Table of Contents
August 24 Events - World Wide
On the Gregorian calendar, August 24th marks the 236th day of the year (237th in leap years), leaving 129 days remaining until the year’s conclusion.
Events List - World Wide
Pre-1600
- 367 – At the young age of eight, Gratian, the son of Roman Emperor Valentinian I, is appointed co-Augustus by his father.
- 394 – The Graffito of Esmet-Akhom, an inscription in Egyptian hieroglyphs, is carved, marking one of the latest instances of this script’s use.
- 410 – King Alaric I of the Visigoths initiates the pillaging of Rome.
- 1185 – Thessalonica falls victim to a devastating sack by Norman forces.
- 1200 – In Angoulême Cathedral, King John of England, a signer of the first Magna Carta, enters into matrimony with Isabella of Angoulême.
- 1215 – Pope Innocent III releases a bull invalidating the Magna Carta.
- 1349 – Mainz witnesses the tragic death of six thousand Jews, unjustly blamed for the spread of the bubonic plague.
- 1482 – An English army captures the town and castle of Berwick-upon-Tweed from Scotland.
- 1516 – The Ottoman Empire, led by Selim I, achieves victory over the Mamluk Sultanate, securing control over present-day Syria in the Battle of Marj Dabiq.
- 1561 – Willem of Orange enters into marriage with Duchess Anna of Saxony.
1601–1900
- 1608 – The inaugural English envoy to India arrives in Surat.
- 1643 – A Dutch fleet establishes a fresh colony in the ruins of Valdivia, situated in southern Chile.
- 1662 – The 1662 Book of Common Prayer becomes legally binding as the liturgy of the Church of England, leading to the Great Ejection of Dissenter ministers from their positions.
- 1682 – William Penn acquires the territory that would later become Delaware and incorporates it into his Pennsylvania colony.
- 1690 – Job Charnock, representing the East India Company, establishes a trading post in Calcutta, an event that was once considered the founding of the city (the Calcutta High Court later determined the city’s true foundation date as unknown in 2003).
- 1743 – The War of the Hats concludes as the Swedish army surrenders to the Russians in Helsinki, marking the end of the war and the beginning of Lesser Wrath.
- 1781 – During the American Revolutionary War, a small contingent of Pennsylvania militia is ambushed and defeated by an American Indian group, compelling George Rogers Clark to abandon his plan to attack Detroit.
- 1789 – The first naval engagement of the Svensksund conflict commences in the Gulf of Finland.
- 1812 – In the Peninsular War, a coalition of Spanish, British, and Portuguese forces successfully lifts the protracted two-and-a-half-year Siege of Cádiz.
- 1814 – British forces invade Washington, D.C., resulting in the Burning of Washington where the White House, Capitol, and numerous other structures are set ablaze.
- 1815 – The contemporary Constitution of the Netherlands is ratified.
- 1816 – The Treaty of St. Louis is signed in St. Louis, Missouri.
- 1820 – A constitutionalist insurrection erupts in Oporto, Portugal.
- 1821 – The Treaty of Córdoba is executed in Córdoba, now in Veracruz, Mexico, effectively concluding the Mexican War of Independence from Spain.
- 1857 – The Panic of 1857 commences, triggering one of the most severe economic crises in the history of the United States.
- 1870 – The Wolseley expedition arrives in Manitoba to quell the Red River Rebellion.
- 1898 – Count Muravyov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, presents a rescript that convenes the First Hague Peace Conference.
1901–present
- 1909 – The pouring of concrete for the Panama Canal commences.
- 1911 – Manuel de Arriaga is elected as the first President of Portugal and sworn into office.
- 1914 – German troops capture Namur during World War I.
- 1914 – The Battle of Cer concludes, marking the first Allied victory in World War I.
- 1929 – On the second day of the two-day Hebron massacre amid the 1929 Palestine riots, attacks on the Jewish community in Hebron lead to the deaths of 65–68 Jews, prompting the remaining Jewish residents to flee the city.
- 1931 – The United Kingdom’s Second Labour Government resigns, leading to the formation of the UK National Government.
