gymnastics educator and nationalist (d. 1852)
• 1794 – James Barton Longacre, American engraver (d. 1869)
• 1807 – David Rice Atchison, American politician (d. 1886)
• 1808 – William W. Chapman, American politician (d. 1892)
• 1833 – Robert G. Ingersoll, American politician and soldier (d. 1899)
• 1833 – Kido Takayoshi, Japanese politician (d. 1877)
• 1836 – Warren Brown, American politician (d. 1919)
• 1837 – Marie François Sadi Carnot, French statesman (d. 1894)
• 1855 – John Hodges, Australian cricketer (d. 1933)
• 1858 – Christiaan Eijkman, Dutch physician, Nobel Laureate (d. 1930)
• 1863 – Gaston Doumergue, President of the French Third Republic (d. 1937)
• 1870 – Tom Richardson, English cricketer (d. 1912)
• 1870 – Walter Bowman, Canadian soccer player (d. ?)
• 1872 – Kijūrō Shidehara, 44th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1951)
• 1877 – Adolph M. Christianson, American judge, Justice and Chief Justice of the North Dakota Supreme Court (d. 1954)
• 1878 – Oliver W F Lodge, English poet and writer (d. 1955)
• 1892 – Eiji Yoshikawa, Japanese novelist (d. 1962)
• 1892 – Hugh MacDiarmid, Scottish poet (d. 1978)
• 1892 – Archie Wiles, West Indian cricketer (d. 1957)
• 1897 – Louise Bogan, American poet (d. 1970)
• 1897 – Enid Blyton, English author (d. 1968)
• 1900 – Philip Phillips, American archaeologist (d. 1994)
• 1902 – Alfredo Binda, Italian cyclist (d. 1986)
• 1902 – Lloyd Nolan, American actor (d. 1985)
• 1905 – Erwin Chargaff, Austrian biochemist (d. 2002)
• 1907 – Ted a'Beckett, Australian cricketer (d. 1989)
• 1909 – Yuji Koseki, Japanese composer (d. 1989)
• 1912 – Eva Ahnert-Rohlfs, German astronomer (d. 1954)
• 1912 – Thanom Kittikachorn, 10th Prime Minister of Thailand (d. 2004)
• 1913 – Angus Wilson, British novelist (d. 1991)
• 1913 – Paul Dupuis, French Canadian actor (d. 1976)
• 1913 – Bob Scheffing, American professional baseball player and manager (d. 1985)
• 1914 – José Silva, American parapsychologist (d. 1999)
• 1916 – Johnny Claes, Belgian racing driver (d. 1956)
• 1919 – Ginette Neveu, French violinist (d. 1949)
• 1919 – Luis Olmo, Puerto Rican baseball player
• 1920 – Chuck Rayner, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2002)
• 1921 – Alex Haley, American historian (d. 1992)
• 1923 – Stan Chambers, American television reporter
• 1925 – Mike Douglas, American entertainer (d. 2006)
• 1925 – Floyd Curry, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2006)
• 1926 – Aaron Klug, Lithuanian-born British chemist and biophysicist, Nobel Laureate
• 1926 – Claus von Bülow, Danish-born British socialite
• 1927 – Raymond Leppard, English conductor
• 1928 – Arlene Dahl, American actress
• 1930 – Paul Soles, Canadian actor and television personality
• 1932 – Fernando Arrabal, Spanish writer
• 1932 – Peter Eisenman, American architect
• 1932 – Israel Asper, Canadian tax lawyer (d. 2003)
• 1932 – John Gorrie, English director
• 1933 – Jerry Falwell, American preacher (d. 2007)
• 1933 – Jerzy Grotowski, Polish theatre director (d. 1999)
• 1936 – Andre Dubus, American short-story writer (d. 1999)
• 1938 – Branko Stanovnik, Slovenian chemist
• 1939 – Ronnie Dawson, American rockabilly performer (d. 2003)
• 1940 – Lennie Pond, American NASCAR driver
• 1942 – Mike Hugg, British drummer, keyboardist and vocalist (Manfred Mann)
• 1943 – Abigail Folger, American heiress and Manson murder victim (d. 1969)
• 1943 – Stefania Toczyska, Polish mezzo-soprano
• 1943 – Pervez Musharraf, Pakistani politician
• 1944 – Ian McDiarmid, Scottish actor
• 1944 – Frederick W. Smith, American entrepreneur
• 1946 – Marilyn vos Savant, American newspaper columnist
• 1946 – John Conlee, American country music singer
• 1947 – Georgios Karatzaferis, Greek politician
• 1948 – Jan Palach, Czechoslovakian student protester (d. 1969)
• 1949 – Eric Carmen, American singer and guitarist (Raspberries)
