On This Day: 21 August

21 August in Indian history

• 1988The 6.9 Mw Nepal earthquake shakes the Nepal–India border with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), leaving 709–1,450 people killed and thousands injured.India
• 1852Tlingit Indians destroy Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory.India
• 1680Pueblo Indians capture Santa Fe from the Spanish during the Pueblo Revolt.India

21 August in world history

• 2013Syrian civil war: Areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in Ghouta, Damascus, were attacked by rockets containing sarin, killing at least 281 people.
• 2007BioShock was released in North America, becoming a critical success and a demonstration of video games as an art form.
• 1995Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529, an Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia, attempts to divert to West Georgia Regional Airport after the left engine fails, but the aircraft crashes in Carroll County near Carrollton, Georgia, killing nine of the 29 people on board.
• 1991Coup attempt against Mikhail Gorbachev collapses.
• 1986A limnic eruption of Lake Nyos in Cameroon released a cloud of carbon dioxide, suffocating 1,746 people and 3,500 livestock.
• 1968Cold War: Nicolae Ceaușescu, leader of the Socialist Republic of Romania, publicly condemns the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, encouraging the Romanian population to arm itself against possible Soviet reprisals.
• 1963South Vietnamese special forces loyal to Ngô Đình Nhu, the brother of President Ngô Đình Diệm, raided and vandalised Buddhist pagodas across the country, arresting thousands and leaving hundreds dead.
• 1945American physicist Harry Daghlian accidentally dropped a tungsten carbide brick onto a plutonium bomb core, exposing himself to neutron radiation and later becoming the first Manhattan Project fatality due to a criticality accident.
• 1911Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre by museum employee Vincenzo Peruggia and was not recovered until two years later.
• 1883An F5 tornado strikes Rochester, Minnesota, leading to the creation of the Mayo Clinic.
• 1878The American Bar Association is founded in Saratoga Springs, New York.
• 1808Battle of Vimeiro: British and Portuguese forces led by General Arthur Wellesley defeat French force under Major-General Jean-Andoche Junot near the village of Vimeiro, Portugal, the first Anglo-Portuguese victory of the Peninsular War.
• 1778American Revolutionary War: British forces begin besieging the French outpost at Pondichéry.
• 1717Austro-Turkish War: Austrian troops under Prince Eugene of Savoy captured the strategically important city of Belgrade from the Ottoman Empire.
• 1716Seventh Ottoman–Venetian War: Ottoman forces suddenly abandoned their siege of Corfu, allowing the Republic of Venice to preserve its rule over the Ionian Islands.

Born on 21 August

• 1981Cameron Winklevoss, American rower and businessman, co-founded ConnectU
• 1975Alicia Witt, American actress and musician
• 1934Sudhakarrao Naik, Indian lawyer and politician, 13th Chief Minister of Maharashtra (died 2001)India
• 1907P. Jeevanandham, Indian lawyer and politician (died 1963)India
• 1905Bipin Gupta, Indian actor and producer (died 1981)India
• 1670James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick, French general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire (died 1734)

Died on 21 August

• 2026Sowcar Janaki, Indian actress (born 1931)India
• 1995Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, Indian-American astrophysicist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1910)India
• 1964Palmiro Togliatti, Italian journalist and politician, Italian Minister of Justice (born 1893)
• 1960David B. Steinman, American engineer, designed the Mackinac Bridge (born 1886)

Frequently asked questions

What happened on 21 August in history?

2013: Syrian civil war: Areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in Ghouta, Damascus, were attacked by rockets containing sarin, killing at least 281 people. 2007: BioShock was released in North America, becoming a critical success and a demonstration of video games as an art form. 1995: Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529, an Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia, attempts to divert to West Georgia Regional Airport after the left engine fails, but the aircraft crashes in Carroll County near Carrollton, Georgia, killing nine of the 29 people on board. 1991: Coup attempt against Mikhail Gorbachev collapses.

What happened on 21 August in Indian history?

1988: The 6.9 Mw Nepal earthquake shakes the Nepal–India border with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), leaving 709–1,450 people killed and thousands injured. 1852: Tlingit Indians destroy Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory. 1680: Pueblo Indians capture Santa Fe from the Spanish during the Pueblo Revolt.

Which famous people were born on 21 August?

Cameron Winklevoss, American rower and businessman, co-founded ConnectU (1981); Alicia Witt, American actress and musician (1975); Sudhakarrao Naik, Indian lawyer and politician, 13th Chief Minister of Maharashtra (died 2001) (1934); P. Jeevanandham, Indian lawyer and politician (died 1963) (1907).

Which day is observed on 21 August?

Ninoy Aquino Day (Philippines); Youth Day (Morocco); World Senior Citizen's Day.