August is an eventful month of the year. There are specific events which occurred which deserve mention. Here they are, raise your hand if you recognize 1 or 2.
1. August 1, 1800:
The final act of Acts of Union of 1800 was adopted. The Kingdom of Great Britain merged with the Kingdom of Ireland. As of this date, it was known as the Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland. A new flag was created, which is still used by Great Britain.
2. August 1, 1914:
World War I begins. Germany declares war on Russia, who supports Serbia in its fight against Austria who is siding with Germany. The Alliance system crumbles.
3. August 1, 1944:
Warsaw Uprising occurs in the Nazi occupied territory. It was operated by the Polish resistance army which sought to get rid of the Nazis. This was happening at the same time as the Red Army was approaching the eastern suburbs of the city of Warsaw.
4. August 5, 1962:
Nelson Mandela is jailed for 28 years. He would not be released until 1990. His imprisonment was in response to his activism against the apartheid in South Africa. In 1944 he joined the African National Congress (ANC) which challenged the government’s apartheid policies. He was arrested in 1955 for treason but was released after trial had ended in 1961. After forming the military wing of ANC, he was rearrested and imprisoned.
5. August 6, 1945:
Hiroshima is devastated by the dropping of the nuclear bomb by the United States. 90,000 people had died as a result.
6. August 9, 1945
The United States drops the Atomic bomb on Nagasaki. 70,000 people were killed as a result and 74, 909 were injured. This was the second of two bombs dropped in Japan.
7. August 14, 1893:
Motor vehicle registration is introduced. The first country to adopt it is France. License plates are now widely used by countries around the world. We all knew that they existed, but many of us never knew the origins.
8. August 17, 1915:
Leo Frank is lynched and hanged for the murder of his 13 year old factory worker. Frank was Jewish and this sparked a wave of anti-Semitic in the United States, as a result. Alonzo Man, who initially reported Frank, took back his statement 70 years later. The murder is still a mystery today.
9. August 27, 1927:
5 Canadian women, including the famous Nelly McLung, created a petition to the Supreme Court in the famous Persons Case. They inquired about the term persons and whether it included women. Women were allowed to work during WWI, but had to retreat when the men came back from war.
10. August 29, 1966:
Last concert is performed by the Beatles in San Francisco.
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