On this day: August 15

Events on August 15

• 1057 King Macbeth of Scotland is killed at the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of Máel Coluim mac Donnchada. Wikipedia
• 1812 War of 1812: Potawatomi warriors ambushed a United States Army convoy after it had evacuated Fort Dearborn, in present-day Chicago, and razed the fort. Wikipedia
• 1843 Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still intact amusement parks in the world, opens in Copenhagen, Denmark. Wikipedia
• 1909 A military coup against the government of Dimitrios Rallis began in the neighbourhood of Goudi in Athens, Greece. Wikipedia
• 1914 World War I: The First Russian Army, led by Paul von Rennenkampf, enters East Prussia. Wikipedia
• 1939 The Wizard of Oz premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California. Wikipedia
• 1942 World War II: Operation Pedestal: The oil tanker SS Ohio reaches the island of Malta barely afloat carrying vital fuel supplies for the island's defenses. Wikipedia
• 1942 World War II: The tanker SS Ohio reached Malta as part of an operation to deliver much-needed supplies during the siege of Malta. Wikipedia
• 1944 World War II: Allied forces began Operation Dragoon, their invasion of southern France. Wikipedia
• 1945 Emperor Hirohito broadcasts his declaration of surrender following the effective surrender of Japan in World War II; Korea gains independence from the Empire of Japan. Wikipedia
• 1947 India gains independence from British rule after nearly 190 years of British company and crown rule and joins the Commonwealth of Nations. Wikipedia
• 1954 Alfredo Stroessner begins his dictatorship in Paraguay. Wikipedia
• 1960 Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) becomes independent from France. Wikipedia
• 1962 James Joseph Dresnok defects to North Korea after running across the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Dresnok died in 2016. Wikipedia
• 1963 President Fulbert Youlou is overthrown in the Republic of the Congo, after a three-day uprising in the capital. Wikipedia
• 1963 Execution of Henry John Burnett, the last man to be hanged in Scotland. Wikipedia
• 1971 Bahrain gains independence from the United Kingdom. Wikipedia
• 1976 SAETA Flight 011 crashes into the Chimborazo volcano in Ecuador, killing all 59 people on board; the wreckage is not discovered until 2002. Wikipedia
• 1984 The Kurdistan Workers' Party in Turkey starts a campaign of armed attacks upon the Turkish Armed Forces with an attack on police and gendarmerie bases in Şemdinli and Eruh. Wikipedia
• 1995 Tomiichi Murayama, Prime Minister of Japan, releases the Murayama Statement, which formally expresses remorse for Japanese war crimes committed during World War II. Wikipedia
• 1999 Beni Ounif massacre in Algeria: Some 29 people are killed at a false roadblock near the Moroccan border, leading to temporary tensions with Morocco. Wikipedia
• 2007 An 8.0-magnitude earthquake off the Pacific coast devastates Ica and various regions of Peru, killing 514 and injuring 1,090. Wikipedia
• 2013 At least 27 people are killed and 226 injured in an explosion in southern Beirut near a complex used by Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. A previously unknown Syrian Sunni group claims responsibility in an online video. Wikipedia
• 2015 North Korea moves its clock back half an hour to introduce Pyongyang Time, 81⁄2 hours ahead of UTC. Wikipedia
• 2021 Kabul falls into the hands of the Taliban as Ashraf Ghani flees Afghanistan along with local residents and foreign nationals, effectively reestablishing the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Wikipedia
• 2025 US president Donald Trump meets with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Alaska, the first such summit since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Wikipedia

