What Happened Today in History on August 10

Cleopatra VII, the last ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, kills herself on either 10 or 12 August, in Alexandria, when she was 39 years old, following the defeat of her forces against Octavian, the future first emperor of Rome. According to popular belief, she died by allowing an Egyptian cobra to bite her, but others believe she either poisoned herself or was murdered.  Expand +

Otto I the Great, leads the East Frankish (German) forces to victory against the Hungarian Magyars led by Harka Bulcsú in the Battle of Lechfeld. A series of military engagements over the course of three days also known as the Second Battle of Lechfeld. The German victory ended further invasions by the Magyars into Latin Europe.

Louis XVI of France and his wife, Marie-Antoinette are imprisoned, making the French monarchy effectively overthrown, as the French Revolution continued (1789–1799). They were both executed by guillotine in 1793.

Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, Independence Day - Celebration of the first Ecuadorian patriot uprising against Spanish rule and original proclamation of independence. The movement failed and the leaders of the movement were executed. On 1822 Ecuador won independence from Spain as part of the confederation of Gran Colombia on the decisive Battle of Pichincha. Expand +

Missouri is admitted into the Union becoming the 24th State

The act establishing the Smithsonian Institution for "the Increase and Diffusion of Knowledge among Men," is passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President James K. Polk. The Institution was founded with funds from the Englishman James Smithson (1765–1829) according to his wishes “under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” A bequest to a country that he had never visited. The Smithsonian Institution is now the world's largest museum, education, and research complex. More