- 1932 – Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to fly non-stop across the United States, traveling from Los Angeles to Newark, New Jersey.
- 1933 – The Crescent Limited train derails in Washington, D.C., due to the destruction of the bridge it was crossing caused by the 1933 Chesapeake–Potomac hurricane.
- 1936 – The Australian Antarctic Territory is established.
- 1937 – Following the Santoña Agreement, the Basque Army surrenders to the Italian Corpo Truppe Volontarie during the Spanish Civil War.
- 1937 – The Sovereign Council of Asturias and León is proclaimed in Gijón, Spain, as a result of the Spanish Civil War.
- 1938 – In the Kweilin incident, a Japanese warplane shoots down the Chinese civilian airliner Kweilin, marking the first recorded instance of a civilian airliner being downed by military action.
- 1941 – Adolf Hitler orders the cessation of Nazi Germany’s systematic T4 euthanasia program of the mentally ill and the handicapped due to protests, although the killings continue throughout the war.
- 1942 – The Battle of the Eastern Solomons during World War II sees the sinking of the Japanese aircraft carrier Ryūjō and significant damage to the US carrier USS Enterprise.
- 1944 – Allied troops initiate an attack on Paris during World War II.
- 1949 – The treaty establishing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) goes into effect.
- 1950 – Edith Sampson becomes the first black U.S. delegate to the United Nations.
- 1951 – United Air Lines Flight 615 crashes near Decoto, California, resulting in the deaths of 50 people.
- 1954 – The Communist Control Act comes into effect, outlawing the American Communist Party.
- 1954 – Vice President João Café Filho assumes the presidency of Brazil following the suicide of Getúlio Vargas.
- 1963 – In the Buddhist crisis, as a consequence of the Xá Lợi Pagoda raids, the US State Department cables the United States Embassy in Saigon, encouraging Army of the Republic of Vietnam generals to launch a coup against President Ngô Đình Diệm if he doesn’t remove his brother Ngô Đình Nhu.
- 1967 – Led by Abbie Hoffman, the Youth International Party disrupts trading at the New York Stock Exchange by throwing dollar bills from the viewing gallery, causing trading to halt as brokers scramble to collect the money.
- 1970 – Vietnam War protesters bomb Sterling Hall at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, leading to an international manhunt for the perpetrators.
- 1981 – Mark David Chapman is sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for the murder of John Lennon.
- 1989 – Colombian drug barons declare “total war” on the Colombian government.
- 1989 – Tadeusz Mazowiecki becomes the first non-communist prime minister in Central and Eastern Europe.
- 1991 – Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as head of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
- 1991 – Ukraine declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
- 1992 – Hurricane Andrew makes landfall in Homestead, Florida, as a Category 5 hurricane, causing up to $25 billion (1992 USD) in damages.
- 1995 – Microsoft Windows 95 is released to the public in North America.
- 1998 – The first radio-frequency identification (RFID) human implantation is tested in the United Kingdom.
- 2001 – Air Transat Flight 236 loses all engine power over the Atlantic Ocean, forcing the pilots to conduct an emergency landing in the Azores.
- 2004 – Ninety passengers die after two airliners explode after departing from Domodedovo International Airport near Moscow, due to suicide bombers from Chechnya.
- 2006 – The International Astronomical Union (IAU) redefines the term “planet,” classifying Pluto as a dwarf planet.
- 2008 – Iran Aseman Airlines Flight 6895 crashes during an emergency landing at Manas International Airport in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, resulting in the deaths of 65 passengers.
- 2008 – A Cessna 208 Caravan crashes in Cabañas, Zacapa, Guatemala, killing 11 people.
- 2010 – Los Zetas kills 72 illegal immigrants in San Fernando, Tamaulipas, Mexico.
- 2010 – Henan Airlines Flight 8387 crashes at Yichun Lindu Airport in Yichun, Heilongjiang, China, killing 44 out of the 96 people on board.
- 2010 – Agni Air Flight 101 crashes near Shikharpur, Makwanpur, Nepal, killing all 14 people on board.
