Iceland
2019
One hundred activists, officials, and other concerned citizens in Iceland hold a funeral for Okjökull glacier, which has completely melted after having once covered six square miles (15.5 km2)..
August-18
Historical Events on August 18
August
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2017 Turku attack
The first terrorist attack ever sentenced as a crime in Finland kills two and injures eight.
2017
2011 southern Israel cross-border attacks
A terrorist attack on Israel's Highway 12 near the Egyptian border kills 16 and injures 40.
2011
Pervez Musharraf
The President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, resigns under threat of impeachment.
2008
Uzbin Valley ambush
War of Afghanistan: The Uzbin Valley ambush occurs.
2008
2005 Java–Bali blackout
2005
A massive power blackout hits the Indonesian island of Java; affecting almost 100 million people, it is one of the largest and most widespread power outages in history..
Murders of Andrew Bagby and Zachary Turner
One-year-old Zachary Turner is murdered in Newfoundland by his mother, who was awarded custody despite facing trial for the murder of Zachary's father. The case was documented in the film Dear Zachary and led to reform of Canada's bail laws.
2003
American International Airways Flight 808
American International Airways Flight 808 crashes at Leeward Point Field at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, injuring the three crew members.
1993
Luis Carlos Galán
Leading presidential hopeful Luis Carlos Galán is assassinated near Bogotá in Colombia.
1989
Hurricane Alicia
Hurricane Alicia hits the Texas coast, killing 21 people and causing over US$1 billion in damage (1983 dollars).
1983
Steve Biko
1977
Steve Biko is arrested at a police roadblock under Terrorism Act No. 83 of 1967 in King William's Town, South Africa. He later dies from injuries sustained during this arrest, bringing attention to South Africa's apartheid policies..
Korean axe murder incident
The Korean axe murder incident in Panmunjom results in the deaths of two US Army officers.
1976
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union's robotic probe Luna 24 successfully lands on the Moon.
1976
Aeroflot Flight A-13
Aeroflot Flight A-13 crashes after takeoff from Baku-Bina International Airport in Azerbaijan, killing 56 people and injuring eight.
1973
Vietnam
Vietnam War: Australia and New Zealand decide to withdraw their troops from Vietnam.
1971
Battle of Long Tan
1966
Vietnam War: The Battle of Long Tan ensues after a patrol from the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment clashes with a Viet Cong force in Phước Tuy Province..
Vietnam War
Vietnam War: Operation Starlite begins: United States Marines destroy a Viet Cong stronghold on the Van Tuong peninsula in the first major American ground battle of the war.
1965
Civil rights movement
Civil rights movement: James Meredith becomes the first African American to graduate from the University of Mississippi.
1963
Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Nabokov's controversial novel Lolita is published in the United States.
1958
Brojen Das
Brojen Das from Bangladesh swims across the English Channel in a competition as the first Bengali and the first Asian to do so, placing first among the 39 competitors.
1958
Julien Lahaut
1950
Julien Lahaut, the chairman of the Communist Party of Belgium, is assassinated. The Party newspaper blames royalists and Rexists..
1949 Kemi strike
1949 Kemi strike: Two protesters die in the scuffle between the police and the strikers' protest procession in Kemi, Finland.
1949
Sukarno
Sukarno takes office as the first president of Indonesia, following the country's declaration of independence the previous day.
1945
Soviet–Japanese War
Soviet-Japanese War: Battle of Shumshu: Soviet forces land at Takeda Beach on Shumshu Island and launch the Battle of Shumshu; the Soviet Union's Invasion of the Kuril Islands commences.
1945
World War II
World War II: The Hardest Day air battle, part of the Battle of Britain, takes place. At that point, it is the largest aerial engagement in history with heavy losses sustained on both sides.
1940
Thousand Islands Bridge
1938
The Thousand Islands Bridge, connecting New York, United States, with Ontario, Canada, over the Saint Lawrence River, is dedicated by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt..
Blackwater Fire of 1937
A lightning strike starts the Blackwater Fire of 1937 in Shoshone National Forest, killing 15 firefighters within three days and prompting the United States Forest Service to develop their smokejumper program.
1937
Volksempfänger
The Volksempfänger is first presented to the German public at a radio exhibition; the presiding Nazi Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, delivers an accompanying speech heralding the radio as the 'eighth great power'.
1933
1923 WAAA Championships
The first British Track and Field championships for women are held in London, Great Britain.
1923
Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, guaranteeing women's suffrage.
1920
Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917
1917
A Great Fire in Thessaloniki, Greece, destroys 32% of the city leaving 70,000 individuals homeless..
Karl Jatho
German engineer Karl Jatho allegedly flies his self-made, motored gliding airplane four months before the first flight of the Wright brothers.
1903
1891 Martinique hurricane
A major hurricane strikes Martinique, leaving 700 dead.
1891
Astronomer
American astronomer Asaph Hall discovers Phobos, one of Mars's moons.
1877
Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War: Battle of Gravelotte is fought.
1870
Astronomer
1868
French astronomer Pierre Janssen discovers helium..
American Civil War
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.
1864
Camila O'Gorman
Camila O'Gorman and Ladislao Gutierrez are executed on the orders of Argentine dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas.
1848
United States Exploring Expedition
The Wilkes Expedition, which would explore the Puget Sound and Antarctica, weighs anchor at Hampton Roads.
1838
Alexander Gordon Laing
Major Gordon Laing becomes the first European to enter Timbuktu.
1826
Senate of Finland
1809
The Senate of Finland is established in the Grand Duchy of Finland after the official adoption of the Statute of the Government Council by Tsar Alexander I of Russia..
1783 Great Meteor
A huge fireball meteor is seen across Great Britain as it passes over the east coast.
1783
Shamakhi
The city of Shamakhi in Safavid Shirvan is sacked.
1721
Urbain Grandier
Father Urbain Grandier, accused and convicted of sorcery, is burned alive in Loudun, France.
1634
Pendle witches
The trials of the Pendle witches and Samlesbury witches, one of England's most famous witch trials, begin at the Lancaster Assizes.
1612
John White (colonist and artist)
1590
John White, the governor of the Roanoke Colony, returns from a supply trip to England and finds his settlement deserted..
Huguenots
The Huguenot King Henry III of Navarre marries the Catholic Margaret of Valois, ostensibly to reconcile the feuding Protestants and Catholics of France.
1572
Grammar
The first grammar of the Spanish language (Gramática de la lengua castellana) is presented to Queen Isabella I.
1492
Siege of Málaga (1487)
The Siege of Málaga ends with the taking of the city by Castilian and Aragonese forces.
1487
Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle
The Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle is fought to a draw between the French army and the Flemish militias.
1304
AD 707
707
Princess Abe accedes to the imperial Japanese throne as Empress Genmei..
Battle of Marj Rahit (684)
Battle of Marj Rahit: Umayyad partisans defeat the supporters of Ibn al-Zubayr and cement Umayyad control of Syria.
684