- 1079 Emperor Horikawa of Japan (d. 1107)
- 1518 Conrad Lycosthenes, French-born German humanist and encyclopedist (d. 1561)
- 1586 Adolf, earl of Nassau-Siegen
- 1605 Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, British colonial Governor of Maryland (d. 1675)
- 1617 Adriaan W "Joris" van Geel, Flemish missionary (Bantu Dictionary)
- 1646 Godfrey Kneller, German-born painter (d. 1723)
- 1653 Jacques Basnage, French/Neth historian/vicar
- 1673 John Ker, Scottish spy (d. 1726)
- 1694 Francis Hutcheson, Irish philosopher (d. 1746)
- 1705 Gustaaf Imhoff, gov of Ceylon (1736-40)/gov of Neth-Indies (1743-50)
- 1720 Carl Fredrik Pechlin, Swedish politician (d. 1796)
- 1732 Johann C Adelung, German linguist/librarian
- 1746 Hieronymus van Alphen, Dutch attorney/poet (church songs)
- 1763 Charles Bulfinch, 1st US pro architect (Mass State House), born in Boston, Massachusetts
- 1805 Antoon Jurgens, Dutch margarine manufacturer
- 1807 Emilie Flygare-Carlén, Swedish novelist (d. 1892)
- 1812 John Rodgers II, Commander (Union Navy), (d. 1882)
- 1814 Esther Morris [Esther Hobart McQuigg], American suffragist, anti-slavery activist, and 1st female justice of the peace in the US, born in Tioga County, New York (d. 1902)
- 1819 Charles Anderson Dana, Asst Secy War, (Union) (d. 1897)
- 1820 Winfield Scott "Old Swet" Featherston, Army Brigadier General (Confederate)
- 1823 Theodule Augustin Ribot, painter
- 1824 Maria Alexandrovna (Marie of Hesse), Tsarina of Russia (d. 1880)
- 1835 James William Forsyth, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Maumee, Ohio (d. 1906)
- 1839 Nelson Appleton Miles, American Major General (Union Army), born in Westminster, Massachusetts (d. 1925)
- 1857 Henry Osborn, Conn, paleontologist/author (52 Years of Research)
- 1861 William Bateson, English biologist (originator of term "genetics")
- 1866 Matthew A Henson, 1st African American to reach North Pole (Jun 4 1909)
- 1875 Artur da Silva Bernardes, President of Brazil (d. 1955)
- 1879 Emiliano Zapata, Mexican revolutionary, peasant leader
- 1879 "Dr. Bob" Smith, American physician and co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, born in St. Johnsbury, Vermont (d. 1950)
- 1880 Earle Page, Australian politician (d. 1961)
- 1881 Paul L E von Kleist, German general-fieldmarshal (Eastern Front)
- 1884 Sara Teasdale, American poet (1st Pulitzer Prize-1918-"Love Songs")
- 1887 J C Heldring, Dutch businessman
- 1896 Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, writer (Yearling), born in Washington, D.C.
- 1898 Paul Belmondo, French sculptor (Bathing Woman, Orleans)
- 1900 Josephine Holt Bay, 1st woman to head a firm on NY stock exchange
- 1901 Ernest Lawrence, American nuclear scientist and inventor (Cyclotron - Nobel 1939), born in Canton, South Dakota (d. 1958)
Paul Dirac
1902 Paul Dirac, English physicist (quantum electrodynamics, Nobel 1933), born in Bristol, England (d. 1984)
Paul Dirac
- 1903 August Cool, Belgian union leader/minister of state
- 1905 Wachtang Ananjan, writer
- 1906 Andre Demedts, Flemish writer (Rainfall of the Days)
- 1908 Arthur J Goldberg, Ill, UN ambassador/Supreme Court justice (1962-65)
- 1908 Chivu Stoica, premier of Romania (1955-61)
- 1910 Francisco Brochado Da Rocha, Prime Minister of Brazil (1962)
- 1912 Daniel Mann, director (Willard, Butterfield 8), born in Brooklyn, New York
- 1913 Daan Wildschut, painter/glazenier/author
- 1913 Robert Stafford, American politician (Sen-R-VT, 1971-88), born in Rutland, Vermont (d. 2006)
- 1914 Arthur Holt, politician
- 1914 Unity Mitford, English fascist sympathizer and one of the Mitford sisters, born in London (d. 1948)
- 1915 Jumbo Elliott, American track coach (d. 1981)
- 1919 Dino De Laurentiis, producer (King Kong), born in Torre Annunziata, Italy
- 1920 Don Cook, foreign Correspondent
