✦ DateLore

On This Day · The 234th day of the year

August 22

A look at August 22 through the almanac — historic events, famous birthdays including Claude Debussy and Christina Obergföll, and the day's notable deaths and observances.

♌ZodiacLeo ◈BirthstonePeridot ❀Birth flowerGladiolus
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Events

10 notable moments
  1. 2012

    2012–2013 Tana River District clashes

    Ethnic clashes over grazing rights for cattle in Kenya's Tana River District result in more than 52 deaths.

    Ethnic violence in Kenya
  2. 2006

    Grigori Perelman

    Grigori Perelman is awarded the Fields Medal for his proof of the Poincaré conjecture in mathematics but refuses to accept the medal.

    Russian mathematician (born 1966)
  3. 1991

    Iceland

    Iceland is the first nation in the world to recognize the independence of the Baltic states.

    Island country in the
  4. 1985

    1985 Manchester Airport disaster

    British Airtours Flight 28M suffers an engine fire during takeoff at Manchester Airport. The pilots abort but due to inefficient evacuation procedures 55 people are killed, mostly from smoke inhalation.

    1985 aviation accident in
  5. 1944

    World War II

    World War II: Holocaust of Kedros in Crete by German forces.

    1939–1945 global conflict
  6. 1942

    Brazil

    Brazil declares war on Germany, Japan and Italy.

    Country in South America
  7. 1894

    Mahatma Gandhi

    Mahatma Gandhi forms the Natal Indian Congress (NIC) in order to fight discrimination against Indian traders in Natal.

    Indian independence activist (1869–1948)
  8. 1791

    Haiti

    The Haitian slave revolution begins in Saint-Domingue, Haiti.

    Country in the Caribbean
  9. 1642

    Charles I of England

    Charles I raises his standard in Nottingham, which marks the beginning of the English Civil War.

    King of England, Scotland
  10. 1485

    Battle of Bosworth Field

    The Battle of Bosworth Field occurs; King Richard III of England's death in battle marks the end of the reigning Plantagenet dynasty and the beginning of the Tudors under Henry VII.

    1485 battle during the
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Famous birthday twins

Born on August 22

Claude Debussy

b. 1862

French pianist and composer

Christina Obergföll

b. 1981

German javelin athlete

Heiðar Helguson

b. 1977

Icelandic footballer

Mats Wilander

b. 1964

Swedish-American tennis player and coach

Deng Xiaoping

b. 1904

Chinese soldier and politician, paramount leader and 1st Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China

Tímea Nagy

b. 1970

Hungarian fencer

Alun Michael

b. 1943

Welsh police commissioner and politician, inaugural First Minister of Wales

Ray Bradbury

b. 1920

American science fiction writer and screenwriter

Deaths

  • 1918Korbinian Brodmann, German neurologist and academic
  • 1850Nikolaus Lenau, Romanian-Austrian poet and author
  • 1828Franz Joseph Gall, Austrian neuroanatomist and physiologist
  • 1797Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser, French-Austrian field marshal
  • 1664Maria Cunitz, Polish astronomer and author
  • 1584Jan Kochanowski, Polish poet and playwright

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Immaculate Heart of Mary (Roman Catholic calendar of 1960)
  • —Christian feast day: Queenship of Mary
  • —Christian feast day: August 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • —International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief
  • —Earliest day on which National Heroes' Day (Philippines) can fall, while August 28 is the latest; celebrated on the fourth Monday in August.
  • —Flag Day (Russia)
  • —Madras Day (Chennai and Tamil Nadu, India)

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