On this Day

Latest pastime for the work-challenged, is to put the date of their birth into Wikipedia and see what they may claim as an association. My birthday is 15 August. Seems to have been a busy day down through time.
So – why am I so bored?
Events
778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, in which Roland is killed
927 - The Saracens conquered and destroyed Taranto
1057 - King MacBeth of Scotland is killed during the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of King Malcolm III.
1309 - The city of Rhodes surrenders to the forces of the Knights of St. John, completing their conquest of Rhodes. The knights establish their headquartes on the island, and rename themselves as the Knights of Rhodes.
1534 - The Society of Jesus is founded by Ignatius of Loyola with Francis Xavier and other students
1549 - Jesuit priest Francis Xavier comes ashore at Kagoshima (Traditional Japanese date: July 22, 1549). (He’s a fast mover – the order was only formed 16 years before!)
1620 - The Mayflower departs Southampton, England.
1824 - Freed American slaves form Liberia.
1863 - The Satsuma war begins between the Satsuma clan and the United Kingdom (Traditional Japanese date: July 2, 1863).
1877 - Thomas Edison makes the first-ever recording - "Mary Had a Little Lamb"
1914 - The Panama Canal opens to traffic
1920 - Polish-Soviet War: Battle of Warsaw - Poles defeat the Red Army.
1945 - World War II: Victory over Japan Day - Japan surrenders.
1945 - World War II: Korean Liberation Day
1947 - India gains independence from the United Kingdom. Jawaharlal Nehru takes office as the first Prime Minister of India
1948 - The Republic of Korea is established south of 38th Parallel
1961 - Construction begins on the Berlin Wall,
1973 - Vietnam War: The United States bombing of Cambodia ends
1998 - Omagh bomb in Northern Ireland, becoming the worst terrorist incident of The Troubles
Births
1001 - King Duncan I of Scotland (d. 1040)
1717 - Blind Jack, English roadbuilder (d. 1810)
1769 - Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France (d. 1821)
1785 - Thomas De Quincey, English author (d. 1859)
1912 - Julia Child, American cook (d. 2004)
1912 - Dame Wendy Hiller, English actress (d. 2003)
1917 - Jack Lynch, fourth President of Ireland (d. 1999)
1925 - Oscar Peterson, Canadian jazz pianist
1944 - Sylvie Vartan, French pop singer
1945 - Mahamandaleshwar Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda, Indian guru
1950 - Princess Anne of the United Kingdom

Deaths
778 - Roland, Frankish commander (killed in battle)
1057 - King Macbeth I of Scotland
1935 - Wiley Post, American pilot (b. 1898)
1935 - Will Rogers, American humorist and actor (b. 1879)
1999 - Sir Hugh Casson, British architect and artist (b. 1910)
2005 - James Dougherty, first husband of Marilyn Monroe (leukemia)
Holidays and observances
Eastern Orthodoxy – Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos, the commemoration of the death of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
RC Saints – Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, Holy Day of Obligation. Public Holiday in: Austria, Belgium, Cameroon, Chile, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, East Timor, France, Greece, India, Italy, Lebanon, Lithuania, Malta, Mauritius, Poland, Portugal, Seychelles, Slovenia and Spain.
Egypt – Flooding of the Nile Day
Hawaii – Toro Nagashi (Floating Lantern Ceremony) to commemorate the end of the second world war
India – Independence Day (from the United Kingdom, 1947)
Italy – "Ferragosto", remembrance of an ancient Roman holiday in honor of Augustus (Feriae Augusti)
Korea – Liberation Day