Today In History. What Happened This Day In History
A Timeline Of Events That Occurred On This Day In History
A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.
Today in History
August 21
| 1129 | The warrior Yoritomo is made Shogun without equal in Japan. | |
| 1525 | Estavao Gomes returns to Portugal after failing to find a clear waterway to Asia. | |
| 1794 | France surrenders the island of Corsica to the British. | |
| 1808 | Napoleon Bonaparte's General Junot is defeated by Wellington at the first Battle of the Peninsular War at Vimiero, Portugal. | |
| 1831 | Nat Turner leads a slave revolt in Southampton County, Virginia that kills close to 60 whites. | |
| 1858 | The first of a series of debates begins between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas. Douglas goes on to win the Senate seat in November, but Lincoln gains national visibility for the first time. | |
| 1863 | Confederate raiders under William Quantrill strike Lawrence, Kansas, leaving 150 civilians dead. | |
| 1864 | Confederate General A.P. Hill attacks Union troops south of Petersburg, Va., at the Weldon railroad. His attack is repulsed, resulting in heavy Confederate casualties. | |
| 1915 | Italy declares war on Turkey. | |
| 1942 | U.S. Marines turn back the first major Japanese ground attack on Guadalcanal in the Battle of Tenaru. | |
| 1944 | The Dumbarton Oaks conference, which lays the foundation for the establishment of the United Nations, is held in Washington, D.C. | |
| 1945 | President Harry S. Truman cancels all contracts under the Lend-Lease Act. | |
| 1959 | Hawaii is admitted into the Union. | |
| 1963 | The South Vietnamese Army arrests over 100 Buddhist monks in Saigon. | |
| 1968 | Soviet forces invade Czechoslovakia because of the country's experiments with a more liberal government. | |
| 1996 | The new Globe theater opens in England. | |
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Born on August 21 |
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| 1798 | Jules Michelet, French historian who wrote the 24-volume Historie de France. | |
| 1904 | William "Count" Basie, American band leader and composer. | |
| 1936 | Wilt Chamberlin, four-time MVP for the National Basketball Association and only player to score 100 points in a professional basketball game. | |
| 1938 | Kenny Rogers, country singer. | |
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