- 2012 – Anders Behring Breivik, perpetrator of the 2011 Norway attacks, is sentenced to 21 years of preventive detention.
- 2014 – A magnitude 6.0 earthquake strikes the San Francisco Bay Area, the largest in the area since 1989.
- 2016 – An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.2 hits Central Italy, causing around 300 casualties and aftershocks felt as far as Rome and Florence.
- 2017 – The National Space Organization of Taiwan successfully launches the observation satellite Formosat-5 into space.
- 2020 – Erin O’Toole is elected leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.
Births List - World Wide
Pre-1600
- 1016 – Japanese empress consort Fujiwara no Genshi (d. 1039) is born.
- 1113 – Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou (d. 1151), comes into the world.
- 1198 – Alexander II of Scotland (d. 1249) is born.
- 1358 – John I of Castile (d. 1390) comes into the world.
- 1393 – Arthur III, Duke of Brittany (d. 1458), is born.
- 1423 – English cleric Thomas Rotherham (d. 1500) is born.
- 1498 – John, Hereditary Prince of Saxony (d. 1537), comes into the world.
- 1510 – Elisabeth of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brunswick-Calenberg-Göttingen (d. 1558), is born.
- 1552 – Italian painter and educator Lavinia Fontana (d. 1614) is born.
- 1556 – Danish horticulturalist and astronomer Sophia Brahe (d. 1643) is born.
- 1561 – Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk (d. 1626), is born.
- 1578 – English poet and author John Taylor (d. 1653) is born.
- 1591 – English poet and cleric Robert Herrick (d. 1674) is born.
1601–1900
- 1631 – English minister Philip Henry (d. 1696) is born.
- 1635 – Danish lawyer and politician Peder Griffenfeld (d. 1699) comes into the world.
- 1684 – British politician Sir Robert Munro, 6th Baronet (d. 1746), is born.
- 1714 – Burmese king Alaungpaya (d. 1760) is born.
- 1758 – Duchess Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (d. 1794) is born.
- 1759 – English philanthropist and politician William Wilberforce (d. 1833) is born.
- 1772 – William I of the Netherlands (d. 1840) is born.
- 1787 – Belgian-English sailor, hunter, and explorer James Weddell (d. 1834) is born.
- 1824 – Italian geologist and scholar Antonio Stoppani (d. 1891) is born.
- 1837 – French organist, composer, and educator Théodore Dubois (d. 1924) is born.
- 1843 – Australian politician Boyd Dunlop Morehead, 10th Premier of Queensland (d. 1905), is born.
- 1845 – American lieutenant James Calhoun (d. 1876) is born.
- 1851 – Australian cricketer and journalist Tom Kendall (d. 1924) is born.
- 1852 – English culinary entrepreneur, inventor, and celebrity chef Agnes Marshall (d. 1905) is born.
- 1860 – Australian lawyer and politician David Bowman (d. 1916) is born.
- 1862 – American geographer and geologist Zonia Baber (d. 1956) is born.
- 1863 – Croatian explorer Dragutin Lerman (d. 1918) is born.
- 1865 – Ferdinand I of Romania (d. 1927) is born.
- 1872 – English essayist, parodist, and caricaturist Max Beerbohm (d. 1956) is born.
- 1884 – American author and playwright Earl Derr Biggers (d. 1933) is born.
- 1887 – American baseball player Harry Hooper (d. 1974) is born.
- 1888 – Welsh co-founder of the Martin-Baker Aircraft Company Valentine Baker (d. 1942) is born.
- 1890 – American swimmer, actor, and surfer Duke Kahanamoku (d. 1968) is born.
- 1890 – Dominican-English novelist Jean Rhys (d. 1979) is born.
- 1893 – German-Israeli biochemist and academic Haim Ernst Wertheimer (d. 1978) is born.
- 1895 – American cardinal Richard Cushing (d. 1970) is born.
- 1897 – American pianist, songwriter, and publisher Fred Rose (d. 1954) is born.
- 1898 – American novelist, poet, and literary critic Malcolm Cowley (d. 1989) is born.