Born on August 15

• 1195 Anthony of Padua, Portuguese priest and saint (died 1231) Wikipedia
• 1769 Napoleon Bonaparte, French general and emperor (died 1821) Wikipedia
• 1771 Walter Scott, Scottish novelist, playwright, and poet (died 1832) Wikipedia
• 1785 Thomas De Quincey, English journalist and author (died 1859) Wikipedia
• 1807 Jules Grévy, French lawyer and politician, 4th President of the French Republic (died 1891) Wikipedia
• 1860 Florence Harding, American publisher, 31st First Lady of the United States (died 1924) Wikipedia
• 1865 Mikao Usui, Japanese spiritual leader, founded Reiki (died 1926) Wikipedia
• 1872 Sri Aurobindo, Indian guru, poet, and philosopher (died 1950) Wikipedia
• 1892 Louis de Broglie, French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1987) Wikipedia
• 1896 Gerty Cori, Czech-American biochemist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1957) Wikipedia
• 1912 Julia Child, American chef and author (died 2004) Wikipedia
• 1917 Jack Lynch, Irish footballer and politician, 5th Taoiseach of Ireland (died 1999) Wikipedia
• 1917 Óscar Romero, Salvadoran archbishop (died 1980) Wikipedia
• 1931 Richard F. Heck, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2015) Wikipedia
• 1940 Gudrun Ensslin, German militant leader, founded Red Army Faction (died 1977) Wikipedia
• 1945 Khaleda Zia, Bangladeshi politician, Prime Minister of Bangladesh (died 2025) Wikipedia
• 1950 Anne, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom Wikipedia
• 1954 Stieg Larsson, Swedish journalist and author (died 2004) Wikipedia
• 1963 Alejandro González Iñárritu, Mexican filmmaker Wikipedia
• 1964 Melinda French Gates, American businesswoman and philanthropist, co-founded the Gates Foundation Wikipedia
• 1972 Ben Affleck, American actor and filmmaker Wikipedia
• 1990 Jennifer Lawrence, American actress and producer Wikipedia

Died on August 15

• 423 Honorius, Roman emperor (born 384) Wikipedia
• 767 Abu Hanifa, Iraqi scholar and educator (born 699) Wikipedia
• 1038 Stephen I, Hungarian king (born 975) Wikipedia
• 1118 Alexios I Komnenos, Byzantine emperor (born 1048) Wikipedia
• 1328 Yesün Temür, emperor of the Yuan dynasty (born 1293) Wikipedia
• 1388 Adalbertus Ranconis de Ericinio, Bohemian theologian and rector of the University of Paris (born circa 1320) Wikipedia
• 1936 Grazia Deledda, Italian novelist and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1871) Wikipedia
• 1967 René Magritte, Belgian painter (born 1898) Wikipedia
• 1975 Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladeshi politician, 1st President of Bangladesh (born 1920) Wikipedia
• 1982 Hugo Theorell, Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1903) Wikipedia
• 1990 Viktor Tsoi, Russian musician and actor (born 1962) Wikipedia
• 2004 Sune Bergström, Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1916) Wikipedia
• 2013 Rosalía Mera, Spanish businesswoman, co-founded Inditex and Zara (born 1944) Wikipedia
• 2021 Gerd Müller, German footballer (born 1945) Wikipedia

Holidays and observances

• Armed Forces Day (Poland) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Altfrid Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Alypius of Thagaste Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos (Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: Ferragosto (Italy) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: Māras (Latvia) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: Mother's Day (Antwerp and Costa Rica) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: National Acadian Day (Acadians) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: Navy Day (Romania) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, one of the Catholic holy days of obligation (a public holiday in Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, France, some states in Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and Vanuatu); and its related observances: Virgin of Candelaria, patron of the Canary Islands. (Tenerife, Spain) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Blessed Elvira Moragas Cantarero Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Blessed Giuliana Puricelli Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Blessed Isidore Bakanja Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: San La Muerte (Paraguayan Folk Catholicism) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Santa Muerte (Mexican Folk Catholicism) Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: Tarcisius Wikipedia
• Christian feast day: August 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) Wikipedia
• Constitution Day (Equatorial Guinea) Wikipedia
• Founding of Asunción (Paraguay) Wikipedia
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Korea from Japan in 1945: Gwangbokjeol, "Independence Day" (South Korea) Wikipedia
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Korea from Japan in 1945: Jogukhaebangui nal, "Fatherland Liberation Day" (North Korea) Wikipedia
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of India from the United Kingdom in 1947 Wikipedia
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of the Republic of the Congo from France in 1960 Wikipedia
• International Apostrophe Day Wikipedia

The events, births, deaths and observances above are from the English Wikipedia article “August 15” and the articles it links to (authors and history), retrieved 2026-10-09 through the Wikimedia “On this day” feed. They are licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; this selection is shared under the same licence. We picked the 26 events, 22 births and 14 deaths with the widest coverage across Wikipedia's language editions (counted from Wikidata) and sorted them by year; the wording is unchanged apart from removing references to pictures.