What Happened on August 15
Significant Events
- 1461 Empire of Trebizond surrenders to forces of Sultan Mehmet II - last Byzantine Empire remnant to fall. Emperor David exiled and later murdered.
- 1620 Mayflower sets sail from Southampton, England, with 102 Pilgrims
- 1900 The Boxer Rebellion: In China, the Empress, her family and court retainers flee while foreign troops move through Peking in an attempt to quell the rebellion
- 1947 India gains independence from Great Britain, remains a dominion until 1950
- 1998 Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland, the worst terrorist incident of The Troubles, kills 29 people and injures about 220
August 15 in Film & TV
- 1918 1st full length cartoon (Sinking of Lusitania)
- 1939 "The Wizard of Oz", American musical fantasy film directed by Victor Fleming and King Vidor, premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, starring Judy Garland (Dorothy), Ray Bolger (Scarecrow), Jack Haley (Tin Man), Bert Lahr (Cowardly Lion), Frank Morgan (Wizard), Billie Burke (Glinda), and Margaret Hamilton (Wicked Witch)
August 15 in Music
- 1969 Woodstock Music & Art Fair opens in New York State on Max Yasgur's Dairy Farm
August 15 in Sport
- 1903 New Zealand's All Blacks play their first Rugby Test Match against Australia's Wallabies at the Sydney Cricket Ground in Sydney; New Zealand win 22-3
Famous Birthdays
Napoléon Bonaparte
(1769 - 1821)
Oscar Peterson
(1925 - 2007)
Stieg Larsson
(1954 - 2004)
Melinda Gates
54 Years Old
Ben Affleck
46 Years Old
Jennifer Lawrence
28 Years Old
Would You Believe?
North Korea creates its own time zone -moving its clocks back half an hour to GMT+8.5
On August 15, 2015
Famous Weddings
- 1958 Singer Buddy Holly weds receptionist Maria Santiago
- 1985 Anti-apartheid lawyer Bulelani Ngcuka marries in South Africa
- 1992 Actress Susan Anton marries actor Jeff Lester
Macbeth
Will Rogers
Paul Lukas
Sheikh Mujibur RahmanAugust in History
Ship Of Gold Sails Into Oblivion
A frigate with more than 150 souls on board, as well as nearly three tons of gold, sailed out of Melbourne on this day – never to be seen again.
August 12, 1853
America's Last Public Hanging
The last man to be publicly hanged in the United States met his fate on this day in history. It was a squalid affair watched by about 10,000 people.
August 14, 1936
First Faltering Steps of Jane Eyre
With hope, pride – and some subterfuge – Charlotte Brontë sent her hefty manuscript of Jane Eyre to publishers in London on this day, then crossed her fingers.
August 15, 1847
A Kiss For Adolf Hitler
A woman spectator leaned over and kissed Adolf Hitler at the Berlin Olympic Games on this day. Hitler pretended to be amused, but his guards were to suffer.
August 15, 1936