- 1899 – Argentine short-story writer, essayist, poet, and translator Jorge Luis Borges (d. 1986) is born.
- 1899 – Belgian biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate Albert Claude (d. 1983) is born.
1901–present
- 1901 – American actor Preston Foster (d. 1970) is born.
- 1902 – French historian and academic Fernand Braudel (d. 1985) is born.
- 1902 – Italian-American mob boss Carlo Gambino (d. 1976) is born.
- 1903 – German businessman and politician Karl Hanke (d. 1945) is born.
- 1904 – English campaigner for Jewish refugees and romantic novelist Ida Cook (Mary Burchell) (d. 1986) is born.
- 1905 – American singer-songwriter and guitarist Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup (d. 1974) is born.
- 1905 – Sierra Leonean police officer and politician, 1st President of Sierra Leone Siaka Stevens (d. 1988) is born.
- 1907 – Swiss architect Bruno Giacometti (d. 2012), who designed the Hallenstadion, is born.
- 1908 – Indian activist Shivaram Rajguru (d. 1931) is born.
- 1909 – South African cricketer and soldier Ronnie Grieveson (d. 1998) is born.
- 1913 – American physician and mountaineer Charles Snead Houston (d. 2009) is born.
- 1915 – American singer and guitarist Wynonie Harris (d. 1969) is born.
- 1915 – American psychologist and science fiction author James Tiptree Jr. (Alice Bradley Sheldon) (d. 1987) is born.
- 1918 – Indian field hockey player and politician Sikander Bakht (d. 2004) is born.
- 1919 – Member of the Polish resistance in World War II Tosia Altman (d. 1943) is born.
- 1919 – American entomologist, mountaineer, and DDT advocate J. Gordon Edwards (d. 2004) is born.
- 1919 – Mexican wrestler Enrique Llanes (d. 2004) is born.
- 1920 – Canadian painter and academic Alex Colville (d. 2013) is born.
- 1921 – English ornithologist and conservationist Eric Simms (d. 2009) is born.
- 1922 – Canadian journalist and politician René Lévesque (d. 1987) is born.
- 1922 – American historian, author, and activist Howard Zinn (d. 2010) is born.
- 1923 – American psychologist and academic Arthur Jensen (d. 2012) is born.
- 1924 – English singer and conductor Alyn Ainsworth (d. 1990) is born.
- 1924 – American pianist Louis Teicher (d. 2008) is born.
- 1926 – American painter and academic Nancy Spero (d. 2009) is born.
- 1927 – Indian actress and producer Anjali Devi (d. 2014) is born.
- 1927 – Australian author and playwright David Ireland (d. 2022) is born.
- 1927 – American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate Harry Markowitz (d. 2023) is born.
- 1929 – American author and educator Betty Dodson (d. 2020) is born.
- 1930 – American pop-soul singer Jackie Brenston (d. 1979) is born.
- 1930 – American race car driver Roger McCluskey (d. 1993) is born.
- 1932 – American captain and religious leader Robert D. Hales (d. 2017) is born.
- 1932 – Australian pianist and composer Richard Meale (d. 2009) is born.
- 1932 – English cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor (d. 2017) is born.
- 1933 – Spanish-English banker and manager Prince Rupert Loewenstein (d. 2014) is born.
- 1934 – English actor Kenny Baker (d. 2016) is born.
- 1936 – English novelist and poet A. S. Byatt is born.
- 1936 – American banker and politician Kenny Guinn (d. 2010) is born.
- 1936 – American physicist and academic Arthur B. C. Walker Jr. (d. 2001) is born.
- 1937 – Nigerian businessman and politician Moshood Abiola (d. 1998) is born.
- 1937 – Austrian-American journalist and author Susan Sheehan is born.
- 1938 – American singer and bass player David Freiberg is born.
- 1938 – American guitarist and composer Mason Williams is born.
- 1940 – British academic Madsen Pirie, President and co-founder of the Adam Smith Institute, is born.
- 1940 – Canadian educator and politician Francine Lalonde (d. 2014) is born.