• 1949 – Tim Hutchinson, American politician
• 1950 – Erik Brann, American guitarist (Iron Butterfly) (d. 2003)
• 1950 – Gennidy Nikonov, Russian weapon engineer, designer of the AN-94 attack rifle (d. 2003)
• 1950 – Steve Wozniak, American computer pioneer
• 1951 – Vincent Bilodeau, Canadian actor and comedian
• 1952 – Bob Mothersbaugh AKA Bob 1, American guitarist (Devo)
• 1953 – Hulk Hogan, American professional wrestler
• 1953 – Delia Montalbo, Nikko Marasigan's lovely Mother-in-law
• 1953 – Amy Holland, American Pop Rock singer
• 1954 – Joe Jackson, English singer
• 1954 – Juan Maria Solare, Argentine composer
• 1954 – Yashpal Sharma, Indian cricketer
• 1954 – M. V. Narasimha Rao, Indian cricketer
• 1955 – Sylvia Hermon, British politician
• 1955 – Marc Bureau, Canadian politician
• 1956 – Pierre-Louis Lions, French mathematician
• 1957 – Ian Stuart Donaldson, British singer (Skrewdriver) (d. 1993)
• 1959 – Gustavo Cerati, Argentinian guitarist and singer-songwriter (Soda Stereo)
• 1959 – Yoshiaki Murakami, Japanese investor
• 1961 – Craig Ehlo, American basketball player
• 1962 – Shaul Karnain, Sri Lankan cricketer
• 1962 – Ennis Whatley, American basketball player
• 1963 – Hiromi Makihara, Japanese baseball player
• 1964 – Jim Lee, Korean comic book artist
• 1964 – Nikki Randall, American pornographic actress
• 1964 – Miguel A. Núñez, Jr., American actor
• 1965 – Marc Bergevin, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1965 – Shinji Mikami, Japanese video game designer (Resident Evil)
• 1965 – Viola Davis, American actress
• 1965 – Embeth Davidtz, American actress
• 1965 – Duane Martin, American actor
• 1966 – Nigel Martyn, English footballer
• 1967 – Enrique Bunbury, Spanish singer
• 1967 – Eric Maleson, Brazilian bobsledder
• 1967 – Collin Chou, Taiwanese actor
• 1967 – Joe Rogan, American television host, comedian, commentator and actor
• 1968 – Noordin Mohammad Top, Malaysian Islamist terrorist (d. 2009)
• 1969 – Ashley Jensen, British actress
• 1970 – Teresa Pavlinek, Canadian actress
• 1971 – Tommy Mooney, English football player
• 1971 – Alejandra Barros, Mexican actress
• 1971 – Julie Clarke, American model
• 1972 – Jonathon Prandi, American model
• 1973 – Nigel Harman, British actor
• 1973 – Carolyn Murphy, American model
• 1974 – Audrey Mestre, French diver (d. 2002)
• 1974 – Hadiqa Kiyani, Pakistani singer
• 1974 – Marie-France Dubreuil, Canadian figure skater
• 1974 – Kira Kener, American pornographic actress
• 1974 – Anju Jain, Indian cricketer
• 1975 – Davey von Bohlen, American guitarist and vocalist (The Promise Ring, Maritime)
• 1976 – Iván Córdoba, Colombian footballer
• 1976 – Bubba Crosby, American baseball player
• 1976 – Will Friedle, American actor
• 1976 – Ben Gibbard, American guitarist and singer-songwriter (Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service)
• 1976 – Erick Lindgren, American poker player
• 1976 – Ľubomír Višňovský, Slovak ice hockey player
• 1977 – Gemma Hayes, Irish singer
• 1978 – Spyros Gogolos, Greek footballer
• 1978 – Amber Mariano, American reality television personality
• 1978 – Jermain Taylor, American boxer
• 1979 – Aggeliki Daliani, Greek actress
• 1980 – Lee Suggs, American football player
• 1980 – Daniel Lloyd, British cyclist
• 1981 – Fiona Sit, Hong Kong singer and actress
• 1981 – Sandi Thom, Scottish singer
• 1982 – Alan Halsall, British actor
• 1983 – Chris Hemsworth, Australian actor
• 1984 – Melky Cabrera, Dominican baseball player
• 1984 – Lucas di Grassi, Brazilian racing driver
• 1984 – Katie Rees, American beauty pageant contestant
• 1985 – J-Boog, American singer (B2K)
• 1985 – Asher Roth, American rapper
• 1986 – Richard Keogh, Irish footballer
• 1986 – Kaori Fukuhara, Japanese voice actress
• 1986 – Pablo Sandoval, Venezuelan baseball player
• 1987 – Dany N'Guessan, French footballer
• 1993 – Alyson Stoner, American actress, model, singer and dancer

