Wikipedia:Selected anniversaries/August 18
This is a list of selected August 18 anniversaries that appear in the "On this day" section of the Main Page. To suggest a new item, in most cases, you can be bold and edit this page. Please read the selected anniversaries guidelines before making your edit. However, if your addition might be controversial or on a day that is or will soon be on the Main Page, please post your suggestion on the talk page instead.
Please note that the events listed on the Main Page are chosen based more on relative article quality and to maintain a mix of topics, not based solely on how important or significant their subjects are. Only four to five events are posted at a time and thus not everything that is "most important and significant" can be listed. In addition, an event is generally not posted this year if it is also the subject of the scheduled featured article, featured list or picture of the day.
To report an error when this appears on the Main Page, see Main Page errors. Please remember that this list defers to the supporting articles, so it is best to achieve consensus and make any necessary changes there first.
Images
Use only ONE image at a time
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Marguerite de Valois -
Phobos -
Pierre Jules Janssen
Ineligible
| Blurb | Reason |
|---|---|
| 1572 – French Wars of Religion: Margaret of Valois was wedded to Huguenot King Henry of Navarre, in an attempt to reconcile Protestants and Catholics. | refimprove |
| 1587 – Virginia Dare became the first child born in the Americas to English parents. | {{trivia}}, possibly can combine this with the 1590 Roanoke blurb |
| 1917 – A fire destroyed about 9,500 homes in Thessaloniki, Greece, leaving 70,000 homeless. | {{refimprove}} |
| 1920 – The Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, guaranteeing women's suffrage in that country. | POTD for 2011-08-18 |
| 1976 – North Korean soldiers killed two American soldiers in the Joint Security Area of the Korean Demilitarized Zone, heightening tensions over a 100-foot (30 m) poplar tree that blocked the line of sight between a United Nations Command checkpoint and an observation post. | Tagged with {{refimprove}} |
Eligible
- 1783 – An unusually bright meteor procession blazed across the night sky over Great Britain.
- 1864 – American Civil War: At the Battle of Globe Tavern, Union forces attempted to sever the Weldon Railroad during the Siege of Petersburg.
- 1877 – Asaph Hall discovered Phobos, the larger of Mars' two moons, six days after discovering Deimos, the other one.
- 1966 – Vietnam War: Members from D Company of the 6th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment were surrounded and attacked on all sides by a much larger Viet Cong unit at the Battle of Long Tan, but held them off for several hours until reinforcements arrived.
- 1989 – Leading Colombian presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán was assassinated during a public demonstration in the town of Soacha, Cundinamarca.
August 18: Long Tan Day in Australia (1966)
- 1590 – John White, governor of the Roanoke Colony, returned from England only to find the settlement deserted.
- 1868 – Astronomer Pierre Janssen discovered helium (schematic diagram of nucleus pictured) while analyzing the chromosphere of the sun during a total solar eclipse in Guntur, India.
- 1891 – A hurricane struck Martinique, killing about 700 people, injuring at least 1,000 others, and obliterating houses, trees, and crops across the entire island.
- 1948 – Australia completed a 4–0 Ashes series win, earning them the nickname of "The Invincibles" for being the first Test cricket match side to play an entire tour of England without losing a match.
- 2008 – President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf resigned under impeachment pressure.