Browse Historical Events by Day: What Happened on September 8th?

Louis the Stammerer is crowned as the King of the West Franks, succeeding his father Charles the Bald. This event marks an important moment in the history of the Carolingian dynasty.

The Fourth Crusade sets sail from Venice to reclaim the Holy Land but eventually deviates and ends up sacking the city of Constantinople.

The Battle of Evesham takes place during the Second Barons' War in England, resulting in a decisive victory for King Edward I over rebel forces.

The Treaty of Brétigny is signed, ending the first phase of the Hundred Years' War between England and France and granting significant territorial concessions to England.

The Battle of Kulikovo takes place during the Mongol invasion of Russia, where the forces of Grand Prince Dmitry of Moscow defeat the Mongol army.

The printing of the first edition of "Malleus Maleficarum," a treatise on witchcraft, is completed in Germany, contributing to the witch-hunt hysteria of the time.

The Spanish Colonial Settlement of St. Augustine in Florida is inaugurated by the Spanish Admiral Don Pedro Menéndez de Avilés with 600 voyagers cheering. Menéndez named the colonial settlement St. Augustine in honor of the saint whose feast day fell on the day he first sighted land. It is the oldest continuously occupied settlement of European origin in the United States; established forty-two years before the English colonized Jamestown and fifty-five years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock.

New Amsterdam becomes New York as, Peter Stuyvesant, Director-general of the Dutch colony of New Netherland surrenders to the overwhelming larger and more powerful English forces. Following its capture, the name of New Amsterdam, the successful Dutch settlement on the southern tip of Manhattan, was changed to New York, in honor of the Duke of York. The origin of the Dutch colony, went back to 1609, when Englishman Henry Hudson had charted the area on behalf of the Dutch East India Company. The Dutch had laid claim to a wide area of the East Coast, originally covered an area including all or parts of five future states: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware and Pennsylvania. More

The first successful publication of The National Geographic Magazine is released.

A major hurricane, the nation's deadliest natural disaster, destroys the island city Galveston, with winds of 130 to 140 miles per hour and a storm surge in excess of 15 feet.. It is believed that more than 8,000 lives on Galveston Island and several thousand more on the mainland were lost. In Galveston, it destroyed at least 2,600 houses and left thousands more damaged. The city's property losses were estimated at $30 million. Dollars. More

A motor-driven German Zeppelin commanded by Heinrich Mathy, hits Central London at Aldersgate , during WWI killing 22 people and causing over 1.5 million pounds worth of property damage. More

The Siege of Leningrad begins as German forces surround the city, leading to a brutal and prolonged siege that lasted for nearly 900 days. More

Gen. Dwight Eisenhower publicly announces the surrender of Italy to the Allies which had been signed in secret on September 3. Germany reacted with Operation Axis, the Allies with Operation Avalanche.

President Gerald Ford grants a full pardon to former President Richard Nixon “a full, free, and absolute pardon ... for all offenses against the United States which he, Richard Nixon, has committed or may have committed or taken part in” while in office.“ More

North Macedonia Independence Day from Yugoslavia.

A massive pipeline explosion in San Bruno, California.