What are the important events that happened on August 18? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
August 18: Facts & Myths About This Day
August 18 is the 231st day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 135 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Sunday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is August 5, 2024 – a Sunday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 478,872 hours has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.
Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘dihectatriacontahenagon’ day.
Leo is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Peridot is the modern birthstone for this month. Diamond is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 164 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.
The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,258 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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August 18 Historical Events
- 1201 –The city of Riga is founded.
- 1590 –John White, the governor of the Colony of Roanoke, returns from a supply trip to England and finds his settlement deserted.
- 1864 –American Civil War: Battle of Globe Tavern – Union forces try to cut a vital Confederate supply-line into Petersburg, Virginia, by attacking the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad.
- 1903 –German engineer Karl Jatho allegedly flies his self-made, motored gliding airplane four months before the first flight of the Wright Brothers.
- 1950 –Julien Lahaut, the chairman of the Communist Party of Belgium is assassinated by far-right elements.
- 1958 –Brojen Das from Bangladesh swims across the English Channel in a competition, as the first Bangali as well as the first Asian to ever do it. He became first among 39 competitors.
- 1958 –Vladimir Nabokov’s controversial novel Lolita is published in the United States.
- 1971 –Vietnam War: Australia and New Zealand decide to withdraw their troops from Vietnam.
- 1976 –In the Korean Demilitarized Zone at Panmunjeom, the Axe Murder Incident results in the death of two US soldiers.
- 2011 –The West Memphis Three are released from prison after 18 years in imprisonment.
Who were born on August 18?
- 1450 –Marko Marulić, Croatian poet (d. 1524)
- 1611 –Ludwika Maria Gonzaga, queen of Poland (d. 1650)
- 1657 –Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena, Italian architect/designer (d. 1743)
- 1750 –Antonio Salieri, Italian composer (d. 1825)
- 1908 –Bill Merritt, New Zealand cricketer (d. 1977)
- 1920 –Thomas Godfrey Evans, English cricket keeper (d. 1999)
- 1930 –Liviu Librescu, Israeli professor, killed in the Virginia Tech massacre (d. 2007)
- 1934 –Roberto Clemente, Puerto Rican baseball player and humanitarian (d. 1972)
- 1961 –Birol Ünel, German-Turkish actor
- 1983 –Danny!, American record producer/hip-hop artist
Who died on August 18?
- 353 –Decentius, Roman usurper
- 1430 –Thomas de Ros, 9th Baron de Ros, English soldier and politician (drowned) (b. 1406)
- 1613 –Giovanni Artusi, Italian composer
- 1620 –Wanli, Emperor of China (b. 1563)
- 1815 –Chauncey Goodrich, American politician (b. 1759)
- 1919 –Joseph E. Seagram, Canadian distillery founder (b. 1841)
- 1944 –Ernst Thälmann, Leader of the Communist Party of Germany (b. 1886)
- 2002 –Dean Riesner, American film and television writer (b. 1918)
- 2009 –Kim Dae-jung,15th President of South Korea (b. 1925)
- 2009 –Robert Novak, American journalist and commentator (b. 1931)
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