- 1940 – English rugby player Keith Savage is born.
- 1941 – English academic Alan M. Roberts, Professor of Zoology at the University of Bristol, is born.
- 1942 – American captain and politician Max Cleland (d. 2021) is born.
- 1942 – American pop-soul singer Jimmy Soul (d. 1988) is born.
- 1943 – American rock guitarist John Cipollina (d. 1989) is born.
- 1944 – Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach Bill Goldsworthy (d. 1996) is born.
- 1944 – American engineer and astronaut Gregory Jarvis (d. 1986) is born.
- 1944 – Canadian-American wrestler and trainer Rocky Johnson (d. 2020) is born.
- 1945 – American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress Ronee Blakley is born.
- 1945 – Scottish saxophonist Molly Duncan (d. 2019) is born.
- 1945 – English rock singer-songwriter and musician Ken Hensley (d. 2020) is born.
- 1945 – American gay liberation activist and drag queen Marsha P. Johnson (d. 1992) is born.
- 1945 – American wrestler, promoter, and entrepreneur Vince McMahon is born.
- 1947 – American actress and producer Anne Archer is born.
- 1947 – Brazilian author and songwriter Paulo Coelho is born.
- 1947 – Belgian cyclist and coach Roger De Vlaeminck is born.
- 1947 – American politician Joe Manchin is born.
- 1947 – Russian admiral Vladimir Masorin is born.
- 1948 – South Korean commander and pilot Kim Sung-il is born.
- 1948 – French pianist, composer, and producer Jean Michel Jarre is born.
- 1948 – Finnish captain and politician Sauli Niinistö is born.
- 1948 – Rhodesian-Scottish author and educator Alexander McCall Smith is born.
- 1949 – American composer and educator Stephen Paulus (d.2014) is born.
- 1949 – American actor and director Joe Regalbuto is born.
- 1951 – American southern rock singer-songwriter and musician Danny Joe Brown (d. 2005) is born.
- 1951 – American novelist, critic, and public speaker Orson Scott Card is born.
- 1951 – American author and academic Oscar Hijuelos (d. 2013) is born.
- 1952 – Dutch author, director, and painter Marion Bloem is born.
- 1952 – Jamaican dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson is born.
- 1953 – Scottish golfer Sam Torrance is born.
- 1954 – Canadian ice hockey player Alain Daigle is born.
- 1954 – Dutch footballer Heini Otto is born.
- 1955 – American actor Kevin Dunn is born.
- 1955 – American minister and politician, 44th Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee is born.
- 1956 – American boxer Gerry Cooney is born.
- 1956 – Singaporean singer-songwriter and playwright Dick Lee is born.
- 1957 – American journalist and producer Jeffrey Daniel is born.
- 1957 – English actor, journalist, producer, and screenwriter Stephen Fry is born.
- 1958 – American actor and producer Steve Guttenberg is born.
- 1959 – English social worker and politician Meg Munn is born.
- 1960 – American baseball player and coach Cal Ripken Jr. is born.
- 1961 – English actor Jared Harris is born.
- 1962 – American television host Craig Kilborn is born.
- 1962 – Dutch educator and politician Emile Roemer is born.
- 1963 – American singer-songwriter John Bush is born.
- 1963 – Japanese director, screenwriter, and video game designer Hideo Kojima is born.
- 1963 – Filipino lawyer and politician Francis Pangilinan is born.
- 1964 – French racing driver Éric Bernard is born.
- 1964 – Surinamese-Dutch footballer Mark de Vries is born.
- 1965 – English rower and academic Simon Dennis is born.
- 1965 – Australian actor, writer, director, and producer Alex O’Loughlin is born.
- 1967 – Brazilian footballer Denílson de Oliveira Araújo is born.
- 1967 – German footballer Robert Enke (d. 2009) is born.
- 1967 – Danish footballer Per Gade is born.
- 1967 – American author and vlogger John Green is born.
- 1967 – Austrian footballer Jürgen Macho is born.
- 1968 – Canadian ice hockey player Derek Morris is born.
