What Happened Today in History on August 25

The First Council of Nicaea ends. The Council was a meeting of Christian bishops convened in the Bithynian city of Nicaea (now İznik, Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I. It was specifically called to make a decision about Arianism; Expand +

The Seventh Crusade, led by King Louis IX of France, departs from France on August 25, 1248. with the objective to reconquer the Holy Land. The expedition was a failure for the crusaders ending in defeat in 1250 at the Battle of Mansourah, where King Louis IX was captured and later ransomed.

King Louis IX of France dies from a plague in Tunis while leading the Eight Crusade which had as a goal the conquest of Tunis, then proceed to Egypt and march to the Holy Land. However, upon arrival in Tunisia it became clear that it was not going to be possible to conquer the Bey of Tunis.  Expand +

The Spanish army of King Philip II, led by the Duke of Alba, decisively defeats the Portuguese forces of António, Prior of Crato, at the battle of Alcantara, who had proclaimed himself king during the Portuguese succession crisis. On August 27, two days after their decisive victory, King Philip captures Lisbon, effectively uniting the crowns of Portugal and Spain. Expand +

Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, declares its Independence from the Empire of Brazil and union with the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata. The independence was recognized on August 27, 1828.  Expand +

"The Great Moon Hoax” is published in the New York Sun - A series of six articles starting on August 25, about the supposed discovery of life and civilization on the Moon and allegedly reprinted from The Edinburgh Courant.   Expand +

A dike along China' Lake Gaoyou is breached during major floods in the Yangtze Valley. The floods covered an area approximately the size of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut combined. All together the floods lasted from June to the end of August and flooded areas of central and eastern China including densely populated cities like Wuhan and Nanjing.  Expand +

Paris is liberated and the four-year Nazi occupation of the city comes to an end as the Free French 2nd Armored division under General Jacques-Philippe Leclerc enters the city and takes the German garrison capturing the German general Choltitz prisoner.  Expand +

President Harry S. Truman issues an executive order putting America’s railroads under the control of the U.S. Army, Truman said that “governmental seizure [of the railroads] is imperative” to protect American citizens as well as “essential to the national defense and security of the nation.”  Expand +