1100s / 12th century history on the 5th of August

1100 : Henry I aka Henry Beauclerc was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey, England. He was King of England for 35 years, until his death in 1135, at the age of 66. He was the 4th son of William the Conqueror.

1500s / 16th century history on the 5th of August

1583 : Sir Humphrey Gilbert established the 1st English colony in North America, now known as St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

1600s / 17th century history on the 5th of August

1620 : The Mayflower departed from Southampton, England on its first attempt to reach North America.

1700s / 18th century history on the 5th of August

1735 : New York Weekly Journal writer John Peter Zenger was acquitted of seditious libel against the royal governor of New York, on the basis that what he had published was true. (Freedom of the press)

1800s / 19th century history on the 5th of August

1858 : Cyrus West Field and others completed the 1st transatlantic telegraph cable after several unsuccessful attempts. It only operated for less than a month.

1874 : Japan launched its postal savings system, modeled after a similar system used in the United Kingdom.

1884 : The Statue of Liberty cornerstone was laid on Bedloe’s Island in New York Harbor (now known as Liberty Island).

1888 : Bertha Benz drove from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back in the 1st long distance automobile trip, which was commemorated as the Bertha Benz Memorial Route since 2008. Mercedes Benz official website : Mercedes-Benz.com

1900s / 20th century history on the 5th of August

1901 : Peter O’Connor set the 1st IAAF recognised long jump world record of 24 ft 11.75 in (7.6137 m). The record remained for 20 years.

1908 : Harold Holt, the Australian lawyer, politician, and 17th Prime Minister of Australia was born at his parents’ home in Stanmore, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on the 5th of August. After almost 2 years in office as Australia’s Prime Minister, Harold Holt disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach, Portsea, Victoria, on the 17th December in 1967. His body was never recovered, and he was declared dead in absentia, which caused various conspiracy theories.

1926 : Harry Houdini performed his greatest feat, while being 91 minutes underwater in a sealed tank before escaping.

1930 : Neil Armstrong, the American pilot, aeronautical engineer, and astronaut was born near Wapakoneta, Ohio, USA, on the 5th of August. He was the 1st person to walk on the Moon, on the 20th July 1969. (Neil Armstrong died on the 25th August in 2012, aged 82).

1940 : Rick Huxley, the English bass player from The Dave Clark Five, was born in Dartford, Kent, England, on the 5th of August. (died in 2013 aged 72).

1945 : Loni Anderson, the American actress, was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. She is best known playing Jennifer Marlowe on the WKRP in Cincinnati television sitcom, from 1978 to 1982, which she won 3 Golden Globe Awards, and 2 Emmy Award nominations.

1947 : Angry Anderson (AM) the Australian singer & actor, was born Gary Stephen Anderson in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He is best known as the lead singer of the Rose Tattoo hard rock band, since 1976. Official website : RoseTattoo.com.au

1951 : Samantha Sang, the Australian pop singer was born in Melbourne, Australia.

1952 : John Jarratt, the Australian actor & producer, was born in Wongawilli, New South Wales.

1957 : American Bandstand show debuted on the ABC television network.

1958 : Herbert Hoover eclipsed John Adams as having the longest retirement of any former U.S President until that time. Hoover lived another 6 years, his record 31 years, 7 months &16 days retirement has since been eclipsed by Jimmy Carter.

1960 : Burkina Faso (originally known as Upper Volta) became independent from France.

1962 : Nelson Mandela was jailed. He wasn’t released until 1990.

1963 : A nuclear test ban treaty was signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union

1967 : Matthew Caws, the American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Nada Surf was born in New York City on the 5th of August. Official website : NadaSurf.com

1969 : Mariner 7 made its closest fly-by of Mars, at a distance of 3,524 kilometers.

1971 : The first Pacific Islands Forum (originally known as the South Pacific Forum) was held in Wellington, New Zealand, with the aim of enhancing cooperation between the independent countries of the Pacific Ocean. Official website : forumsec.org

1974 : The U.S. Congress placed a $1 billion limit on military aid to South Vietnam during Vietnam War.

1981 : President Ronald Reagan fired 11,359 striking air-traffic controllers who ignored his order for them to return to work.

1992 : Jeff Porcaro the American drummer from Toto died at the age of 38 (born in 1954).

1995 : The city of Knin, in Croatia, a Serb stronghold, was captured by Croatian forces during Operation Storm during the Yugoslav Wars. The date is celebrated in Croatia as Victory Day.

2000s / 21st century history on the 5th of August

2000 : Alec Guinness, the English actor, died at the age of 86 (born in 1914).

2001 : Christopher Skase, the Australian businessman, died aged 52 (born in 1948).

2008 : Reg Lindsay, the Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist, died aged 79 (born in 1929).

2010 : The Copiapó mining accident occurred, trapping 33 Chilean miners 2,300 ft (700 m) approximately below the ground.

2021 : Brian Weir Henderson (AM) the Australian television news anchor died aged 89 (born in 1931). He was also the host of Bandstand, the Australian version of the US music program, and a winner of the Gold Logie award.

2021 : Victoria in Australia entered its 6th COVID-19 lockdown, with the enactment of stage 4 restrictions, across the whole state of Victoria.

2022 : JUDiTH DURHAM (AO) the Australian singer died aged 79. She was best known as the lead singer of The Seekers, from the age of 20, in 1963. The Seekers sold over 50 million records worldwide, Judith Durham was named Victorian of the Year in 2015. Official websites : JudithDurham.com | TheSeekers.com.au

Thank you for visiting the 5th of August

please visit again to see the regular updates for this day

see more of the interesting events on all the other DAYS of AUGUST (History On This Day @ Azoosh) or see the other MONTHS of the Year (History On This Day @ Azoosh)

This page was last updated on the 6th August 2022

[this page contains a total of 1593 words]