Historical Events on August 11, Facts & Special Events On This Day

3114 BC

The Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, used by several pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilizations, notably the Maya, begins.

2492 BC

Traditional date of the defeat of Bel by Hayk, progenitor and founder of the Armenian nation.

106

The south-western part of Dacia (modern Romania) becomes a Roman province: Roman Dacia.

355

Claudius Silvanus, accused of treason, proclaims himself Roman Emperor against Constantius II.

490

Battle of Adda: The Goths under Theodoric the Great and his ally Alaric II defeat the forces of Odoacer on the Adda River, near Milan.

1332

Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Dupplin Moor: Scots under Domhnall II, Earl of Mar are routed by Edward Balliol.

1473

The Battle of Otlukbeli: Mehmed the Conqueror of the Ottoman Empire decisively defeats Uzun Hassan of Aq Qoyunlu.

1675

Franco-Dutch War: Forces of the Holy Roman Empire defeat the French in the Battle of Konzer Brücke.

1786

Captain Francis Light establishes the British colony of Penang in Malaysia.

1804

Francis II assumes the title of first Emperor of Austria.

1812

Peninsular War: French troops engage British-Portuguese forces in the Battle of Majadahonda.

1813

In Colombia, Juan del Corral declares the independence of Antioquia.

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.

1920

The Latvian-Soviet Peace Treaty, which relinquished Russia's authority and pretenses to Latvia, is signed, ending the Latvian War of Independence.

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.

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.

1945

Poles in Kraków engage in a pogrom against Jews in the city, killing one and wounding five.

1952

Hussein bin Talal is proclaimed King of Jordan.

1959

Sheremetyevo International Airport, the second-largest airport in Russia, opens.

1960

Chad declares independence.

1961

The former Portuguese territories in India of Dadra and Nagar Haveli are merged to create the Union Territory Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

1962

Vostok 3 launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and cosmonaut Andrian Nikolayev becomes the first person to float in microgravity.

1965

Race riots (the Watts Riots) begin in the Watts area of Los Angeles, California.

1969

The Apollo 11 astronauts are released from a three-week quarantine following their liftoff from the moon.[1]

1972

Vietnam War: The last United States ground combat unit leaves 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.

1979

Two Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-134s collide over the Ukrainian city of Dniprodzerzhynsk and crash, killing all 178 aboard both airliners.

1982

A bomb explodes on Pan Am Flight 830, en route from Tokyo, Japan to Honolulu, Hawaii, killing one passenger and injuring 15 others.

1984

"We begin bombing in five minutes": United States President Ronald Reagan, while running for re-election, jokes while preparing to make his weekly Saturday address on National Public Radio.

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.

2006

The oil tanker M/T Solar 1 sinks off the coast of Guimaras and Negros Islands in the Philippines, causing the country's worst oil spill.

2012

At least 306 people are killed and 3,000 others injured in a pair of earthquakes near Tabriz, Iran.

2017

August 11 in History

Historical Events on August 11

The Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, used by several pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilizations, notably the Maya, begins.

Traditional date of the defeat of Bel by Hayk, progenitor and founder of the Armenian nation.

The south-western part of Dacia (modern Romania) becomes a Roman province: Roman Dacia.

Claudius Silvanus, accused of treason, proclaims himself Roman Emperor against Constantius II.

Battle of Adda: The Goths under Theodoric the Great and his ally Alaric II defeat the forces of Odoacer on the Adda River, near Milan.

Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Dupplin Moor: Scots under Domhnall II, Earl of Mar are routed by Edward Balliol.

The Battle of Otlukbeli: Mehmed the Conqueror of the Ottoman Empire decisively defeats Uzun Hassan of Aq Qoyunlu.

Franco-Dutch War: Forces of the Holy Roman Empire defeat the French in the Battle of Konzer Brücke.

Captain Francis Light establishes the British colony of Penang in Malaysia.

Francis II assumes the title of first Emperor of Austria.

Peninsular War: French troops engage British-Portuguese forces in the Battle of Majadahonda.

In Colombia, Juan del Corral declares the independence of Antioquia.

The Eiger in the Bernese Alps is ascended for the first time by Charles Barrington accompanied by Christian Almer and Peter Bohren.

Spanish-American War: American troops enter the city of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico.

World War I: The Battle of Amiens ends.

The Latvian-Soviet Peace Treaty, which relinquished Russia's authority and pretenses to Latvia, is signed, ending the Latvian War of Independence.

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.

The first civilian prisoners arrive at the Federal prison on Alcatraz Island.

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.

Poles in Kraków engage in a pogrom against Jews in the city, killing one and wounding five.

Hussein bin Talal is proclaimed King of Jordan.

Sheremetyevo International Airport, the second-largest airport in Russia, opens.

Chad declares independence.

The former Portuguese territories in India of Dadra and Nagar Haveli are merged to create the Union Territory Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

Vostok 3 launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and cosmonaut Andrian Nikolayev becomes the first person to float in microgravity.

Race riots (the Watts Riots) begin in the Watts area of Los Angeles, California.

The Apollo 11 astronauts are released from a three-week quarantine following their liftoff from the moon.[1]

Vietnam War: The last United States ground combat unit leaves South Vietnam.

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.

Two Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-134s collide over the Ukrainian city of Dniprodzerzhynsk and crash, killing all 178 aboard both airliners.

A bomb explodes on Pan Am Flight 830, en route from Tokyo, Japan to Honolulu, Hawaii, killing one passenger and injuring 15 others.

"We begin bombing in five minutes": United States President Ronald Reagan, while running for re-election, jokes while preparing to make his weekly Saturday address on National Public Radio.

NATO takes over command of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, marking its first major operation outside Europe in its 54-year-history.

Jemaah Islamiyah leader Riduan Isamuddin, better known as Hambali, is arrested in Bangkok, Thailand.

The oil tanker M/T Solar 1 sinks off the coast of Guimaras and Negros Islands in the Philippines, causing the country's worst oil spill.

At least 306 people are killed and 3,000 others injured in a pair of earthquakes near Tabriz, Iran.

At least 41 people are killed and another 179 injured after two passenger trains collide in Alexandria, Egypt.

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