- 1921 John Herbert Chapman, British physicist (d. 1979)
- 1921 Vulimiri Ramalingaswami, Indian medical scientist (d. 2001)
- 1922 Michael Parkin, journalist
- 1922 Rudi Gernreich, designer (1st women's topless swimsuit, miniskirt)
- 1922 Gertrude Himmelfarb, American historian
- 1925 Jack Stoddart, designer/socialist
- 1925 Alija Izetbegović, Bosniak politician (d. 2003)
- 1927 Elis Juliana, Antillian writer/poet (Lady of the Night: A flower)
- 1927 Jim Weaver, American politician (Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon), born in Brookings, South Dakota
- 1927 Yuri Kasakow, Russian writer, born in Moscow (d. 1982)
- 1928 Ken Scowcroft, English insurance magnate/multi-millionaire
- 1929 Ronnie Biggs, English criminal (Great Train Robbery of 1963), born in Stockwell
- 1929 Larisa Bogoraz, Soviet dissident (d. 2004)
- 1929 Gudrun Burwitz [Himmler], German daughter of SS leader Heinrich Himmler, born in Munich, Weimar Republic (d. 2018)
- 1930 Joan Mondale, wife of US vice-president Walter Mondale (1977-81)
- 1930 Terry Nation, writer (Dr Who, Blake 7)
- 1932 Luis García Meza Tejada, Bolivian dictator
- 1934 Julian Dixon, American politician (Rep-D-California, 1979-2000), born in Washington D.C. (d. 2000)
- 1935 Ron Marlenee, American politician (Rep-R-MT, 1977-93), born in Scobey, Montana
- 1935 Sandy Horn, lesbian activist
- 1935 John Laws, Australia radio personality
- 1936 Don Bowden, 1st American to run a sub 4 min mile (1957), born in San José, California
- 1939 Alexander Watson, American ambassador and diplomat
- 1944 Dapper Dan [Daniel Day], American fashion designer, born in Harlem, New York
- 1946 Robin M Tallon, (Rep-D-SC, 1983- )
- 1946 James W. Lewis, American convicted extortionist
- 1948 Svetlana Y Savitskaya, Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz T-7, T-12, T-15A)
- 1949 Bela Magyari, Hungarian cosmonaut
- 1951 Randy Shilts, American journalist and author (d. 1994)
- 1951 Mohamed Morsi, Egyptian politician, President of Egypt (2012-13), leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, born in El Adwah, Egypt (d. 2019)
- 1952 Jostein Gaarder, Norwegian author
- 1958 Deborah Norville, news anchor (Today Show, Inside Edition)
- 1959 Ronald Weigel, German DR speed walker (5 km indoor)
- 1960 Ulrich Maly, German politician
- 1963 Kyoko Chan Cox, American daughter of Yoko Ono and Anthony Cox, born in Tokyo, Japan
- 1963 Jon Turteltaub, American director
- 1964 Anastasia Ashman, American writer and digital strategist (GlobalNiche), born in Berkeley, California
- 1964 Giuseppe Conte, Italian jurist and politician, Prime Minister of Italy (2018-), born in Volturara Appula, Italy
- 1965 Kate Langbroek, Australian media personality
- 1967 Lee Unkrich, American director and film editor
- 1972 Axel Merckx, Belgian cyclist
- 1975 Jeremy Scott, American fashion designer (Moschino), born in Kansas City, Missouri
- 1979 Paris Latsis, Greek shipping heir
- 1980 Pat Noonan, American footballer
- 1982 David Florence, British canoeist
- 1984 Devon McTavish, American footballer
- 1988 Beatrice, Princes of York, British daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, born in London
August in History
The Strange, Mysterious Story of the Balloon Expedition to the North Pole
The discovery of Swedish engineer S. A. Andrée's tragic, long-lost polar expedition in 1930 led to more questions than answers.
August 5, 1930A Pill to Cure All Ills
Not well? Take a Beecham’s Pill was often the advice. So popular was it that nobody doubted it’s extravagant claim in the world’s first advertising slogan.
August 6, 1859Why Mata Hari Was Not the Spy You Thought She Was
The controversial life and death of Mata Hari, the glamorous WWI double agent, executed in 1917, has recently been reassessed in the light of new evidence.
August 7, 1876Ship 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
