338 BC Prior to the fourth century BC, Macedonia was a small kingdom in northern Greece, outside the area dominated by the great city-states of Athens, Sparta and Thebes. The reign of Philip II (359–336 BC) saw Macedonia rise to control the entire Greek world. Philip defeated Athens and Thebes in the decisive Battle of Chaeronea on August 2, 338 BC and subdued them, while keeping Sparta in check. Phillip's son Alexander the Great conquered the remainder of the region.
216 BC During The Second Punic War between Carthage and the Roman Republic, Hannibal marched his Carthaginian army over the Pyrenees and the Alps into Italy. It took Hannibal and his army 15 days to cross the Alps, battling storms, snow and barbarians. Hannibal's army swept through North Italy defeating a numerically superior Roman army, near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy August 2, 216 BC. Hannibal occupied much of Italy for the next 15 years,
1100 William II of England was also called William Rufus due to his ruddy complexion. A bad tempered bully, he succeeded his father, William I (The Conqueror), on the English throne, but was slain by an arrow which deflected off a tree in the New Forest on August 2, 1100.
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| Macedonia 336 BC MinisterForBadTimes Wikipedia |
216 BC During The Second Punic War between Carthage and the Roman Republic, Hannibal marched his Carthaginian army over the Pyrenees and the Alps into Italy. It took Hannibal and his army 15 days to cross the Alps, battling storms, snow and barbarians. Hannibal's army swept through North Italy defeating a numerically superior Roman army, near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy August 2, 216 BC. Hannibal occupied much of Italy for the next 15 years,
1100 William II of England was also called William Rufus due to his ruddy complexion. A bad tempered bully, he succeeded his father, William I (The Conqueror), on the English throne, but was slain by an arrow which deflected off a tree in the New Forest on August 2, 1100.
1589 Henry IV became the king of France following the assassination of King Henry III on August 2, 1589 by a fanatic monk. The Catholic League, however, strengthened by support from outside the country—especially from Spain—was strong enough to prevent a universal recognition of his new title, because of his Protestant faith. It wasn't until Henry permanently renounced Protestantism in July 1593 that he secured the allegiance of the vast majority of his subjects.
1776 A parchment paper copy of the Declaration of Independence was signed by 56 persons on August 2, 1776; two future U.S. presidents, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, were among the signatories. Benjamin Franklin, who represented Pennsylvania, was 70 when he signed the document. He was the oldest of the signers. Edward Rutledge, 26, of South Carolina, was the youngest. The only brothers to sign the Declaration of Independence were Francis Lightfoot Lee and Richard Henry Lee.
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| United States Declaration of Independence |
1790 The first United States Census was conducted on August 2, 1790, and the population of the United States was enumerated to be 3,929,214. The purpose of the census was to count the population and gather demographic information for the newly formed country. The census has been conducted every ten years since then and continues to be an essential tool for understanding the changing demographics of the United States.
1830 After the abdication of Charles X on August 2, 1830, in what became known as the July Revolution, his son Louis XIX became king of France. However, Louis XIX's reign was extremely short-lived. He abdicated approximately 20 minutes later on the same day,
1841 On August 2, 1841, English paleontologist Richard Owen coined the word dinosaur (meaning "Terrible Reptile" or "Fearfully Great Reptile") during a lecture on fossil reptiles given to a meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS) in Plymouth.
1856 The PS Skibladner paddle steamer made her maiden voyage on August 2, 1856. The ship is currently operating in Norway on Lake Mjøsa, making her the world's oldest paddle steamer still in timetabled service (though it sank twice while in storage).
1869 Myra Bradwell's love of the law begun when she married her husband James Bradwell in 1852, who was also a law student. She started her formal law training when her husband was accepted to the Illinois Bar. There she apprenticed as a lawyer in her husband's office, and assisted him with research and legal writings. On August 2, 1869, Bradwell passed the Illinois law exam, but was prevented, due to her gender, from being admitted to practice law in Illinois in 1890.
1869 George Eliot began writing the two pieces that would eventually form Middlemarch on August 2, 1869 and completed the novel in 1871. The advance for Middlemarch in 1872 was huge, about sixty times the annual income of an ordinary family. By this time Eliot was earning enough money to live fashionably, to entertain and to travel.
1876 Jack McCall shot Wild Bill Hickok (James Butler Hickok) in the back as he played poker at a saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory on August 2, 1876. McCall was hanged. Hickock's last hand is said to have included the ace of clubs, the ace of spades and two black eights. This has been known as 'dead man's hand' ever since.