- 1969 – Estonian author and poet Vahur Afanasjev is born.
- 1969 – Dutch footballer Orlando Engelaar is born.
- 1969 – American basketball player Michael Redd is born.
- 1970 – British academic and co-founder of the Adam Smith Institute Madsen Pirie is born.
- 1970 – American banker and politician Kenny Guinn (d. 2010) is born.
- 1970 – Dutch footballer Arthur B. C. Walker Jr. is born.
- 1971 – Doug Ireland, American journalist and author (d. 2013)
- 1972 – Alexander Seibel, German sprinter
- 1973 – Antonio Spínola, Spanish rugby player
- 1974 – Josué Anunciado de Oliveira, Brazilian footballer
- 1975 – Claudia Kolb, German sprinter
- 1976 – Orlando Luz, Brazilian drummer
- 1977 – Sophie Mörner, Swedish photographer and director
- 1978 – Aaron Peirsol, American swimmer
- 1979 – Joe Cotton, New Zealand singer
- 1980 – Benjamin Harrison, Australian actor
- 1981 – Luis Ernesto Pérez, Mexican footballer
- 1982 – Austin Peck, American actor
- 1983 – Sebastian Kurz, Austrian politician; 25th Chancellor of Austria
- 1984 – Jeff Francoeur, American baseball player
- 1985 – Simona de Silvestro, Swiss race car driver
- 1985 – Shaun White, American snowboarder, skateboarder, and guitarist
- 1986 – Michalis Sifakis, Greek footballer
- 1986 – Patrick van Luijk, Dutch sprinter
- 1987 – Melanie Oudin, American tennis player
- 1987 – Jan Smeekens, Dutch speed skater
- 1988 – Patrick van Aanholt, Dutch footballer
- 1988 – Bobby Lashley, American wrestler and mixed martial artist
- 1989 – Miku, Japanese footballer
- 1990 – Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Dutch swimmer
- 1990 – Aleksandr Samokutyayev, Russian engineer and astronaut
- 1991 – Aleksandrs Cauņa, Latvian footballer
- 1991 – Ivo Karlović, Croatian tennis player
- 1992 – Stefano Okaka, Italian footballer
- 1993 – Francisco Rodríguez, Mexican footballer
- 1994 – Davor Lovren, Croatian footballer
- 1995 – Shuhei Otsuka, Japanese actor and model
- 1995 – Bobbi Salvör Menuez, American actor, writer, model, and musician
- 1995 – Igor Shestyorkin, Russian ice hockey player
- 1997 – Sreelakshmi Suresh, Indian author and illustrator
- 1998 – Thabo Cele, South African footballer
- 1998 – Chelsea Olivia Wijaya, Indonesian actress
- 1999 – Maddie Ziegler, American dancer, actress and model
- 2000 – Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway
- 2001 – In 2001, Mildred Maldonado, a rhythmic gymnast from Mexico, was born.