Deaths

• 353 – Magnentius, Roman usurper (b. 303)
• 449 – Archbishop Flavian of Constantinople (birth year unknown)
• 897 – Wilfred the Hairy, Count of Barcelona (birth year unknown)
• 1204 – King Guttorm of Norway (b. 1199)
• 1253 – Clare of Assisi, Italian follower of Francis of Assisi (b. 1194)
• 1259 – Möngke Khan, Great Khan of the Mongol Empire (b. c. 1208)
• 1456 – John Hunyadi, regent of Hungary (b. 1387)
• 1464 – Nicholas of Cusa, German philosopher and mathematician (b. 1401)
• 1494 – Hans Memling, Flemish painter (b. c. 1430)
• 1519 – Johann Tetzel, German opponent of the Reformation (b. 1465)
• 1563 – Bartolomé de Escobedo, Spanish composer (b. c. 1500)
• 1578 – Pedro Nunes, Portuguese mathematician (b. 1502)
• 1596 – Hamnet Shakespeare, son of William Shakespeare (b. 1585)
• 1614 – Lavinia Fontana, Italian painter (b. 1552)
• 1656 – Ottavio Piccolomini, Austrian-Italian field marshal (b. 1599)
• 1774 – Tiphaigne de la Roche, French writer (b. 1722)
• 1813 – Henry James Pye, English poet (b. 1745)
• 1851 – Lorenz Oken, German naturalist (b. 1779)
• 1854 – Macedonio Melloni, Italian physicist (b. 1798)
• 1886 – Lydia Koidula, Estonian poet (b. 1843)
• 1890 – John Henry Newman, English Catholic cardinal (b. 1801)
• 1892 – Enrico Betti, Italian mathematician (b. 1813)
• 1903 – Eugenio Maria de Hostos, Puerto Rican educator and nationalist (b. 1839)
• 1908 – Khudiram Bose, Indian freedom fighter (b. 1889)
• 1919 – Andrew Carnegie, Scottish-born American industrialist and philanthropist (b. 1835)
• 1936 – Blas Infante, Spanish writer and politician (b. 1885)
• 1937 – Edith Wharton, American novelist and designer (b. 1862)
• 1939 – Jean Bugatti, Italian automobile designer (b. 1909)
• 1953 – Tazio Nuvolari, Italian race car driver (b. 1892)
• 1954 – Santo Trafficante, Sr., Sicilian-born American mobster (b. 1886)
• 1956 – Jackson Pollock, American artist (b. 1912)
• 1961 – Antanas Škėma, Lithuanian writer, actor and director (b. 1910)
• 1965 – Bill Woodfull, Australian cricketer (b. 1897)
• 1972 – Max Theiler, South African virologist, Nobel Laureate (b. 1899)
• 1974 – Vicente Emilio Sojo, Venezuelan musicologist and composer (b. 1887)
• 1974 – Jan Tschichold, German typographer (b. 1902)
• 1975 – Rachel Katznelson-Shazar, Belarusian-born Israeli Zionist political figure, wife of Zalman Shazar (b. 1885)
• 1980 – Paul Robert, French lexicographer and publisher (b. 1910)
• 1982 – Tom Drake, American actor (b. 1918)
• 1984 – Alfred A. Knopf, Sr., American publisher (b. 1892)
• 1984 – Paul Felix Schmidt, Estonian–born German chess player (b. 1916)
• 1988 – Anne Ramsey, American actress (b. 1929)
• 1991 – J. D. McDuffie, American NASCAR driver (b. 1938)
• 1994 – Peter Cushing, British actor (b. 1913)
• 1995 – Phil Harris, American singer and comedian (b. 1904)
• 1996 – Rafael Kubelík, Czech conductor and composer (b. 1914)
• 1996 – Mel Taylor, American drummer (The Ventures) (b. 1933)
• 1996 – Baba Vanga, Macedonian-born Bulgarian prophet, mystic, clairvoyant and herbalist (b. 1911)
• 2000 – Jean Papineau-Couture, Canadian composer (b. 1916)
• 2001 – Percy Stallard, English cyclist (b. 1909)
• 2002 – Galen Rowell, American photographer and mountain climber (b. 1940)
• 2003 – Armand Borel, Swiss mathematician (b. 1923)
• 2003 – Herb Brooks, American ice hockey coach (b. 1937)
• 2005 – James Booth, English actor (b. 1927)
• 2006 – Mike Douglas, American singer and talk show host (b. 1925)
• 2009 – Eunice Kennedy Shriver, American founder of the Special Olympics, sister of John F. Kennedy (b. 1921)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day
  • Attracta
  • Clare of Assisi
  • Fiacre
  • Gaugericus
  • Philomena
  • Susanna
  • Taurinus of Évreux
  • Tiburtius and Chromatius
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Chad from France in 1960.

External links

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

---