1921 Opera singer Enrico Caruso died in Naples on August 2, 1921 of pleurisy. He was just 48-years old. Caruso was a heavy smoker of strong Egyptian cigarettes. This habit, combined with a lack of exercise and the punishing schedule of performances that Caruso willingly undertook season after season at the Met, may have contributed to the persistent ill-health which afflicted the last 12 months of his life.
1922 Alexander Graham Bell died at his Cape Breton Island estate on August 2, 1922 after a long illness. His wife Mabel whispered to him "don't leave me". Unable to speak, Bell traced with his fingers the sign "no". It was his last word. During his funeral service, every telephone of the Bell system was kept silent for one minute. Bell is buried alongside his wife atop Beinn Bhreagh Mountain overlooking Cape Breton Island's scenic Bras d'Or Lake.
1923 President Warren G Harding died suddenly of heart disease on August 2, 1923 while on a western tour. He passed away during the middle of conversation with his wife in a San Francisco hotel's presidential suite, at 7:35 p.m. Whilst Harding was lying ill in San Francisco, it was reported that back at the White House his Airedale terrier Laddie Boy howled for three days, knowing there was something wrong with his master.
1923 Calvin Coolidge became the 30th US President after the death of Warren G. Harding on August 2, 1923. He completed Harding's term before being elected in 1924 to continue as the country's president. With the issue of United States Sesquicentennial coinage in 1926, Calvin Coolidge became the only living American President to feature on U.S. coinage. Coolidge was nicknamed "Silent Cal" because he did not talk much.
1939 Albert Einstein sent a letter to President Roosevelt on August 2, 1939 suggesting America start researching the atom bomb with war looking imminent in order to prevent Germany making it first. Roosevelt agreed to set up the project to build the bomb under Oppenheimer, with Einstein's special theory of relativity forming its theoretical basis. Einstein later reacted to the destructive elements of the atom bomb by saying. "If only I had known I should have become a watchmaker."
1943 On August 2, 1943, Lt. John F. Kennedy was serving as commander of a torpedo boat in the Solomon Islands when his ship was rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri. The PT 109 was split in half in the crash and sunk. Kennedy and his crew swam three miles through shark-infested waters to an island where they survived on coconuts for a week before being rescued. Kennedy was credited with saving the crew and awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism.
1962 Robert Zimmerman briefly attended the University of Minnesota, where he began performing in coffeehouses as Bob Dylan. He told Playboy in 1978 “I just chose that name and it stuck.” According to a biographer, Zimmerman was a fan of Matt Dillon – the sheriff on the TV western Gunsmoke. When he arrived in Greenwich Village he called himself Bob Dylan, but didn’t legally change his name from Robert Zimmerman until August 2, 1962, when he signed his first management contracts.
1964 The Gulf of Tonkin incident took place on August 2, 1964, when North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the destroyer USS Maddox. Following the incident, the U.S. Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which granted President Lyndon B. Johnson the authority to use military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war. This resolution effectively marked the beginning of direct U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War.
1856 The PS Skibladner paddle steamer made her maiden voyage on August 2, 1856. The ship is currently operating in Norway on Lake Mjøsa, making her the world's oldest paddle steamer still in timetabled service (though it sank twice while in storage).
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| Skibladner in Hamar 2015. By Andrez1 |
1869 Myra Bradwell's love of the law begun when she married her husband James Bradwell in 1852, who was also a law student. She started her formal law training when her husband was accepted to the Illinois Bar. There she apprenticed as a lawyer in her husband's office, and assisted him with research and legal writings. On August 2, 1869, Bradwell passed the Illinois law exam, but was prevented, due to her gender, from being admitted to practice law in Illinois in 1890.
1869 George Eliot began writing the two pieces that would eventually form Middlemarch on August 2, 1869 and completed the novel in 1871. The advance for Middlemarch in 1872 was huge, about sixty times the annual income of an ordinary family. By this time Eliot was earning enough money to live fashionably, to entertain and to travel.
1876 Jack McCall shot Wild Bill Hickok (James Butler Hickok) in the back as he played poker at a saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory on August 2, 1876. McCall was hanged. Hickock's last hand is said to have included the ace of clubs, the ace of spades and two black eights. This has been known as 'dead man's hand' ever since.
1921 Opera singer Enrico Caruso died in Naples on August 2, 1921 of pleurisy. He was just 48-years old. Caruso was a heavy smoker of strong Egyptian cigarettes. This habit, combined with a lack of exercise and the punishing schedule of performances that Caruso willingly undertook season after season at the Met, may have contributed to the persistent ill-health which afflicted the last 12 months of his life.