August 24 Death - World Wide
Pre-1600
- 691 – Fu Youyi, an official of the Tang Dynasty
- 842 – Saga, the Japanese emperor (born in 786)
- 895 – Guthred, the king of Northumbria
- 927 – Doulu Ge, a chancellor of Later Tang
- 927 – Wei Yue, a chancellor of Later Tang
- 942 – Liu, the empress dowager of Later Jin
- 948 – Zhang Ye, a Chinese general and chancellor
- 1042 – Michael V Kalaphates, a Byzantine emperor (born in 1015)
- 1103 – Magnus Barefoot, the Norwegian king (born in 1073)
- 1217 – Eustace the Monk, a French pirate (born in 1170)
- 1313 – Henry VII, the Holy Roman Emperor (born in 1275)
- 1372 – Casimir III, Duke of Pomerania (born in 1348)
- 1497 – Sophie of Pomerania, Duchess of Pomerania (born in 1435)
- 1507 – Cecily of York, an English princess (born in 1469)
- 1540 – Parmigianino, an Italian painter and etcher (born in 1503)
- 1542 – Gasparo Contarini, an Italian cardinal (born in 1483)
- 1572 – Gaspard II de Coligny, a French admiral (born in 1519)
- 1572 – Charles de Téligny, a French soldier and diplomat (born in 1535)
- 1595 – Thomas Digges, an English mathematician and astronomer (born in 1546)
1601–1900
- 1617 – Rose of Lima, a Peruvian saint (born in 1586)
- 1647 – Nicholas Stone, an English sculptor and architect (born in 1586)
- 1679 – Jean François Paul de Gondi, a French cardinal and author (born in 1614)
- 1680 – Thomas Blood, an Irish colonel (born in 1618)
- 1680 – Ferdinand Bol, a Dutch painter and etcher (born in 1616)
- 1683 – John Owen, an English theologian and academic (born in 1616)
- 1759 – Ewald Christian von Kleist, a German poet and soldier (born in 1715)
- 1770 – Thomas Chatterton, an English poet and prodigy (born in 1752)
- 1779 – Cosmas of Aetolia, a Greek monk and saint (born in 1714)
- 1798 – Thomas Alcock, an English priest and author (born in 1709)
- 1804 – Peggy Shippen, an American wife of Benedict Arnold and American Revolutionary War spy (born in 1760)
- 1818 – James Carr, an American lawyer and politician (born in 1777)
- 1821 – John William Polidori, an English writer and physician (born in 1795)
- 1832 – Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot, a French physicist and engineer (born in 1796)
- 1832 – Richard Weymouth, a British Royal Navy commander (born in 1780/81)
- 1838 – Ferenc Kölcsey, a Hungarian poet, critic, and politician (born in 1790)
- 1841 – Theodore Hook, an English civil servant and composer (born in 1788)
- 1841 – John Ordronaux, a French-American soldier (born in 1778)
- 1888 – Rudolf Clausius, a German physicist and mathematician (born in 1822)
- 1895 – Albert F. Mummery, an English mountaineer and author (born in 1855)
1901–present
- 1923 – Kate Douglas Wiggin, an American author and educator (born in 1856)
- 1930 – Tom Norman, an English businessman and showman (born in 1860)
- 1932 – Kate M. Gordon, an American activist (born in 1861)
- 1939 – Frederick Carl Frieseke, an American painter and educator (born in 1874)
- 1940 – Paul Gottlieb Nipkow, a Polish-German technician and inventor, known for inventing the Nipkow disk (born in 1860)
- 1943 – Antonio Alice, an Argentinian painter and educator (born in 1886)
- 1943 – Simone Weil, a French philosopher and activist (born in 1909)
- 1946 – James Clark McReynolds, an American lawyer and judge, 48th United States Attorney General (born in 1862)
- 1954 – Getúlio Vargas, a Brazilian lawyer and politician, 14th President of Brazil (born in 1882)
- 1956 – Kenji Mizoguchi, a Japanese director and screenwriter (born in 1898)
- 1958 – Paul Henry, an Irish painter and educator (born in 1876)
- 1967 – Henry J. Kaiser, an American businessman, founder of Kaiser Shipyards and Kaiser Aluminum (born in 1882)
- 1974 – Alexander P. de Seversky, a Russian-American pilot and businessman, co-founder of Republic Aviation (born in 1894)
- 1977 – Buddy O’Connor, a Canadian ice hockey player (born in 1916)
- 1978 – Louis Prima, an American singer-songwriter, trumpet player, and actor (born in 1910)
- 1979 – Hanna Reitsch, a German soldier and pilot (born in 1912)
- 1980 – Yootha Joyce, an English actress (born in 1927)
