Browse Historical Events by Day: What Happened on September 23rd?

Emperor Augustus, the first Roman Emperor, dies in Nola, Italy. His stepson Tiberius succeeds him as the second Roman Emperor.

The Roman general Publius Quinctilius Varus and his legions suffer a disastrous defeat at the hands of Germanic tribes in the Battle of Teutoburg Forest, resulting in the loss of three Roman legions.

The Battle of Clontarf takes place near Dublin, Ireland, where the forces of Brian Boru, High King of Ireland, defeat the Viking forces of Dublin and their allies, although Brian Boru is killed in the battle.

The Battle of the Puig takes place during the Reconquista, where forces of the Kingdom of Aragon defeat the Almohad Caliphate in Valencia, Spain.

The Battle of Blore Heath takes place during the Wars of the Roses in England, where the Yorkist forces, led by Richard Neville, defeat the Lancastrians.

John Paul Jones, commanding the U.S. ship Bonhomme Richard, wins the naval Battle of Flamborough Head against the British ships of war Countess of Scarborough and Serapis, off the the coast of Yorkshire, England. The Americans suffered approximately 170 casualties, while the British suffered approximately 117 casualties and 2 captured ships. More

Astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle is the first to identify Neptune as the eighth planet orbiting around the Sun. The discovery was made based on mathematical calculations of its predicted position due to observed perturbations in the orbit of the planet Uranus. The discovery was made using a telescope since Neptune is too faint to be visible to the naked eye, owing to its great distance from the Sun. Astronomers soon discovered a moon orbiting Neptune, but it took more than a century to discover a second one. Our knowledge of distant Neptune greatly increased from the scientific observations made during Voyager 2’s flyby in 1989, including the discovery of five additional moons and confirmation of dark rings orbiting the planet. More

US President Truman announces that the Soviet Union had tested a nuclear device several weeks earlier. The White House did not explain how the United States had detected the test, which had occurred on 29 August 1949 at Semipalatinsk, in northeastern Kazakhstan. More

he television series "The Mickey Mouse Club" premieres on American television, becoming an iconic part of popular culture.

The military junta in Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) releases pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest after almost 15 years of confinement, allowing her to participate in political activities once again.

Greta Thunberg delivers a speech at the United Nations Climate Action Summit.