Events on August 10 55
Year 955
Battle of Lechfeld: Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor defeats the Magyars, ending 50 years of Magyar invasion of the West.
Year 991
Battle of Maldon: The English, led by Byrhtnoth, Ealdorman of Essex, are defeated by a band of inland-raiding Vikings near Maldon, Essex.
Year 1270
Yekuno Amlak takes the imperial throne of Ethiopia, restoring the Solomonic dynasty to power after a 100-year Zagwe interregnum.
Year 1316
The Second Battle of Athenry takes place near Athenry during the Bruce campaign in Ireland.
Year 1512
The naval Battle of Saint-Mathieu, during the War of the League of Cambrai, sees the simultaneous destruction of the Breton ship La Cordelière and the English ship The Regent.
Year 1519
Ferdinand Magellan's five ships set sail from Seville to circumnavigate the globe. The Basque second-in-command Juan Sebastián Elcano will complete the expedition after Magellan's death in the Philippines.
Year 1557
Battle of St. Quentin: Spanish victory over the French in the Italian War of 1551-59.
Year 1628
The Swedish warship Vasa sinks in the Stockholm harbour after only about 20 minutes of her maiden voyage.
Year 1675
The foundation stone of the Royal Greenwich Observatory in London, England is laid.
Year 1741
King Marthanda Varma of Travancore defeats the Dutch East India Company at the Battle of Colachel, effectively bringing about the end of the Dutch colonial rule in India.
Year 1755
Under the orders of Charles Lawrence, the British Army begins to forcibly deport the Acadians from Nova Scotia to the Thirteen Colonies.
Year 1776
American Revolutionary War: Word of the United States Declaration of Independence reaches London.
Year 1792
French Revolution: Storming of the Tuileries Palace: Louis XVI of France is arrested and taken into custody as his Swiss Guards are massacred by the Parisian mob.
Year 1809
Quito, now the capital of Ecuador, declares independence from Spain. This rebellion will be crushed on August 2, 1810.
Year 1813
Instituto Nacional, is founded by the Chilean patriot José Miguel Carrera. It is Chile's oldest and most prestigious school. Its motto is Labor Omnia Vincit, which means "Work conquers all things".
Year 1846
The Smithsonian Institution is chartered by the United States Congress after James Smithson donates $500,000.
Year 1861
American Civil War: Battle of Wilson's Creek: A mixed force of Confederate, Missouri State Guard, and Arkansas State troops defeat outnumbered attacking Union forces in the southwestern part of the state.
Year 1864
After Uruguay's governing Blanco Party refuses Brazil's demands, José Antônio Saraiva announces that the Brazilian military will begin reprisals, beginning the Uruguayan War.
Year 1901
The U.S. Steel recognition strike by the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers begins.
Year 1904
Russo-Japanese War: The Battle of the Yellow Sea between the Russian and Japanese battleship fleets takes place.
Year 1913
Second Balkan War: Delegates from Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, and Greece sign the Treaty of Bucharest, ending the war.
Year 1920
World War I: Ottoman sultan Mehmed VI's representatives sign the Treaty of Sèvres that divides up the Ottoman Empire between the Allies.
Year 1932
A 5.1 kilograms (11 lb) chondrite-type meteorite breaks into at least seven pieces and lands near the town of Archie in Cass County, Missouri.
Year 1944
World War II: The Battle of Narva ends with a combined German-Estonian force successfully defending Narva, Estonia, from invading Soviet troops.
Year 1948
Candid Camera makes its television debut after being on radio for a year as Candid Microphone.
Year 1949
U.S. President Harry S. Truman signs the National Security Act Amendment, streamlining the defense agencies of the United States government, and replacing the Department of War with the United States Department of Defense.
Year 1953
First Indochina War: The French Union withdraws its forces from Operation Camargue against the Viet Minh in central Vietnam.
Year 1954
At Massena, New York, the groundbreaking ceremony for the Saint Lawrence Seaway is held.
Year 1966
The Heron Road Bridge collapses while being built, killing nine workers in the deadliest construction accident in both Ottawa and Ontario.
Year 1969
A day after murdering Sharon Tate and four others, members of Charles Manson's cult kill Leno and Rosemary LaBianca.
Year 1977
In Yonkers, New York, 24-year-old postal employee David Berkowitz ("Son of Sam") is arrested for a series of killings in the New York City area over the period of one year.
Year 1978
Three members of the Ulrich family are killed in an accident. This leads to the Ford Pinto litigation.
Year 1981
Murder of Adam Walsh: The head of John Walsh's son is found. This inspires the creation of the television series America's Most Wanted.
Year 1988
Japanese American internment: U.S. President Ronald Reagan signs the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, providing $20,000 payments to Japanese Americans who were either interned in or relocated by the United States during World War II.
Year 1993
Two earthquakes affect New Zealand. A 7.0 Mw shock (intensity VI (Strong)) on the South Island was followed nine hours later by a 6.4 Mw event (intensity VII (Very strong)) on the North Island.
Year 1995
Oklahoma City bombing: Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols are indicted for the bombing. Michael Fortier pleads guilty in a plea-bargain for his testimony.
Year 1998
HRH Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah is proclaimed the crown prince of Brunei with a Royal Proclamation.
Year 2003
The highest temperature ever recorded in the United Kingdom, 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) in Kent, England. It is the first time the United Kingdom has recorded a temperature over 100 °F (38 °C).
Year 2009
Twenty people are killed in Handlová, Trenčín Region, in the deadliest mining disaster in Slovakia's history.
Year 2012
The Marikana massacre begins near Rustenburg, South Africa, resulting in the deaths of 47 people.
Year 2014
Forty people are killed when Sepahan Airlines Flight 5915 crashes at Tehran's Mehrabad Airport.