- 1982 – Félix-Antoine Savard, a Canadian priest and author (born in 1896)
- 1983 – Kalevi Kotkas, an Estonian-Finnish high jumper and discus thrower (born in 1913)
- 1983 – Scott Nearing, an American economist, educator, and activist (born in 1883)
- 1985 – Paul Creston, an American composer and educator (born in 1906)
- 1987 – Malcolm Kirk, an English rugby player and wrestler (born in 1936)
- 1990 – Sergei Dovlatov, a Russian-American journalist and author (born in 1941)
- 1990 – Gely Abdel Rahman, a Sudanese-Egyptian poet and academic (born in 1931)
- 1991 – Bernard Castro, an Italian-American inventor (born in 1904)
- 1992 – André Donner, a Dutch academic and judge (born in 1918)
- 1997 – Luigi Villoresi, an Italian racing driver (born in 1907)
- 1998 – E. G. Marshall, an American actor (born in 1910)
- 1999 – Mary Jane Croft, an American actress (born in 1916)
- 1999 – Alexandre Lagoya, an Egyptian guitarist and composer (born in 1929)
- 2000 – Andy Hug, a Swiss martial artist and kick-boxer (born in 1964)
- 2001 – Jane Greer, an American actress (born in 1924)
- 2001 – Roman Matsov, an Estonian violinist, pianist, and conductor (born in 1917)
- 2002 – Nikolay Guryanov, a Russian priest and mystic (born in 1909)
- 2003 – Wilfred Thesiger, an Ethiopian-English explorer and author (born in 1910)
- 2004 – Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, a Swiss-American psychiatrist and academic (born in 1926)
- 2006 – Rocco Petrone, an American soldier and engineer (born in 1926)
- 2006 – Léopold Simoneau, a Canadian tenor and educator (born in 1916)
- 2007 – Andrée Boucher, a Canadian educator and politician, 39th Mayor of Quebec City (born in 1937)
- 2007 – Aaron Russo, an American director and producer (born in 1943)
- 2010 – Satoshi Kon, a Japanese director and screenwriter (born in 1963)
- 2011 – Seyhan Erözçelik, a Turkish poet and author (born in 1962)
- 2011 – Mike Flanagan, an American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster (born in 1951)
- 2012 – Dadullah, a Pakistani Taliban leader (born in 1965)
- 2012 – Pauli Ellefsen, a Faroese surveyor and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands (born in 1936)
- 2012 – Steve Franken, an American actor (born in 1932)
- 2012 – Félix Miélli Venerando, a Brazilian footballer and manager (born in 1937)
- 2013 – Gerry Baker, an American soccer player and manager (born in 1938)
- 2013 – Nílton de Sordi, a Brazilian footballer and manager (born in 1931)
- 2013 – Julie Harris, an American actress (born in 1925)
- 2013 – Muriel Siebert, an American businesswoman and philanthropist (born in 1928)
- 2014 – Richard Attenborough, an English actor, director, producer, and politician (born in 1923)
- 2014 – Antônio Ermírio de Moraes, a Brazilian businessman (born in 1928)
- 2015 – Charlie Coffey, an American football player and coach (born in 1934)
- 2015 – Joseph F. Traub, a German-American computer scientist and academic (born in 1932)
- 2015 – Justin Wilson, an English racing driver (born in 1978)
- 2016 – Walter Scheel, a German politician, 4th President of Germany (born in 1919)
- 2017 – Jay Thomas, an American actor, comedian, and radio talk show host (born in 1948)
- 2020 – Gail Sheehy, an American author, journalist, and lecturer (born in 1936)
- 2021 – Charlie Watts, an English musician (born in 1941)
24 August Holidays- World Wide
Christian observances:
– Feast of Abbán of Ireland
– Feast of Aurea of Ostia
– Feast of Bartholomew the Apostle (Roman Catholic and Anglican)
– Commemoration of Jeanne-Antide Thouret
– Commemoration of Maria Micaela Desmaisieres
– Martyrs of Utica (Massa Candida)
– Feast of Owen (Audoin)
August 24th in Eastern Orthodox liturgy
Other observances:
– Flag Day in Liberia
– Independence Day or Den’ Nezalezhnosti, commemorating Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991
– International Strange Music Day
– National Waffle Day in the United States
– Nostalgia Night in Uruguay
– Willka Raymi festival in Cusco, Peru
– Kobe Bryant Day (proposed federal holiday in the United States), honoring Kobe Bryant and his two jersey numbers, as well as the day after his birthday