1922 Alexander Graham Bell died at his Cape Breton Island estate on August 2, 1922 after a long illness. His wife Mabel whispered to him "don't leave me". Unable to speak, Bell traced with his fingers the sign "no". It was his last word. During his funeral service, every telephone of the Bell system was kept silent for one minute. Bell is buried alongside his wife atop Beinn Bhreagh Mountain overlooking Cape Breton Island's scenic Bras d'Or Lake.
1923 President Warren G Harding died suddenly of heart disease on August 2, 1923 while on a western tour. He passed away during the middle of conversation with his wife in a San Francisco hotel's presidential suite, at 7:35 p.m. Whilst Harding was lying ill in San Francisco, it was reported that back at the White House his Airedale terrier Laddie Boy howled for three days, knowing there was something wrong with his master.
1923 Calvin Coolidge became the 30th US President after the death of Warren G. Harding on August 2, 1923. He completed Harding's term before being elected in 1924 to continue as the country's president. With the issue of United States Sesquicentennial coinage in 1926, Calvin Coolidge became the only living American President to feature on U.S. coinage. Coolidge was nicknamed "Silent Cal" because he did not talk much.
1939 Albert Einstein sent a letter to President Roosevelt on August 2, 1939 suggesting America start researching the atom bomb with war looking imminent in order to prevent Germany making it first. Roosevelt agreed to set up the project to build the bomb under Oppenheimer, with Einstein's special theory of relativity forming its theoretical basis. Einstein later reacted to the destructive elements of the atom bomb by saying. "If only I had known I should have become a watchmaker."
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| A copy of the letter |
1943 On August 2, 1943, Lt. John F. Kennedy was serving as commander of a torpedo boat in the Solomon Islands when his ship was rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri. The PT 109 was split in half in the crash and sunk. Kennedy and his crew swam three miles through shark-infested waters to an island where they survived on coconuts for a week before being rescued. Kennedy was credited with saving the crew and awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism.
1962 Robert Zimmerman briefly attended the University of Minnesota, where he began performing in coffeehouses as Bob Dylan. He told Playboy in 1978 “I just chose that name and it stuck.” According to a biographer, Zimmerman was a fan of Matt Dillon – the sheriff on the TV western Gunsmoke. When he arrived in Greenwich Village he called himself Bob Dylan, but didn’t legally change his name from Robert Zimmerman until August 2, 1962, when he signed his first management contracts.
1964 The Gulf of Tonkin incident took place on August 2, 1964, when North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the destroyer USS Maddox. Following the incident, the U.S. Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which granted President Lyndon B. Johnson the authority to use military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war. This resolution effectively marked the beginning of direct U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War.
1990 On August 2, 1990, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait, overrunning the Kuwaiti military within two days. After a series of failed diplomatic negotiations, the United States led a coalition to remove the Iraqi forces from Kuwait, in what became known as the Gulf War. By late February 1991, the coalition had succeeded in driving out the Iraqi forces.
1998 The Second Congo War, beginning on August 2, 1998, devastated the country. Despite the signing of a peace accord on December 17, 2002, hostilities have continued since in the ongoing Lord's Resistance Army insurgency, and the Kivu and Ituri conflicts. The war was the world's deadliest conflict since World War II, killing 5.4 million people since 1998. The vast majority died from conditions of malaria, diarrhea, pneumonia and malnutrition.
2013 The record for tweets a second: 143,199 occurred at 11:21:50 JST on August. 2, 2013, coinciding with a Japanese airing of Hayao Miyazaki's animated movie Castle in the Sky. Fans simultaneously tweeted the word balse (バルス)—the incantation for a destruction spell used during its climax, when it was uttered in the film.
2014 49-year-old Stuart Kettell rolled a Brussels sprout to the top of Mount Snowdon using only his nose, to raise money for Macmillan Cancer support. It took him four days, completing the feat on August 2, 2014.
2014 49-year-old Stuart Kettell rolled a Brussels sprout to the top of Mount Snowdon using only his nose, to raise money for Macmillan Cancer support. It took him four days, completing the feat on August 2, 2014.
2021 Bill and Melinda Gates finalized their divorce in August 2021. The decision to end their 27-year marriage came as a surprise to many, given their public image as a philanthropic power couple. Although the couple did not have a prenuptial agreement, Melinda Gates did not request spousal support. She was allocated over $2 billion worth of shares and stocks from the divorce.
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