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Explore the historical events that shaped our world on August 21st. From major milestones to cultural achievements, see what happened on this day in history. Dates for earlier events may be approximate.
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The battle of Vimeiro, part of the Peninsular Wars takes place near the village of Vimeiro near Lisbon, between Britain and France. British General Arthur Wellesley defeated French General Andoche Junot's forces. General Wellesley later became the Duke of Wellington. More
Nat Turner's slave rebellion begins in Southampton County, Virginia on the night of August 21, 1831, in Southampton County, Virginia. Nat Turner was a black Baptist preacher who believed he was divinely chosen to lead his people to freedom.
The rebellion targeted white slaveholding families and resulted in the deaths of about 55 white people. The uprising was eventually suppressed by armed white men,. Many enslaved people were killed or arrested afterwards and Virginia went on to enact stricter laws to control the enslaved population.
The Lawrence Massacre takes place as a group of roughly 400 Confederate guerrillas commanded by William Quantrill enters the town and immediately begin to ransack homes, shoot civilians, loot stores, and set buildings on fire. Between 160 and 190 men and boys were. killed in the raid. William Quantrill was shot and killed by Union soldiers in Kentucky in May 1865 More
Image: Lauretta Louise Fox Fisk - Quantrill's Raid.jpg
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Russian revolutionary, Leon Trotsky, dies in Mexico City after being fatally wounded with an ice axe the day before. His assassin, Ramon Mercader, was a Spanish communist and an agent of the secret police of the Soviet Union (NKVD). Mercader was imprisoned for 20 years in Mexico and he was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union medal, shortly after his release from prison. Trotsky was 60 years old when he died. He was exiled from the Soviet Union in 1927 and had been living in Mexico since 1936. More
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The Dumbarton Oaks Conference, formally, the Washington Conversations on International Peace and Security Organization, is held at the Dumbarton Oaks estate in Washington, D.C. It was an international conference at which proposals for the establishment of a "general international organization", which was to become the United Nations, were formulated and negotiated; following up on the commitment made at the Moscow Conferences of 1943 to create an international organization to succeed the League of Nations.
A little more than a year later, on 24 October 1945. the United Nations officially came unto existence after its Charter had been ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and by a majority of other signatories with a total number of 51 founding members.
The Dumbarton Oaks Conference, conversations were held in two phases, since the Soviets were unwilling to meet directly with the Chinese. In the first phase, representatives of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States convened between August 21 and September 28. In the second, representatives of Republic of China, the United Kingdom, and the United States held discussions between September 29 and October 7.
Hawaii is admitted to the union becoming the 50th State. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the proclamation and issued an order for an American flag featuring 50 stars arranged in staggered rows: five six-star rows and four five-star rows. The new flag became official July 4,1960.
The Equal Educational Opportunities Act (EEOC) is signed by President Richard Nixon and becomes a US federal law. The EEOC Act of 1974 prohibits discrimination against faculty, staff, and students, including racial segregation of students, and requires school districts to take action to overcome barriers to students' equal participation.
It is one of a number of laws affecting educational institutions including the Rehabilitation Act (1973), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
Filipino opposition leader Benigno "Ninoy" S. Aquino, Jr., was assassinated at the Manila airport while leaving his plane. Public outcry ultimately led to the collapse of the government of Ferdinand E. Marcos and the inauguration as president of Corazon C. Aquino, widow of the slain man.
Latvia declares its independence from the Soviet Union. It had been occupied and annexed by the U.S.S.R. in 1940. Latvia is a country in northeastern Europe, situated on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. It's one of the three Baltic States, along with Estonia and Lithuania. Latvia has a population of around 1.8 million people. The capital and largest city is Riga. The official language is Latvian. More
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A total solar eclipse, visible across a large portion of the United States, captivates millions of people. The total solar eclipse was visible within a band that spanned the contiguous United States from the Pacific to the Atlantic coasts. It was also visible as a partial solar eclipse from as far north as Nunavut in northern Canada to as far south as northern South America. In northwestern Europe and Africa, it was partially visible in the late evening. In northeastern Asia, it was partially visible at sunrise.
